Army Guy

In addition, National Defence can’t even spend the money it has already been given. In the last fiscal year, it failed to spend $1.2 billion, with most of that resulting from delays in buying new equipment. https://ottawacitizen.com/news/national/defence-watch/analysis-will-billions-of-dollars-in-new-funding-for-the-canadian-military-be-wasted This has plagued our military for a long time, turning in funding becasue they could not spend it fast enough has been brought up but a long list of generals, include this current CDS " we don't need more funding we can't spend what we have right now" was from Hillier...Not sure how you could not be aware of this issue...I'm sure you will be able to find more examples by a simple google search... Well that is not true, DND has made a habit of turning in unused tax dollars...most of it is the fault of the military money mangers, my last year in of 2014, 2 Brigade alone turn in 1. something bil of unspent funding alone...Today with each unit assigned a budget to spend, before March 31'st, many can not spend it in time leaving it to the last couple months has created huge amounts of wasted spending I can remember one year being handed 25 K to source on repel ropes and equipment, that the RQ shop purchased...that sat for years ....so their budget does not get streamlined, or reduced...you don't use it you lose it...this also causes units to hand in surpluses to brigade , and so forth up the ladder, numbers add up pretty fast...I can just imigine what the item mangers turn in each year...with there larger budgets... https://www.pressreader.com/canada/times-colonist/20220211/281642488590495 https://globalnews.ca/news/711657/national-defence-unable-to-spend-billions-in-what-critic-says-is-stealth-deficit-cutting/

And they decided to keep them for 70 years, even considering building more modern ones, in fact i think they did build new ones as a test case can't remember the base...but if your going to lean into your explanation...then they should have been torn down decades ago...as no longer needed... Thats not what i said....what i did say is a military man faces just the same amount of dangers be it in peace time or war as a police officer, and yet there is a huge difference in pay....and if the dangers are the same what exactly are they getting the higher wages for.. I worked with RCMP officers over in Afghanistan for a short period of time, when they needed a protection team...they were training Afghanistan police, to a certain degree...they often would ask why they were deployed here, this was not policing but military work...that Afghanistan was far more dangerous than anything they did in Canada. Not defensive and if that came through my post i apologize... this issue i see as a small effort to fix a small problem....And i get it the military is made up of more than the Army but rather 2 smaller support elements that make up the entire package...Sorry that is my army ego coming to the surface again...there are 2 other elements that are much needed to perform the entire mission package...

Canadian culture has changed from the time i got in shit 2 RCR used to have 4 huge 3 floor h huts , one for each company, today there is only one standing, and it is used to house reserves attached to the Inf school...but things are swinging the other way now...rental options are limited, homes priced out of reach, no housing on base, the options are getting slimmer as times get harder... DND already provides a lot of amenities, schools , playgrounds, canex, gyms pools hockey arenas... Shit petawawa is full of amenities most civy towns could only dream off. golf courses, massive boat dock, and facilities...some of it just needs to be updated... Troops use to have more benefits and discounts than they have now...Rent was based on rank, not what was comparable to civy street...even the canex gave out large discounts on food, appliances, etc etc... Want a business case , there is a recruiting crises going on, some of those benefits could entice more recruits, things like cheaper rent, modern PMQ's and single quarters, I mean really when was the last time DND really built a new more modern PMQ...to compete what is already on the civy market, what we get now is a 1950 with some lipstick slapped onto it and charged as much or slightly discounted rent as civy rent.... It can be down, just there is no will...shit how many billions did DND hand in last year, the year before that, etc etc...those fund could have made our bases look amazing... instead it all went to waste, and we shrugged our shoulders while liberals spent it some place else...Those military people need to be let go...everyone of them, or the rules changed on how we spend our funding internally...

