http://formerspook.blogspot.com/2012/03/tale-of-two-hearings.html

Monday, March 05, 2012
A Tale of Two Hearings

*** begin quote ***

Never mind that Ms. Fluke’s claims are demonstrably false. There are plenty of places where a struggling college students can obtain contraception, some within a few minutes of the Georgetown campus. And, there’s the little matter of how much protection a student needs and how much it costs (assuming they don’t want to go the “free” route). A month’s supply of generic birth control pills can be purchased at Wal-Mart for $4. Total cost for three years at Georgetown: $144.

Or, if a student prefers condoms, they’re readily available and affordable as well. In fact, the “contraception cost” cited by Ms. Fluke could cover a swingin’ weekend at the Kennedy compound, or for mere mortals, enough protection for five sexual encounters a day for three years (emphasis ours). We’ve heard that law profs try to “bore their students to death” during year three; looks like Ms. Fluke (and her fellow students) have found a new way to beat the boredom during their final semester at good ol’ Georgetown.
But that isn’t the real irony of Ms. Fluke and her contraception plight. That was provided in another hearing room, on another subject, military health care. While the MSM media was atwitter over Ms. Fluke, they largely ignored the latest revelations on healthcare fees for military retirees. Appearing before the House Budget Committee, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta affirmed that out-of-pocket costs for TriCare (the health plan covering military dependents and retirees) will continue to rise.

Just how much? According to California Congressman Buck McKeon, Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, some military retirees will see their TriCare fees increase by as much as 345%. Supporters of the fee hike note that TriCare went more than 15 years without an increase. Critics note that the average military retiree leaves the service as an E-6, with a monthy pension of roughly $1600 (after taxes). While the revised system will be means tested (so higher-ranking retirees pay more), any increase will have a major impact on service members who retire at lower grades.

Of course, that means little to members of Congress (most of whom never served in the armed forces), or the Obama Administration, which is equally lacking in military experience. They have no problem in raising health care fees for military retirees and dependents, while pushing for free, unlimited contraception for those young-skulls-full-of-mush on campus.

Did we mention that the retirees actually earned their benefits, through decades of service and sacrifice? Or that they were promised free, on-base healthcare for life at the time of their enlistment? But then again, retired military members aren’t viewed as a crucial “swing” voting block in this year’s presidential election.

*** end quote ***

Argh!

Once again, “We, The Sheeple” fail to keep our eye on the ball. In this case, military retirees and their problems.

I’m sure the congresscritters won’t have any trouble with their benefits.

# – # – # – # – #