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Good for you guys! Sounds like a couple Lts with a rough ass life right there. Sorry to break to you to you boys, but your precious time will only get less with every year you're in the AF. Wake up, manage your own training (and I guess I need to add promotion in there!) and stop whining. Good to hear how rough you guys have it. It must only be sunshine and roses once you get past SUPT. Shack.

Queen decorates Nepali for Afghanistan heroics Its like Call of Duty, except IRL. All kidding aside, hats off to this dude for not giving up. "I had so many of them around me that I thought I was definitely going to die so I thought I'd kill as many of [those fvckers] as I could before they killed me." ^^^^^^Hell yeah

On a commander's list of 69 million priorities, Shoe Clerks are guaranteed to sodomize the bottom four

Badass of the week the always awesome BADASS OF THE WEEK entry for sgt pun.

I never understood why this attitude was considered "cool." I understand it's not the biggest promotion in the world going from second lieutenant to first, but how hard is it to take just a little bit of interest in your own career and know your own date of rank? That way, you could drop the 50 cents at the BX a few days ahead of time, pick up some blue bars, and have them sewn on so you can show up wearing the right rank on the right day. Call me crazy, but that sounds like something an "officer" would do -- you know, having some SA and taking some personal responsibility for something related to their career. Edit: spelling

Seriously? ::entitlement generation:: "I'm entitled to not salute some people because that's what I'm entitled to do as a flyer." Noted. It's a salute. A sign of respect. If you're not going to salute brothers that have paid their dues longer than you have, what exactly is the purpose of a salute? You people are making it sound like a salute somehow degrades the relationship you have with the person you're saluting. What is this, kindergarden? Haha! Timmy saluted Jonny! Grow up. If you want to be called a professional, you have to act like one first. Once again: WWROD. I'm pretty sure he saluted people that outranked him and didn't give people flak for saluting him. It ain't that tough. FF

I've been delaying adding my thoughts on this issue, but I think now's a good as time as any. -First, the philosophy of a flying squadron vs a non-flying squadron: I love the tradition (what we have left) of being different than non-flying squadrons. I love that we still bars, can drink a beer while debriefing after a night line, can tease each other about stupid/silly things, and have strong relationships/camaraderie that stem from flying with each other in the aircraft, hacking the mission together, and putting up with all the crap together. I'm a big believer that 'excessive courtesy', though hard to avoid when flying with an O-6+, has a big negative effect on CRM in the aircraft (safety and mission wise), and can also hinder productive briefs/debriefs, etc. All this being said, believing that rank and customs/courtesies need not exist in the squadron hurts things more than it helps. It's all fun and games until your "buddy" who outranks you gives you a shit job because it's your turn and you feel he's being unfair, you have to counsel an FE for failing to follow directives (after being told times before), your boss picks someone else for the next upgrade, etc. Though I'm a big believer of having a fun place to work, good order and discipline can't be ignored, and if you think that as a Captain you don't have a salute a bro who's a Major, then how will things go when it gets a little ugly? Things are different in the flying world, but you're still in the military--don't look like crap in your uniform because you don't care, don't act like you're so important you can blow things off because everyone's 'cool with each other', and for crying out loud, have a little pride in what you do. You can still have fun and be an awesome pilot/aircrew member while continuing to be a professional. -2Lt's not saluting 1Lt's I think this is the least of our problems in the Air Force...but it does make for an interesting argument. I was also told this as a young 2Lt at UPT, that 'Lieutenants shouldn't salute other Lieutenants'. I remember saluting 1Lt FAIP's and getting laughed at sometimes, but oh well, it put a smile on face to make someone else laugh...and it was much better than dealing with that one ass 1Lt FAIP would chew us out for not doing so. As for me, I never cared if a 2Lt saluted me as a 1Lt--maybe I should have, but I was definitely going to make sure that I wasn't in the wrong as a 2Lt. Also, like others have said, what does a 2Lt do when a 1Lt gives a directive--if you don't think the 1Lt is any different than you, you probably won't execute as well--attitude has everything to do with it. As you an see, this is a much bigger than just rendering salutes. -Something else to ponder: What example does it set for Senior Airman who are in charge of A1C's? They're both 'Airman' right? You'd be surprised how much they see what goes on, whether in a flying squadron or not (we have 3 stripe ARMS troops in charge of 2-stripers), and in the end, it sets a bad example to just blow things off...again, I'm not focusing on the saluting part of it per se, just the overall impression that people close in rank are 'the same'. I guess what really got me going was when some of you guys said it was cool for Captains to not salute Majors and that it's all about 'crew position', even when it has nothing to do with flying, preparing for a flight, or the brief/debrief. This is foul IMO. In the past, I've witnessed instructor FE's/Gunners treat student pilots like crap and be disrespectful because they were instructors and the student was unqualed, which I always believed was uncalled for...fortunately I've seen this improve over the years, but it still exists. In the end, take your job seriously, treat people fairly and with mutual respect, and have fun doing the best job in the world!

