MILITARY: Don't cut key benefits

The NYTimes.com article of Sept. 25 indicates the real possibility of having the retirement benefits for the military facing future cuts. I find this an outrageous consideration, a slap in the face to the military men and women who have served this country, sacrificed with their families, returned wounded and maimed and have even given their lives for the democracy that we live in and enjoy. All of these heroes deserve better than that.

The article states that the military pensions and health care for active and retired troops now cost the government $100 billion a year. If Congress fails to adopt the deficit-reduction recommendations of a bipartisan joint Congressional Committee this fall, the Defense Department will be required under debt ceiling legislation passed in August to find about $900 billion in savings over the next decade. I feel there is a better solution to consider: We could save half of the $900 billion by eliminating the foreign assistance that we presently give to foreign countries each year. We presently give $52.7 billion every year in economic assistance to foreign countries that continually vote against our interests. According to the Times article: “Of the 30 largest recipients of U.S. foreign aid, 29 of them have voted against the U.S. in a majority of the non-consensus votes and 25 voted against the U.S. in a majority of the important non-consensus votes.”

The U.S. has become chronic enablers of these foreign countries, preventing all of them from accepting their own responsibilities. Our government continues to make excuses for these foreign governments as to why they can’t do for themselves and exist without our assistance. This mentality is slowly going to cripple the U.S., but, it is exactly what the present administration advocates and enacts. We need to reassess our policies on foreign occupation, intervention and nation building. Let’s start cuts there instead of with our great military men and women.

LARRY KETTLE

Coeur d’Alene