It's hard to explain...

First off,… instruments is almost over.  Tomorrow we hit the flight line after having spent the last five and a half weeks in the simulator.  My stick buddy was pulled from training for medical reasons.  Apparently he had an old injury that he had reaggravated.  So now it's just my instructor pilot and me.  It's kinda of nice because our flight periods are shorter and I have one-on-one attention.  Other than that, instruments is still pretty boring, but the excitement level should go up a notch tomorrow when we get back into a real helicopter.

study, study, study...

One of the current hot topics (at least for me) is the talk surrounding the "revamping" of the military pension program.  One of the ideas is converting to a plan similar to what is found in the civilian world (i.e. 401k plan).  I fear that change is on the horizon but deep down I hope the government decides against doing this.  When I think of someone that has a 401k the last thing or person I would associate it with is a soldier.  I'm not surprised pensions are rare in the private sector.  Here is why our servicemen and women deserve them.  First of all, and to put it simply, we earn them.  We make personal sacrifices and put ourselves directly in harms way so that the rest of America can enjoy the freedoms provided by the constitution of the United States of America.  And for those of us who serve for 20 years, we are rewarded with a pension which provides us with a monthly income for the rest of our lives.  When I think of someone who contributes/participates in their company's 401k plan I think of someone anywhere from blue to white collared,… someone who helps customers order countertops at Lowe's or  analyzes sales data and generates reports at a fortune 500 company.  I have no disrespect for these people.  They all earn a wage and provide for themselves and their families.  When I'm not on active duty with my guard unit, I am one of those people (business banker at JP Morgan).  Soldiers do the same thing, only they leave their families, serving multiple tours away from them,… they carry a weapon with them at all times to defend themselves and their fellow soldiers from enemies who would like nothing more than to see American's wiped from the face of the earth.  They leave the FOB (forward operating base) and return with bullet holes in their vehicles and aircraft… often with casualties.  I realize we have to trim the deficit and spend less money as a nation.  But consider this,.. as a nation we have not utilized the draft since the Vietnam era.  That was 40 years ago.  Since then, the military has been comprised purely of volunteers.  Less than 1% of our nation serves in the Armed Forces and only 13% actually make it to retirement.  That's not very many people.  Are we really going to thank such a small group of brave men and women by treating them no different than someone who works at Lowe's or sits behind a desk and stares at a computer screen all day?  Is freedom really that trivial?  Is this how we thank our servicemen and women who risk and sacrifice their lives so the rest of America can do as they please?  The military will always have to be here to guard our protect our country and there should be certain privileges afforded to these individuals.  It would be a slap in the face to take it away.

Enough said,… back to flight planning.