@Senate_GOPs : You Borrowed to Fund Two Wars But That Isn't Good Enough to...
Military families and veterans have been patiently waiting for Congress to fix a small problem they caused back in December when they passed the Bi-Partisan Budget Act of 2013. Not only did they fail...
View ArticleBoehner Uses Veterans as a Pawn in the Debt Ceiling Crisis
Representative John Boehner is promoting a doozy of an idea!Boehner proposes linking debt-limit hike to a restoration of recent cuts to military benefits In case you hadn't heard, families like mine...
View ArticleThank You For Making A Difference
Yesterday, the Senate passed a bill that included an amendment to restore full COLA raises to military retirees. It wasn't a 100% erasure - new recruits as of Jan 1, 2014 will be looking at a different...
View ArticleOur Overpaid Troops - Part I
If you pay attention to military issues here at DailyKos, you'll notice a new theme cropping up in the diaries. To my jaded eyes, it looks like a pre-election push to make Democrats look less than...
View ArticleOur Overpaid Troops - Part II
Welcome to Part II of Our Overpaid Troops. Part I was published on Monday and addressed an issue recently raised in a diary well recommended by many Kossacks, that those who join the military do so in...
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Lower Pay Raises Discipline - Updated as Sgt. Maj. triples down
Today's front page of the Marine Corps Times Last week during testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Sergeant Major of the Marine Corp Michael Barrett responded to Senators who were...
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Making Enough Money to Pay the Rent (A Tale of Sequestration)
When many progressives hear that sequestration is forcing cuts to the defense budget, we cheer. After all, who doesn't want to see the Department of Defense better manage their money and do away with...
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Bankruptcy for Military Housing?
Yesterday, I introduced the community to cuts being made to the military Basic Allowance for Housing - a cut that will harm enlisted families far more than the officers who are recommending the...
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Dawn Chorus - A Lodge Called Chirije
The Lodge just at the base of the green mountains. Tucked away on the Ecuadorian Coast, just south of Bahía de Caráquez, is a small spot of land with a lodge and cabins, trails into the surrounding...
View Article"We don't want to do things that are not based on science or best...
These are words that came from President Obama today while speaking about the differences between our military and civilians returning from countries experiencing outbreaks of Ebola:"We don't want to...
View ArticleHappy Triple Dipping Veterans Day from Tom Coburn
Last week, the Associated Press released an article with an inflammatory title - Report says 60,000 veterans get triple benefits and then proceeded to lead with the triple dipping frame of...
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It's Our Fault, Chuck Hagel!
#KeepYourPromise Those of us working on keeping benefits intact for military families are wondering if our recent meme may have forced Chuck Hagel to resign. After all, it addresses some of the major...
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Gen Jones Wants Cuts To Military Middle Class - Buys $3.7M Mansion
Four retired senior officers have written an opinion piece claiming that military retirement benefits are too generous. Of course, they weren't writing about their own benefit package, but about the...
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Dear Keep Your Promise Followers
Dear Keep Your Promise Followers, Yes, I'm writing an open letter to the followers of Keep Your Promise, a politically mixed, loose alliance of folks who work to shine a light on cuts to military...
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VA Wants to Rig The System Against Wartime Vets
Are you a Vietnam Veteran? Do you know a Vietnam Veteran? Do you care at all about veteran issues? Then we need you to help spread the word quickly.The VA is out to change a small program that...
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Double Tongued or Tongue Tied? Veterans' Pensions and VA Secretary Robert...
"Everything that we do and every decision we make has to be focused on the veterans we serve," VA Secretary Robert McDonald said. "Changing the way we determine eligibility to make the process easier...
View ArticleVeterans are the new 'black'
Task and Purpose has a lofty goal for a mere website:Task & Purpose is a news and culture site geared toward the next great generation of American veterans. The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are...
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General Punaro and the Center for American Progress
I've introduced you guys to Major General Arnold Punaro (USMC, retired) once before:Through Leidos Holdings, he has a total compensation package of $2,735,249. His other sources of income seem minor in...
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Dawn Chorus: Ecuadorian Hummingbirds
Today is Mother's Day in many parts of the world, including here in Ecuador. I would love nothing more than to have my mom with me today. We would go hummingbird watching at one of the local reserves....
View ArticleDems Lost Messaging on NDAA 2016
Recently, the Secretary of Defense, Ashton Carter, said he could not support the proposed 2016 Defense Budget if it put other agencies in jeopardy:"This funding approach … reflects a narrow way of...
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