General Stanley McChrystal implements new austerity measures in Afghanistan. No more tax free Harley purchases.

“This is a war zone, not an amusement park,” wrote Command Sergeant-Major Michael T. Hall in a military blog.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/new...cle7080774.ece

 

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“This is a war zone, not an amusement park,” wrote Command Sergeant-Major Michael T. Hall in a military blog.

Somebody needs a chill pill or a blanket party.

 

I would hope there is a real reason for this decision.

 

"What it comes down to is focus, and to using the resources we have in the most efficient and effective ways possible.

Supplying non-essential luxuries to big bases like Bagram and Kandahar makes it harder to get essential items to combat outposts and forward operating bases, where troops who are in the fight each day need resupplying with ammunition, food and water."

I can understand why it's an unpopular decision, but the reason they stated in the article makes sense to me. The focus should be on the front lines.

 

Now iam not over there and don't know how things are working but hey if you got jack *** in the brass that are spending more time figuring out how to keep the big macks shipped to mc donalds than they are the water to our soldiers on the front lines then yes we have a problem.

 

I can see his point of view. as a contractor on the ground here in Iraq, it's crazy the amount of things the bigger bases have. I work out of a small camp, so coming to the big bases is like culture shock.

Camp Victory in Baghdad has I believe three or four fast food joints, a huge PX, military sales for all kinds of vehicles, etc...

I mean it is a nice break for guys that are on small FOBs and out in the push all the time, but man, theres so much money invested into the rear areas sometimes it's crazy.

Didn't Marlon Brando's character in Apocolypse Now talk about this very same thing?

 

and being X military here as much as its nice and we like the comforts not one of those companies is there for us they are there to take our money very easy to get a guy who's in the thick of it everyday and putting his life at stake to come off the cash and that he is saving and buy or get talked into a harley or a car. Not to mention the biggest thing i always hated about it was that most of the guys are young kids 18 to 21 just like at college's where the credit card companies and car dealers con the kids.

Don't get me wrong its great to have everything there but your throwing alot of money around as well with alot of people that get no education about money.

 

I think it's absolute nonsense. I did two tours in the desert, and we didn't have Burger King or Military auto sales concessions. Everything tasted like curry (and I hate curry) or you ate MRE's which aren't too bad after the crap they serviced in the chow trailer.
I also did 2 tours for a total of 4 years in Korea. The first tour we had no fast food. Second tour we had a Burger King built a few months before I got to DEROS. Whoppers we're the bomb after eating bulgogi and chow hall burgers for 2 years. I bought my first Harley in '88 through the overseas sales program.
Burger King and Harleys have zero to do with getting food and water to the front. NONSENSE.

 

I'm sure glad that I got mine before they decide to follow through with it. BTW it's not tax free, they're just at a discount.

 

It's not the service's job to teach about money though. I often thought of that as a Marine NCO back in the day.

Whether you're in the service or in college, money managing is your own job.

And I know this will open up another can of worms.