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Jokers Gamble posted:I think the most Army thing I've ever seen was when my first battalion lost a set of nods and a radio at Ramadi. They had every single person in the battalion stop what they were doing and sweep the entire loving base for like 3 days with only 4 hour breaks for sleep. They made us run through the amnesty box like 3 times a day. I think that was my "I'm never ever going to re-enlist" moment. What year was that? A platoon in my company lost an AT-4 (fell out the back of a truck while driving) and the company did a cursory search for it. Later we found out that a CAV patrol found it on the side of the road and was like "Free AT-4, heck yeah!". No biggie.
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Sep 6, 2016 20:11
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spacetoaster posted:What year was that? A platoon in my company lost an AT-4 (fell out the back of a truck while driving) and the company did a cursory search for it. That seems like one of those things that you shy away from picking up while out on a patrol.
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Sep 6, 2016 20:17
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Pesticide20 posted:That seems like one of those things that you shy away from picking up while out on a patrol.
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Sep 6, 2016 20:18
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The army sucksPesticide20 posted:That seems like one of those things that you shy away from picking up while out on a patrol. After about seven months in country we were reconning IEDs with our feet.
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Sep 6, 2016 20:21
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the best thing i learned is that the us military is not the best. they're just the least bad of everyone else.
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Sep 6, 2016 20:31
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Naked Bear posted:The Army produces two types of soldiers: smart soldiers and strong soldiers. QFT
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Sep 6, 2016 20:50
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Pesticide20 posted:That seems like one of those things that you shy away from picking up while out on a patrol. You'd think that. But none of us knew what an IED was at that time.
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Sep 6, 2016 20:55
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Soldiers are garbage idiots you can't trust most enlisted with anything and who cares if they're leaving just get the next Joe McTrailerpark to fill in. Officers are a big deal because they're expensive as hell to train and they're leaving the Army for quality work, which means the Army is losing quality people and keeping stupid assholes who couldn't hack it in the real world.
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Sep 6, 2016 21:04
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There was a Joe McTrailerpark in my unit who told me I couldn't hack it in the real world when everyone found out I declined to re-up. looooooooooooooooooool
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Sep 6, 2016 21:07
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Mike-o posted:There was a Joe McTrailerpark in my unit who told me I couldn't hack it in the real world when everyone found out I declined to re-up. I love those guys. Usually the same people that think 30k a year is "good money"
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Sep 6, 2016 21:33
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Fudge posted:Soldiers are garbage idiots you can't trust most enlisted with anything and who cares if they're leaving just get the next Joe McTrailerpark to fill in. The dumbest thing my unit did for retention was put us in africa. We have every type of FTA emotion running high with lots of short timers to return; literally 80% of our group has an exit plan the instant we get back. The SNCOs are great at leaving everyone alone to the point where we get no information or guidance on what the gently caress our OICs want until we're getting yelled at for it; the sergeants are left after trying to execute the nebulous orders while having every human flunkie with aspergers thinking they're too smart to do the goddamn job put in front of them. The youngest ones can't loving do the basic tasks assigned to them yet they feel entitled to be sergeants; they have time left on their contracts and will likely fill the gap left by the junior NCOs. Its an ourboros of apathy
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Sep 6, 2016 21:34
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ReEnlistment during deployment shouldn't be allowed but unfortunately it's part of the con.
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Sep 6, 2016 21:36
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TBeats posted:ReEnlistment during deployment shouldn't be allowed but unfortunately it's part of the con. Dat tax free reenlistment bonus. One of my guys spent the entirety of his on a .50 caliber rifle. He was an otherwise smart guy, too.
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Sep 6, 2016 21:38
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psydude posted:Dat tax free reenlistment bonus. One of my guys spent the entirety of his on a .50 caliber rifle. He was an otherwise smart guy, too. Due to ING fuckery during my months contracting screwed me outta that even! I'm so done even trying to get my SLRP or 10k back.
