An overview and a personal perspective - mostly rambling, though
Published on November 19, 2005 By pseudosoldier In Life Journals
There are those who are willing to "oppose" the military in getting the word out to teenagers, because they feel the military will target those individuals who are economically predisposed to join. The military offers such a financially stable lifestyle that these underpriveleged youths will have no better choice than to enlist in the big green machine, and go on to be baby-eating, brown-skin killers. [/digression]

After The Fact
Once you're in, there's another part of the culture that you don't hear about so much on the outside: the drive to spend yourself into debt. Does the military do this to its soldiers, instill in them this inclination? No and yes.

The military certainly doesn't order soldiers to go out and buy that phat new tweaked out Mazda, with the Sweet Rims and the deafening bass. Many members of the chain of command and the NCO support channel counsel soldiers on major purchases and expenditures. In most (all?) Battalions, there is a Sergeant in the position of Command Finance Specialist, which requires training in budgeting and the Army Emergency Relief program. There are briefings when you first arrive on post cautioning newer soldiers against blowing their paychecks.

(Who are these soldiers who don't know that if you still have checks, you might not have money? Who are these guys that buy magazines from those girls who hit on them in the mall? Both are stories circulated at inprocessing briefs...)

But there's a bit of a culture here, too, especially amongst newer soldiers. Soldiers who already have the nice car, and befriend the new guy. There's the omnipresent signs at the dealership "E-1 and above, pre-approved, no money down." The paycheck loan places. It's worse after they get back from a deployment, and that money is burning a hole in their pocket... but even initial entry soldiers who've never held a decent job can be lured into financial irresponsibility. Yes, pay for an E-1 with less than four months isn't great, but if it's more than you've known in the past, how it compares to an E-6 doesn't matter.

If you're responsible, you can keep it under control. Live within your means, maybe put a little aside. It's a steady paycheck, as long as you don't get into trouble (although you can sometimes be at the whimsical mercy of seemingly-malicious finance personnel). That's the part that was attractive in the first place, right?

You find your personal expenditures expanding with each pay raise, and you're living within your means... except for credit. Credit isn't meant to be part of "your means", but perhaps as a supplement, something to use in an emergency or for a large purchase that you couldn't lump-sum all at once.

Personal Side
This is where I am with it: credit had become part of my means. Even $100/month, not paid off, will amount to over $1000 dollars a year... $100/month might only be one week's worth of groceries.

I'd like to feel like I have options now that I'm looking at a second reenlistment, now that I'm on orders. That credit card debt that I'm carrying makes it feel less like that...

I know another good Sergeant, a technical expert, who had wanted to get out a few years ago. He was set up... but a debt caught up to him. (A similar debt has "caught up" to me recently, but that's not the bulk of my debt... not quite half, actually.) He felt compelled to stay in due to these financial constraints. (I think our unit was better for it, but wonder if he was... he's doing well now, so it's important not to second guess it too much.)

Is this so different than leaving another career field, though? The main difference, I think, is that we have a set termination date, which doesn't (usually) happen with other jobs. Right now, I have until next November. But I face a choice now of whether I will extend my commitment, or get out at that point. This decision is pretty much final, right now... I think most business professionals aren't put in that sort of position.

On Track
Back to the initial entry soldier: what is the actual objection to recruiters letting teens know about the benefits of joining the military? Is it that they don't put emphasis on the negatives? (What employer actually emphasizes the downsides to being employed by them while recruiting? What college admits that its dorms are substandard as part of its sales pitch?)

If the military does offer that sort of financial stability, maybe the people who are getting into are doing so for the right reason? Or do they feel the recruiters are lying about that? Certainly, recruiters are trained to emphasize the selling points that are most likely to appeal to their particular target, be it a group or an individual, but what salesman is not trained in such matters?

I have seen many supervisors concerned with individual soldiers' financial problems, and I've seen almost as many soldiers who resent that sort of involvement... "Why should I have to tell my squad leader that I'm buying a car?" "What business is it of the 1st Sergeant's if I missed a payment to AAFES?" "Why should you care if I do get a payday loan?"

First, a soldier's financial irresponsibilities affect their ability to concentrate on their work, or even their ability to deploy. Soldiers who are thinking about their money troubles are less likely to concentrate on aiming center mass...

But more than that, many NCOs and officers whom I've dealt with actually care. They may not know how to show it, perhaps their tact and softness in dealing with people have been retarded by embracing their training too closely, but they care.

There are worse things that a financially impaired individual could do than get into the military.

Comments
on Nov 19, 2005
Excellent article. This gets an insightful from me.

We came in with debt, and are working on getting it all paid off. It's easy to see the other families in our neighborhood, all close to the same rank, most with stay-at-home moms, with huge big screen TV boxes sitting out with the garbage and two brand new cars and other toys, and think, "if THEY can afford that, we can, too...WE should have those things".

