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Boy McCain is really going to look like ass for not supporting this one. Through a House and White House compromise, the Webb plan has just passed the house and now addresses McCain's biggest critique: retention. The solution? Allow veterans who have served 10 years to transfer benefits to wives and children. Fantastic for those who are eligible for the GI Bill, but who have no real need for the benefits after a full career in the military.
I also love the fact that it is fair to reservists, offering a sliding scale of benefits based on amount of cumulative time on active duty. The Bill has been criticized by McCain and others who think that 36 months on active duty is too little to receive full benefits, but for an Army reserve solider 36 months represents boot camp plus two 15-month deployments - a *huge* disruption of their normal lives.
Additionally, the new GI Bill is now more fair to ROTC and Academy grads who previously were totally ineligible for the GI Bill. Now they can get the same benefits, with time towards the GI Bill eligibility starting to accrue after they have completed the obligation for their previous scholarship. Definitely a plus for officer retention since some at least might decide to stay an additional 3 years to pay for that post-service MBA (especially with the private school matching provision).
Anyway, just really happy to see that this looks like it will pass. A real bright light contrasting with all of the usual stories about service members and wounded warriors getting a raw deal.
Story:
I also love the fact that it is fair to reservists, offering a sliding scale of benefits based on amount of cumulative time on active duty. The Bill has been criticized by McCain and others who think that 36 months on active duty is too little to receive full benefits, but for an Army reserve solider 36 months represents boot camp plus two 15-month deployments - a *huge* disruption of their normal lives.
Additionally, the new GI Bill is now more fair to ROTC and Academy grads who previously were totally ineligible for the GI Bill. Now they can get the same benefits, with time towards the GI Bill eligibility starting to accrue after they have completed the obligation for their previous scholarship. Definitely a plus for officer retention since some at least might decide to stay an additional 3 years to pay for that post-service MBA (especially with the private school matching provision).
Anyway, just really happy to see that this looks like it will pass. A real bright light contrasting with all of the usual stories about service members and wounded warriors getting a raw deal.
Story:
House Passes Historic GI Bil
On June 19, the House of Representatives approved a major GI Bill upgrade for men and women who have defended the nation since September 11, 2001. MOAA, The Military Coalition, and many other veterans' and higher education associations are pleased to have played a role in winning this historic victory. But it didn’t come easy.
Senators Jim Webb (D-VA), Chuck Hagel (R-NE), John Warner (R-VA), Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) and Representatives Bobby Scott (D-VA) and Harry Mitchell (D-AZ) took the lead in sponsoring the largest and most widely supported fix. Almost everyone in Congress agreed a fix was needed, but some felt the Webb plan was too generous. Others in Congress didn’t support adopting it outside the normal funding rules and wanted to raise taxes on millionaires to pay for it.
The White House initially opposed the Webb plan as too generous but also wanted to include a provision in the plan to let people who serve 10 years transfer their education benefits to family members.
In the end, House leaders and the White House agreed on a bill that included the best of both plans.
The new GI Bill will reimburse veterans' tuition for schooling up to the highest state college cost, pay a housing allowance based on the location of the school, and provide up to $1,000 annually for books. Under certain conditions, it would provide extra money toward attending a private university. Veterans will have up to 15 years after separation to use the benefits.
Servicemembers who have completed six years of service and agree to serve an additional four years will be able to transfer part or all of the benefits to their spouses immediately. Once they complete 10 years’ service they can transfer them to children.
The upgraded benefits apply to people who have served in uniform since 9/11/01. Some who served at least 90 days since then but subsequently separated or retired could qualify for the upgraded benefit. But no one already retired will qualify for the transferability option.
Senate passage of the bill is expected next week, after which it will be forwarded to the president for signature.
MOAA is especially pleased that the new GI Bill includes a MOAA-suggested provision extending the new benefits to service academy and ROTC scholarship graduates if they agree to serve an additional three years beyond their initial service commitment.
Activated National Guard and Reserve troops will be able to earn GI Bill benefits for each tour of 90 days or more they serve up to full benefits for 36 months of aggregate active service.
sFrom the Washington Post:
Federal Court Rules Against Military Gay Policy
Wednesday's ruling led opponents of the policy to declare its days numbered
Federal Court Rules Against Military Gay Policy
Wednesday's ruling led opponents of the policy to declare its days numbered
So there are these crazy motorcycle gangs that drive up and down Highway 58 at night during the summer and make shitloads of noise. It's annoying and pathetic and the past two nights I've been woken up at 1 am by these guys and the cops giving low speed chase (apparently there's no blanket "disturbing the peace" law here so they have to wait for a certain decibel level or something).
