.US combat troops in Iraq battle to defend savings
CAMP SPEICHER, Iraq (AFP) — US Lieutenant Colonel Mark Grabski has been busy on the computer over the past few weeks -- not to follow the history-making presidential election but to check on his dwindling savings.
"I had a list of icons, my favourites, the funds that are working with Thrift savings programme. Every single day, their rates were just collapsing," said the officer posted at Camp Speicher, north of the Iraqi capital.
"Virtually, I've lost right now tens of thousand of dollars," said the 31-year-old who is in charge of criminal inspections of the base.
Grabski said a third of his salary goes into Thrift, an additional pension scheme for US civil servants and soldiers. "I've lost 30 percent of my savings in this programme due to the financial crisis."
Army pensions are meant to pay out 50 percent of the salary of soldiers with 20 years of service and 75 percent for 30 years, but many rely on the Thrift programme to further secure their retirement.
Camp Speicher has been abuzz with the latest grim statistics of the crisis, often overshadowing the election campaign which resulted in Barack Obama's triumph as America's first black president-elect.
The crisis back home has dealt a cruel blow to combat troops who have had to endure dangerous patrols and firefights in the dusty alleys of Tikrit, former hometown of executed dictator Saddam Hussein.
The impact of the financial crisis on the savings and pensions of US troops in Iraq is difficult to estimate. But it has spared neither the young recruits nor the veterans nearing retirement.
"We've been encouraging young recruits to invest their money in that (Thrift) programme. When you arrive in Kuwait, before coming to Iraq, it is actually one of the first papers you are given," said Grabski.
For Major Daniel Meyers, who works with the US military's central command for northern Iraq, the losses have been limited to about 3,100 dollars.
"I've been only investing eight percent of my salary but it is still money for me," he said, referring to his pay of around 5,000 dollars a month for serving in Iraq, compared to about 2,000 for an ordinary soldier.
At the height of the crisis, even the televised broadcasts of the baseball World Series were followed up by financial analyses which were also eagerly watched at the central command.
"We were all stuck to our TV screens. When they hit the bell (to mark the close of Wall Street), I was completely shocked. I could barely sleep more than two hours a night," said Meyers, who hails from New York State.
The 32-year-old officer whose division is based in Germany has little expectation of a dramatic turnaround by the new US president. "Unless Congress votes for regulatory laws. Congress can do that," he said.
Grabski and Meyers just hope the market will eventually make enough of a recovery for them to recoup their losses. But other soldiers who are close to retirement fear the worst.
"I'm three years from retirement. I lost half of my savings," said a sergeant in his 50s from the state of Alabama who asked not to be named, after close to three decades of service in the military.
"I don't blame anyone. When I signed up I knew these funds were risky," he said.
"But when we go out on a mission, I think sometimes that I was that close" to a comfortable retirement, he said, signalling a small space between his finger and thumb.
"I couldn't imagine that I may have to work as a civilian after 30 years in the US army."
AFP
"I had a list of icons, my favourites, the funds that are working with Thrift savings programme. Every single day, their rates were just collapsing," said the officer posted at Camp Speicher, north of the Iraqi capital.
"Virtually, I've lost right now tens of thousand of dollars," said the 31-year-old who is in charge of criminal inspections of the base.
Grabski said a third of his salary goes into Thrift, an additional pension scheme for US civil servants and soldiers. "I've lost 30 percent of my savings in this programme due to the financial crisis."
Army pensions are meant to pay out 50 percent of the salary of soldiers with 20 years of service and 75 percent for 30 years, but many rely on the Thrift programme to further secure their retirement.
Camp Speicher has been abuzz with the latest grim statistics of the crisis, often overshadowing the election campaign which resulted in Barack Obama's triumph as America's first black president-elect.
The crisis back home has dealt a cruel blow to combat troops who have had to endure dangerous patrols and firefights in the dusty alleys of Tikrit, former hometown of executed dictator Saddam Hussein.
The impact of the financial crisis on the savings and pensions of US troops in Iraq is difficult to estimate. But it has spared neither the young recruits nor the veterans nearing retirement.
"We've been encouraging young recruits to invest their money in that (Thrift) programme. When you arrive in Kuwait, before coming to Iraq, it is actually one of the first papers you are given," said Grabski.
For Major Daniel Meyers, who works with the US military's central command for northern Iraq, the losses have been limited to about 3,100 dollars.
"I've been only investing eight percent of my salary but it is still money for me," he said, referring to his pay of around 5,000 dollars a month for serving in Iraq, compared to about 2,000 for an ordinary soldier.
At the height of the crisis, even the televised broadcasts of the baseball World Series were followed up by financial analyses which were also eagerly watched at the central command.
"We were all stuck to our TV screens. When they hit the bell (to mark the close of Wall Street), I was completely shocked. I could barely sleep more than two hours a night," said Meyers, who hails from New York State.
The 32-year-old officer whose division is based in Germany has little expectation of a dramatic turnaround by the new US president. "Unless Congress votes for regulatory laws. Congress can do that," he said.
Grabski and Meyers just hope the market will eventually make enough of a recovery for them to recoup their losses. But other soldiers who are close to retirement fear the worst.
"I'm three years from retirement. I lost half of my savings," said a sergeant in his 50s from the state of Alabama who asked not to be named, after close to three decades of service in the military.
"I don't blame anyone. When I signed up I knew these funds were risky," he said.
"But when we go out on a mission, I think sometimes that I was that close" to a comfortable retirement, he said, signalling a small space between his finger and thumb.
"I couldn't imagine that I may have to work as a civilian after 30 years in the US army."
AFP
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