Wednesday, August 19, 2020

More money in aging infrastructure, less for nuclear weapons/ 'What a Disgrace': Pentagon Weighing $2.2 Billion in Cuts to Military Healthcare Just After Passage of $740 Billion Budget

 Friends, The letter appeared in the printed edition on August 17, 2020. Kagiso, Max

https://www.baltimoresun.com/opinion/readers-respond/bs-ed-rr-bge-gas-lines-letter-20200814-u5gvpq2xwbc6fp4n3zv4ahbrta-story.html

More money in aging infrastructure, less for nuclear weapons | READER COMMENTARY

FOR THE BALTIMORE SUN |

AUG 14, 2020 AT 8:28 AM

Firefighters and BGE personnel work at the scene of a major gas explosion in the 4200 block of Labyrinth Rd. on Monday, Aug. 10. The explosion killed two people.

Firefighters and BGE personnel work at the scene of a major gas explosion in the 4200 block of Labyrinth Rd. on Monday, Aug. 10. The explosion killed two people. (Amy Davis/Baltimore Sun)

   Of course, as the examination of the gas explosion tragedy continues, bold headlines are necessary: “BGE: No leaks found” (Aug. 12). Then Dan Rodricks makes this point: “Bills come due for long-neglected problems” (Aug. 11). An editorial asks this question: “Is BGE repairing, replacing its aging underground gas line fast enough?” (Aug. 11).

    As so many of us have noted over the years, Baltimore’s aging infrastructure is sure to cause other tragic events resulting in the loss of life and damage to property. The recent explosion highlighted this issue as two died and another seven are hospitalized.

  I will argue that money is no object. What I mean by that is tax dollars are being misused. I will provide one example — the federal government is planning on spending $2 trillion over 30 years refurbishing the nuclear weapons arsenal. I believe a better use of these tax dollars would be to rebuild the aging infrastructure of cities, including Baltimore, all over the country.

 Max Obuszewski, Baltimore

 Monday, August 17, 2020

 'What a Disgrace': Pentagon Weighing $2.2 Billion in Cuts to Military Healthcare Just After Passage of $740 Billion Budget

"The Trump administration is always looking for ways to cut your healthcare, regardless of who you are, where you live, or what you do."

 

Jake Johnson, staff writer

'What a Disgrace': Pentagon Weighing $2.2 Billion in Cuts to Military Healthcare Just After Passage of $740 Billion Budget

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August 17, 2020

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Monday, August 17, 2020

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"The Trump administration is always looking for ways to cut your healthcare, regardless of who you are, where you live, or what you do."

by

Jake Johnson, staff writer

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Secretary of Defense Mark Esper testifies before the House Armed Services Committee on July 9, 2020 on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. (Photo: Michael Reynolds-Pool/Getty Images)

Shortly after both chambers of Congress approved a $740 billion Defense Department budget for fiscal year 2021, Pentagon officials are reportedly pushing for more than $2 billion in cuts to military healthcare over the next five years, potentially threatening the coverage of millions of personnel and their families amid a global pandemic.

Politico reported Sunday that the proposed $2.2 billion cut to the military healthcare system is part of a "sweeping effort" by Defense Secretary Mark Esper to "eliminate inefficiencies within the Pentagon's coffers."

"Ever notice that it's never a cut to things used to send kids to war?" asked Josh Moon of the Alabama Political Reporter. "It's always—always—a cut to the promises we make to get them to volunteer for us. What a disgrace."

"Ever notice that it's never a cut to things used to send kids to war? It's always—always—a cut to the promises we make to get them to volunteer for us. What a disgrace."
—Josh Moon, Alabama Political Reporter

According to Politico, "Esper and his deputies have argued that America's private health system can pick up the slack" for any servicemembers who lose coverage.

"Roughly 9.5 million active-duty personnel, military retirees, and their dependents rely on the military health system, which is the military's sprawling government-run healthcare framework that operates hundreds of facilities around the world," Politico noted. "The military health system also provides care through TRICARE, which enables military personnel and their families to obtain civilian healthcare outside of military networks."

Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.), co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said the push for billions in healthcare cuts shows once again that the Pentagon "puts more effort in protecting defense contractor profits than the lives of our troops."

Alongside Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), Pocan co-sponsored an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act that would have cut the proposed $740 billion budget by 10% without touching the military healthcare program. The amendment failed last month by a vote of 93-324, with 139 Democrats joining 185 Republicans in voting no.

A companion amendment in the Senate led by Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Ed Markey (D-Mass.) also failed to pass.

Unnamed Defense [sic] Department officials told Politico that, if approved, the cuts "could effectively gut the Pentagon's healthcare system," adding to the rapidly swelling ranks of the uninsured. A study released last month by advocacy group Families USA found that at least 5.4 million Americans have lost their health insurance during the coronavirus pandemic.

Politico reported that the proposed $2.2 billion in cuts includes "eliminating all basic research dollars for combat casualty care, infectious disease and military medicine for [Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences], as well as slicing operational funds."

"What's been proposed would be devastating," warned one anonymous senior official.

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Donations can be sent to Max Obuszewski, Baltimore Nonviolence Center, 431 Notre Dame Lane, Apt. 206, Baltimore, MD 21212.  Ph: 410-323-1607; Email: mobuszewski2001 [at] comcast.net. Go to http://baltimorenonviolencecenter.blogspot.com/

"The master class has always declared the wars; the subject class has always fought the battles. The master class has had all to gain and nothing to lose, while the subject class has had nothing to gain and everything to lose--especially their lives." Eugene Victor Debs

 

 

 

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