I've been calling them bosozoku, knowing that the term is not quite right for these pathetic and much tamer groups on Okinawa. But just saw this coinage online: mofazoku
"They talked a little about the bozozoku (literally crazy tribe) motorcycle gangs and yakuza (Japanese Mafia), and how while they are dangerous, they're not particularly vicious, so if you act polite, they'll probably leave you alone. The black girl also told about the mofazoku which is college students who can't afford motorcylces so use mopeds :-D (mofa = german for moped). Her advice was to avoid the bozozoku but feel free to openly mock the mofazoku ^^ "
Very, very apt!
I've been calling them bosozoku, knowing that the term is not quite right for these pathetic and much tamer groups on Okinawa. But just saw this coinage online: mofazoku
"They talked a little about the bozozoku (literally crazy tribe) motorcycle gangs and yakuza (Japanese Mafia), and how while they are dangerous, they're not particularly vicious, so if you act polite, they'll probably leave you alone. The black girl also told about the mofazoku which is college students who can't afford motorcylces so use mopeds :-D (mofa = german for moped). Her advice was to avoid the bozozoku but feel free to openly mock the mofazoku ^^ "
Very, very apt!
I heard someone from one of these absurd groups being interviewed on the radio today. I had to look it up online just to make sure it wasn't a joke:
Wednesday, Apr 23, 2008 The Associated Press
Rocky Twyman says nothing else has worked, so he's urging motorists to pray for lower gasoline prices when they fuel up.
Twyman says he and his fellow volunteers at a church soup kitchen launched "Pray at the Pump" today at a gas station in Washington D.C.
After fueling up their cars, Twyman says they bowed their heads and asked God for cheaper gas.
There was no immediate answer, but he says other motorists joined in and the service station owner didn't run them off.
Twyman says that if God brought down the walls of Jericho when the ancient Hebrews prayed, then divine intervention can bring down gas prices too.
Edited because I just noticed the date on this second one was from 2006. That almost makes it more funny because obviously the prayer didn't work too well the first time around.
WASHINGTON, April 26 2006 (UPI) -- A U.S. Christian group has grown tired of escalating gasoline prices and is set to stage a national prayer rally to lower the numbers at the pumps.
Various Christian clergy from around the country will convene around a Washington, D.C., gas station Thursday at noon to pray. For those who can't attend, a live Internet site and toll-free prayer line have been established.
In a release, the Pray Live group said many people are "overlooking the power of prayer when it comes to resolving this energy crisis."
Apart from sending a message to God, the rally had a message for humanity, said Wenda Royster, the group's founder.
"It is our hope that seeing and hearing some of the nation's most powerful preachers gathered around a gas station and the United States capital as a backdrop, will remind everyone who is really in charge of our world -- God," Royster said.
Wednesday, Apr 23, 2008 The Associated Press
Rocky Twyman says nothing else has worked, so he's urging motorists to pray for lower gasoline prices when they fuel up.
Twyman says he and his fellow volunteers at a church soup kitchen launched "Pray at the Pump" today at a gas station in Washington D.C.
After fueling up their cars, Twyman says they bowed their heads and asked God for cheaper gas.
There was no immediate answer, but he says other motorists joined in and the service station owner didn't run them off.
Twyman says that if God brought down the walls of Jericho when the ancient Hebrews prayed, then divine intervention can bring down gas prices too.
Edited because I just noticed the date on this second one was from 2006. That almost makes it more funny because obviously the prayer didn't work too well the first time around.
WASHINGTON, April 26 2006 (UPI) -- A U.S. Christian group has grown tired of escalating gasoline prices and is set to stage a national prayer rally to lower the numbers at the pumps.
Various Christian clergy from around the country will convene around a Washington, D.C., gas station Thursday at noon to pray. For those who can't attend, a live Internet site and toll-free prayer line have been established.
In a release, the Pray Live group said many people are "overlooking the power of prayer when it comes to resolving this energy crisis."
Apart from sending a message to God, the rally had a message for humanity, said Wenda Royster, the group's founder.
