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Around the Internet => Antimustachian Wall of Shame and Comedy => Topic started by: AlanStache on October 01, 2013, 11:32:45 AM

Title: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: AlanStache on October 01, 2013, 11:32:45 AM
An active duty Marine "R" posted the below, I worked real hard to stay polite.

R: And the hits just keep on coming! looks like the government is going to directly steal somewhere around $6K out of my family's piggy bank this year...
I love America, but I LOATHE the government.
(No reserve training until these rich dicks pull their heads out of their asses)

S: SO, this begs a question Gunny. I thought they passed the exemption for military, does that not apply to us?

R: Oh, the active military will continue to get paid, but it looks like drill won't happen unless 535 idiots get this fixed.
The command will keep all Marines up to date as this develops. But these are the things that we need to be prepared for: Possibly no drill this month, and needing to make up those six drills later this year to ensure we all have satisfactory years.

J: Sweet no drill this month!

R: Yeah... like I said, anyone who wants to look at this as a vacation, should remember that feeling when we extend one of the later drills this fiscal year. Me, I would prefer to go to the field in two and a half weeks

ME: You are saying that you will miss out on pay for not going into the field this month, but will make it up the field work latter? Will you not be paid for the 'extra' work latter?

R: I will [ME]... but that doesn't help me, or my Marines pay our bills now.

It was so hard to not be a smart ass and write back something like "so you are not out 6k, it will just paid latter after you do the work it is earned by?"

This guy is married and she is in the military too so they will both get the base pay.  They have a truck or two and a rented house nice area are are publicly complaining that they will have financial trouble if he does not do this normal 'extra' work and get the normal 'extra' pay that they see as 'normal' pay.  These are the same folks that will rant about other peoples sense of entitlement.

If this guy was some fresh off the boat 19 year old I would cut him a lot of slack but he is not.  Still it says a lot about the financial literacy of some in the military.
Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: davisgang90 on October 01, 2013, 11:39:55 AM
They were scheduled to drill and were anticipating that pay, now that will be delayed. 

Seems they have a legitimate complaint.

Also, you used the word latter when you meant later.  Now you know and knowing is half the battle (G.I. Joe)
Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: Jamesqf on October 01, 2013, 11:57:19 AM
They were scheduled to drill and were anticipating that pay, now that will be delayed. 

Seems they have a legitimate complaint.

Don't think so.  Remember the old saying about not counting your chickens?  I think these folks are going to face a steep learning curve if they ever become self-employed :-)
Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: Cromacster on October 01, 2013, 12:04:54 PM
Yea, its more of an inconvenience and not sure his circumstances should illicit an "our government is fucked because this is happening to me" response.

During the shut down all elected officials still get paid...that should be the outrage
Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: AlanStache on October 01, 2013, 12:11:06 PM
I am currently working a bit of OT, 50-60hr per week rather than the base 40.  I could be told to stop it and have to (if I was not fired) go back to a base 40hr/wk paycheck.  I should not be budgeting based on 50+ hr/wk. 

Never mind having enough cushion in ones savings rate to absorb a (say) 20% temporary delay in income.
Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: Mr.Macinstache on October 01, 2013, 12:16:45 PM
I saw a meme on FB that I thought was pretty good.... "So, 3 weeks ago we had the money to bomb Syria, but all of the sudden now we are scrambling to get the mail delivered"
Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: AlanStache on October 01, 2013, 12:24:37 PM
money to bomb Syria- good one

and now nasa.gov is down too.
Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: Jamesqf on October 01, 2013, 01:51:18 PM
"So, 3 weeks ago we had the money to bomb Syria, but all of the sudden now we are scrambling to get the mail delivered"

Except that it doesn't really cost much to bomb somewhere.  I mean those jets are going to be flown on a certain number of missions, whether it's training or for real, and the bombs have "best if used by" dates...
Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: beltim on October 01, 2013, 01:58:21 PM
I saw a meme on FB that I thought was pretty good.... "So, 3 weeks ago we had the money to bomb Syria, but all of the sudden now we are scrambling to get the mail delivered"

This would be really good if the post office were shutting down.
Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: Mr.Macinstache on October 01, 2013, 02:14:12 PM
I saw a meme on FB that I thought was pretty good.... "So, 3 weeks ago we had the money to bomb Syria, but all of the sudden now we are scrambling to get the mail delivered"

This would be really good if the post office were shutting down.

