3.9 % raise

[eckerph]

Senate Passes 3.9% Military Pay Hike

Week of September 22, 2008
The Senate passed a measure that would permit $612.5 billion in spending for national defense programs, including $70 billion for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. It also includes a 3.9 percent pay increase for military personnel, half a percentage more than President Bush requested. Read the full article on Military.com. Check out Congress' Proposed 3.9 percent 2009 Military Pay Charts.

[chris]

Senate Passes 3.9% Military Pay Hike

Week of September 22, 2008
The Senate passed a measure that would permit $612.5 billion in spending for national defense programs, including $70 billion for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. It also includes a 3.9 percent pay increase for military personnel, half a percentage more than President Bush requested. Read the full article on Military.com. Check out Congress' Proposed 3.9 percent 2009 Military Pay Charts.

wooohooo. party time. oh wait that won't hit until Jan 01, 2009. but it's nice to see a pay raise like that. i wonder if BAH has gone up again.

[WhoDat]

Glad to see we're investing in our most important weapons system, our GIs!

I would've voted for a bigger one.

[Matt C]

Too bad the current inflation rate is 5.37% (and probably climbing rapidly)... Sorry to burst your bubble, but your net pay actually decreased.

Wonder if VA rates will be going up also.

[eckerph]

Too bad the current inflation rate is 5.37% (and probably climbing rapidly)... Sorry to burst your bubble, but your net pay actually decreased.

Wonder if VA rates will be going up also.

Burn, i wonder how much money my wife can make pulling gold teeth out of dead Iraqis? Anybody know? isn't gold like $300 an ounce or something?

[Matt C]

Burn, i wonder how much money my wife can make pulling gold teeth out of dead Iraqis? Anybody know? isn't gold like $300 an ounce or something?

More like $900 and climbing...

[RANDO]

wooohooo. party time. oh wait that won't hit until Jan 01, 2009. but it's nice to see a pay raise like that. i wonder if BAH has gone up again.

you know it! at first i was hesitant to use my extra cash till i found out it wasnt an error and the extra money was mine, it gets me every year

[11Z50]

I might as well rant a bit too....

My disabilty pay is deducted from my retirement, so even though I too got a bit of a raise, it will be minimal once the VA and DFAS decide who takes what from who. I get what's left.

Not just because it's happening to me, but because I see it as an injustice, it is a rip-off that retirees who are VA service-connected disabled lose part of their retirement. Makes no sense to me that one who serves 20+ years and is entitled to retirement has to give up part of that entitlement to receive compensation for damage to their health and well-being while serving out that 20+. Especially in the combat arms, where if you do 20, your body will receive some pretty serious damage, just from doing your job. I was an infantryman, and broken bones (and arthritis), hearing loss and tinnitus are all part of the job. I was a lucky one that did not suffer from an IED or AK round.

I considered it a sacred contract between me and my country that if I served faithfully and honorably for 20-plus, I would be taken care of. I would do whatever I was asked to do, no matter what the risk or consequence. I would put up with incredibly stupid BS, try to make things better, and protect those soldiers in my charge from unnecessary risk. I ran that marathon, crossed the finish line, and found out there was the unexpected small print in the contract.

The military and VA are moving to correct this, and I applaud that. But, the system moves slowly when it's time to pay up. The Gov't don't move slowly when they ask our military to go out and risk it all. Thankfully, those seriously injured as a result of a serious combat wound are receiving both retirement and disability, if eligible.

Our military is one of the best paid and taken care of in the world. They ought to be, considering the demands placed on them.

[MrLogan]

I might as well rant a bit too....

My disabilty pay is deducted from my retirement, so even though I too got a bit of a raise, it will be minimal once the VA and DFAS decide who takes what from who. I get what's left.

Not just because it's happening to me, but because I see it as an injustice, it is a rip-off that retirees who are VA service-connected disabled lose part of their retirement. Makes no sense to me that one who serves 20+ years and is entitled to retirement has to give up part of that entitlement to receive compensation for damage to their health and well-being while serving out that 20+. Especially in the combat arms, where if you do 20, your body will receive some pretty serious damage, just from doing your job. I was an infantryman, and broken bones (and arthritis), hearing loss and tinnitus are all part of the job. I was a lucky one that did not suffer from an IED or AK round.

I considered it a sacred contract between me and my country that if I served faithfully and honorably for 20-plus, I would be taken care of. I would do whatever I was asked to do, no matter what the risk or consequence. I would put up with incredibly stupid BS, try to make things better, and protect those soldiers in my charge from unnecessary risk. I ran that marathon, crossed the finish line, and found out there was the unexpected small print in the contract.

The military and VA are moving to correct this, and I applaud that. But, the system moves slowly when it's time to pay up. The Gov't don't move slowly when they ask our military to go out and risk it all. Thankfully, those seriously injured as a result of a serious combat wound are receiving both retirement and disability, if eligible.

Our military is one of the best paid and taken care of in the world. They ought to be, considering the demands placed on them.

It does suck, and is horrible. You're not eligible for concurrent receipt?

[11Z50]

It does suck, and is horrible. You're not eligible for concurrent receipt?

Nope, non-combat injuries won't qualify at this time. I know of very few retirees, at least in the combat arms, that don't retire with a disability. Wear and tear, hearing loss, broken bones and other "non-combat" injuries don't count.

Certainly, any soldier that is disabled as a result of his service should receive payment. We retirees, however, that are disabled from service connected injuries have it deducted from our retirement pay. Just recently, combat-related injuries, such as gunshot wounds and missing limbs will allow retirees to receive retirement and disability pay. For those of us lucky enough to dodge bullets and frags, but unlucky enough to be injured in the line of duty but less than 50% disabled actually pay the government back for the privilege of being disabled with a service-connected injury (or injuries). On the bright side, I do get free health care and meds for the injuries for life, and the disability pay I receive is non-taxable income. It shouldn't be this complicated. I did my 20 years, I was judged by the VA as being a 40% disabled vet, and others that are not retirees get compensated for that. I don't.

There has been some movement in the right direction, and hopefully GEN (ret) Eric Shinskei, the new DVA Secretary can set things right. While it is not a huge amount of money in most cases, ($500/month for me) it is the principle of the thing.

[sorensen440]

I'm normally very against any increases in spending but this one I agree with 100%

[Can'thavenuthingood]

Same site has Inflation Rate at 0.09%

http://inflationdata.com/inflation/Inflation_Articles/CalculateInflation.asp

Gold in 23 different currencies http://www.goldprice.org/gold-price.html
The price of gold in US dollars is $843.35 per ounce.

Vick

[The Soup Nazi]

As a Master Sergeant who kept reiterating how funny it was that we in the barracks complain so much but somehow live like kings said: "I like dollars. "