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Sep 6, 2016 21:43
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ASAPI posted:I love those guys. Usually the same people that think 30k a year is "good money" It's average money. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Personal_income_in_the_United_States But what is "good money"? I'm retiring and everyone is on about me being able to get some uber job making piles of cash. I just don't care. I want to go back to college for free and then be a boring school teacher that does what he wants in the summer (and on weekends and holidays).
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Sep 6, 2016 21:51
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spacetoaster posted:It's average money. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Personal_income_in_the_United_States Got me on that link. I go by two factors: Doing better than "just getting by" and being happy. If I have to worry about filling my gas tank, I'm not happy. If I hate my job I'm not happy. I want that balance. Also 2.5 kids, 1.4 dogs, .6 cats and 2.6 fish with a home that doesn't break me financially.
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Sep 6, 2016 22:05
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I want money and I want power and I want respect. I will settle for one out of those three as long as it is money.
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Sep 6, 2016 22:08
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As long as I have a workshop and a dogge I will be happy. 
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Sep 6, 2016 22:12
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Monty is so much a part of me that I forget to include him in my plans much like I forget to include my arm in plans.
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Sep 6, 2016 22:14
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spacetoaster posted:It's average money. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Personal_income_in_the_United_States It's important to note that that article doesn't adjust for cost of living. In many parts of the country, $30,000 is barely enough or not enough to survive. In others, it's pretty decent.
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Sep 6, 2016 22:36
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ASAPI posted:Got me on that link. I go by two factors: Doing better than "just getting by" and being happy. But oh boy, I saw this facebook meme posted up about how soldiers earn less than McDonald's employees!
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Sep 6, 2016 22:40
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mlmp08 posted:But oh boy, I saw this facebook meme posted up about how soldiers earn less than McDonald's employees! They do once you factor in all the child support and auto loans.
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Sep 6, 2016 22:41
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It seems to me that most of the people who get out (myself included) want better for themselves. Both emotionally and financially. In my experience the guy who says that it is really rough on the "outside" isn't willing to do things like working hard and actually applying themselves. Also, we got paid like poo poo while in.
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Sep 6, 2016 22:49
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ASAPI posted:It seems to me that most of the people who get out (myself included) want better for themselves. Both emotionally and financially. Compared to the average kid straight out of highschool with zero marketable skills, I'd say most Joes under the age of 21 do okay financially once you control for earnings lost to high interest auto loans, tattoos, and baby mommas. e: I see I'm not the only one with this theory
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Sep 6, 2016 23:31
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Never made it past E4, always had plenty of money. I had 70k in the bank after an 11 month deployment. It's not a bad living, it's just not great either. Lifestyle limits spouses earnings cause of moves and stuff so dual income becomes tough. Kinda depressing when you can look at a sheet and calculate your career earnings + COLA with no chance to change it short of becoming a warrant officer. Doing much better as a civilian after I got out and finished my degree. Nice thing about career choices is you can make a lot of money by switching companies.
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Sep 7, 2016 02:51
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Fudge posted:Never made it past E4, always had plenty of money. I had 70k in the bank after an 11 month deployment doubt it
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Sep 7, 2016 02:53
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TBeats posted:doubt it Tax free base pay + 10k tax-free bonus payment + combat pay + separation pay + whatever other pay + BAH while my wife lived with her parents It actually might have been more than 70k 
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Sep 7, 2016 03:02
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Fudge posted:Tax free base pay + 10k tax-free bonus payment + combat pay + separation pay + whatever other pay + BAH while my wife lived with her parents Well yeah if you would have mentioned the BAH + Separation pay + 10k bonus he probably wouldn't have doubted you.
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Sep 7, 2016 03:17
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I make $7,000 a day. (If you only count the day I get my tax return)
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Sep 7, 2016 03:18
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Oh sorry here's a detailed account of my finances at the time to support a point I really care about making:
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Sep 7, 2016 03:24
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Triggs posted:There's a new article making rounds on Facebook on how the Army is broken right now: Working in S3 and pushing out FRAGORDs that come down from BDE and OPORDs it's opened my eyes to the amount of bullshit senior leadership pushes down to the lowest levels. For high risk soldiers alone I've pushed out tasks for 2 different programs commanders have to use because higher says so. I later asked the commanders about them and they don't use them beyond what higher demands of them. To be fair to my BDE commander he's a very hands off kind of guy that doesn't like to micromanage but there's only so much he can do when poo poo comes down from leadership above him.
