Now They Are Worried About Veteran Benefits Costing Too Much

[Jon8503]

I guess we can't afford benefits and wars and weapons altogether.

As Benefits for Veterans Climb, Military Spending Feels Squeeze Congress's Generosity May Hurt Weapons, Other Programs

Lobby Group's Power Grows Trying to Find $100 Billion

Part of an article out of the Wall Street Journal

WASHINGTON -- With the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan badly straining its forces, the Pentagon is facing an awkward problem: Military retirees and their families are absorbing billions of dollars that military leaders would rather use to help troops fighting today.
Congress, pressured by veterans groups, has in recent years boosted military pensions, health insurance and benefits for widows of retirees. Internal Pentagon documents forecast that the lawmakers' generosity since 1999 will force the federal government to find about $100 billion over the next six years to cover the new benefits.
"The amounts have gotten to the point where they are hurtful. They are taking away from the nation's ability to defend itself," says David Chu, the Pentagon's undersecretary for personnel and readiness.

[MichiganVote]

1. "Rich people costing too much" that's a headline that would make sense

[havocmom]

2. the rich seem slow to learn from history

Good thing they fry up so tasty. If they keep it up, it'll come to that.

[MichiganVote]

11. 'fraid so. Its coming. An economic Tsunami.

[Jacobin]

3. "Support the Troops" (tm)

Means buying a yellow ribbon magnet, not caring for their wounds, equiping them properly or taking care not to send them on fool's errands.

[Straight Shooter]

4. My Marine Vietnam vet neighbor who died of a heart attack last year

due to lack of funds for proper care at the VA Hospital, wants to thank all these f*ckers for their kind generosity in the past.

:nuke:

[flpoljunkie]

12. Yes, and the new head of VA warned there were budget considerations...

The veterans are always screwed--no matter who is in office, so it seems. I do think that John Kerry would have done everything in his power to provide veterans with the benefits due them for their sacrifices in the service of this country.

Hollow words of duty and honor from the Bush administration won't cut it. They need to do their duty and provide for our veterans.

[RC]

5. Stupid neo-cons

You start a war that causes 10's of thousands of disabled vets, then complain that the benefits are costing too much?

Work on this: No wars, no vets, no need for benefits.

Bet you never thought of that before you idiots engineered the ass stomping of our high tech military by a bunch of untrained civilians using our own explosives against us.

[ingasm]

6. Fuck today.

We shouldn't even be fighting these wars that are only being fought to change countries that in many cases don't think its worth all the death and destruction for a regime change.

[DrGonzoLives]

7. Bush respects and supports our troops all right

As long as they die in combat and don't require veteran's benefits, apparently. This is something that the Democrats should just HAMMER, day and night. People WILL get pissed about things like this.

[Skittles]

8. you got a link, Jon?

I'd like to read this

[Jon8503]

9. Link

I would Skittles but it was out of the Wall Street Journal, paid subscription so it would not do any good anyway and they won't let you post the entire article here only 4 paragraphs or so.

Maybe I could post some more of it in another post.

[dbeach]

10. VA is ALWAYS underfunded

and bush is most anti-Veteran pRes in US history and plus he gives tax cuts during his oil grab..
O peration
I raqi
L iberation

[flpoljunkie]

13. $100B over the next 10 years. What about another $80B for Iraq!

We are spending $5 billion a month for Iraq for this war and it may as well be going down a rat hole. This is a war that we cannot win, unless there is some drastic change, and that is very unlikely with this bunch in charge.

And yet our soldiers are not worth $20 billion a years over 5 years? The hypocrisy of these Rethugs sickens me. We are now up to about $300 billion in Iraq and counting!

[in_cog_ni_to]

14. But the rich bastards got their tax cuts.

They have priorities you know. Our Veterans are not at the top of that priority list.