It's a shame, people should treat soldiers better.

Soldiers put more on the line than most other professions, as do emergency workers, missionary workers, and all of the like. Most are treated like shit by the government either cutting funds or simply not caring for them. It's really sad.

I'm really surprised that 16 years of service doesn't get you anything... I don't know anything about this guy's situation, but it seems really unusual.

Yeah, something's fishy. It's much more likely this journalist got duped than that Navy SEALs get no pension.

I do think soldiers deserve more benefits since so many of them end up homeless, but the problem is there are 5 million of them currently serving, and millions of others who have previously served, either America needs to raise the standards to get into the army or they can't afford to raise benefits.

That said assuming this story is true, special forces are seriously under payed.

This is all less reliable than third-hand, but I`m seeing a lot of people on the internet saying 16 years qualifies you for a reduced pension and health benefits. I withhold judgment until I see someone knowledgeable comment on the plausibility of this story.

I do know for a fact that a retired Navy SEAL would have a ton of job opportunities in the security industry, including instructing positions, which would pay reasonably well and not put him in any danger. So I also find it odd that he really can't find other employment at all.

If you're worried about benefits, you should become an officer. Second lieutenants/ensigns are making 70,000 dollars a year and field-grade officers (major in the Army/Air Force/Marines, lieutenant commander in the Navy/Coast Guard) are well into six figures these days.

Not just 16 years of service... he's a SEAL. That's insane... how people manage the SEAL training is beyond me. He ought to be treated better than just a typical 16-year vet, and a 16-year vet of any kind should be treated with respect and dignity like few others.

@Stack ... someone knowledgeable commenting on the story is in the story. You can't just look for someone to confirm the story; it happened to him. If he is lying, we have no way to know until they butt into his financial records, and in order to do that, the government would have to reveal who he is (or Esquire, but that won't happen). Based on their harassment of others to keep from revealing themselves, I'm finding that unlikely... maybe that's a flaw in his story but one we can't really get around.

20 years to retirement. While I agree he should get help (as all our soldiers leaving the service), he knew going in that it's 20 years to retirement and the pension in the service. So no, 16 years gets him no pension and it shouldn't. Would your employer give you your pension if you stopped working at age 45?

Sorry, but I was in the service and I knew going in that if I wanted to retire, I had to serve 20 years. He could have taken a desk job (probably should have) for the last 4 years. I'm sure all of ST6 that was involved in the raid wer given their choice of duty. He could have taken a desk job back in the states, been close to his family, possibly saved his marriage, and done his last 4 years safe and sound and gotten his full pension. Who is to blame for him not doing the smart thing?

If that is the case I would agree with Draug, but not serving in the army and not living in America, I have little knowledge of what the benefits are for working in the army.

Al Qaeda = Poopyface. I like that. Let's say that from now on.

I suspect thereis more to his financial sotry as well. He should have had a partial pension at 16, true. Havign not decided to make my career in the service,I don't know about the partial pensions, and I know that the government changed the pension plans in 80 and again in 86 so whether the partial 16 years still exists for him or not, I couldn't say.

This is just another scare story to persuade people of the 'evil' of reducing the level of increase in military spending.

"You want the military budget to increase by only 8% instead of 10%? Why, you must want the SEAL who killed bin Laden has to be homeless, you heartless unpatriotic bastard!"

There've been a bunch of stories like this in the media lately, including aircraft carriers being stuck in port because there allegedly isn't enough gas money. Fact is this guy could get a job with a mercenary company in a heartbeat. 16 years of military service definitely gets you a (small) pension and VA health care - although this story explicitly claims otherwise. And I bet Eric Prince would set him up for life just out of patriotism anyway. This story is nothing but a pack of lies.

Hell, he could become a SCUBA instructor (he is/was a SEAL fer cryin' out loud!) Retire to a tourist cruise ship port (KEy West maybe), open his own SCUBA dive shop, and bilk a bunch of tourist out of their disposable income.

