I never thought hosing a veteran out of benefits should fly. They had to prove it to me and they did.
There is no such thing as a good deal - until the check clears.
Rest safe? Not while Congress is in session and elections are coming.
We were promised $445 a month for 45 months plus $60 per dependent. It sounds paltry, but to put it in the present day we'll inflate that by the CPI from 1975 to present...(stand back folks - its a nuke with a calculator...)
That comes to $1851.72 for 45 months plus $249.67 per dependent.
I had a wife and a daughter - so in my case the benefit should have been $105,797.70 in todays dollars.
Not quite Harvard, but with a scholarship and a grant, it wasn't unheard of.
Have you figured out why they cancelled it?
Had 2 million Vietnam Era veterans used it, the tab would have been 211,595,400,000.
Admittedly - 211 Billion is a tad steep for any non-welfare program benefit.
The DoD can make these promises (that it hands off to an under funded VA) only if the benefits are not easily utilized. Hence the professional and timely manner that GI Bill benefit claims are processed and paid. They're hoping the exasperated and broke veteran will drop out - and try something else.
Private Forrest Gump: "...they said it was a million dollar wound, but the Army must keep that, I've never seen a penny of that money..."
After doing some research on my own, I've come to the conclusion that rlbinc was right, and I'm wrong. There is no way that this can possibly fly long term. This is ALL about politicians buying our votes... and we are stupid enough to go along with it. Sure it sounds like a grand idea and WOW… Congress is really looking out for us! However, this is going to break the bank. It’s almost criminal. We are essentially saying that this program is going to pay everyone that departs the military up to $80K to get a college degree--Everyone! Even those that don't want it can pass it on to their kids!
And....
From what I read, the source of funding for this one is...drum roll please...DEBT!
The gist of it is that Sen. Webb's original plan was to increase income taxes on the wealthy (don't know what the threshold for that is) by .5 percent on income above a certain level to pay for this. Bush would not sign the bill into law if there was going to be increased taxes, so they compromised by funding the bill via debt.
So, don't worry about a raise in your taxes. Our kids and grandkids will be paying the Chinese for this one.