au, I agree, but the two wrongs are being enforced by the same body of our government. c.i.
CI - That you don't understand my point does not mean it made no sense, and I was one of those people who served this country, so I am damn well entitled to an opinion about those people.
How about you? Hmmm?
Kinda haughty on the comments aren't we?
Scrat, I served four years in the US Air Force. Our son served over 12 years in the US Air Force as a Weapon's Officer, and served twice in Gulf War I. My brother-in-law served over 20 years in the US Air Force, and flew in the Vietnam War. c.i.
With all due respect, why does having served in the military put one in a special position? Our political system doesn't (yet!) create a special class of people whose political views have more validity than another group. Or have I misread Scrat's comments, above?
PS -- Nor do we refer to the military as "those people" -- which always sounds like a put down, whether one is talking about plumbers, colonels, or any other professional or social or economic group.
Tartar, I'm just answering Scrat's question. c.i.
CI - Then not only should you know that citing "base" pay is meaningless, but I have to assume you intend to mislead people in doing so.
So Scrat, tell us what your bona fides are?
Scrat, I don't intend to "mislead" anybody. I posted the base pay for everybody to come to their own conclusion. There are only two possible conclusion; military pay is good or it is bad. Some people will say it's "adequate," but adequate for who? c.i.
It has been my experience, that for the most part, (notice all the qualifiers?) that most people in the Armed Forces are single when they enlist to serve. Most live in a barracks on base and eat at the chow hall, have the clothes they wear on duty paid for and have free medical that is not deducted from their pay. In these cases, the pay scale is more than adequate. If you happen to have a base near you, drive by the barracks and look at the cars that these guys and girls drive. most are newer and are in great shape.
For those that enlist and are married, life can sometimes be rougher. The pay scale is the same, but when you have a family to take care of, the payscale may seem a little low. Many times the spouse will also work to help support the family, making the family more of a modern family than an oddity.
Everyone who enlists in the armed service is aware of the low pay, but they are also aware of the many benefits.
cicerone imposter wrote:Scrat, I don't intend to "mislead" anybody. I posted the base pay for everybody to come to their own conclusion. There are only two possible conclusion; military pay is good or it is bad. Some people will say it's "adequate," but adequate for who? c.i.
You knowingly provided incomplete and misleading information, intending them to draw the conclusion you would like them to draw. You KNOW base pay is the "floor" and does not represent what military personnel actually get paid (and that's not even factoring in other benefits that further raise their "effective" pay level).
Someone with no military experience might misunderstand the issue, but since I know you are intelligent enough to understand the facts, the only other option is that you are knowingly trying to paint a false picture.
If anyone is being misleading it is you Scrat - c.i. was not - he put the true information for everyone to make there own decision!
What are your bona fides Scrat? Mine and c.i. bona fides have been listed all over this site many times - you arrogantly questioned his - what are yours?
You guys are beginning to make this personal. Might I respectfully suggest that you cool it
au - Don't worry, I know which yahoos to dismiss and ignore. It is clear to anyone which person is misleading people and which is merely citing facts.
CI seems a good sort overall, though we do disagree on most things. Still, if he has been in the military--and I believe him when he writes that it is so--then he simply has to know that citing base pay without accounting for other monies and benefits is meaningless and indicates an intent to paint a flawed and misleading picture of the compensation our soldiers receive.
scrat just for fun why not check out how many military families are food stamp eligible?
Dys - To quote your many good friends here, "do your own homework".
As I remember,The child tax credit was in the original plan,but was removed at the demand of people on both sides of the aisle,the ones that were insistent on staying at the 350 million number. One of those people was Olympia Snow of Maine.
Now,for the dems to complain about something that they removed is a little silly,IMHO.
Now,since the govt wants to give people that dont pay taxes a tax cut,I want the child credits also.
I am a widower,with no children (that I know of),but I have payed taxes to support public schools,welfare,and every other thing that supposedly is for children,so its only fair that I get the child tax credit.I want it,in fact I demand it.
Also,since kids are so important and so expensive,why dont we allow people to take the credit for as long as their children are alive?
If your kid is 35 and living on their own,thats ok,you can still have the tax credit. Isnt that the fair thing to do? After all,kids are important,arent they?
McGentrix wrote:See that? I was confused this whole time about this being a DISCUSSION forum! I can see now how I was confused about that.
I guess I should start being more careful about having discussions here. Thanks for the warning Scrat!
Quote:Probably because you think everything here is a fight, come in with your dukes up, and are frustrated when some goddamn liberal takes a liberal point of view -- liberal meaning willing to consider new ideas. Suggest maybe it's time for McG to "keep it to yourself."
If I wanted a conservative point of view, I would go to a different forum. I expect people to have Liberal views here as that is the predominant membership here. I enjoy the different opinions when I can identify them through the quagmire of nonsense and pointless jabs.
Oops,does that mean I dont belong? After all,I am a proud conservative.
A May 2000 Pentagon report to Congress estimated that it would take $56 million to remove military families from Food Stamp rolls by increasing troops' incomes.