20 YEARS GETS YOU 50% 19 gets you nothing.

Unless that has changed in the last 10 years, that was the general rule.

It has changed in the last 10 years.

http://usmilitary.about.com/cs/generalpay/a/retirementpay.htm

But still, as draug pointed out he knew that when he quit.

@Stressed: how long where you in the army for?

cross with Draug, I guess it has changed.

And he probably took the REDUX system at 15 years which pays 30,000 now for a 1% cut for each year shy of 30 when they retire. But the fact is, he still had four more years just to reach the 20 year mark that gets anything at all.

Fasces, my time in was a little different

I went in the summer between my Jr and SR years, and did basic training and then did AIT also at Fort Benning. Did reserve dutry my SR year. Weent to jump school aroudn Christmas break (ithink that is when it was, it was a while ago) and then went active duty 2 days AFTER my graduation from high school.

did 4 years, got out for 2 months, got put back in for Gulf War, did another 13 months I think it was, and then got out.

I think total, including reserve duty, I was in about 6 years.

Drau, it seems they decided to make it all screwed up and inpossible to understand...lol

It was very easy before. 20 years got you 50% and then 2.5% for every year up to 30, to a max of 75%.

Ihad zero intentions of ever making it a career, I just wanted to get it over with, stash as much money as I could away,and knock down as much free College courses as I could while I was there.

I used the Army for a free education, and they used me to ....I dont know exactly for what, I guess to shoot at Muslims?

I guess that makes sense lol.

Ah, and he had 16 years of service. Assuming he went in like most, at 18 (which the "girl broke my heart" sounds quite possible), he is in his mid-30s. I feel for him, but it honestly sounds like a bit of "I screwed up and now I'm bitter for them letting me quit early" sour grapes going on.

However, unless he did something to affect his honrable status since killing bin Laden, he could return to service and finish his remaining four years behind a desk or training future upcoming SEALs, I'm sure. The Navy wouold love to have someone with his experience back training their new recruits.

"Ihad zero intentions of ever making it a career, I just wanted to get it over with, stash as much money as I could away,and knock down as much free College courses as I could while I was there. "

Damn, that so perfectly mirrors what I did (well, technically wasn't a mirror as I did the exact same thing - get in, get what benefits I could and a jump start on college, and get out).

I went in under the DEP as they wouldn't let you go to boot in the MArines if yo weren't 18 back then. Spent the summer after I graduated but before boot started doing various weekend exercises (including learning to abseil and rappel along with conditioning for *long* marches and runs) with other DEPers.

Of course, the fact that my Coast Guard Academy (had a congressman's recommendation) and West Point (had the same congressman's appointment) dreams were dashed because of my color vision sucking so bad, had changed my original plans which was to be a Coast Guard or Army officer and actually have a military (or pseudo military as the CG is part of the DOT) career.

They may, but would they after he comes out with this? That's the part that bugs me most - they are getting into a verbal war now.

Drau, part of my joining was to fulfill Family expectations. I have not ever been able to verify this all the way back 300 years, but my grandfathers used to always tell me "every oldest male for over 300 years served in the Military of their country,and you will not break that"

My son WILL however break that.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v9c8Rba5NVE

@Stressed - What if he chooses and is accepted into a military academy? Will you not let him choose?

Oh, and I get family traditions and breaking them. The oldest of the oldest of the oldest... HAs been named James since as far back as anyone has traced until me. My dad broke tradition, mostly out of disdain for his own father naming hsi younger brother James Elmer, Jr. My dad, like his dad and grandpa... was not a Junior as he had a different middle name. But my grandpa decided a second James was in order on the 4th son and that he should be a Junior (dad is the oldest of 9 kids).

Family traditions are fun. We've had Tremayne as the middle name of the oldest male child for as far back as we've found records. Would be a shame to break it. Career choice tradtitions are less fun, but it's hard to stop children following in their grandfather's footsteps, and often counterproductive if you do. It would be an awful irony if Stressed's firstborn join the military as a rebellion against Stressed