If you’re anything like me, there are some things that you just love about life on or near a military base. One of mine is our proximity to services the base offers that make my life just a tiny bit more comfortable. The childcare, the mental health help, the concerts, the gyms – all of it has a special place in my MilSpouse heart.
Which is why when Congress spends a lot of time debating what portions of those programs they are going to cut, I feel a little uneasy. And I know I am not alone in that.
The people who are doing the debating are really loud. They shout their message of pending Defense budget doom from the mountain tops, and it’s becoming impossible not to pay attention. And even though I have plenty of other things to worry about, such as our upcoming deployment and making sure my little boy doesn’t have an emotional meltdown when his daddy goes away, I find myself spending a lot of time considering the “what if’s” of sequestration – the giant word assigned to this budget cuts process.
Which is why I wrote this piece for the New York Times. Check it out. And tell us below — is the budget debate driving you crazy, too?
About Amy Bushatz
Comments
I think people are overexaggerating the cuts. Yes the number is huge. Yes some programs will be cut. Yes some jobs will go away. But the military and DOD should not be exempt from cuts when the defecit is as big as it is. The dod budget has gone up and up and up and is now just unsustainable. Is sequestrian the answer? Maybe not, but hopefully it gets peoples attention to just how bad in debt we are.
Agree with you Sarah…the military has waaaaaaay to many hand holding programs that can and should be cut. Do we really need classes on every post on how to buy a car, or how to buy a house or a million child based entertainment and care things….nope. A lot of these programs are things that should be common sense.
Sorry, if you don't know how to buy a car there is this wonderful invention called the internet. If you choose to not do your research that is your own fault and you learn through the school of hard knocks like everyone else in the world. Why should there be a million kids camps, kids days, kid everything? If you were in the civilian world, you'd be paying for these things (yes a spouse in our unit spent 20 minutes complaining how she had to pay a dollar per kid for the Easter egg roll this year).
The past 10 years have given the military a feeling of never ending money where all these great new facilities and programs were started. This is not reality though and at some point we have to pay off that debt. I honestly have no idea why they aren't charging active duty for health care, my personal insurance before I married my husband was 500 a month…just for me. I'd be totally fine with paying 150 a month or so for health insurance to help with the deficit and retirement benefits.
Sequestrian may not be the answer but at least it's a start. As spouses we really need to start re aligning our "expectations" and realize that all the great "free" stuff was never really free.
I have been a military spouse for 17 years. My mother was a military spouse before me. When we talk about the differences from her time with her Navy husband and mine, it is huge. Gone are the days when families had to potluck together because they didnt have enough money to buy food. They worked together to repair uniforms and clothing, exchanged day care services, carpooled to various places to reduce gas costs. I believe in services for military families, I believe in support. Not unlike the above commenter, I often believe things have gotten out of hand. Military families, like their civilians counter parts, can be over spenders, trying to compete with each other for the next biggest thing. I live in Hawaii, not on base, and my husband and I were very committed to finding a home that was within our housing allowance, for all the utilities as well. I have been to homes of servicemembers that push it past the limit because "we deserve" the view, the pool, the big yard (whatever it is) or over utilize the benefits in their housing ($750 air conditioning bills are unnecessary, but since it is "free", why not?) I CHOSE to marry a man in the service that also CHOSE to dedicate his life to our freedom. Does that make us so much more entitled then the average person? Yes we have challenges that other families whose spouses go to a 9 to 5 job don't have. But to believe that we as families DESERVE so much more than the average person (and we do get more then the average person), I think is selfish and arrogant. We should be THANKFUL for the things that the military provides for us. I dont want money taken away from the things that protect our servicemembers from harm, ABSOLUTELY NOT. But as the woman stated above, classes on buying a car are less critical to our well beings as families. Where is the resilience that the civilian world is constantly hearing about when military spouses are discussed? Is it only there if the government provides subsidized day care, free concerts and summer programs? I do not want to be harsh, but again, like the woman above, I have experienced too many spouses that believe they deserve or are owed things from the military because they have sent their spouses, the parents of their children, off on deployments. In all honesty, why is it a surprise for any spouse that their significant other could be in harms way if they join (or are already in) the MILITARY? Where is personal responsibility and freedom of choice in the decisions to marry and have children? I think we will do what we always do, make it work.
