You see, this is why enlisted guys hate officers...

So I'm in my office here in rainy San Diego, when I get this mass-email from one of the chiefs about a Rush Limbaugh voice transcript. Here it is (with the actual names deleted, of course):

-----Original Message-----
From: XXXXX
Sent: Tuesday, January 11, 2005
8:17
To: XXXXX
Subject: FW: Rush Limbaugh


Love him or loathe him, he nailed this one right on the head
...........

By Rush Limbaugh:

"I think the vast differences in compensation between victims of the September 11 casualty and those who die serving our country in Uniform are profound. No one is really talking about it either, because you just don't criticize anything having to do with September 11. Well, I can't let the numbers pass by because it says something really disturbing about the entitlement mentality of this country. If you lost a family member in the September 11 attack, you're going to get an average of $1,185,000. The range is a minimum guarantee of $250,000, all the way up to $4.7 million.

If you are a surviving family member of an American soldier killed in action, the first check you get is a $6,000 direct death benefit, half of which is taxable. Next, you get $1,750 for burial costs. If you are the surviving spouse, you get $833 a month until you remarry. And there's a payment of $211 per month for each child under 18. When the child hits 18, those payments come to a screeching halt.

Keep in mind that some of the people who are getting an average of $1.185 million up to $4.7 million are complaining that it's not enough. Their deaths were tragic, but for most, they were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. Soldiers put themselves in harms way FOR ALL OF US, and they and their families know the dangers.

We also learned over the weekend that some of the victims from the Oklahoma City bombing have started an organization asking for the same deal that the September 11 families are getting. In addition to that, some of the families of those bombed in the embassies are now asking for compensation as well.

You see where this is going, don't you? Folks, this is part and parcel of over 50 years of entitlement politics in this country. It's just really sad. Every time a pay raise comes up for the military, they usually receive next to nothing of a raise. Now the green machine is in combat in the Middle East while their families have to survive on food stamps and live in low-rent housing. Make sense?

However, our own U.S. Congress voted themselves a raise. Many of you don't know that they only have to be in Congress one time to receive a pension that is more than $15,000 per month. And most are now equal to being millionaires plus. They do not receive Social Security on retirement because they didn't have to pay into the system.

If some of the military people stay in for 20 years and get out as an E-7, they may receive a pension of $1,000 per month, and the very people who placed them in harm's way receives a pension of $15,000 per month.

I would like to see our elected officials pick up a weapon and join ranks before they start cutting out benefits and lowering pay for our sons and daughters who are now fighting."

Fair enough, right? I thought it was. I thought Rush made a cogent point. I don't remember if I ever talked about how upset I was at the 9/11 entitlements, but Rush certainly did it for me. He put things into perspective, for sure. At least, he did for the people who haven't a clue about what's going on in the US.

Then 20 minutes later, we all get this email from the AOIC (Assistant Officer in Charge--essentially, the XO), who is apparently in a bad mood today...

I've never resented anyone else's pay or benefits, from politicians to sports stars, or even senior officers back when I was a lowly seaman recruit in 1987. Sometimes some people, through hard work, extraordinary talent, or sheer luck, make a whole lot more money than we do.

None of us joined (or stayed in) for the money. We all may have a multitude of reasons why we joined, but wanting to defend our country was probably the prime motivator for almost all of us.

I appreciate Rush promoting better pay and benefits for the military. I just oppose holding someone else up as an easy target saying they don't earn their pay. In a free society, people can go to where the money is if that's what's most important to them. I would never run for political office, or attempt to be a professional athlete. But if I want their salary, I'm free to pursue it.

r, LCDR XXXXXXX

Talk about missing the point. Rush's transcript pointed out a problem with the entitlement mindset of this country. Why the hell should the US Government, aka TAXPAYERS, pay for the lives lost on 9/11? Sounds again like the familiar sounds of a broken legal system.

What do enlisted people see when they read that response the AOIC wrote? Not that it's from someone who would like everyone to strive to the patriotic ideal of serving one's nation; but from an unmarried officer making a higher salary than everyone in this office building, save one, who doesn't really give a damn that DFAS might screw up your paycheck one month and you might have problems supporting your wife and kids. It's no secret. Enlisted guys aren't paid jack. Frankly, some deserve to be paid jack...you're always going to have bad apples...but there are plenty of good ones who deserve to be paid more for the job they're doing.

Just a little lesson in leadership...and the danger of mass-emails.