17 August SWJ Roundup

It appears all our worries were greatly exagerated, the OSD personnel policy ship is in good hands. I extracted this troubling article from the SWJ twitter section.

http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0811/081911nj-pentagon-ig.htm

Quotes from the article:

"The Pentagon inspector general is investigating Clifford Stanley, the official charged with overseeing the Defense Department's massive personnel bureaucracy, after a spate of highly detailed allegations of gross mismanagement and abuse of power. He's accused of firing respected senior staff, neglecting programs for wounded troops, and using limited funds on expensive consultants and a lavish new conference room.

Senior civilian and military officials filed at least four separate complaints with the IG's office and to Capitol Hill since May, alleging that Stanley, the under secretary of defense for personnel and readiness, has hurt the military's ability to deliver crucial services to troops and their families."

And this post indicates that the waste extends to the highest level of DOD:

" Others, meanwhile, have taken issue with Stanley's decision to build an expensive new conference room - whose price tag is estimated to be in the range of $360,000 to nearly $500,000 -- at a time when critical accounts, including programs for wounded warriors, have been cut. By one estimate, each chair in the new conference room cost about the annual salary of a lance corporal. "

All allegations for now, so we'll see if there is any substance to the personal attacks after the investigation.

As far as the budget goes and the need for cuts...I'm all for it. We've been wasting money for over a decade, at decadent rates.

But, why don't we start where we KNOW we're wasting it: 1) Does every office in the Army now need a badass, color, two-sided, uber awesome printer? (PowerPoint Rangers obviously say yes) Of course we don't, but we have them. Why? Because our bosses have been telling us to buy stuff for almost ten years now. "Hurry, we have this GWOT money and we have to spend it by the end of this quarter." Wrong answer. Cut office supplies by 20% immediately.
2)In five years when we re-learn how to live without cc'ing everyone in the unit, and figure out how to survive without printing everything for multiple files, and just stop being so damn redundant, we can cut office supplies by another 20% and we'll all be just fine. Many of us remember the days when you never saw a computer accept in the PAC/Admin offices and perhaps a couple other offices around a unit. We don't need computers down to the squad level, but we currently have them in many units. I suspect by getting out of the "electronic paperless" military we'll actually start saving paper, and time. We can save millions, perhaps billions within a decade by getting more efficient with our paperwork and cutting out the purchasing of many of our computers and electronic convenience items.
3) All units (with few exceptions) need to go to a four-day work week. That should be an automcatic 20% reduction in utility costs and similar items that cut expenses. It also boosts morale. Additionally, it should force us to curtail some of the dog and pony activities, which, incidentally do cost a lot of additional money that no one seems to think about when it comes to military budgets. Take a minute to think about just food costs - for those that have ever worked or monitored activities of a Protocol office or been next to the head shed with the GOs.
4) Finally, get back to the basics. Get to the field, live in the field, do training - much of which does not necessitate large expenditures in fuel or ammunition. And, when we go to the field, don't be dragging along a $250k DRASH tent or similar item, with 50 plasmas etc. We don't need them.

That's where I think we should start: look at the obvious waste, rather than the morale killers and the issues that will assuredly push away our best and brightest.

Bumperplate,

Thanks for the insightful comments. I hope the decision makers are reading them and understand the impact of these discussions. I'm very recently retired and have serious concerns about the direction of the current discussions and their impact on the force in the short run. I think the long run the right decisions will be made, but probably after much damage has been done.

I emphasize with those that have to make these tough budget decisions, but keep in mind the threat to personnel isn't coming so much from Congress as it is civilian bureaucrats in DOD who are coming up with these proposals. We have a lot of bean counters with degrees in business management that confuse best practices in business as appropriate methods for reforming DOD. Some may be, but others are clearly detrimental to our culture and readiness.

I think the threats to your retirement pay are minimal in the short run (next 15 or so years), but the biggest threat to your retirement is the cost wise is Tri-Care. I'm not talking about paying more for coverage, that is expected when you live in inflationary times, but rather the reduction of Tri-Care payments to medical professionals, which in turn will mean that fewer medical professionals will honor Tri-Care and the cost difference will be passed on to the retired service member.

