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MILITARY OFFICER

JULY 2015 $4.75 THE OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF MOAA | NEVER STOP SERVINGTM WWW.MOAA.ORG

Rescue A &id

Joint Task Force 505 brings aid and relief to Nepal in the wake of devastating earthquakes 21

American males a common

faults, the draft gave most

“ For all its

experience. It also gave many young people a chance to think about what they wanted to do with their lives.

—Capt. Michael N. Lewis, USN (Ret)

”

National Service I enjoyed Bryan Doyle’s July 2015 article, “United by Service.” I have long felt that we should have a national service require- ment. Sometime between ages 18 and 30, every American should be required to serve their country for two years in some capacity, i.e., military, Peace Corps, Ameri- Corps, etcetera. Those two years would be “payback time.” That could even include many Americans with disabilities. For all its faults, the draft gave most American males a common experience. It also gave many young people a chance to think about what they wanted to do with their lives. We lost the common-experi- ence vehicle in the early 1970s and didn’t replace it. Today we look at diversity as a desir- able societal trait, and it is. As a nation, we are the result of a melting pot that took our diversity and made a unique national character. But over the past 40 years or so, the pot has ceased to function. We’ve seen as much division as diversity in our soci- ety. We can’t seem to get past our individ- ual selfi sh interests anymore. Much of our political polarization refl ects this inability to span diverse, fragmented interests to reach common national goals. It’s time to get back to the common experience of citi- zens serving their country together. —Capt. Michael N. Lewis, USN (Ret) Life Member Asheville, N.C.

I just saw Bryan Doyle’s shout-out “United by Service,” Military Offi cer, July 2015. … [Retired Army Gen. Stanley] McChrystal’s call for a year of compulsory national ser- vice (or the draft for compulsory military service) is a call for involuntary servitude (i.e., slavery). It is another attempt to foster the philosophy that an American’s right to his life, to his liberty, and to the pursuit of his happiness is not inalienable (as stated in

14 MILITARY OFFICER SEPTEMBER 2015

our Declaration of Independence) but a privilege granted to him by the government. It is this morality of self-sacrifi ce (altru- ism) that is responsible for all the injustices and horrors committed by the power- lusters (such as Attila, Adolf Hitler, Josef Stalin, Franklin Roosevelt, Mao Tse-tung, Saddam Hussein, President Barack Obama, and other progressives) since the dawn of history. This morality teaches that moral worth only arises out of fulfi lling a duty to live for others. When the government uses its legal monopoly of force to make indi- viduals the means to the ends of others, it violates the inalienable individual rights of each American and results in a slave state. This is not the America we honor daily. —Lt. Cmdr. John S. Baltutis, USN (Ret) San Diego

Erroneous Advertisement [A] special advertising section in the July 2015 issue of Military Offi cer (pages 12-13) [states]: “Under current rules, those inherit- ing [individual retirement accounts (IRAs)], even kids or grandkids, have the ability to set up a benefi ciary IRA and continue to ex- tend tax benefi ts until they are required to take minimum distributions [RMDs] at age 70½.” This information is incorrect. In fact, a non-spouse benefi ciary of an

IRA is required to take RMDs based on their life expectancy beginning no later than Dec. 31 of the year after the account holder died unless they elect a lump-sum distribu- tion or use the fi ve-year method, neither of which make much sense in most cases. A non-spouse benefi ciary does not have the option to, as you indicate, defer withdraw- als until they reach age 70½. A non-spouse benefi ciary can take larger distributions at any time, even a lump sum, but must take at least the RMD beginning no later than Dec. 31 of the year after the account holder died. You also state that: “A trustee-admin- istered IRA may even allow you to dictate