Patcho

It should go without saying...but I'll say it anyway. (Dons tinfoil hat) I don't have any special insight into this program, but I don't need a weathervane to tell me which way the sun shines (sorry, couldn't resist). There may be a few outliers, but I'm sure that this is another gee-whiz way to save money, just like the "reforms" in retirement pay. Person A may get a "bonus", but it will be paid for by Persons B, C, D and E getting less. Then Persons F~Z will get *also* get less, because the whole goal here is to save money. My bet is that there will be a pause in the CPI -> Pay Raise link (i.e. CPI goes up 2%, the "general dude/dudette" pay scale only goes up 1%) for a year or two, saving $100 million in the budget, of which $31 million will be spread out in "bonuses", leaving $69 million saved right here and now. Screw that "wait 20 years to see results" stuff!

Yeah, "Fiscally conservative military member" was probably just optimism and Chu-Hi talking. My bad. (Guinneapigfury is also 100% right about the standard spread of business around the main gate of Anybase, USA.) As far as the gold standard...yup, it is an old system that nobody uses anymore. That's why I said "something...ANYTHING". No, I'm not so foolish as to think that being on a fixed standard of some kind would solve all of our problems. I do think it would greatly curtail the whole "kicking the can down the road" idea, which seems to be the only plan that absolutely has bi-partisan support in Washington these days. (Yes, everybody SAYS they want to solve the debt problem by <###, YYY, ZZZ>. But really, what do they wind up DOING?) Wait while I dig out my crystal ball...ok. "What will happen at the end of this year, when "fiscal cliff" of automatic tax increases and budget cuts arrives due to tomfoolery on both sides of the aisle and in the SuperCommittee?" "All signs point to can-kicking, possibly disguised as 'We'll do this easy part right now, the hard stuff we'll get back to...ummm...later!' and/or development of the 'WeReallyMeanItThisTimeSuperDuperCommittee', which will also deadlock." Currently, we are no longer rated "AAA" across the board - one of the three credit rating agencies disagrees with your confidence in the USD being backed up by the "full faith and credit" of the USA. But hey, it's just one of the three, right? Well, good news! We've painted ourselves into a corner. Either: a) We allow the US economy to "go over" the cliff - possibly causing a double-dip recession (I guess the economy is doing great now???)...and we'll get downgraded by another agency (see PIMCO's Bill Gross, other news analysts, etc.), leaving us with a "AAA" rating at only ONE agency. b) We waffle as predicted in my crystal ball, change the law at the last second/pass a resolution to really, honestly, no-kidding take care of the budget...someday/etc. (I haven't heard of the impact of this from any news agency, despite it being the obvious outcome...??) Then...I wouldn't be surprised to see a downgrade to USA's credit rating, for failing to follow it's own laws - from both remaining agencies. Anyway, the only thing I stand behind 100% in my post is: #2 - I'm not implying I have all, most, or even some of the answers. This is just my two cents.

/rant on I can't speak for other countries, so here's the view from where I sit, overseas: There is an undercurrent I've sensed from Washington lately...Maybe it's just me? "We owe $XXXXXX-bazillion 'USD' to other countries...so let's just devalue (via your preferred means - dollar printing, buying our own debt, both at the same time, etc.) our USD! w00t! Problem solved!" And...it's catching on - at least over here in Japan. (They've learned soooo many lessons from us!) The Bank of Japan is busy doing...well, that. Just watch what happens anytime the USD/Yen rate gets down near 75. So, it's not like the good ol' U-S-of-A is operating in a vacuum in this argument. Japan is devaluing the Yen, China is presumably (help, anyone more knowledgeable about China?) still screwing around with the value of the Renminbi, etc. (I'm waaay out of my depth to comment on Europe.) In any event - from what I can see...I believe it's called "Competitive devaluation"? I don't think the U.S. should OWE any country anything that can't be settled at the end of the month. And it SHOULD be settled at the end of the month, every month. (This doesn't mean we shouldn't have allies. We just shouldn't owe a lot of money to...say...a large Communist country that has has an excellent chance of being this generation's "new USSR", and has a name ending in "-hina", for example.) Looking at our average households, I don't see fiscal responsibility happening anytime soon...but it should be our goal. Stop owing other countries money. Because you know they're going to come knocking at the worst time. (Full disclosure: #1 - I wish the USD was tied to something...ANYTHING. Gold. Moon dust. Whatever. Something we just can't make up more of 'from thin air'. The idea that we can devalue or revalue <though that never happens, does it?> the USD invariably winds up as a punishment for fiscally conservative folks. You know...the kind who join the military, because they want a safe, stable country, and presumably a safe, stable currency. Nice to have people operate within their means, including the U.S. Govt. #2 - I'm not implying I have all, most, or even some of the answers. This is just my two cents. #3 - Damn, this Chu-Hi is good. Those who've been here, Korea, or China know what I'm talking about. ) /rant off

You win!

"Just got done checking ADLS - you don't want to get close to being near to almost-but-not-quite-halfway to your due dates...Plus, CBTs are just plain fun!"

"Hey, you did an awesome job on that last award package...we think you should write yourself up for an award for how good you are at writing awards!" (See: Gill Robb Wilson Award ) Mind=blown (P.S. No disrespect to a guy who flew in WW I...for the French...wait, wut?)

"It's so cool to know that AFPC's always got my back...Assignment history, days TDY, awards, you name it!"

VCQ09 was at Komaki (in a different thread), and is presumably now safely back in the bosom (sts) of Big Blue. As a former Exchange Officer myself, I can testify that the job isn't a permanent appointment...despite my best efforts.