Is not paying rent, food, utilities, etc., a benefit received while on active duty (in addition to your pay)?

How is consuming things without paying for it not a benefit? If it impacts the wallet in the positive way it becomes a benefit. It's part of the total compensation package. This is like saying BAH and BAS are not benefits. You folks need to go to a budgeting class.

Yes, it is a benefit. Living in the barracks and eating in the DFAC may not be living in a mansion and 5-star dining, but it beats living in a car (been there, done that) and going hungry.
I was in units where we didn't have enough room in the barracks for the soldiers. The command decision was to encourage NCOs and senior E-4s to move off-post. Those that moved turned in their meal cards and started drawing BAH at the single rate.

Consider this. If barracks, on post housing, and chowhalls were taken away, what would be the chances of those stationed on a military base be able to find a place to live in the civilian market? Rationale is in many military bases, there is already scarcity in the housing market. Lets not forget often times there are bases clustered together-Marine and Naval bases clustered together. Air force and Army bases clustered together. Now think what this would do inflationary wise-would drive up prices in these markets-how affordable would they be? Now we are forcing troops who would otherwise not do so, go buy vehicles-usually new vehicles. Probably not much savings so even if a used car-taken on loans they would not otherwise take on. Now think about how long it would be for everyone to get on post in the morning. Now I never lived off post when it mattered that I need be there on time (until at Walter Reed when going through recovery and retirement in DC when you spend more time looking for parking on the facility rather then getting on the facility), but I can imagine you have to wake up pretty early on most installations currently to get in on time for PT/work. I could not fathom how long it would take is there was no barracks/on post housing-free living on post. Just something to think about-a different perspective.

Yes, BAH (or living in the Barracks/Housing), and receiving BAS (or eating at the chow hall with a meal card) is a benefit. When you receive those "benefits" you are not paying taxes on that money. With that said you cannot do a fair one-to-one comparison with a service member and a civilian.

Now service members do deserve and should be given a pay raise accordingly as inflation devalues their current pay scale faster than the allowed increases are covering for.

Yes and no. It is more of an entitlement than a benefit. As such, it is "a right to a benefit specified especially by law or contract." As from that distinction, I have a hard time taking the debate seriously because of the lack of equity between the degree of sacrifice, commitment, and responsibility of a. the civilian fry cook vs. b. PFC Snuffy, 1-505th PIR. The bottom line is Snuffy earned what he gets and sometimes at great cost.

Besides BAS, quarters, uniforms, non contributory health care (including pharmacy, optometry & dental), factor in disability coverage, in service and post service education support, retirement and you cannot begin to say the average minimum wage job beats military service

Honestly, there are companies, civilian side, that offer benefits, like medical, through them, that require you to see certain pre approved physicians or clinics if you are going to use said benefit. It's really no different from us getting BAS, our employer, the government, sends us to its approved health care provider. There are also companies, civilian side, that pay some of their employees to move across country or to other countries to work for them, and cover the expenses. With the salary we do make, expecting us to fulfill all those aspects of living and on top of that, uniform items that we pay for, I'd say it's making it fair, but that's just me.

Let us compare the similar standards of living for an entry level positions in comparable military and civilian occupations and how the compensation might stack up. On the military side let's assume that' E3-E4 under four living in quarters, eating at the DFAC and using on post facilities. On the civilian side let's assume an entry level hourly position not requiring a degree in a medium sized city(about 100,000) Let us also assume that the goal is to have 30% of income available after food, lodging, medical, clothing, and transportation expenses. Our civilian does not live with the parents but shares a place(2 BR aptmt) with one roommate. Rent is $700 exclusive. ($350 is our guy's share) Utilities are another $200 per month($100). $250 per month is spent on groceries, laundry and cleaning stuff(eating out not included). Full coverage health insurance costs him $650.00 a month. He joins a gym for 75$ a month. Spends about $50 a month on clothes. He drives a five year old economy sedan on which he carries a $7,500, three year note @5%. The payment is about $150. Insurance is another $75 a month. Gas is $150.00. Adding all that up comes to $1,475 plus $375 for a car. In order to meet the 30% level for discretionary spending($1,168) the ex SM needs to bring home $2,643 per month. That's 4.2 40 hour work weeks at $15.73 per hour. Our Service Member (E3-E4 under four) has an average income of about $2042 per month without allowances. Take out the Toyota expenses and you get $1,667 for discretionary spending. To make up the $499 difference our newly discharged civilian would have to work another 21 hours at time and a half each month. If he only made minimum wage, $7.25 here in Texas, he'd be working about another 122 hours a month.

And that's why I checked the "is a benefit" button.

I looked at it this way. As a civilian I can make $20-$60 an hour as an aircraft mechanic. In the military as an E-5 with 14 years in I was making about the same pay with my BAS and BAH on top of my base pay. So in short 14 years = starting pay in civilian world. Now I know not all jobs are the same but the millennial that started the post should have looked at pay for different jobs before even making the post.

there is a benefit to an extent. there are things that are accepted in the military that are downright illegal as a civilian. for example; when renting my heat went out. someone came to my apartment within the hour to fix my heat. on a ship however, shipmates in the departmental berthing had been complaining about their broken heater for months in the middle of winter. the temperature was low to the point that it was dangerous. senior leadership did not move forward and it was not until I heard about it through a posting on facebook from a live-aboard about how he goes to sleep and wakes up cold every night that his mother had to read that something was done about it. I had to personally complete the task with no official back up. the food issue is brought up constantly and that just is what it is. its not unhealthy so honestly at least you have a meal but living arrangements get over looked a lot.