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MILITARY OFFICER
APRIL 2012 $4.75 THE OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF MOAA | ONE POWERFUL VOICE®
WWW.MOAA.ORG Machine Guns
Combat reached a new level after the creation of a weapon with rapid-fire capabilities 60
FEE-FOR-ALL The FY 2013 budget aims to hike military health care fees 33
that we are being asked to shoulder so much of the proposed budget cuts? What are the other 99 percent of the citizens being asked to do? —Maj. Dave R.
“ Why is it
NOT SO PACIFIC China’s growing mili- tary is making waves in the Pacific 50
OFFBEAT FESTIVALS These unusual events offer something for everyone’s taste 66
I appreciate the organization’s efforts to fight the cuts in retirement benefits prom- ised. However, MOAA is in a unique posi- tion to explain how these cuts will impact retention after the initial service. Young men and women will serve one tour for a number of reasons including patriotism or excitement. Generally, they have no spouses or children. When they look at career service, it is
Lester, USAF-Ret. ”
a different ball game. Our members can reflect on how we would have reacted to the proposed changes. As a reserve officer, I was in between my second and [eventu- ally] my third tours in Vietnam. A new policy required I either commit to career service or leave the Marine Corps. As a he- licopter pilot [with] aircraft maintenance [expertise] I had an excellent job offer from an aircraft company. I had 12 years invested at that point, and it was only the career benefits that caused me to commit to full service. —Maj. Robert E. Brown, USMCR-Ret. via email
Having reviewed the chart [“Fee-for-All”], I am compelled to recommend going along with the administration’s proposal. The benefits from TRICARE For Life (TFL), even with the fees, are far beyond those of any other health care insurance I have ever heard about. … I am among those who, during World War II, were promised free health care for
16 MILITARY OFFICER JUNE 2012
Last month, I attended a talk by [Deputy Director for Government Relations Col. Bob Norton, USA-Ret.], and he mentioned it. In the April edition of the magazine, on page 40 [Washington Scene], it’s men- tioned. It’s mentioned again on page 46 [Chapters in Action]. Here we are, “a tiny fragment,” “less than 1 percent of the country’s citizens.” Why is it that we are being asked to shoul- der so much of the proposed budget cuts? What are the other 99 percent of the citi- zens being asked to do? —Maj. Dave R. Lester, USAF-Ret. via email
China’s Threat There is no question this is still a danger- ous world and the U.S. must maintain a credible military force, but that is not li- cense to create a straw man enemy to jus- tify unneeded hardware and force size. Alan W. Dowd, in his otherwise splendid
article, “The (Not So) Pacific” [April 2012], warns of the growing menace of an armed China. What he has failed to do is to pres- ent any rationale why China would want a hot war with their best customers at a time when economic success provides the means to feed the nearly [1.5] billion population [and] improve their lives, while still main- taining strong central power. The Chinese are superb business peo- ple and have been for eons. Current Chi- nese leaders are intelligent and act in what
Health Care and Commitment Congratulations, and continued thanks, for your strong opposition to thinly veiled attempts to balance the defense budget by reducing veterans’ benefits and hiking mili- tary health care fees. Your April 2012 “Fee- for-All” article [Washington Scene] was right on the money — no pun intended. —Cmdr. B.K. Trebor-MacConnell, USN-Ret. via email
life. What we got is much better. Treat- ment is not limited to military facilities where retirees would be competing with active duty personnel for attention and hospital space. I think the case for accepting the pro- posed fees should be offered to MOAA members for their thoughtful consideration. —Capt. John S. Kellogg, USNR-Ret. via email
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