They are also talking about significantly increasing the premiums for Tricare(military) healthcare because of the rising costs attributed to taking care of the soldiers and their familes. Not taking into consideration that we are at one of our highest numbers in a ong time and are downsizing our forces as we speak due to the withdrawl from Iraq. Also not taking into consideration that instead of increasing premiums for soldiers & their families, they should just making smarter decisions. If you only allow same day "sick" appointments and everyone else has to go to the emergency room, you are flushing thousands of dollars away. If the on base clinic is only open 4 1/2 days a week & the doctors still take extended lunches & vacations, so we have to go to a minor emergency or emergency room, you are throwing money away. I recently have had to make 4 appts with my doctor because I was told they can only talk about 1 issue at a time. They are too busy to take any longer with a patient. Direct quote from the nurse. 4 appts take a LOT longer than just hearing me out the 1st time. I believe all issues are tied together & should be addressed as 1 issue. It is not the families fault that these military health care professionals are paid salary so they don't feel they have to work. Or that we have to often times go a more complicated or expensive route to get the care we need.
Why are we singling out military families? Education of our children? Foriegn aide to ravaged countries? Why are the biggest budget hits to the very places we need to be protecting? Hilary Clinton says that her husband made the hard choices and gave us a balanced budget and that sometimes you have to make unpopular decisions. I say that women and children first wasnt meant to be the quoted for the line to slaughter. Last I checked, and yes I checked, the Clintons made $20,400,000 in 2007. Their salary had increased every year from 2000 to that year also, so I can only imagine what it was in 2010. I know that they have big important jobs and I don't take away from that. What I do take issue with is the fact that to keep her in office and to keep these and all other government head's salary we are doing tax increases and premium increases and taking away from the retirement of people who I feel do a VERY important job as well.
I do not care if you consider yourself Republican or Democrat, military families and soldiers should not have to pay the deficit our politicians have gotten us into. Children should not have programs cut from their schools because the powers that be decided that as part of their retirement package, they should get the use of a private jet. We should not have to pull our relief workers from Africa because the President decided that the government paid vacation should be at a 9 million dollar ocean front estate in Hawaii for 9 days. If I don't have money to pay the bills, I don't go on lavish vacations. If I can't balance my budget I don't go buy a new car or hire a housekeeper. Why? Because these are "extras" They are fluff things that I don't need. I don't tell my kids that they can't eat lunch anymore because I can't pay for groceries (got to afford the new Benz), I don't tell the water company to suck it because momma needs a tummy tuck. If our country is broke, then it is broke. I think that there are better areas to make cuts and redistribution of funds. What do you think?
I do appreciate that Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta is considering grandfathering in soldiers when they decide to butcher the retirement plan for the military. They want to "protect the current soldiers and keep the faith of the military families". He was quoted as saying that as long as they took into consideration the soldiers that were in, there was no reason not to go ahead and consider future changes. What I do not appreciate is that they are talking about doing away with retirement benefits after 20 years and making the payout kick in only after the legal retirement age. They are talking about decreasing the amount you get for retirement and they are talking about having it be just be a contribution only retirement plan. This all said, then, also adding that most soldiers do not even stay in for 20 years and so do not get retirement anyway.
They are also talking about significantly increasing the premiums for Tricare(military) healthcare because of the rising costs attributed to taking care of the soldiers and their familes. Not taking into consideration that we are at one of our highest numbers in a ong time and are downsizing our forces as we speak due to the withdrawl from Iraq. Also not taking into consideration that instead of increasing premiums for soldiers & their families, they should just making smarter decisions. If you only allow same day "sick" appointments and everyone else has to go to the emergency room, you are flushing thousands of dollars away. If the on base clinic is only open 4 1/2 days a week & the doctors still take extended lunches & vacations, so we have to go to a minor emergency or emergency room, you are throwing money away. I recently have had to make 4 appts with my doctor because I was told they can only talk about 1 issue at a time. They are too busy to take any longer with a patient. Direct quote from the nurse. 4 appts take a LOT longer than just hearing me out the 1st time. I believe all issues are tied together & should be addressed as 1 issue. It is not the families fault that these military health care professionals are paid salary so they don't feel they have to work. Or that we have to often times go a more complicated or expensive route to get the care we need.
Why are we singling out military families? Education of our children? Foriegn aide to ravaged countries? Why are the biggest budget hits to the very places we need to be protecting? Hilary Clinton says that her husband made the hard choices and gave us a balanced budget and that sometimes you have to make unpopular decisions. I say that women and children first wasnt meant to be the quoted for the line to slaughter. Last I checked, and yes I checked, the Clintons made $20,400,000 in 2007. Their salary had increased every year from 2000 to that year also, so I can only imagine what it was in 2010. I know that they have big important jobs and I don't take away from that. What I do take issue with is the fact that to keep her in office and to keep these and all other government head's salary we are doing tax increases and premium increases and taking away from the retirement of people who I feel do a VERY important job as well.
I do not care if you consider yourself Republican or Democrat, military families and soldiers should not have to pay the deficit our politicians have gotten us into. Children should not have programs cut from their schools because the powers that be decided that as part of their retirement package, they should get the use of a private jet. We should not have to pull our relief workers from Africa because the President decided that the government paid vacation should be at a 9 million dollar ocean front estate in Hawaii for 9 days. If I don't have money to pay the bills, I don't go on lavish vacations. If I can't balance my budget I don't go buy a new car or hire a housekeeper. Why? Because these are "extras" They are fluff things that I don't need. I don't tell my kids that they can't eat lunch anymore because I can't pay for groceries (got to afford the new Benz), I don't tell the water company to suck it because momma needs a tummy tuck. If our country is broke, then it is broke. I think that there are better areas to make cuts and redistribution of funds. What do you think?