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Sep 7, 2016 03:26
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Fudge posted:Oh sorry here's a detailed account of my finances at the time to support a point I really care about making: Fudge posted:Tax free base pay + 10k tax-free bonus payment + combat pay + separation pay + whatever other pay + BAH while my wife lived with her parents i finished your post for you
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Sep 7, 2016 03:31
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TBeats posted:i finished your post for you Not surprised that qualifies as a detailed financial record in this thread tbh *does some math on the back of a napkin to calculate a tip* 'Wow are you an accountant' - tbeats
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Sep 7, 2016 03:38
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drat, one weird trick to saving money is being a grown rear end spouse living at home with parents, who knew?
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Sep 7, 2016 03:39
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Fudge posted:Not surprised that qualifies as a detailed financial record in this thread tbh you care a lot more than you let on.
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Sep 7, 2016 03:39
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I wish I made 70k from my deployment. Would have a nice dodge viper sitting in my apartment complex. Course I'd only throw 25k on a down payment because interest rates are low 10% for military.
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Sep 7, 2016 03:50
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The actual straight-cash pay is not exactly astronomical, sure, but once you factor in not paying for health, dental, vision, housing, food or utilities (or getting reimbursed to cover the cost of the latter three) then what goes into your bank account can actually stay there and be usable money. With a tiny bit of financial knowledge and planning that poo poo adds up fast as long as you're not buying AAFES swords or leasing rims. Compare that to being a free man on the land where you get more money per year but then a lot of it goes right back out to cover those costs. What I'm saying is the Facebook memes about ARE TROOPS GET LESS THAN MCDONALDS LIKE IF YOU AGREE TO CHANGE IT are loving dumb because Americans are loving dumb when it comes to finances and do dumb poo poo like think the fiscal policy of a sovereign super power should be treated like their house hold budget. Still worth getting out though because if you apply yourself and you're not the kind of knuckle-dragging sloped-brow all star that unironically says "You'll never make it on the outside" while pointing out the benefits of in-country reenlistment you can make enough to cover that difference with comfortably more to spare based on your performance, not your rank. Bonus Round: you'll never have to shave Saturday at 5 in the morning for a surprise formation because someone you've never even seen wrapped themselves around a telephone pole or beat their wife in front of the MPs.
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Sep 7, 2016 04:09
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SumYungGui posted:beat their wife in front of the MPs. MP: "It's my lunch break. Bye."
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Sep 7, 2016 04:17
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MurderBot posted:I wish I made 70k from my deployment. After paying off some loans, I managed to bank around 50-60K. The $2250/Mo in BAH I was pulling in certainly helped. The TS/SCI I convinced my battalion commander to give me helped even more afterwards.
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Sep 7, 2016 05:37
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I never deployed but still managed to save about 20-25k or so by squirreling away $750 a month. There is no reason a single soldier in the barracks needs more than $1,000 a month to be happy, hell even eating out every weekend and poo poo doesn't really break that budget either. Booze even, you can get wasted every weekend and STILL not break that budget. It's the impulse buys that get people. I had a buddy who had a new hobby every month whether it be learning the guitar, learning to mix music, owning a motorcycle, owning a lifted jeep, or what have you. He'd buy a thing and sell a thing every month. Impulse is the same reason why people get high interest rate auto loans or rim leases. You know what the Army ought to do? Cut base pay in half and stick that money in a savings bond that the soldier gets when they get discharged for whatever reason be it honorable or otherwise, or free up that money if they go career. Soldiers are too dumb by and large to save money for themselves Justin Tyme fucked around with this message at 08:23 on Sep 7, 2016 |
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