I think you need to question the fact why we have PMQ's in the first place , why were they built in the 1950's...and somewhere in all that history , you'll find out the 5 W's, and they range to having soldiers in one area easier to deploy in mass, and control..Affordability at one time soldiers housing was hugely discounted, for many reasons....security it was easier to secure the area...the reason go on and on...and while things change over time CFHA and military decided it was to expensive to have PMQ's , so they raised rent to comparable civy prices, did not keep up with repairs, which drove military members out...today...housing crises is driving them back into the same old run down PMQs .... This time the CFHA and military has washed their hands of it all....and is failing those that are couch surfing or living in tents Apples and oranges...when was the last time a civy got deployed, or jumped out of planes or handled explosives', or on and on...when did they sign onto unlimited liability... We already covered this 72 k Gross, sounds like a lot until justin wants his taxes...which the average pays 16,082 in taxes. bring him to 56,000 after taxers...and according to "your" source the average Canadian makes 72 K after taxes....So i would say the average Cpl is making a lot less than the average Canadians...and maybe some one in Ontario can show me how this wage of 56, k can afford to own a million dollar home, and i'm not even sure on what the average rent is in Ontario... It does not make sense to me, that the federal government is struggling to come up with a solution to the housing crisis, when it is with in the military's scope to simply build more modern PMQ's, and expand single quarters back to what they use to have to accommodate any surge or disaster, or crises...I'm sure in todays situation they could easily fill those new PMQ's with people that are struggling...(living in a buddies home or in a tent...) there would not be a need for PLD or what ever they are calling it today if they had more housing...plus return the benefit of discounting the rent, another added benefit for your recruiting crises... your right i think we have beat this to death...thank you for the conversation.

For the first time in history, people have been able to identify as men , women or both for many decades now...LGBTQ just did not like the words chosen to identify them as..... Today the LGBTQ group push the aganda that there is an Infinite amount of genders...one be one or dozens of genders at the same time, NONE of it is based on science or common sense all you have to do is have an imagination and poof your a fire truck, cat or dog, or a purple dildo with green warts on the side...what ever you want...and in your own home you can call yourself whatever you want, just don't involve kids at schools, or force it on others when this is truly a mental health issue...It's not something to be celebrated it is something that should be questioned and challenged...Pssst i heard there is a group that still believes the earth is flat...even though science says other wise....are they right....do i need to question everything now...

Yes the right has had it's share of lies and deceit...I've been on this forum for a long time and i have called out the right millions of times...I'm not sure where this is going... As for trump, It does not matter what my opinion or yours is, it is not going to make a difference in the states, nor is it here except to add to the already criticism Canadians already hold against the man... I think Trump did more for his country than biden...which is what i base my opinion on...There is only two choices...neither of them is any good...and now that i have made that choice it seems like your judging me on it...ONCE again US politics do not excite me, nor do i follow them so my opinion is mout as is yours on this topic... And I want to clear the air, I'm not sceptical of the liberals "they are liars and cheats" corruption runs deep in that party , and Canadians are to lazy/ Stupid to do anything about it...Liberal voters are the dupes in this case...they have proven that over and over again to all Canadians...they have produced very little of value in the last 8 years that was a benefited this country...

I agree to disagree,our opinions are to far apart. I sure that is true... Military is mandated for operational reasons to hold x amount of housing for surge operations...Moving entire units across the country where would you put them, in tents... Yes you do for good reason, most of the time it involves putting your life at risk.. Thats a load of crap...yes there job does have a danger to it...but not all are exposed to these high levels of danger everyday...certainly no to the level of say jumping out of an aircraft, diving, handling explosives, doing a BN level live fire exercise with all modes of combat systems including fast air and helo support etc etc ... My son in-law is with the police services making 40 to 50 k more than i did as a MWO...that was 85 K a year, and he just joined them transfering from being an MP... and thats provincial cops, RCMP are making more than that....And while i don't want to take away the respect i have for them, facing danger everyday is not true...much like a soldier life is not in danger everyday in a combat zone... I think DND has a responsibility to it's soldiers to house them if needed...And i get it things change as they are no longer required...like DND reason for tearing down so many PMQ's, and of course reasoning that they were not being used and it is a cost saving issue...PMQ and single housing has been a thorn in DND side from the start...when my dad joined he had to ask permission to get married, and move into PMQ's of course they had enough back in those days...what was the reason for all those PMQ;s in the first place... Below is the Canadian average wage, please not this is AFTER taxes...making this gross number much higher placing it some where in the 80 K mark...note these are 2019 numbers i can only assume they are much higher...today. https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/210323/dq210323a-eng.htm

You have an excuse eyeball your from BC..everything is tilted to the left in BC even the mountains...