Apparently it was a joke.

I find it pretty funny there are guards to shut down and man the fences for the the national parks, but they can't be opened. LoL.

Cant people visit a park without being chauffeured or supervised?
Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: Left on October 01, 2013, 02:18:05 PM
I am currently working a bit of OT, 50-60hr per week rather than the base 40.  I could be told to stop it and have to (if I was not fired) go back to a base 40hr/wk paycheck.  I should not be budgeting based on 50+ hr/wk. 

Never mind having enough cushion in ones savings rate to absorb a (say) 20% temporary delay in income.
I don't think it's like this, he was scheduled to work, then told not to, and then later on will be forced to work extra hours to make up the pay...
So it's more like he was working the normal 40 hours/week, but told to only come in for 30 hours this week. Later on he can work 50 hours to make up for what he didn't. Except he doesn't get overtime pay, and he'll be late in paying bills if he doesn't have the savings for that. The money later on won't cover interest fees/recover car or homes if he misses payments on them.

What I'm ticked at is that they keep making exceptions for congress/people getting SS. Sure I know they'll tick off all the SS people, but that's the point. If they knew they couldn't keep writing in exemptions, then they may not do a shutdown to prove a point. Writing themselves out of the consequences means they'll be free to act above the laws mentality.
Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: AlanStache on October 01, 2013, 03:12:16 PM
Agreed the analogies are inexact. 

"...the government is going to directly steal somewhere around $6K out of my family's piggy bank this year..."  Most would read this as being taxed (or fined...) and not "I cant work the normal extra hours this month and will have to make them up down the line".

BTW housing allowance is not affected, and the lowest direct payment in my area for the lowest ranking single dude is 1100$/mon.  That is a good bit over than my monthly mortgage.

Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: dragoncar on October 01, 2013, 03:25:48 PM
Agreed the analogies are inexact. 

"...the government is going to directly steal somewhere around $6K out of my family's piggy bank this year..."  Most would read this as being taxed (or fined...) and not "I cant work the normal extra hours this month and will have to make them up down the line".

BTW housing allowance is not affected, and the lowest direct payment in my area for the lowest ranking single dude is 1100$/mon.  That is a good bit over than my monthly mortgage.

My manager at mcdonalds is going to directly steal $100 from my piggy bank this month.  Last month he scheduled me for 40 hours if shifts, but next month I'm only getting 30.

I think both situations suck, but neither is "stealing"
Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: beltim on October 01, 2013, 03:40:11 PM

Apparently it was a joke.

I find it pretty funny there are guards to shut down and man the fences for the the national parks, but they can't be opened. LoL.

Cant people visit a park without being chauffeured or supervised?

Oh, I know.  I chuckled.  I just meant it would be funnier if the post office were, in fact, closing.
Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: Nords on October 04, 2013, 02:47:51 PM
This guy is married and she is in the military too so they will both get the base pay.  They have a truck or two and a rented house nice area are are publicly complaining that they will have financial trouble if he does not do this normal 'extra' work and get the normal 'extra' pay that they see as 'normal' pay.  These are the same folks that will rant about other peoples sense of entitlement.
If this guy was some fresh off the boat 19 year old I would cut him a lot of slack but he is not.  Still it says a lot about the financial literacy of some in the military.
I must have missed a point here.  Do we expect military servicemembers and veterans to somehow be at least as financially literate as the rest of American society?  Sure, the military would like all of their people to be financially responsible, but even that goal is elusive.  Financial literacy is just a fantasy when you're working on your career and risking your safety while being supported by one of the nation's most complex compensation systems.  Try finding a financial advisor who can suggest how a military veteran or retiree should allocate their assets or whether they need life insurance to augment their survivor's benefits.  If even the financial industry can't articulate the issues of military compensation then I don't think we should expect the servicemembers themselves to be able to do so.

If the military was financially literate then everyone would be financially independent and nobody would be reading my writing...

Anyway the Gunny may be old enough to remember the drawdown days of the 1990s when many Reservists were required to drill (to qualify for a good year toward retirement) but were not paid because the Reserves ran short on funds.  Yet at the same time the military was paying thousands of servicemembers to leave the service.