The thing we realize is this: Either they have some income not obvious to us, they are up to their eyeballs in debt buying that stuff, OR they are having to eat Ramen Noodles everyday to make their car payment.

There's the idea in the military that all Soldiers should have certain things...nice car, top of the line cell phone, etc. Haha, my husband gets made fun of for his cell phone. It works though and we're not having to do without food to pay for it. There is peer pressure and like you mentioned, that feeling of "woohoo!" if you haven't had that much money before.

The military DOES offer many financial planning classes and all sorts of other services to help Soldiers learn to be responsible and get ahead with their finances.

If you're smart about money, the military is a GREAT way to get ahead.
on Nov 19, 2005
Too bad that Pseudo's Command Financial Specialist told one of our Joes to get a payday loan to shut his ex-wife up since the command didn't want top hear her sniveling any more. (The ex wife) That is the worst advice I have ever heard, and manatee should have gotten a relief for cause NCOER for that one. Then there would be no question about why she didn't get promoted to E-8
on Nov 19, 2005
What I remember about being single in the military was... money didn't matter. With absolutely no living expenses, every dime of the paycheck is "disposable income". To some of us, we couldn't spend it as fast as we made it, so we just always knew there was money in the bank.

Ok, that was "some of us". The "Some of us" that would walk into a stereo shop, see that there were no prices on anything, just "only $20/month" with no mention of it being for "4 years". We didn't want to spend $1000 for a $500 stereo... so we laughed at the rip off shop and walked out.

Anyone who has walked through the barracks lately can see that "some of us" wasn't "most of us". Those loans that are somehow magically figured up to their Expiration Term of Service (ETS) day look great to someone who cares more about having stuff than actually looking at what it costs.

The thing that got me most about these rip off shops, most of them are run by vets. Vets who spent 4, 8, or even 20+ watching troops throw their money away and decided to get in on the gravy.
on Nov 20, 2005
I'm happy that you all made it through the long-winded rambling.

TW - Yes, if you utilize the resources at hand (if they're applied properly) and watch yourself, you can easily come out of the military (not just at retirement) well ahead in the financial department.

Geezer - Yes, she has given out some real bone-headed advice in the past. She also told that soldier (SPC Egregious, in case anyone is keeping track) to allow his car to be repossessed so that he wouldn't have to pay that bill any more. Another soldier was advised to take the big tax return he was getting and apply it to his largest credit card debt (which had the lowest APR) instead of to three other, smaller debts that each had a higher APR. Not as blatant in that situation... and she seemed to give decent advice when I went in on Thursday (although that might be because I had already thought about it a good deal, and could steer the conversation).

Ted - "Disposable income" certainly defines a lot of single (and too many married) soldiers in my experience. Sad. And those loans are "magically figured to the ETS date" because the soldier has to provide their LES when applying... the veterans know what they're doing. (Also sad.)


I still think there's a lot of positive movement happening. Yes, soldiers gripe when the 1SG gets their PSG to yell at them about missing the payment on the STAR card... but maybe they'll think twice before getting in that situation? Yes, the CFS might be giving out bad advice... but the soldiers might take care of their finances just to avoid that, too. (SPC Half-baked is, now, in part.)
on Nov 22, 2005
Those who oppose the military do so mainly out of willful ignorance in my opinion. The goof out in SF wanted the world to stay locked in the 60-70 era so badly that they will do anything to try and deny that they are ageing hippies of an era that simply went away.
on Nov 29, 2005
Who are these guys that buy magazines from those girls who hit on them in the mall?


I was once hit on by a girl at the mall for magazines. HAHA! I let her go through the entire deal and then I told her that while it looked like a very nice deal with winners all around, I couldn't make a decision like that without speaking to my wife first.

You bring up good points here. Joe does need some supervision/advice on pay matters and staying fiscally responsible. I know I did. Joe is smart, but Joe doesn't know some things, you know? You also hit it on the head about people that are afraid to get out and deal with the financial insecurity that can bring, whether they are carrying debt or not. It can be a scary thing to not be sure what you're going to do for a steady paycheck to a lot of people. The military offers a lot of financial security (even if it's generally agreed that Joe is underpaid).

It would be nice however, if we could rely less on slick marketing for our recruiting efforts. Many service members do sign up these days not entirely clear on what they are signing up for. I see it every day and it's over minor things.

"You're really telling me that I have to do my home work every night?"

Imagine if I was telling them to storm a bunker...
on Nov 29, 2005
Either they have some income not obvious to us, they are up to their eyeballs in debt buying that stuff

I think the race for the bigger, niccer stuff is why so many SMs are so deep in debt...mostly because thy get the idea that "no rent" means
every dime of the paycheck is "disposable income"

and $20 a month is nothing.....until they have a loan for 30 items....

And those loans are "magically figured to the ETS date" because the soldier has to provide their LES when applying... the veterans know what they're doing.

That's the sad part. Too many soldiers see a guy running a store as "one of us" and think, "he was in the Cav, he'd never rip me off" and don't know how to figure out the math.....