This ain't Hell, but you can see it from here

Author: Operator Dan

  • Representative Steve Buyer on the New GI Bill Changes

    I missed this this when I was writing my first post:

    “All Americans know that the month of December is already a strain on their pocketbook and to have your paycheck cut would be devastating to anyone. This provision is nothing but a lump of coal for veterans.”

    On Vet groups supporting the bill:

    “Are your representatives in Washington really standing up for you when they endorse a bill that cuts your living stipend during the holidays? Are they really representing your views when they endorse legislation that cuts tuition payments for some veterans by thousands of dollars a year?”

    Overall, I still think these changes are a raw deal for most veterans. The  support for this bill from the American Legion and VFW is also extremely disappointing to me.

    Finally I think this bill is proof-positive of Jonn’s contention that the budget will be balanced on the backs of veterans.

  • Are the New Changes to the GI Bill Really An Overall “Win” For Vets?

    Lost in all the noise about the repeal of DADT was news that the lame-duck Congressed passed a bill that implemented major changes to the GI Bill. Of course since this bill was passed by a Democrat-controlled Congress, IAVA considers it a win but the American Legion considers it a positive as well (Strangely, I haven’t seen anything on VoteVets about it).  Here are the changes to the GI Bill that will take effect Aug. 2011 according to IAVA:

    In 2008, historic New GI Bill legislation was signed into law.  Since then, IAVA has been fighting for critical upgrades where the benefit was lacking. These upgrades, which were passed last week, will impact 400,000 Iraq and Afghanistan veterans within the first year.  These include:

    • 85,000 full-time National Guardsmen who will become eligible for the New GI Bill
    • 58,000 students at private and graduate schools will have increased?tuition benefits
    • 25,000 distance learners will receive a monthly living allowance
    • 21,000 disabled vets using Vocational Rehab will receive additional allowances
    • 19,000 Active Duty service members will receive an annual book stipend
    • 6,000 vocational students will receive tuition/fees and a?monthly living allowance
    • 6,000 On The Job training/Apprenticeship participants will get access to an?expanded program
    • 6,000 schools will receive increased fees for processing vets’ paperwork
    • 180,000 new recruits will not have to pay $1,200 to buy into the old GI Bill

    Sounds great right? Well of course thats not the whole story. Here are some of the other changes this bill makes to the GI Bill from the Marine Corps Times (emphasis is mine):

    Living stipends, based on military housing allowances, are now fully paid to a student who is taking a course load that makes them more than a half-time student. This means that someone taking a full load is getting the same living stipend as someone taking fewer credits. The bill would change this by prorating living stipends based on the number of credits, which means people taking less than a full course load would be receiving less money.

    Distance learning students, currently ineligible for living stipends unless they are taking at least one class at a traditional school, would be eligible for the monthly payment equal to one half of the national average for military housing allowance for an E-5 with dependents. That is less than sought by distance learning schools but more than they are getting now.

    So clearly there are some changes to the post-9/11 GI Bill that IAVA didn’t discuss on their website (along with other Veterans groups) that will have a detrimental impact on some veterans, especially those attempting to work or do internships which limit their ability to take a full course load. In regards to my own situation, I know my last semester I am planning on doing an internship (which I cannot receive credit for since I would have already received the maximum amount of credits for an internship) and taking only three classes since I don’t need to take a full load to graduate. Under the current rules, I would receive a full BAH stipend, but under the new rules I will be receiving less money. I can think of  ten other veterans I either served with or know at Arizona State that will be negatively impacted by this rule change as well. I guess using some people’s math, thats a “win” for me and other vets.

    Also, the reason why the GI Bill originally didn’t offer a stipend for online-only students and why in the future that stipend will only be half of regular students’ stipends is because the Democrats who have controlled Congress declared war on for-profit online universities. Now granted some of these institutions have pulled some shady stuff in the past but many state-schools and private colleges offer online degree paths. Again using a personal example I could complete both of my degrees completely online at Arizona State and then get real experience by doing an internship or working fulltime in addition to saving the VA about 1000 dollars a semester since the online programs are cheaper at ASU (as is the case for many state-schools). But instead I am forced to go sit in a classroom and wish I was back in Iraq (Yeah, thats how much I hate going to class). Online programs are also better for veterans with families or other work commitments since its more time-flexible. If anything, in some cases, the VA should be encouraging vets to do online-only programs.

    Now, obviously there are some good parts to this bill. It expands educational benefits for the National Guard and sets aside more money for wounded Vets in addition to making it easier for Vets to attend private schools. However, I think it is a bit disingenuous of IAVA  and other vet groups not to highlight the downsides to this bill, especially considering it will effect a lot of veterans currently using the GI Bill.

  • Border Patrol Agent Down in Arizona

    From AZ Central:

    A Border Patrol agent was shot and killed on Tuesday night near Rio Rico after encountering several suspects, federal authorities said Wednesday.

