Obscene Amenities?

Oh, you know, Arkin's comment:

So, we pay the soldiers a decent wage, take care of their families, provide them with housing and medical care and vast social support systems and ship obscene amenities into the war zone for them, we support them in every possible way, and their attitude is that we should in addition roll over and play dead, defer to the military and the generals and let them fight their war, and give up our rights and responsibilities to speak up because they are above society?

Heh. Compared to my Dad's Army, yeah, the pay's not bad. The housing is much better, too. The medical care isn't bad, and I'm not sure where this vast social support system is that he's talking about. At least the one that he implies is paid for with tax dollars. I see a darn huge lot of volunteers out there, and stuff paid for with NAF dollars. Hold that thought.

La Malkin, et cie, have already covered this subject, really. Nicely with this video, too.

I'm sure that Arkin has in mind the Great Ameriki Souk, AAFES. The Army and Air Force Exchange Service, and NEX, the Navy Exchange. And the MWR services (Morale, Welfare and Recreation) that the profit from AAFES operations funds. With NAF money.

NAF. Now there is an interesting term not tossed about much in the press.

Non-Appropriated Funds. The significance of Non-Appropriated means that Congress does *not* authorize the expenditure of those funds. They are not appropriated. They do not come from the Treasury. They are not Bill Arkin's tax dollars. They aren't my tax dollars. They aren't your tax dollars.

But they are my dollars. They are the dollars of anyone who is authorized to use the PX/BX, the Post Exchange/Base Exchange. The military's in-house J.C.Penney/Sears/Target. Or, who pays to use the MWR facilities, like the swimming pools, stables, golf courses, movie theaters, arts and crafts shops, auto craft shops, etc.

They are self-supporting. And the money comes from - us. The soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines, coast guardsmen, commissioned Public Health Service and NOAA personnel, active, Reserve, and retired, and our associated families, who are authorized to use those facilities. There are some exceptions regarding some of the buildings that pre-existed the break that was created in the 70's when Congress defunded those activities. And the "traveling shows" that MWR puts on do get corporate sponsorship - but not money from the Treasury. Most of the golf courses were built, many a long time ago, with appropriated funds and today, they solicit outside sponsors. But there isn't any tax money going into their upkeep.

They have to be sefl-supporting, or they get closed. There used to be officer, NCO, and EM clubs here at Fort Leavenworth. Now there are none. Because they couldn't compete with outside the gate businesses. And I mean literally - we imposed regulations on their alcohol sales that made them uncompetitive with local bars. So, they closed. There used to be clubs everywhere, but now only the larger installations can support them.

Things like the stables here at Fort Leavenworth used to be real deals - but now, by MWR rules, the cost of MWR activities can't be more than 10% below the prevailing "outside-the-gate" price. And at least since 2002 there has been a surcharge on MWR activities. A surcharge that pays for... the MWR services for the deployed soldiers around the world.

It's not completely that clean. In some places, like here at Leavenworth, the stables are in the old post stables, built by the government for government use. When the horse soldiery went away, two of those buildings were kept for private horse boarding. But the PX, Shoppette, Gas Station, Bowling Alley, etc, were built with AAFES money, not appropriated tax dollars.

The emloyees are not GS civil servants. They're NAF employees. And last I recall, two of them died in Iraq.

And while the stuff going into theater is being shipped many times at government expense - outside of that, unless you are an MWR user, the stuff being shipped over wasn't paid for by you.

In other words, we self-tax to provide the "obscene amenities" that Bill Arkin so reviles.

You, Mister Arkin, essentially don't provide us squat in terms of amenities to the deployed soldier.

I *so* want to break the Rulez and go Weapons Free Cleared In Hot on Arkin. But, my sister lurks this place, and one of the reasons she lurks here is because this place doesn't do that... besides, Uncle Jimbo does that better than I.

Though she *does* hate the Castle Store ad. Hates it, hates it, hates it.

Hey, I'm her little brother - I gotta tease her somehow.