WTF is this about soliders having to pay for their meals

[southern democrat]

while in the hospital after being wounded in combat?

[Don_G]

1. They Do

Check out this article in the "Stars & Stripes."

http://www.estripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=16858&archive=true

[opihimoimoi]

2. Apparently its true. Many threads re this aspect of wounded having to pay

$8.25 per day for meals.

as more and more people finding out, outrage is growing.

This is crazy.

[Hubert Flottz]

3. What is Tom DeLay's daily expense account!

And now Tom wants another raise while half the people in America are taking wage cuts and hospitalization raises! 6 million Americans unemployed and Tom needs a raise! Soldier's families hungry but Tom wants a raise! Old folks losing pensions but Tom has GOT to have a raise!

[tkmorris]

4. I hate to say this....

Truly I do but this aint new. Nor is it what it appears. Let me explain.

The only military members this applies to are those who receive BAS (Basic Allowance for Substinence). This is a stipend given to military members who normally eat away from the base for various reasons. Because they do not have regular access to the chow hall (or whatever) they are given monies to help pay for meals.

Does that mean they CANNOT eat at the Chow Hall? Nope, they can, but if they are receiving BAS they have to pay for that meal. In fact that is what most do. The same applies to meals they eat while hospitalized. They COULD keep records and pro-rate the BAS for that month I suppose but it's far simpler to simply have the member pay a small fee for the meals. I'd like to repeat, this has been the case for a long time, it isn't a BFEE invention.

Having said all that, it DOES make them look incredibly bad. They should have simply forgiven those meals, it's a no-brainer PR move but I'm betting it just didn't occur to anyone to do that. The people who make such decisions aren't known for their PR skills not their compassion.

Edited because the voices in my head said I should.

[Kool Kitty]

5. I think one of the main reasons everyone is so

upset about this is that the soldier that everyone refers to was charged for his meals while he was in the hospital, recuperating from wounds received in battle. I believe that he lost an arm and a leg. And to make this soldier pay for meals he received while hospitalized is a disgrace. But that's just my opinion.

[Don_G]

7. I Wholeheartedly Agree

You serve your country, get maimed in battle, sit in the hospital staring at the spaces where your arm and leg used to be, comtemplate the future and despair on how you're supposed to provide for your family and get handed a bill for the food payable in 3 days...or else....

I've got a few choice words for it and PR isn't one of them!!!!

[Skittles]

12. that's it, KK

it's the fact that we are nickel and diming SOLDIERS IN THE HOSPITAL WHO WERE WOUNDED IN BATTLE. There's just someing UNSETTLING about that.

[southern democrat]

6. You educated me on this issue,thank you.

[Hubert Flottz]

8. The bean counters at DOD need to get their heads out of their

foot lockers and bitch about the $600.00 claw hammers and $1000.00 shitter seats and leave the grunts alone! I'll bet the dude that sent out that bill would shit down his leg if he heard a bullet whistle by his thick ass kissin' skull! Why do you think we called them pigs in the 60s?

[Oilwellian]

9. If I may add to your explanation

Fellow lefties get angry with me when I debunk this story, but oh well, I hate seeing us promote a story that isn't quite true. In essence, these guys are having to pay back the stipend they received since they're now receiving free food in the hospital. What's different than ever before, is the BFEE and Rummy hiring private collection agencies to go after this overpayment given to the wounded. It just makes more sense to have the overpayment taken out of their next check, NOT hire a bill collector to go after the money. So much for privatization of the military. :eyes:

[tkmorris]

10. I hadn't heard that one

The part about sending collection agencies after people. That's pretty sickening.

[TreasonousBastard]

11. Yup...

there is a bizarre logic behind it all, but no one seems to be in charge. No one can say just forget the bill because this is the sort of thing that fell through the cracks.

Fair amount of frothing in Congress about this, so it may change, but not tomorrow.

And there are enough other ways they're getting screwed.

[oasis]

13. I saw a feature on the subject ealier today. That policy began in 1981.

Now let me see, who was the Commander in Chief in '81?

Noooooo not Ronnie.