re: "Today's Reading Assignment"

Spook86 at In From the Cold ("Musings on Life, Love, Politics, Military Affairs, the Media, the Intelligence Community and Just About Anything Else that Captures Our Interest") shared an excellent and detailed narrative explaining why military pensions are earned rather than being socialist "entitlements."

Money quote(s):

"Professor Lacey shares our outrage at a recent article in The New York Times, which described the armed forces retirement program as "another big social welfare system." Recounting the long list of military operations over the past two decades, Lacey reminds us that a soldier who enlisted in 1990 had more than "earned" his pension by the time he retired last year."

Prof. Lacey went on to provide a detailed fleshing out of what a recent 20-year military careers actually involved. If you didn't already experience it yourself, it makes educational reading.

"(O)nly two of the Republican candidates have actually served in the military."

That's a fact which deserves a bit more attention, at least from this registered voter. I know Gov. Perry served in the Air Force. Who is the other one?

"Sounds like a "lose-lose" for hundreds of thousands of career military members (and retirees) who gave so much for that $25,000 a year pension. We should also note that Professor Lacey's prototypical retiree was something of a fast burner. The average non-commissioned officer who leaves active duty after 20 years is an E-6, with an average annual pension of less than $20,000 a year. "

Which isn't a lot. Fortunately, given that the average NCO joined the military sometime before (or not long after) their 20th birthday, the average active duty retiree is around age 40, with a couple more decades of working life ahead during which to launch and make a second career. They will also have the experience and life skills learned in two decades of increasing responsibilities to help them make that second career a success.

(Which doesn't mean they aren't owed the earned military pensions to which they're due.)

10/5