I get it, did some time over at trails and evolutions unit in Gagetown..got an inside glimpse of what goes on...what we found is the equipment chosen for testing in most cases barely meet specs or completely missed the mark...what i also found is that once our results were handed in, they really did not make much of a difference in some cases...be it for political reasons, or outside interference or DND interference... where testing results where way laided to the back of report or re written to favor another products...All of this happen after the fact it had gone through RFP process...the whole process needs to be streamlined, and fixed...it should not take close to 20 years to get a new tac vest...or 9mm pistol...that might cost only millions of dollars , not billions From my experience atleast on the Army side most times the best people were not chosen for the project...those with the experience are normally kept at one of the BN'S , and those not so good got these tasking as they came up, want to get rid of a guy send him to Ottawa....Not saying that happens all the time, but in the Infantry everything in your career is on a time table, miss a timing and your career interrupted, or even stopped... ...and nothing on the time table says ottawa...take mine for example i missed my window to make chief...and was passed over due to no french language profile and finally age... And some how we skipped the multi functional requirement in this case , by forgetting to purchase or include in the purchase a weapons package which is short sightedness or for some reason forgotten...

My point is in the 90's even 2000's we had plenty of PMQ's home were in the affordable range, most military couples preferred life in their own homes, away from the military rules and policies...many PMQ's sat empty, and up keep cost just kept rising...so then comes the plan to tear a full 1/3 of them down...reduce the wastage, at the time it sounded like good policy....today only open fields stand in their place... Covid hits prices of everything go through the roof..rental units are full, new homes are priced out of reach , older homes have doubled in price once again priced out of reach for most single people...lack of PMQ's only add to the problem, with list to get a PMQ's taking as long as 3to 4 years... Here is the mandated part...each base must be able to house what they call surge in time of crises...meaning if war breaks out tommorrow it must be able to handle the dependents of those over seas, to safe guard them...plus any other units that might be moved to that part of the country....under one roof so to speak....it also must be able to handle any other governmental emergence say forest fire evac, refugees like gagetown did in the 90's with a group of asian people i can't completely remember... but they did look after thousands... Would you join the military and take a posting to Halifax if you knew you had 2 options conch surf, or live in a tent... I would not...add that to all the other failings and i would not recommend the military to anyone...The fact both my son and daughter are in , they joined in better times... Who would you blame it on....in this case Military is fully responsible...for the housing issue, pay issue, and many others...I've also blamed Canadians for a lot of their problems as well just hard to blame them when DND could have dropped a billion and built thousands of new PMQ's and single quarters...a drop in the bucket in the grand scheme of things... Infantry has attracted many young people, it is a young mans game and turnover is very high, it's hard on the mind and body...like i said when i was CSM, a large portion of my troops had university/ collages degrees, and when asked why they wanted the adventure of world travel and blowing shit up....Army recruiting guys made all that tough shit look cool, flying around in helos, jumping pout of planes, tanks IFV...all looked super cool ... my dad took to the recruiting office and told the recruiter i wanted an air force trade...he'd already done a large stint as an infanteer, then transferred to air force admin clerk....once he left i told the recruiter, no way, i was 5 th generation , that served in RCR, PPCLI, Queen's own, RNBR, spanning 3 major conflicts, i was not going to be the first Air force guy in the family...I loved it so much i spent all my career in it... Yes foreign duty allowance and other duty pays are nice, back in my day i had maxed out which is like another payday, but it cost you in other ways, time away from your family, a regular life style, but hard to earn after Afghanistan...not many deployments these days... The troops will always spend money on gouchie items that make their life's much better...kit is getting better, but it is in short supply...but they have not solved all of the clothing issues yet... As for salary, not many civilian jobs requires you to sign on to unlimited liability...police men, which have a much higher rate of pay, take a look at RCMP pay scales and they will shock you....you think a cpl makes good money...wait to you see a 4 th year RCMP officer....fire men not sure on the pay scale but those civvies in the military were making much...more than the... military... when was the last time you remembered a SAR tech refusing to save anyone regardless of the dangers...I use to think that all air force people were the same soft as F*ck...I was involved in teaching some air force pilots escape and evasion in Wainwright Alberta ...which confirmed that thought...very soft....grown men crying soft...then i seen media footage of 2 SAR techs jumping out of a herc onto a small sheet of ice to save a young Inuit boy...and i said that had to take balls lots of balls...Army sized balls, the earned my respect well SAR techs anyways... Yes salary dollar for dollar is much better, but we could buy more with our dollar in the 90's, 2000...homes were not a million plus...