All that said cuts will have to be made, and of course when cuts are first discussed all options are on the table, both good and bad ones. I don't think some of the bad options currently being discussed will be passed into law and that it will workout in the long run, but the current noise on these topics is obviously alarming to those in the ranks now, and those considering making a career of the military.

As a guy on active duty I can tell you the recent retirement restructuring talks are already sending out ripples throughout the Force. The incentive to stay in is now just about zero, except for those that already irrevocably committed themselves to a full 20+.
I think many on active duty examine it this way: the White House wants to be re-elected. The Republicans want to get the WH back. Both need votes. They will get more money and more votes from catering to our civilian contractors and the defense industrial complex. Those in uniform, plus their families, make a very, very small block of voters and will never swing an election or even one state. So, pay, benefits, and retirement monies will go on the chopping block. There will be some outrage from "Joe the plumber", however, in the end it's not Joe's retirement that will be affected. So, he will not vote with this issue front and center.
I heard a MAJ the other day say that retirement and pay will never be touched. I think that's wishful thinking. This MAJ said the issue we have to worry about is TRICARE/Medical. While I agree and I believe this will be the first thing to get adjusted, the rest will soon follow. If the current administration stays in power, beginning in the new term I think we'll see military pay frozen for senior NCOs and officers, I think TRICARE expenses will at least triple, and I think TSP/401k will be mandatory with 10 & 15 year retirement packages brought in for those at the midpoint of their careers. I also think 20yr retirement will be altered, reducing it to 35 or 40% with a "severance" type of payment given at retirement to offset the reduction.
Finally, I think the zero-tolerance mentality will come back full force. Any small blemish on your record is going to mean non-selection and we'll end up with more people hitting that retention control point or denied selective continuation. RTC and denial of promotion means severance, which is much cheaper than retirement/benefits.
A consequence of this is that many more people in the next five years or so will try the MEDBOARD route rather than deal with RTC and non-select status. This will overwhelm our medical system, the VA, etc - all of which are already overwhelmed. The burden this will place on commanders and their manning challenges will be frustrating.
All in all, our politicians are about to do some very bad things for the military, not the least of which will be the reduction in morale and trust in our civilian leadership.

The article on biofuels for DOD demonstrates an effort to go greener (and make our nation more secure by developing alternative energy sources), but I hope the team that is working this is really thinking this through. The Government subsidies for ethanol made from corn was nothing short of criminal. Without the subsidies the business was not profitable, so why do it? Worse yet, depending on your view, it contributed to food inflation and will continue to do so. I do think there may be some promise with rapidly growing grasses and algae, which should only have a limited impact on food supply (by taking up potential farm land to grow the grasses), and if these prove to be cost effective I think the biofuel concept for DOD should also consider developing biofuel plants in foreign countries in partnership to help develop their economies and lessen our logistical burden moving it to operational areas.

As for "new" and "improved" retirement plans that are "fairer" I have to agree with the previous post. The economy is shaken my uncertainty due to the inability of two idealist political parties to compromise, and now the Pentagon civilians are injecting that same uncertainty into the military ranks and the decision calculus of potential future recruits (especially officers). Retirement may be expensive, but that doesn't mean we should get rid of the 20 year retirement plan. Assuming a Soldier, Sailor, Marine, or Airman worked in a combat arms field for 20 years, deploying frequently, etc., and then retires at 20 years (but now must wait until he/she is 65 to draw retirement pay) misses the following points:

1. The skills developed during that time frame are very relevant and important for the military, but have limited application outside the military, so after 20 years of sacrifice dedicated themselves to their profession they're on the street with no relevant skills and no retirement pay.

2. If you're in combat arms you don't reach your peak utility at 20 years as some have stated, unless you move into a staff or senior leadership position. After 20 years under a ruck, deploying, sleeping in the mud, and eating crap your body will generally say no more. Not everyone can or should move up, or staffs and senior officer ranks are already bloated.

