That's the problem, they're getting a whole lot less than that. The new Joint Chief's chairman addressed NCOs recently and said how he was hoping soon to reverse the current rotation of 15 months deployed and 12 months back in the states. That's still short of the 18 months you spoke of.
If we are serious about this war reinstate the DRAFT then lets see what happens.
And that’s where the navy is coming in. When Mike Mullen was CNO he spoke at the OKC Navy Ball last year and told the sailors in the hall to “get ready”. Big Navy and reservists are being used as filler for army jobs due to the wearing down of the army and guard. Now that he is the CJCS, he has to ensure that his money is where his mouth is. Navy can drive trucks, fix em, do security, staff jobs, we are doing it all. AND we can to “play army” with all our new gear, something we have wanted to do at one time or another since we were 6 years old. Army just needs to be a little more generous on the side SAPI plates for the IBA.
I blame Bubba Clinton’s “peace dividend”. He cut the military size down, relied more on the National Guard, and spent the money on personal projects.