Thank you i appreciate that. We as a nation have been burned thousands of times with lies and deception by the left...So excuse me if i become skeptical on whatever they say or do... I have said i don't really pay much heed to US politics because it does not really effect me....In my opinion Trump did more that was beneficial in his 4 years than biden did, one just has to look at border security, the Pull out of Afghanistan, support for Ukraine is whining off....the list goes on... that and the fact in the US you have two choices, really in this case both are not top shelf are they... so comprises have to be made...But here in Canada where politics do effect me, i don't have to comprise, and hold them to a much higher standard...

I think he is pointing out that this project was short sighted , and failed to account for other capabilities...that this helo might be tasked with in the future...

Perhaps that is your problem you've been so long that your no longer invested in the military... Posting every where are now averaging about 10 years...including the airforce...with some personal being their their entire careers. You can not compare National housing issues to the military ones... The military is mandated to provide it's personal with quarters, add to all this there are other commitments as i listed previously that also are not being followed or heeded. Please explain how a 62 k a year person can afford a 1. something million dollar mortgage... Any one form toronto this is your cue, how does one mange to afford a million dollar plus home... That maybe the case when the airforce gets deployed to a hotel...but in the army it is not the same, for one i had to purchase most of my survival kit, such as tac vest, boots, Camel backs, plate carrier, socks, mufties, not to mention the kit you scounged off other nations becasue it was better most of the time it had a cost to it as well...I dropped close to 2500 US bucks on day one, first tour in Afghanistan... I guess you did not read the our sources i provided...to bad some of them explain the issue in detail...maybe go back and try... Bottom line you can not compare a military persons with a civilian, the number of things the military is failing at is almost as bad as the liberal government failures...Military is in a recruiting crises of it's own making...and in order to become competitive it needs to fix it's shi*...then bring in programs that will entice young people into a career, pay is one of them, housing other benefits as well take a look down south at some of their benefits, such as money for education, etc... Your solution is to ignore it be saying the money is good...yes it was good when we're in...today not so much, the red flags are there military ombudsman speech to parliament, the countless media reports, plus the sources i already gave... these are things that are within the military to fix...with the latest source i posted saying that PMQ rent is going up 6 % just to make things easier...Not enough PMQ's available, no rental units available on civy side, and very little new homes being built...where does a young Cpl stay, in some cases on a friends couch or tent...in the canadian winter i mean come on... That there is a great image for the forces...

Have i attacked you in any way, pissed you off, I thought i was keeping the conversation clean...you know free from insults and shi*...The only reason i responded to you was i value your opinion...something i'm starting to regret. Just for the record I Personally i don't give a shi* what you or any others on this forum think of me. Don't like my opinions you have multiply choices, ignore, or don't respond... it is real that easy....

Another Esprit de corp article this time on housing....