It's also worth keeping in mind that many other facets of military compensation have still been disrupted by this shutdown-- for example hazardous duty pay, re-enlistment bonuses, tuition reimbursements, and spouse career programs.  My local commissary is closed, as are most of the military base benefits that save money for servicemembers.  Material maintenance & training have suffered to the point where someone is likely to get hurt or even killed for lack of a few thousand bucks' worth of spare parts and operating hours.  Sadly, though, I've seen more outrage expressed over the possible cancellation of the Navy-Air Force football game. 

Of course it's still arguably better to be in the military than to be furloughed.  Servicemembers are still better off than the federal employees and others who are going without pay.  I'm only trying to make the point that the Gunny is thoroughly justified in feeling paranoid about Congressional claims of supporting the troops. 

If Congress was trying to make it look like they were really supporting the troops with their "exemption" bill, I think in 13 months they'll find out just how well that tactic worked. 
Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: SwordGuy on October 04, 2013, 06:25:11 PM
What I'm ticked at is that they keep making exceptions for congress...[/quote

Just to set the record straight, it is constitutionally mandated to pay the members of Congress. 
Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: Left on October 04, 2013, 09:22:50 PM
Quote
Just to set the record straight, it is constitutionally mandated to pay the members of Congress. 
oh? And how much of the constitution do they respect besides paying themselves? It isn't part of it to shut down the government that they should be running.

not unlike how bernie madoff kept paying himself while putting others out of work/money is it? but since they write the laws, they can get away with it
Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: davisgang90 on October 05, 2013, 04:53:18 AM
Quote
Just to set the record straight, it is constitutionally mandated to pay the members of Congress. 
oh? And how much of the constitution do they respect besides paying themselves? It isn't part of it to shut down the government that they should be running.

not unlike how bernie madoff kept paying himself while putting others out of work/money is it? but since they write the laws, they can get away with it
This is especially apt given that Congress has only a few roles spelled out in the constitution.  One is passing a budget which they have failed to accomplish for 4-5 years.  We've gotten to the point where we are happy to see a CR (continuing resolution) just so there are funds to keep programs going, despite the cuts inherent in a CR.
Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: CommonCents on October 08, 2013, 08:41:04 AM
My local commissary is closed, as are most of the military base benefits that save money for servicemembers. 

Really?  That seems silly as there are perishable products in the commissary that are just going bad and costing potentially more than staying open (which I thought was priced to break even before the 5% surchage for the moral fund anyhow).  Then again, it's not like there aren't many things are there silly in this whole shutdown.
Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: MgoSam on October 08, 2013, 10:04:41 AM
Quote
Just to set the record straight, it is constitutionally mandated to pay the members of Congress. 
oh? And how much of the constitution do they respect besides paying themselves? It isn't part of it to shut down the government that they should be running.

not unlike how bernie madoff kept paying himself while putting others out of work/money is it? but since they write the laws, they can get away with it
This is especially apt given that Congress has only a few roles spelled out in the constitution.  One is passing a budget which they have failed to accomplish for 4-5 years.  We've gotten to the point where we are happy to see a CR (continuing resolution) just so there are funds to keep programs going, despite the cuts inherent in a CR.

Not to mention that I heard the congressional gym was declared "essential," and so it has remained open.
Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: Nords on October 10, 2013, 12:26:33 AM
My local commissary is closed, as are most of the military base benefits that save money for servicemembers. 
Really?  That seems silly as there are perishable products in the commissary that are just going bad and costing potentially more than staying open (which I thought was priced to break even before the 5% surchage for the moral fund anyhow).  Then again, it's not like there aren't many things are there silly in this whole shutdown.
Heh-- that's pretty funny.  I'm not sure you've seen a crowd of crazed commissary consumers before.

The commissaries stayed open for the first 24-48 hours of the shutdown "in order to sell the last of the perishables".  Instead a horde of locusts, fresh from their payday deposits hitting their checking accounts, swarmed them and cleaned out all the shelves... one article described it as "Nothing left but Pringles and tampons".

Now that they're opening again the employees are probably dusting off all the empty shelves, defrosting the vacant freezers, and waxing the deserted floors.  Then it'll take them another 48 hours to restock.  And then another crowd of locusts will descend upon them to clean them out all over again for fear that they'll have to close with the govt hits the debt ceiling. 