    Agent Brian Terry was killed just 10 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border, north of Nogales. Four suspects are in custody and one is being pursued, according to a press release from Customs and Border Protection.

    The area around Nogales is probably the worst part of the US-Mexico border. There are no natural barriers that impede movement like the Rio Grande in Texas and it has gotten less attention from the Feds in the past than the California and Yuma sectors. This is also the same area where rancher Robert Krentz was murdered.

    RIP Brian Terry.

  • A Response To CATO’s Plan to Cut Defense Spending

    Recently, the libertarian CATO Institute released its plan to cut defense spending by over 1.2 trillion dollars over ten years. The plan was conceived by CATO’s two defense policy experts Benjamin Friedman and Christopher Preble. Preble spent some time in uniform, serving aboard an Aegis cruiser from 1990-1993.

    CATO’s plan disappointingly falls victim to many of the misconceptions about military service and our overall defense posture that have plagued other plans to curtail defense spending . The report for the most part simply regirtrates ideas from the War is Making Us Poor Act and Secretary Gates’s plan to cut defense spending, while tweaking a few cuts here and there. I find this unfortunate because while I disagree with some of CATO’s positions, I usually find their work to be of high quality.

    While I disagree with most of the report, let me start off by highlighting some of the agreements I have with CATO when it comes to defense spending. More below the fold…

    (more…)

  • Oh Snap…Its The Marine Corps Birthday.

    You better stand at attention nasties:

    So 235 years ago in a bar in Philly called the Tun Tavern a bunch of drunks and criminals got together and formed what would become the United States Marine Corps. There were only two requirements for enlisting: you had to have your own musket and at least one tooth to tear open powder bags to load your musket.

    Today, you can’t bring your own musket to combat because of the goddamn liberals and if you have one tooth then you will have to go see a sadist who goes by the name of “Navy Dentist”.

    So anyways, here is my birthday salute and lets here some Marine jokes…

  • Lt. Drama Queen (aka Dan Choi) Boycotts MSNBC Over Olbermann

    Dan Choi, the former Army LT who has made a career out of protesting DADT, is refusing to appear on MSNBC as a result of Keith Olbermann’s suspension. Hopefully Jon Soltz will follow suit..

  • The Congressional Badass Caucus

    Polling over the last few days has indicated that many Republican combat veterans are on the verge of being elected to Congress. Allen West, Illario Pantano, Joe Heck, Steve Stivers, and most recently Chris Gibson from New York have all begun to pull ahead of their rivals in multiple polls. In my home state of Arizona, Marine Jesse Kelly seems likely to oust Gabrielle Giffords, however there has been NO outside polling in the race despite it being one of the most contested house districts in the country (which is very strange and makes me wonder if there is some funny business going on behind scenes). Marine and ex-FBI Special Agent Michael Grimm in Staten Island, New York might be able to pull off an upset against his Democratic opponent.  In the Alaska Senate race, Gulf War veteran Joe Miller appears likely to win, despite Lisa Murkowski and her sore loser write-in candidacy.

    All these guys are the real deal (not like some dude from Connecticut whose name alludes me at the moment) and deserve our support. These are all candidates that you won’t have to hold your nose to vote for on election day.

  • VoteVets Favorite Congressman’s Campaign Involved in Voter Fraud

    VoteVets biggest “superstar” is Patrick Murphy, a Democratic congressman from Pennsylvania’s eighth congressional district. For those of you don’t know, Murphy is an ex-Army JAG officer who served in OIF with the 82nd Airborne in 2003 and 2004.  He was also was the first OIF veteran elected to Congress in 2006 and VoteVets has been his biggest cheerleader since assuming office. However, it appears that he hasn’t used his Army JAG training to teach his campaign staff about voter fraud:

    New reports are emerging that could spell trouble for Patrick Murphy’s campaign after it was revealed that his campaign manager controlled a post office box where voters were being instructed to send their absentee ballots. The ballots were then re-mailed to the county Board of Elections.

    A letter from a fictitious agency, the “Pennsylvania Voter Assistance Office,” was sent to an unknown number of residents across the 8th district in southeastern Pennsylvania warning them that their ability to voter could be jeopardized unless they returned an enclosed absentee ballot in a pre-paid envelope that went to a private post office box in Bristol, Pa.

    At issue is whether Rep. Patrick Murphy was directly involved, and whether absentee ballots were tampered with or discarded as they were proceeded through the post office box maintained by Tim Persico, his campaign manager.

    More info here and here. Now to be fair, there is no CLEAR evidence that Murphy is directly involved in this obvious attempt to commit widespread voter fraud. However, if he were still an Army Captain and there was illicit activity going on involving his subordinates, he would be held accountable and it would reflect on his leadership. There is no reason why in this case he shouldn’t be held accountable either.

    Of course, our good friends over at VetVoice are all over this……not.