Thats a little short sighted by the all involved in the project...Which is a common thing in todays equipment purchasing, if it was done to only cut expenses with plans to add in the future i might be able to wrap my mind around it...but most likely it was not even a consideration...and yet in time of conflict murphy is going to raise his ugly head and bite you in the ass for your short sightedness. I remember our company doing tac vest trails in Afghanistan...keep in mind most of us had already purchased our's off the american PX and since it was combat nobody really cared.... ...The MWO and Capt over seeing the trails and how we used them did not really take into account our observations...meaning they had a tac vest that held 5 magazines, same as the old cad pat one, and when we told them we did not go out side the gate with less than 12 mags he told us we were full of shit what did you need that much ammo...he was a Princes pat...i was a royal so we already did not like each other...I invited him on one of our patrols, him and the Capt agreed...anyways we got into a 45 min contact....during which i walked over to him and ask how many rounds did he have left, his reply was none we has empty and one of my cpls were feeding him spare mags...the young cpl brought 20 with him in is small pack...that was back in 2007....in 2012 another tac vest team arrives in Afghanistan they say they have already made up their minds, the vest was not half bad...but by that time we were in the training mode in Kabul Combat had all but finished... today they are still working on a replacement for the tac vest.. This is the case for almost every piece of clothing we purchased....nothing but short sightedness...politics, and in some of cases incompetency on the military side...and nothing but incompetency on the other civilian organizations involved...

Biden is more popular than trump in Canada, your right and i'm wrong. Trumps popularity in the US is fact , you don't need a poll for that...Justin well that is fact as well, even liberals will agree thats a fact...shi* the global population will tell you that... Do polls matter, not really, we know PP is more than likely going to win in the next election...is it going to be a majority or a minority we don't really know for sure what the voters are going to do, a poll is a best guess, not a final answer... For you it is not a good thing, for me it works...

Home ownership may be a dream, but having access to shelter while working for the military is another , it is not a dream but a right, be that single quarters or PMQ's....those were the chooses when you and i started our careers. Not many military couples managed to move out and purchase a home, back when postings were 2 to 4 years then move on...Today postings are over 10 years or more, and there is not enough PMQ's or single quarters to go around forcing members out on the economy to fend for themselves... I'm sure if you goggled the ombudsmen report you'll find it all laid out there...it was also reported on by the media, so most have covered the story... PLD was adjusted a few years ago, and now is also limited in scope and how long it covers a soldier...it does not address the problem of affordability, for a young cpl and his family... Those posted to Toronto, Victory, Vancouver PLD does very little to meet those needs... you should check out the prices of homes in those areas, and tell me 75 k is going to be enough to afford a home... In todays market yes i do think the military is under paid, for lots of reasons, one the military is suppose to have PMQ's and Single quarters to allow for emergency deployments, and for disaster response or other times when required like to hold refugees etc...all of that is gone to save funding...another Most benefits we had back then are gone like cheaper rents for PMQ and single quarters, today both are based on what can be found in your local area...because Canadians complained and that benefit was lost... Another we are short some 16000 plus soldiers, what is going to happen when they all come back...They have to go some where... There is a recruiting crises ongoing, there is already a program put in place to offer bonus, to re-sign but thats where it stops....Military is competing with the rest of the country for young people, and they are not stopping very long at DND's door, RCMP wages are light years ahead of Military ones , plus they have kept a lot of other benefits where the military has cut...US service members have a lot more benefits than we could ever imagine that make up for the lack of wages...not to mention they have good solid equipment... Of course pay has increased, it does not mean for one second things are more affordable, i can remember going to the movies with 2 bucks , get in, have way to much popcorn and candy, with some change left over , took my wife out to a movie last week cost me 60 bucks, so that point is a non starter... WHY WOULD the CO tell his subordinates to go this route Habitat for Humanity houses if military persons did not qualify...if you can't see the red flags I'm sorry this post is some what a waste of time. There is lots of things that a MWO could do, getting them Finical conconciling is one of them, talking to padra to get them into emergency quarters,or emergency loan form DND if needed, letting the chain of command know so they are aware of the problem, so not to add to an already bad situation. get marriage counseling if needed because it is not just the member thats effected it is the whole family...Making sure that soldier knows he is valued which could be as little as a talk every week or so to see how they are doing...making sure he is attending his counseling...and they are getting something out of it... Or one that seems to be popular is we could just Dump that soldier all together marking him as administrative burden and getting them released which sometimes is also the best course of action. not my preferred course of action becasue everyone makes mistakes, and sometimes need a hand up...