Hopefully it'll be safe by this Sunday morning.  The next payday is not until Monday/Tuesday (depending on your financial institution).
Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: CommonCents on October 10, 2013, 10:49:14 AM
Military brat, Coast Guard. I can just imagine the frenzy.  We always avoided going on pay day, which was bad enough.
Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: Nords on October 12, 2013, 08:07:51 PM
Military brat, Coast Guard. I can just imagine the frenzy.  We always avoided going on pay day, which was bad enough.
Two horror stories:
1.  Kate Kashman of "The Paycheck Chronicles" blog on Military.com puts up the same post every two weeks:  "When Will I Be Paid?"  The answer depends on the financial institution and the type of account, so it's not as easy as just saying "on the 15th".  Recently, though, the questions have been skewing toward "What Time Will I Be Paid on Payday?"  It turns out that people are doing their shopping at the usual time on the day when they'll be paid, in anticipation of the money being in their account before they get to the cash register.  Some shoppers are actually parked in an aisle near the cashiers, refreshing their smartphones to see if the money has hit their account yet.  Maybe these people are simply optimizing their errands, but the tone of their questions leads Kate to believe that they've already run out of food at home and have no other funds with which to purchase more... until payday happens.

2.  I was stuck at the cashier's behind a shopper whose card would not be accepted by the card reader.  (This is not uncommon at Schofield Barracks commissary.)  The cashier eventually suggested that the card was declined because it was over some limit, not because the card reader was glitched.  The shopper rolled their eyes, pulled out a smartphone, and stated stabbing away at the screen.  It turned out that they were transferring funds from their home equity line of credit to their card, and a couple minutes later the card bought the groceries. 

We've all heard the phrase "one paycheck away", but these examples really ram home the image.
Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: Left on October 12, 2013, 08:39:28 PM
Quote
Really?  That seems silly as there are perishable products in the commissary that are just going bad and costing potentially more than staying open (which I thought was priced to break even before the 5% surchage for the moral fund anyhow).  Then again, it's not like there aren't many things are there silly in this whole shutdown.
not military related, read this in comments section on a gawker article (yeah I like reading them too), talked about now shutdown was causing NIH's experiments to expire (no one there to keep it going). The money that went into it will be lost because the experiment is lost and the time to restart it would take them back to step one possibly.

Just pointing out that a lot of things are going to perish beyond food items :D but, funny reading about the commissionaries, as a non-military person I'm imaging it like flock of people going into a Trader Joe's or Whole Foods (namely  because I don't understand the draw to them but it seems to make people crazy around here). I mean the commissionaries are mostly just tax free and discounted right? Are the savings really that much that they can't afford to shop where non-military people shop if it's closed?
Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: Nords on October 12, 2013, 09:41:24 PM
Just pointing out that a lot of things are going to perish beyond food items :D but, funny reading about the commissionaries, as a non-military person I'm imaging it like flock of people going into a Trader Joe's or Whole Foods (namely  because I don't understand the draw to them but it seems to make people crazy around here). I mean the commissionaries are mostly just tax free and discounted right? Are the savings really that much that they can't afford to shop where non-military people shop if it's closed?
Commissaries sell at cost + 5% (and if someone bags your groceries then you tip them too).  If you're a moderately-skilled couponer then you can get your bill down below cost.  There's no tax, either, although many states do not tax food items.

Costco (in bulk) frequently beats our local commissary, and Wal-Mart can come close on some items, and farmer's markets might be better on a few items.  Otherwise Hawaii grocery stores are anywhere from 10%-40% more expensive (depending on how hard you coupon). 

In many places across the country, though, the commissary is only 5%-20% cheaper.  If you're on a large military base like Fort Hood or Norfolk, however, it can take quite a bit longer to shop off the base and re-enter through the security gates.
Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: brewer12345 on October 13, 2013, 08:02:17 AM
Military brat, Coast Guard. I can just imagine the frenzy.  We always avoided going on pay day, which was bad enough.
Two horror stories:
1.  Kate Kashman of "The Paycheck Chronicles" blog on Military.com puts up the same post every two weeks:  "When Will I Be Paid?"  The answer depends on the financial institution and the type of account, so it's not as easy as just saying "on the 15th".  Recently, though, the questions have been skewing toward "What Time Will I Be Paid on Payday?"  It turns out that people are doing their shopping at the usual time on the day when they'll be paid, in anticipation of the money being in their account before they get to the cash register.  Some shoppers are actually parked in an aisle near the cashiers, refreshing their smartphones to see if the money has hit their account yet.  Maybe these people are simply optimizing their errands, but the tone of their questions leads Kate to believe that they've already run out of food at home and have no other funds with which to purchase more... until payday happens.

