“I Don’t See Anyone In Congress Getting Shot At Every Day For Their Pay”

This letter, from Sgt. 1st Class Glen Tilson, was published in the Army Times, September 28, 2009

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Letters To The Editor
9.28.09
Army Times
I just read the article in the Sept. 14 issue (“Plan would shrink raises to pay for other programs”).
I do not see how the Congressional Budget Office can even entertain a thought of reducing the pay raises of our soldiers.
They state that they are trying to cut pay raises to overstrength military occupational specialties and increase pay to critical MOSs. Most of us in the Army only get the yearly 3.4 percent raise (or whatever they give us).
How can anyone think about not giving the soldiers (all soldiers) a higher or at least the same type of pay raise our civilian counterparts are getting? I don’t see anyone in Congress getting shot at every day for their pay. And they get to go home at night.
I think it should be criminal for anyone to try to save money by taking it away from the soldiers. Stop some of the overspending or stop one or two of the new programs, but do not take money from the troops.
Sgt. 1st Class Glen Tilson, Fort Benning