"It is our hope that seeing and hearing some of the nation's most powerful preachers gathered around a gas station and the United States capital as a backdrop, will remind everyone who is really in charge of our world -- God," Royster said.
Great article from this month's American Prospect (liberal mag) here:
http://www.prospect.org/cs/articles?arti
Quotes:
Obama is offering the most sweeping liberal foreign-policy critique we've heard from a serious presidential contender in decades. It cuts to the heart of traditional Democratic timidity.
and
The Obama foreign-policy team describes it as "the politics of fear," a phrase most advisers used unprompted in our conversations. "For a long time we've not seen much creative thinking from Dems on national security, because, out of fear, we want to be a little different from the Republicans but not too different, out of fear of being labeled weak or indecisive," another top adviser says. Identifying that fear as the accelerant of the Iraq War mind-set is the first step to a new and innovative foreign policy. John Kerry was not able to argue for fundamental change in foreign policy because he was consumed by that very political fear.
and I particularly this one about promoting dignity instead of democracy (yes, because I'm a liberal who is cynical about democracy)
What's typically neglected in these arguments is the simple insight that democracy does not fill stomachs, alleviate malaria, or protect neighborhoods from marauding bands of militiamen. Democracy, in other words, is valuable to people insofar as it allows them first to meet their basic needs.
Anyway, its an interesting article regardless of your political persuasion.
http://www.prospect.org/cs/articles?arti
Quotes:
Obama is offering the most sweeping liberal foreign-policy critique we've heard from a serious presidential contender in decades. It cuts to the heart of traditional Democratic timidity.
and
The Obama foreign-policy team describes it as "the politics of fear," a phrase most advisers used unprompted in our conversations. "For a long time we've not seen much creative thinking from Dems on national security, because, out of fear, we want to be a little different from the Republicans but not too different, out of fear of being labeled weak or indecisive," another top adviser says. Identifying that fear as the accelerant of the Iraq War mind-set is the first step to a new and innovative foreign policy. John Kerry was not able to argue for fundamental change in foreign policy because he was consumed by that very political fear.
and I particularly this one about promoting dignity instead of democracy (yes, because I'm a liberal who is cynical about democracy)
What's typically neglected in these arguments is the simple insight that democracy does not fill stomachs, alleviate malaria, or protect neighborhoods from marauding bands of militiamen. Democracy, in other words, is valuable to people insofar as it allows them first to meet their basic needs.
Anyway, its an interesting article regardless of your political persuasion.
Good news (although perhaps temporary) for those of us in Japan. Personally I'm happy to see anything above 100 these days. From the wires:
Dollar Rises Against Yen in Asia
Apr 11th, 2008 | TOKYO -- The dollar rose against the yen in Asia on Friday as an upturn in Asian equity markets prodded short-term investors to sell the yen.
....
The greenback traded around 102.04 yen Friday afternoon, compared with 101.89 yen in New York Thursday.
...
"The dollar could rise if some decisions (in the G-7 meeting) encourage investors to believe that financial instability may end soon," said Masanobu Ishikawa, manager of foreign exchange at Tokyo Forex and Ueda Harlow.
Dollar Rises Against Yen in Asia
Apr 11th, 2008 | TOKYO -- The dollar rose against the yen in Asia on Friday as an upturn in Asian equity markets prodded short-term investors to sell the yen.
....
The greenback traded around 102.04 yen Friday afternoon, compared with 101.89 yen in New York Thursday.
...
"The dollar could rise if some decisions (in the G-7 meeting) encourage investors to believe that financial instability may end soon," said Masanobu Ishikawa, manager of foreign exchange at Tokyo Forex and Ueda Harlow.
An interactive map about rising food prices is here.
I've been reading the book Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking by Malcolm Gladwell about rapid cognition. In this book he discusses a test called the IAT (Implicit Association Test) which is meant to reveal "conscious-unconscious divergences." It's kind of neat and a little bit disturbing. I took the Age IAT and got these results:
Religion results (who would have guessed?):
I'll admit that I'm a little afraid to take the Race IAT. Try one yourself here:
IAT tests
Have fun!
You have completed the Young - Old IAT.
Your Result
Your data suggest a strong automatic preference for Young compared to Old.
Thank you for your participation. Just below is a breakdown of the scores generated by others. Most respondents, even the elderly, find it easier to associate Old people with Bad and Young people with Good compared to the reverse.
Religion results (who would have guessed?):
You have completed the Judaism - Other Religions IAT.
