Stripes letter: (Army Sec. Harvey's) Platitudes are not enough

[lebkuchen]

‘Platitudes are not enough’

After reading Army Secretary Francis Harvey’s comments in the Nov. 10 article (“Army secretary: Patriotism, pride, not money, motivate U.S. soldiers,” Okinawa edition) that began: “Money isn’t everything, especially when soldiers compare cash with the satisfaction ‘of protecting this great country,’” with the partial quote being Harvey’s, I have only the following to ask of Harvey: How much do you make and what does your benefits package look like?

Although Mr. Harvey may have started from a considerably more humble position than he finds himself in today, it’s amazing how quickly some people forget what hardship is like once they become used to — and even think they deserve — a level of financial comfort that most do not have.

Harvey’s comments sound a bit too much like members of Congress who talk a great game about the need to balance budgets by cutting benefits to the poorest among us even as they vote themselves another pay raise — as they did again last month — and politicians who wax rhapsodic over the glories of war while safe at home, far from danger. It’s easy to talk when someone else is carrying the load.

Harvey also said: “If your objective in life is to make a ton of money, I suggest you not become a soldier.” The problem with that statement is that few, if any, of our troops joined thinking they’d make “a ton of money,” and it’s disingenuous to imply otherwise. But is it too much to ask for our troops to be paid a decent wage? Somewhere above the poverty line, maybe?

Of course our troops, and their families, are proud of how they protect this great country. That neither diminishes nor dismisses that they deserve just compensation.

We will get the military we deserve and pay for. If we want great, outstanding, career military men and women, platitudes are not enough. They are, in fact, gratuitous and insulting when juxtaposed against benefits cuts, substandard and insufficient equipment, back-to-back tours of duty and stop-loss orders.

Talking about “the satisfaction of protecting this great country” instead of addressing these issues is disheartening, especially when it comes from one who should be the greatest advocate for the troops on the line.

I long for the politician or bureaucrat who will stand up and demand that we get our military what it needs, whether it is body armor, Veterans Affairs benefits or equitable treatment for Guard and Reserve troops. The sad reality is this: If it were truly a priority to those at the top, it would already have been done, like their own pay raises. Instead, the troops get, “money isn’t everything.” How disappointing.

http://www.estripes.com/article.asp?section=125&article=33449