Terri, I agree. I've been living this life since 1989 and with the way people act today it must be shocking that us "old-timers" survived without all this extra help. I'm actually embarrassed by those who continually cry "what about me", "I have sacrificed", "I sent my husband to war and I deserve this" etc. Are these services necessary for the survival of the military spouse and families? No. These services are benefits that should be appreciated and I dont see that happening. We, and those who came before us, survived just fine without the handholding and I think that some self-reliance and initiative would go a long way in reducing this whole entitlement ride people are on.
cont. My life as a military spouse is my "normal" and all those hardships that people cry about is just part of life with a Marine. I deal with them because they need to be dealt with and it's just as normal as anything else I have to deal with during my day. Also, what's wrong with seeking out programs and services in the local community to meet some of our needs instead of expecting it to come from the gov't? That's what civilians do and since we are also civilians we can access those programs just as easily as anyone else
agree with the above posters. Some of the crazy entitlement ideas I've seen so far this year…had a wife scream at me because my husband was putting hers out for continuous PT test failures and weight issues, her argument was that she wouldn't be able to feed her 5 children and it was the militarys job to make sure they were taken care of since her husband serves (did I mention in the 3 years he's been in he's never deployed due to weight issues or medical issues with his kids). How is it the military's job to feed your kids?
Had another one complain that her baby basket wasn't as big as the previous persons. My husband and I make these baskets, out of our own pocket, for each birth in the unit. Every one has the same value but it's contents depend on what's on sale.
I've heard SEVERAL times, women bashing businesses out in town because they don't offer a military discount…"How dare they not give 10% off, my HUSBAND has deployed X times".
And one of my all time favorites of the past year…had a spouse come to me demanding that I give them 2k because they couldn't pay their bills that month and Emergency Relief had turned them down for a loan. I considered lending it to them (stupid me) but when I asked for their budget I found out they had just bought 2 new cars that month, for a total of 850 in car payments, and they had spent over a grand on eating out and entertainment. When I said no, this woman called me every name in the book, saying she deserved this money because her husband was deployed 4 times and they deserved all this "stuff" because of it (note she has no kids and no job).
I think we need a total reset of expectations and entitlements I would love to go back to the days of potlucks and swapping child care.
I have been a military spouse for over 10 years now. Budget cut realities are about to set in soon for a lot of people. A lot of military personnel are about to find out that they cannot reenlist and have to deal with the fact that they have to be out in the civilian world soon, myself included, due to cuts in promotions. My husband and I have been trying to prepare ourselves for this very moment. Yes, it is scary to know that our life is about to change, but others may not be so prepared for what is about to come around because everyone has thought that the military life was a given until retirement.
It is not just about the discounts we get or the programs anymore. Just be thankful you have a job and a home. We are a nation that feels entitled to every free dollar we can get.
You know, lots of you have great comments, however, you do not have a clue what is driving our debt. Yes, there are some programs that could or should be cut, but what irritates me to no end is that very few of you are complaining about the fraud and extravagances of the federal budget, federal agencies, or special programs and spending that far outpace the 46 billion in cuts. Have you thought about the billions poured down a dark hole for wind and solar power, cash for clunkers, etc, etc.
Do you hear about the department of education or health and human services getting cuts?? No. Have you heard about cuts to ridiculous research that has no reasonable application to improving services, health, or science in general?? No.
Do you know that even after sequestration, the federal goverment will still spend more this year?? Why are they not spending less if the cuts are necessary?? Sorry about the double question marks, but really folks.
Why is it always the military that is the first spanked when there are budget woes? Have you looked to see what a secretary in federal government gets paid and their retirment? It would make you sick to see what your spouse will get after 20 years of transfers, deployments, excessive work hours, etc. all the while, the federal employee has enjoyed the luxury of planting roots, paying a house off, not starting a new career at 50, on and on.
Yes we do have it better than our past military members, and at the rate our government is piling up unnecessary debt, you should bet getting your crock pots out and start cooking for the neighborhood. Because when the big cuts come, your spouses pay and retirement checks will be targeted and you won't hear a peep about any other sector of government sharing the woes. Us and the elderly. Keep your heads in your People magazines and evening sitcoms – just the way Washington wants you to be.
So keep acquiescing bits and pieces of the things that make life better in our military, and it won't be long before you are all hoping to get a square meal from the post chow hall. Look at history; you better pay attention to where the money is really going and you should be unified in writing letters to your representatives demanding accountability across the board instead of posting your stories about how difficult things were, because if you don't, you will surely get a chance to have those neighborhhod pot lucks to feed your families. Then you can stand around and talk about what you used to have.