Conjecture. Have that same Lt/Captain walk down Disney in uniform and then have them explain to you the virtue of always being saluted. Bro rules shouldn't apply in situations where it will be detrimental to the reputation of the squadron you represent. In the squadron parking lot, I will wear my morale patches with pride (and so will the SQ/CC) and probably not salute my O-3 bros because they are my bros. I'll roll my sleeves up and guys who chew might spit on the ground. Outside the Wing HQ or the gym or clinic or wherever else, we will follow the rules to a T because the last thing the Boss needs is some Chief or uptight Lt. Col. coming to him asking why his Lts aren't following the rules. Part of the unwritten rule is to continue to have SA on your surroundings when applying the other unwritten rules.

I worked at IBM as a co-op during college, and was given a very, very lucrative job offer when I graduated. I passed on it to roll the bones on becoming an officer and a pilot,... and maybe be a part of something bigger,... at least that was what my 22 year old mind was telling me. I was and still am proud to wear the uniform of the USAF. On the day I was commissioned, I was pretty pleased to be wearing it,... even those it was the Blues... a uniform that many of you despise. And as for the saluting, if you feel it is beneath you to salute, then I really don't know what do say. I just don't get it. Do you not make eye contact? Do you not say "yo, what's up?" Or is this some sort of way you compensate for your small penis? Oh, and the next time any of you Captains walks by a Lieutenant Commander at the Pentagon, make sure you explain to him how "in my squadron, we have a 'one up, one down rule.'" Yet another reason the other Services often laugh at our attitude. I'm certainly not very "traditional" in a military sense, no matter how you look at it. But for crying out loud, you wanted to be here,... try to enjoy the customs and courtesies. It's not a burden.

Flame me if you will: if they start messing with pay, I'm out at the first opportunity. I am proud to serve my country, I love the flying, and I like most of the people. However, the pay and benefits to me serve as a balance for all of the " do more with less" bullshit we have to put up with. Once that changes, I will be much more willing to explore my options in the civilian world, even if it means a pay cut, as it would be apparent that the "stability" that we are supposed to have in the military would no longer exist.

All the L funds put some money in bonds. For the further out funds that percentage is fairly small. As you get closer to the end date of the fund the percentage in bonds increases while the percentage in stocks decreases. It's all about balancing the risk. I agree with you that a younger person could comfortably invest most of their money in stocks, but it's foolish to not diversify your risk. Different risk levels are required as well as different types of stocks. If you take an active role in managing your allocations you stand a good chance to beat the L funds. But they're a great option for someone who doesn't have the time or desire to do the research and the constant upkeep required to maximize their investment. The forums at TSPcenter.com have several great threads discussing the L funds in detail.

The $400 billion cut is over 10 years, so by 2023 since the budget request for 2012 is already submitted and includes the original $400 billion Gates has already identified. Story. Most of the time pay "cuts" are really either freezes or measures that slow their growth (like smaller cost of living increases, etc.). Honestly, if we're serious about cutting deficits all of a sudden, why is this not on the table? Everything should be on the table so the American people can really see what the options are, no sacred cows on either side if we're being serious. The voters will see that the sentiments to "make cuts" are not nearly as easily met when the things that are eating the vast majority of our budget are quite popular (i.e. not foreign aid, the department of education, etc.). WRT DoD, it's either make cuts to personnel costs (either less troops or same number and pay them less) or cut R&D, procurement, or operations. A lot of reductions are projected from drawing down operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, and obviously some major procurement items have been cut recently as well. I don't want a reduction in pay or benefits for active military members but if cuts are gonna come you realistically have to expect that they will hit that aspect of defense spending. Some of the proposals have even been very reasonable (Tricare fees) but have met a firewall of categorical opposition that defies logic. Attached good report on DOD personnel costs with a sh*t-load of graphics and numbers on the issue. Forgot to attach and lost the file...

You're crazy. I'm hours away from not being a LT anymore, and I know that date. But in the last four years, I've gotten so fucking sick of people lecturing me about my career. I don't have time for a career. I'm in phase for mission and qual checks, trying to start upgrade training, and semi-annuals are due in less than a month. That doesn't even touch my non-flying duties. How about I worry about my job and when I need to know my date of rank, I'll check VMPF.