General Hillier on matters of Ukraine and our state of our military. Ukraine at its 'most fragile, most vulnerable period': Gen. Hillier on 2-year anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion | Watch (msn.com)

Polls are a tricky issue, but 1500 canadians is only a very very small representation of the 15,000,000 Canadians that can vote. leaving me still skeptical on the results...like any poll taken with a grain of salt... Sometimes i do, are you saying you've researched every topic you have posted to...be honest...and if you have then kudos, your a much better poster than i am..That and 3 bucks will get you a coffee... regardless of how many gaffs both have made while in office, that biden may have been more popular in Canada which really means squat.......but being popular is only a small percentage of being a leader of the most powerful nation...actions count more....And why do Americans find him more popular than biden...The left is drowning in both countries...becasue of their coc* ups... Yes my skepticism does point in one direction.. In both countries the left has screwed up so bad, that people are demanding they step down...Justin is not only the most hated PM, but in a recent poll he is also hated across the globe...that has got to say something...as for trump...i really hope he gets elected, and brings things closer to the center...holding PP to the fire...this time with something more forceful than stern words...

Thats not what it means, your just guessing, it would be more on the lines of first your wage, how much you make...like the day care or dental...How many don't have insurance via the job or pension...and since most canadians already have work or pension that cover all of that already your numbers drop off drastically...so now we are waiting for the total cost...lets see how many canadians will get to use this program and how much is it going to cost.... And yes those programs do have something tpo due with shortages, those funds , or should i say tens of billions of dollars could have went into shoring up health care we already had that is a wreck...

That has been the dream of most couples to own or purchase their own home...it has been for decades...Today many reasons why these dreams are unattainable... Those members that are homeless or visiting food banks most likely not in NB..most likely for the larger cities, where home prices have exceeded 1 million dollars and then some...every pay bracket has it's limits of what is affordable....Military postings are not based on your income or if you can afford housing they are based personal numbers , a young private and his wife posted to toronto where PMQ are filled to capacity is going to have issues...I thought you would be able to see that, maybe you where not exposed to that during your career... Yes PMQ are still there, but what is there like i said have been taken down a full 1/3 atleast in some case or bases more than that. Here is the rub many other people have the option of moving to another city that suits their budget a military member is stuck there until they are posted out, and with posting getting much longer due to restraints, that could mean 10 plus years...So while my heart bleeds for other not as fortunate as those that can not afford a house...The military does not give a rats ass, once your posted it is to fill an open position...like it or not your going or your going to release and find a new job. And instead of the military addressing the problem they continue to close PMQ's due to over all affordability... It means that todays soldiers pay does not go as far as yours use to go, and you had the option of living in a PMQ which were plentiful. most do not...In trenton the base commander has told his troops that perhaps they should look into habitant housing for humanity... why do you think that is, i mean why would a full colonel tell his subordinates that if their was not an issue...Why has the Ombudsman gone in front of parliament to address the issue... Why has the media been covering these stories... You did say you where a CWO, this issue is a CWO problem , and is not going to be solved by the remark "they make good money let them sort themselves out...They are after all his people...Shit even at the MWO level i was dealing with issues like these...

Sure the pay is consider good in certain provinces, here in NB the average pay is 36,k...so ya 39 k to start with would look good, but the average home cost to build is well of 500 K, the average cost to buy is almost the same...not doing that on 39 k, nor 72 k...Not many homes are being purchased here in NB by people that earn less than 50 K , most of them come from out west, and have driven the cost to out ragious levels. with most new homes starting at 500 k and going to 8 to 900 k....less than 5 years ago i purchased a home for 385 k, today it is worth well over 700k ... thats crazy....But lets take a look at Ontario or alberta, or Vancouver, 72 k is not going to get your very far, after mortgage , and other bills......and the military has already destroyed a full 1/3 of it's PMQ's and single housing units so those benefits are gone...... The military is well paid , we are the number one paid in the world...does not mean in todays world it goes as far...

Taxme, your one racist piece of shit...Just saying something everyone else was thinking....

Can't trust the government to regulate any industry...take fishing for instance....but we still fish some times...