Your Result
Your data suggest a strong automatic preference for Judaism compared to Other Religions.
Thank you for your participation. Just below is a breakdown of the scores generated by others. Most respondents find it easier to associate Other Religions with Bad and Judaism with Good compared to the reverse.
I'll admit that I'm a little afraid to take the Race IAT. Try one yourself here:
IAT tests
Have fun!
Great article in this month's Atlantic Monthly by Robert Kaplan about the importance of Sea Power and decline of the US Navy. Includes a good admonishment of the military for being behind the curve in addressing today's problems (COIN in Iraq) while completely ignoring future security threats/issues.
Can I just say that seeing references to Mahan and Corbett in mainstream, popular, current magazines for some reason makes me smile?
Can I just say that seeing references to Mahan and Corbett in mainstream, popular, current magazines for some reason makes me smile?
Oh no! My coffee maker broke! I loved that coffee maker - it brewed right into the thermal carafe so that it stayed hot most of the day.
Admittedly coffee these days for me is more of a psychological boost than a physiological one (although I do add a spoonful of the real stuff to my decaf), but its still a necessary part of the day. I'm trying to view this as a sign that I need to purchase one of the uber-cool grind-and-brew coffee makers. Unfortunately they are expensive and I am cheap. In the meantime I am limping along with our field french press, pictured here doing service in Iraq:
Admittedly coffee these days for me is more of a psychological boost than a physiological one (although I do add a spoonful of the real stuff to my decaf), but its still a necessary part of the day. I'm trying to view this as a sign that I need to purchase one of the uber-cool grind-and-brew coffee makers. Unfortunately they are expensive and I am cheap. In the meantime I am limping along with our field french press, pictured here doing service in Iraq:
...the Octopus Card. Its a touch-and-go RFID card that you can use to pay for nearly everything: transportation, restaurants, attractions, Starbucks, vending machines, etc. Lots of places give discounts for using it too! You add money at special kiosks or certain stores and can redeem the card for cash whenever you want. It really, really helps avoid the whole "accumulation of random foreign coins" problem that a tourist can have.
I thought this bit was cool too (from wiki):
Other than the Octopus card itself, operator Octopus Cards Limited also sells watches and mobile phone covers that function as an anonymous Octopus card. The types of watches available include wrist watches, pocket watches, and watch key chains... As with the card itself, these products are used by waving them over a card reader.
All I have to say is: high tech Asian cities are cool! Why can't they implement something like this in NYC or DC?
I thought this bit was cool too (from wiki):
Other than the Octopus card itself, operator Octopus Cards Limited also sells watches and mobile phone covers that function as an anonymous Octopus card. The types of watches available include wrist watches, pocket watches, and watch key chains... As with the card itself, these products are used by waving them over a card reader.
All I have to say is: high tech Asian cities are cool! Why can't they implement something like this in NYC or DC?
There's a leptospirosis outbreak going on here - 6 people in the last 3 weeks.
Subtropical climates suck! Especially since its still nearly 80 degrees every freakin' day. I want winter!
Subtropical climates suck! Especially since its still nearly 80 degrees every freakin' day. I want winter!
I already reported on this a few weeks ago, but today there is a good Washington Post front page article about the new and unprecedented $25,000-$35,000 officer bonuses being offered by the Army to retain its Captains.
Army Offers Big Cash To Keep Key Officers
As one of the few weirdo Americans who likes renting and does not really aspire to home ownership (at least not for a very long time), I found this article interesting.
Why rent? To get richer.
Why rent? To get richer.
$25,000+ Retention Bonus for Army Captains
Week of September 24, 2007
A critical skills-retention bonus of $25,000 or more is available to more than 16,000 regular-Army captains who agree to remain on active duty. The basic $25,000 bonus is available to officers who were originally commissioned in air defense, engineer, finance, signal, quartermaster, nurse corps and select medical service areas. Those commissioned in adjutant general, armor, chemical, military police and ordnance are eligible for a $30,000 critical skills-retention bonus. Officers commissioned in aviation, transportation, infantry, field artillery, and military intelligence are eligible for a $35,000 CSRBCan I just say that I won't be disappointed if the Marine Corps follows the Army's lead on this one?
In other news: In addition to monetary bonuses the Marine Corps is now offering 60 promotion points to any first-term enlistee (ranks E-3 and E-4) who re-enlist through October 2008.
