White House Petition to Reinstate Military Tuition Assistance Taking Off

Well, with the government budget cuts taking effect, we all know government partys/balls are still going on. No reduction of pay for any members of congress, the senate, or the white house has occured. We are still giving money to countries who don't even like us. We have not left Afganistan yet. Instead lets stick it to the young men and women who enlisted in the military because they believe they are protecting the country.

A Petition to the White House has been created to reinstate the educational benefits military members rightfully deserve and is already 50,000+ signitures strong. Regaurdless if you approve or disapprove of what the Government does behind closed doors, lets show some support to the people who took an oath to defend the constitution.

Military members educational benefits should not be the first thing on the table to cut. The last thing we need is an uneducated military force without the ability to think for themselves.

We The People Petitions

I'm using VA benefits to go back to school because the economy sucks. How long before they come after the benefits that were paid into, like the Montgomery GI bill? It makes me very nervous.

reply to post by theconspirator


All the signatures I saw were initials.

This tells me that service members are signing the petition anonymously to avoid potential repercussions.

So sad.

reply to post by wardk28


I'm using the Post 9/11 GI Bill. I've been in the program since it started, and it has negatively changed a few times since it began. I've been telling people to use it before you lose it, because I too foresee politicians taking it away in the near future.

reply to post by wardk28


I feel nervous too. I have 1 more year left until my enlistment is up, and now I am not even sure if I will have a G.I. bill to use when I get out. If they take it away, I will be forced to choose between entering a decaying work force with no transferable skills, or fight for a country that does things i strongly disagree with.

Originally posted by theconspirator
Well, with the government budget cuts taking effect, we all know government partys/balls are still going on. No reduction of pay for any members of congress, the senate, or the white house has occured. We are still giving money to countries who don't even like us. We have not left Afganistan yet. Instead lets stick it to the young men and women who enlisted in the military because they believe they are protecting the country.

A Petition to the White House has been created to reinstate the educational benefits military members rightfully deserve and is already 50,000+ signitures strong. Regaurdless if you approve or disapprove of what the Government does behind closed doors, lets show some support to the people who took an oath to defend the constitution.

Military members educational benefits should not be the first thing on the table to cut. The last thing we need is an uneducated military force without the ability to think for themselves.

We The People Petitions

edit on 12-3-2013 by theconspirator because: (no reason given)

It's especially messed up since some services require a degree for advancement. Unless that's changed in last couple years.

There are still grants, FAFSA, etc. But its still messed up. The F-35 boondoggle and all the congressional perks and entitlements among other things should be slashed first.

The post 9/11 DOD gravy train has run out of steam. "Improvise, Adapt and Overcome", "Do more with less", and all that other good catch phrase stuff.

I'm using the 9/11 GI Bill currently...just waiting for the axe to fall on that.

To everyone that is upset about TA getting turned off. First and foremost, I offer my sympathies. This is a bad time for our nation and our military. However, I can't just stand aside without giving my old 2 cents worth.

Tuition assistance is, and has always been a benefit, not an entitlement. There is a very sharp distinction between the two. Any promise that any recruiter gave you about paying for a college education by serving was referencing the GI Bill, not TA.

Now, to all of my friends and acquaintances that are not or have not been affiliated with the military, the GI Bill is a benefit that every service member is given after serving 3 honorable years in any branch of the service. The program pays for 100% tuition at most colleges, it gives a stipend for books and also provides money for living expenses for 3 years. Under certain circumstances, the benefit can be transferred to a spouse or a child.
...
TA, on the other hand, is money to pay for college given to a service member while they are on active duty. The AF was the first branch of service to offer TA as a recruiting and retention tool (back before the GI Bill was free and transferable) and only offered to pay 75% of tuition expenses. Other branches soon followed suit and eventually during OIF and OEF the benefit was raised to 100% of tuition.

Now here is the distinction...the GI Bill was passed into law by congress in 2008 or so and as such is an entitlement earned by serving at least 3 years in the military honorably. It is payed by the Veterans Administration.

TA on the other hand is merely a benefit that the services used as a retention tool. It came out of the DoD's discretionary budget. Now that the money is tight, it has been cut off. That sucks balls, I know. But if you look at the timeline, the DoD scrapped deploying a carrier group, cancelled all demonstration team performances and announced reduced flying hours and other training deployments before they cut TA.

So, to make a long diatribe short...suck it up. There are a lot more cuts to come, and if this really puts a cramp in your plans, you can always fall back and use you GI Bill to further your education.

Very sad world we live in where we have to petition giving our troops/soldiers/airmen/sailors tuition to better their lives when they give theirs to protect ours.

Sad sad sad.

I really hate this administration. They are a bunch of fools.