Military Retainer Pay and Social Security: Entitlements???!!!

“That country is totally enslaved, where one single law can be made or repealed, without the consent of the people.”
Benjamin Church, 1773

“Nothing can be politically right that is morally wrong; and no necessity can ever sanctify a law that is contrary to equity.”
Benjamin Rush, 1786

The Progressives (aka, socialists, Marxists, et al) of both Parties have been successful at rewriting history and manipulating the perceptions of the people. Their lies survived until the political charade in Washington DC began to unravel at the turn of this new century. The people are awakening, are not pleased and want drastic change. This threatens the imperial status quo of the likes of Obama, Pelossi, Reed, McCain, Graham, and too many others.

The recent debt limit fight was ideological but, in the end, the Progressives rallied to thwart the people, again. 2012 still looms hopeful for the Tea Party Movement. Americans of all walks of life are beginning to understand that corrupt politicians have been systematically “feathering their own nests” at the expense of the people. It is not surprising they call the Tea Party Movement terrorist. The anti-constitutional Progressives fear for their political lives.

As the Progressives set the stage for appearing to reduce the size of government they will do so by offering the people either a bad choice or a worse choice. Their status, income and benefits will not be touched but they will destroy the American people and stray from the rule of law. Progressives are already preparing to tamper with military pay and benefits. These politicians are also planning on this and other American generations to solve the Social Security debacle they themselves are responsible for causing.

In order to be prepared to thwart further injustices we must be clear on two of the Progressives’ lies. They falsely claim that military retirement and social security are entitlements. By definition an entitlement is a right to benefits specified by law or contract. Our arrogant politicians want us to believe that they are gifts of the government to a select group of the population. It also implies that recipients may not be as entitled as we once thought true. In fact, the Progressives will seek to significantly reduce “entitlements” much like today’s CEO adds millions to his/her portfolio while drastically reducing the workforce, putting thousands out of work.

MILITARY RETAINER PAY

Military retirement is the propaganda phrase for what has always been a military retainer. To qualify one must have served the nation and often through personal, family and professional hardships as induced by combat and other missions short of declared war. Since the 1980s our soldiers have trained and deployed to the point the Army, for example, required special authorization before a soldier could be deployed for over 6 months in a 12-month period. Now that we are fighting four undeclared wars (Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Yemen) the NCA (National Command Authority) has hidden its personnel management failures by augmenting the active components with our Reserves and National Guard. Deployments longer than a year now appear to be the norm.

My point is that, after a 20-year career, many of our military today will have spent close to half their careers in combat and away from family and loved ones. For this they receive half of their base pay and medical insurance that is categorized as worse than Medicare. Many doctors simply don’t want our military Tricare insured.

But consider the hidden truth; after 20 years a soldier has earned retainer pay. The retainer pay ensures that he or she is subject to involuntary activation for military duty past the age of 60. Therefore a “retiree” is never truly retired and is subject to recall at the whim of the President and the Department of Defense. Most “retirees” must work to supplement their retainer to make ends meet.

DOD Directive 1352.1 states: Involuntary Order to Active Duty. The Secretary of a Military Department may order any retired Regular member, retired Reserve member who has completed at least 20 years of active military service, or a member of the Fleet Reserve or Fleet Marine Corps Reserve to active duty without the member's consent at any time to perform duties deemed necessary in the interests of national defense in accordance with 10 U.S.C. 683.

The possibility of involuntary recall after age 60 often seems unlikely but it is a fact nonetheless. Current demographics suggest that recalls will be needed within 10 years should the US continue engaging in multiple combat operations around the world at the current pace.

There are three categories used by the Department of Defense and reflect the priority to be used in any involuntary recall to active duty:
• Category I. Nondisability military retirees under age 60 who have been retired less than 5 years.
• Category II. Nondisability military retirees under age 60 who have retired 5 years or more.
• Category III. Military retirees, including those retired for disability, other than categories I or II retirees (includes warrant officers and health care professionals who retire from active duty after age 60).

Military duty does not end at “retirement”; we are retained as a contingent force available to the National Command Authority for decades after 20 years or more of active service. The Progressives are now crafting plans to require even more sacrifice from its military at even lower cost. Should this come to pass our military men and women will be reduced to the status of a Roman gladiator or indentured servant.


SOCIAL SECURITY

Social Security is a comprehensive federal program of benefits originally designed to provide for a safety net for aging and retired Americans. The social security tax was established to pay for the program. Every working American and business hiring Americans has had to pay in to the social security trust fund. It was a federally created retirement investment fund. It is not a gift from our government; it is something qualifying Americans earned. That is until politicians, blinded by their hubris, decided to expand the program to be all things to all people. Lacking the funds for their schemes the politicians bankrupted the trust fund and, in effect, perpetrated a Ponzi scheme on the people. It was unethical and perhaps illegal but who knew?

www.investorwords.com offers the following chronology of failed Progressive policies. Initially the intent of the Social Security Program was sound but became corrupted by irresponsible and corrupt politicians. Consider the following facts and you decide: (These have been paraphrased by the author for clarity.)

Franklin Roosevelt, a Democrat, introduced the Social Security (FICA) Program. He promised:

• The participation in the Program would be completely voluntary. It is no longer voluntary.

• The participants would only have to pay 1% of the first $1,400 of their annual incomes into the Program. 7.65% was subsequently required on the first $90,000.

• The money the participants elected to put into the Program would be tax deductible. This is no longer the case.

• The money the participants put into the Independent Trust Fund would only be used to fund the Social Security Retirement Program and no other Government program. Under President Johnson the money was moved to the General Fund and spent elsewhere.

• The annuity payments to the retirees would never be taxed as income. Under Clinton & Gore up to 85% of your Social Security can be taxed.

Consider once more the following points: (These have been paraphrased by the author for clarity.)

• President Lyndon Johnson and the democratically controlled House and Senate took Social Security from the independent trust fund and put it into the General Fund. Congress spent our money on other programs of their choice, not ours.

• The Democratic Party eliminated the income tax Deduction for Social Security (FICA) withholding.

• The Democratic Party started taxing Social Security annuities. The legislation was passed with Vice President Al Gore casting the tie-breaking deciding vote as President of the Senate.

• Jimmy Carter and the Democratic Party passed legislation that provided Social Security payments to immigrants at age 65 even though they never paid a dime into the fund.

The original contract (FICA) was violated but we the people were not made aware of the violation. We have the right to expect our elected representatives to behave legally and ethically. They did not behave properly nor did those opposing the violation of the Social Security Trust Fund sound the alarm. With the advent of the “conservative compassion” of President Bush, too many Republicans have joined ranks with the Democrat Progressives in search of bigger government and greater spending.

We must now join as Americans to resolve our fiscal and constitutional issues. None of the choices will be acceptable to all but each choice must be equitable and not unduly punish or sanction. The problem we have today is one of unfinished business. Until we complete the job started in 2010 the Tea Party must continue to inspire change that We the People can believe in. That change requires the removal of the “Old Guard” Democrats and Republicans that have made politics a lifestyle, instead of tending to the People’s business in an ethical and responsible manner.

Strength and Honor.