If Carter Braxton (signer of the Declaration of Independence from Virginia) had invested the $10,000 he loaned to the country for the revolution, that in and of itself, at 8% interest compounded annually would be worth a whopping $567,951,528,886.04 today. That's a half trillion dollars worth of today's money that he was willing to spend on the cause of freedom. Additionally, this shipping magnet dedicated his fleet to the cause of liberty and lost every ship either sunk or captured by the British Navy. British Army units also razed all but one of his plantations, leaving him basically bereft at the end of the war. The US Government never repaid the loan.
A friend of mine newly conscripted into the USMC tells me that the Department of Defense doesn't get enough money. From what he tells me, they still make due with leftovers from Vietnam. He also says that by the time you factor in all the hours that enlisted men work, the average private earns about $2/hour. For all the hubbub about the minimum wage being so important, I don't know how our elected officials allow this travesty.
A friend of mine newly conscripted into the USMC tells me that the Department of Defense doesn't get enough money. From what he tells me, they still make due with leftovers from Vietnam. He also says that by the time you factor in all the hours that enlisted men work, the average private earns about $2/hour. For all the hubbub about the minimum wage being so important, I don't know how our elected officials allow this travesty.
If I were a Senator, the first thing I'd lobby for is a 10% increase in funding for expenses and a 10% pay increase for active duty personnel. It's a crime that our fighting men earn so little for their sacrifice while senators and judges vote themselves pay raises, even in the midst of an economic crisis. Shoot, I know some members of Congress opposed the GM bailout bill on the auspices that it contained an unrelated pay raise for the judiciary. How does that make sense and why are we paying for such a non value-added event? Granted, you don't necessarily join the military for the pay...you join it because you love your country, but if we're going to have a minimum wage, by gum it ought to apply to E-1s just as much to the fry guy at McDonald's.
Godspeed to our fighting men and women. May they know how much we love and appreciate them. If only we had a Carter Braxton today willing to pledge his life, his fortune and his sacred honor for such a valuable gift as freedom. That's after all what Christmas is all about- freedom from the woes of sin, the sting of death, and the chains of the past. That's why Marley came to Scrooge, and it's why Christ came for all of us.
Keep faith with our fighting men. No aid and comfort for the enemy.
Godspeed to our fighting men and women. May they know how much we love and appreciate them. If only we had a Carter Braxton today willing to pledge his life, his fortune and his sacred honor for such a valuable gift as freedom. That's after all what Christmas is all about- freedom from the woes of sin, the sting of death, and the chains of the past. That's why Marley came to Scrooge, and it's why Christ came for all of us.
Keep faith with our fighting men. No aid and comfort for the enemy.
No comments:
Post a Comment