2.  I was stuck at the cashier's behind a shopper whose card would not be accepted by the card reader.  (This is not uncommon at Schofield Barracks commissary.)  The cashier eventually suggested that the card was declined because it was over some limit, not because the card reader was glitched.  The shopper rolled their eyes, pulled out a smartphone, and stated stabbing away at the screen.  It turned out that they were transferring funds from their home equity line of credit to their card, and a couple minutes later the card bought the groceries. 

We've all heard the phrase "one paycheck away", but these examples really ram home the image.

Holy crap!  Do you think this is simply poor money management?
Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: Nords on October 13, 2013, 02:07:42 PM
Holy crap!  Do you think this is simply poor money management?
"Poor" on a monstrous scale.  Military servicemembers (and their families) are mostly paid enough money to buy healthy food to feed their families.  However it can be challenging to manage the expenses, and if you're ignorant then it's impossible.

A friend is getting his hours of CFP experience by working at the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society.  His stories are much scarier (and sadder) than the examples I see at commissaries or read about on blogs.  I'm working up to an epic rant post titled "Learn your military benefits before it's too late".
Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: CommonCents on October 20, 2013, 09:31:05 AM
Military brat, Coast Guard. I can just imagine the frenzy.  We always avoided going on pay day, which was bad enough.
Two horror stories:
1.  Kate Kashman of "The Paycheck Chronicles" blog on Military.com puts up the same post every two weeks:  "When Will I Be Paid?"  The answer depends on the financial institution and the type of account, so it's not as easy as just saying "on the 15th".  Recently, though, the questions have been skewing toward "What Time Will I Be Paid on Payday?"  It turns out that people are doing their shopping at the usual time on the day when they'll be paid, in anticipation of the money being in their account before they get to the cash register.  Some shoppers are actually parked in an aisle near the cashiers, refreshing their smartphones to see if the money has hit their account yet.  Maybe these people are simply optimizing their errands, but the tone of their questions leads Kate to believe that they've already run out of food at home and have no other funds with which to purchase more... until payday happens.

2.  I was stuck at the cashier's behind a shopper whose card would not be accepted by the card reader.  (This is not uncommon at Schofield Barracks commissary.)  The cashier eventually suggested that the card was declined because it was over some limit, not because the card reader was glitched.  The shopper rolled their eyes, pulled out a smartphone, and stated stabbing away at the screen.  It turned out that they were transferring funds from their home equity line of credit to their card, and a couple minutes later the card bought the groceries. 

We've all heard the phrase "one paycheck away", but these examples really ram home the image.

Wow. Just wow. Such a sad commentary. 
Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: CommonCents on October 20, 2013, 09:36:20 AM
Quote
Really?  That seems silly as there are perishable products in the commissary that are just going bad and costing potentially more than staying open (which I thought was priced to break even before the 5% surchage for the moral fund anyhow).  Then again, it's not like there aren't many things are there silly in this whole shutdown.
not military related, read this in comments section on a gawker article (yeah I like reading them too), talked about now shutdown was causing NIH's experiments to expire (no one there to keep it going). The money that went into it will be lost because the experiment is lost and the time to restart it would take them back to step one possibly.

Just pointing out that a lot of things are going to perish beyond food items :D but, funny reading about the commissionaries, as a non-military person I'm imaging it like flock of people going into a Trader Joe's or Whole Foods (namely  because I don't understand the draw to them but it seems to make people crazy around here). I mean the commissionaries are mostly just tax free and discounted right? Are the savings really that much that they can't afford to shop where non-military people shop if it's closed?

Yes. I have a friend who used to be a paramedic in Antarctica who was pretty upset the shutdown meant NIH grants there closed down and thus the season would be over, running years of work she said, with them only returning next season.
Title: Re: Marine posting on FB re: govt shut down
Post by: Mazzinator on October 24, 2013, 06:56:37 PM

Costco (in bulk) frequently beats our local commissary, and Wal-Mart can come close on some items, and farmer's markets might be better on a few items.  Otherwise Hawaii grocery stores are anywhere from 10%-40% more expensive

Thanks for this info! Time to take my calculator to Costco and check it out.

Also, even though I'm not really a fan, at least Financial Peace (dave ramsey) is being offered/pushed onto the military, for free. That's where we "started" on this journey.