DOD to begin sending furlough notices Thursday

Politico ^ | 18 Mar 13 | STEPHANIE GASKELL

[SkyPilot]

I am so sorry as to what is happening to you. Prayers to you.

[DaveA37]

“Make it hurt”...well, do it to those who you hate first.

Not long ago, and for a two year period, our county was in a bit of a financial crisis and needed to save some funding. We initiated furlough days as a way to recoup some of the needed funding. There was NO interruption to public services. Prior to enacting the furlough days, we met with all employees (unions and nonunion) and carefully explained what and why we needed the furloughs. The process worked out very well for BOTH sides and today the country AND the employees are better off. It does/can work if everyone pulls TOGETHER.

[SkyPilot]

texican01Remember DOD employees are also government employees!

I would pay money to see you stand in front of the family members of the DoD civilians murdered and the hundreds wounded, burned, and maimed on 911 in the Pentagon attack and mock them.

Moreover, 45% of the DoD employees who getting furloughed are Veterans, and thousands of those are combat veterans from Afghanistan and Iraq who are disabled.

Further, 85% of these jobs are located outside of Washington DC - performing noble functions that are vital to our military.

Many federal workers facing furloughs are veterans

Free Republic is going down hill these days. We used to have primarily Conservatives and patriots here. These days, we have our share of malcontents and rock throwers.

It is tangible evidence signaling the overall rapid decay of our nation.

[blueunicorn6]

What a phony argument. Nice try at playing on emotions. 800,000 civilian Department of Defense employees is still the equivalent of 40 Divisions of Soldiers. When I signed up, I didn’t see anything about DOD being responsible for providing me with a job for life. The United States military exists to prevent, fight and win our wars. It’s not an employment agency. That said, I think the DOD civilians should be about the last people cut from Federal employment. How do the DOD civilians vote? Do the majority of them vote Democrat or Republican? I was a DOD civilian employee at one time. My experience was that most of them vote Democrat. Democrats don’t like the military. I can understand people voting in their self-interest, but the DOD civilian employees don’t seem to follow that.

[Cringing Negativism Network]

How about bringing back US jobs?

That is the problem, which nobody talks about.

We are going broke, while we are sending US jobs to China.

Let me repeat that: We are going broke, while we are sending US jobs to China.

China. With 4 times America’s population, just became the world’s largest exporter. Yet all our manufacturing there is done as a minority.

We have sold our industry.

Our industry has been SOLD. America needs to turn around, bring back industry now, and rebuild.

Now.

[xzins]

Since Afghanistan is finished next year that should cover every dime. Besides, if they can give a 10 year cost by multiplying 1 year by 10, then they can give a 10 year cut by multiplying 1 year by 10

[SkyPilot]

What a phony argument.

There is nothing "phony" about those numbers.

45% of all DoD civilians are veterans.

The military is 18% of the budget, yet it must take 50% of the Sequestration cuts.

63% of all Federal spending is on Entitlements (TANF, Medicaid, Food Stamps, etc), and those are exempt from Sequestration.

The military has already been cut by $487 Billion (over ten years) starting 2 years ago, and on top of the Continuing Resolution, both Congress and the President are "piling on" the military (which is a Constitutional agency).

The United States military exists to prevent, fight and win our wars. It’s not an employment agency.

I have news for you - we won WW II by both fighting and employing people. We spent 39% of GDP during WW II to develop and manufacture weapons, employ doctors and nurses, technicians, maintenance professionals, logisticians, and on and on. This is how you win wars, and how you build a strong military.

I was a DOD civilian employee at one time. My experience was that most of them vote Democrat.

Even if I were to believe your anecdotal "evidence" - for every Democrat you cite I can cite a Republican. But even that does not seem to matter anymore, because the Republican leadership has chosen to betray the US military in the same vein that the Democrats have chosen.

[blueunicorn6]

Tell your fellow DOD employees to vote Republican. The people who vote Democrat almost unanimously think that the Democrat party will take care of them. The hard truth is that there’s only so much sugar for them to hand out. The sugar bowl is getting empty. I’m not a big Republican, but it seems like they understand that the sugar bowl has to be filled once in awhile. The Democrats just empty the bowl and blame the Republicans. And if you think civilians won WWII, then go to the American graveyards in Europe and see how many civilians are buried there.

[SkyPilot]

ME:"I have news for you - we won WW II by both fighting and employing people."

YOU: "And if you think civilians won WWII, then go to the American graveyards in Europe and see how many civilians are buried there."

I wonder why people on FR lately cannot deal with facts, but make feeble attempts at their own versions of false reality in order to try twist things.

[blueunicorn6]

Really? Employing people? Painting murals? You can’t even make your own argument. You’re trying to say that America produced a lot of weapons. Yep, they sure did. Private companies. Not federal civilian employees. I’ll start to feel sorry for DOD civilian employees when I see them voting 98% Republican. Until then, while you are probably a great American, too many of your fellow DOD civilian employees vote for the party that caused their problems.

[CharlesWayneCT]

FOrtunately, about 20% of their pay is benefits, and their benefits will not be affected by the furlough.