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Couple of thoughts here. I'm concerned by some comments in this and related threads that our soldiers are poorly informed and denied some special entitlement. A free trip home is not an entitlement, it is a privelege. For what should be obvious reasons, I am very much in favor of making sure our soldiers get the best support and not only all their entitlements but all the priveleges they deserve. But it is congress that sets the limits and appropriates the funds. The policy has been for many years that a soldier on leave from a remote or hazardous location will be furnished transportation gratis to the aerial port of entry (APOE) in the US. Once back in the US he/she may proceed to his/her home or anywhere else he/she wants to go but at his/her own expense. The Dept of Defence has tried for many years to extend this to the soldier's home of record but apparently Congress is reluctant to vote the funds to do this. If one voluntarily extends a tour of duty in a remote or hazardous location one can get transportation to an ultimate destination gratis, but only as part of an extension package.
A key point to consider is that there is not a single draftee in the Army today. Every soldier, be they Regular Army, Army Reserve, or National Guard is a volunteer. These are not our poor boys/girls sent into danger against their will, these are volunteer soldiers doing exactly what they signed up for.
Our soldiers are very well informed of exactly what their mission is, what their entitlements are, what their priveleges are, and what limits apply under what circumstances. There is no room to feel sorry for any of our soldiers. Better that you feel a deep and glowing pride in these honorable Americans. I for one am damned proud of every one who steped forward and took the oath and then honored that committment by doing his/her duty. Soldiering is not easy, honor your brothers and sisters who put their neck on the line, but do not treat them as children who ought to be given a free ride home. They are responsible men and women who are every bit as, and often more so than their civilian counterparts, capable of handling their own affairs and working within the rules under which they voluntarily placed themselves. They are not kept in the dark and mis-informed. They know the score and they play by the rules. God bless then all.
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