Looking at DOD for savings at this point in history is amoral, and sadly these bright ideas are being generated by number crunchers in OSD that should know better. We're more likely to garner more support from friends in Congress to protect the pay for future military members than from those working in OSD who are more concerned about purchasing future weapon systems. Both are important, and changes probably need to be made, but the proposals to date do not make much since for those who wear muddy boots. As the previous gentlemen commented, we're not a corporation, so the logic being applied just doesn't fit.

The Current Proposal to Overhaul Military Retirement is a Joke.

The current proposal to overhaul the military retirement is a joke of an idea just like the Baby Boomer Generation is a joke. They will more than likely go down in US history as the worst generation. They ushered into American society the counter culture revolution, sexual revolution, homosexual revolution which has evolved to open homosexuality in the military, LSD revolution, Vietnam draft dodgers, 50% divorce rate, tens of millions of aborted babies, practical loss of US prestige in the world, and now a mountain of crippling dept that is going to affect future generations for decades. They are morally bankrupt and this is why this country is where it is today, and why this idiodic proposal to change the military retirement has surfaced. Morality comes from the Creator in the Declaration of Independence, not atheistic Greek god's Zeus/Apollo, or the atheistic Roman god Jupiter. Our ideas of government come from the Greeks, and Romans, but not our God who provided a natural blue print for a sense of morality.

You can not compare the US military to a Fortune 500 company. This is a joke of misapplied Aristotelian logic. 500 companies do not deploy to a foreign country, months on end away from loved ones to fight and die. On top of that families sacrifice in separations which lead to missed opportunities of seeing children grow up. Wives sacrifice in countless sleepless nights worrying whether their husband is coming home, or just being a single mother running the household while their husband is deployed. 

You have to give Soldiers an concrete incentive that will be there after suffering through decades of sacrifice. To give them a TSP/401K that suffers the ups and downs of the market is not concrete. Soldiers have no idea if that support for years of sacrifice will be there at the end. It's a joke. We will see a mass exodus of service members who will see the true realities of that brain dead concept for retirement.

Here's an idea to save money in the military. Get rid of the massive amounts of contractors who are being paid ten times more than a DOD guy in uniform. Get rid of the contracted teachers at our service schools and put uniformed officers in their place like it used to be. Get rid of all of the admin contractors at all of the military installation HQs and replace them with military personnel, and get rid of mercenary contractors at all levels from direct action to intel to information operations. Way too much contracting that is draining the military budget and forcing the retirement overhaul debate.

At this moment in our history it would be nice to have an effective military general who could truly stand up and put this brain dead idea of overhauling the retirement to rest. Of course the MacArthurs have faded so far into the landscape of history that we don't know what true strategic leadership is about, which is Vision - Past/Present/Future.

Returning to the peace time army, GEN Douglas MacArthur rose to Chief of Staff. MacArthur presided over the dispersal of the Bonus Marchers, an action which he staunchly defends in his book, "Reminiscences", and the defense of the Army from the Depression-era budget cutting knife. During one meeting with FDR, MacArthur responded with "The country's safety was at stake,...I spoke recklessly and said something to the general effect that when we lost the next war, and an American boy, lying in the mud with an enemy bayonet through his belly and an enemy foot on his dying throat, spat out his last curse, I wanted the name not to be MacArthur, but Roosevelt. The President grew livid. 'You must not talk  that way to the President!' he roared...I said I was sorry and apologized. But I felt my Army career was at an end. I told him he had my resignation as Chief of Staff. As I reached the door his voice came with that cool detachment which so reflected his extraordinary self-control, 'Don't be foolish, Douglas, you and the budget must get together on this.'"

Of course decisions made in the 30s under his visionary leadership led to the successes of WWII and the liberation of millions. Today's Baby Boomers who practically hold every leadership position in this country, whether civil or private, have no vision and instead of carrying on the US tradition of liberators they are turning this country, and the world, into various forms of enslavement. What a joke that 76 million Boomers could not produce decent leadership. An absolute disgrace to those who died victorious in the American Revolution, the 650,000 on US Civil War battlefields, or the countless US wars of the 20th and 21st centuries. 

"In the beauty of the lilies Christ was born across the sea,
With a glory in his bosom that transfigures you and me:
As he died to make men holy, let us die to make men free,"
The Battle Hymn of the Republic, 1862.