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Posts: 22228
Oct 23 09 8:23 AM
StreetMutt wrote: I'm a military wife - albeit of a Coastie so I tend to think I'm a civilian - but I try to keep in touch with how the government treats us and so forth. My sister's husband is Army, and I'm friends with those in the Marines and Navy. This thread is coming out of a convo I had this AM with another Coastie wife (who also works at the paper). I must say this has been a great year! There has been a lot of forward progress and I wanted to share with those who may not be as in tune. • Military got it's regular annual pay increase in a recession. Next year this regular increase will go up by .5%! (now a 3.4% pay increase well above inflation) • Expansion of GI Bill to spouses; and some other relaxation of other rules, but I can't recall • Easier absentee ballot voting (nearly 25% of military absentee votes last election were discounted because they were not notarized) • A huge drive by Marines and Army to meet higher quotas with higher standards (has also helped military communities with their economies), both of which bring less stress while overseas; our region alone has welcomed 8k new troops over the last year • A huge push for mental help for veterans and advance funding for VA hospitals • And one of my favorites: troops stationed at home volunteer once monthly to help their community. My husband and his boat help build trails at the national park once a month (anyone see Obama and HW Bush team up to urge civilians to volunteer? So nice to see politics set aside) • A coherent and flexible strategy in Iraq, and now serious consideration for a true strategy in Afghanistan (not just throw more troops in harm's way, but actually realizing it is a different beast and may need a different view than Iraq); looks like my brother-in-law will def go to Afghanistan early next year, so too little too late at the moment for keeping him out of harm's way Luckily he entered Iraq as it was calming down, but he was still in so much danger Anyway, I wanted to share good news about the men and women who serve this country. We are so grateful for their service and it is really positive how many things have gone their way in the last year. I only hope it continues. Maybe we'll finally see the repeal of the don't ask don't tell that has lost so many of our wonderful service men and women just because they were outed, and getting rid of the F-22 program (and getting that personnel into other jobs). First the military, perhaps next education? One can only hope. I know there are other military and military spouses on the board, and you're more than welcome to add to anything I forgot. For those who think we don't honor our military, I hope you take a look at this and realize how much this country strives to give back. It could always treat them better, but at least we've made some really positive strides I'll admit, when I went to cover Obama in February in advance of his strategy for Iraq, I was certain he was going to cut military spending. He outlined there some lofty goals, and touted increased spending for military and mil families. I wanted to believe him, but was a bit dubious since he's had so much on his plate. Kudos to him and Congress for really stepping up. We're almost there. Just a little bit more!
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