Should veterans and retirees be "Triple Dipping?"

If they qualify, they earned it by sacrificing their body. I have no problem with it.

Yea, you really can't say shit about it because we all put money into social security, we are deployed in shitty areas where the government contracts a horrible corporation to do soldiers jobs and they wind up fucking up soldiers health due to burn pits. It is very hard to get social security and I was denied 2 times and finally got to explain to a judge the pain I have and how it affects me. Soldiers earn every fucking cent they can get.

I am one of those reviled "Triple Dippers". I am 100% P&T, and I have my pension, VA disability and SSD. I PAID for all these benefits and I EARNED them. They are not entitlements, gaming the system, getting over, or anything else...

I have steadily declined since ETS 12 Aug 91. I have used the VA for medical since then and started at 10%, as my issues have become chronic, and as the VA has deemed those issues Service Connected I became 100% SC Permanent and Total in 2013. I also had a big seizure in August 2013 and I have not worked since then, Met Life Disability is the Long Term Disability company Verizon uses and they accepted me until the day before my 65th birthday as fully disabled from my job and SSDI has also accepted me as fully disabled. I EARNED the VA disability in Service and War, I have no idea why some guys made it through unscathed and I am in the condition I am in, nor do I question another person's disabilities.... we cannot look into a person and feel how badly they are doing so we have no choice but to believe the Doctors. VA offices do not just hand out ratings and even though I see a lot of posts about "How should I act at the C&P" I always give the same advice, just tell the Doctor how your condition affects your life NOW. Met Life Disability I have for Long Term Disability, it was a paid insurance by Verizon and it is not easy passing their PAID BY THEM Doctors to accept your disability, they err on the side of the company and not you. For SSDI I was denied until I had an appeal in front of a Judge with a Doctor of Work Studies present. As I was going through all my ailments and explaining how I am housebound due to seizures I had a seizure in front of the Judge. My point is all three income streams were either paid into by me or are designed to compensate me for Injuries or Illness caused by service...... A retiree EARNED his retirement, it is his bad luck he has ailments that are now being compensated, and SSDI/SS is paid into for all the time you worked and is YOUR money..... I see nothing wrong with this, and those that think people are faking it because they might have a good day and enjoy themselves every now and then, and that is when you catch them out and about, you need to check yourself as you do not have a clue what that person is living with. So says Sgt Epstein

You didn't get paid enough when you were serving in the first place. If you gave more than 20 years of your life and are now disabled, you deserve every penny you can get. It will still be less than House and Senate retirees get...

Tripple Dipping, that is a misguided statement by people that either do not know a lot of things or are whiners. here is a few of those things: ONE: Service under contract that is completed honorably which soldiers receive a certain amount of pay per month and ohh BTW if you complete 20 or more years in this service you "qualify for retirement for that service" in-which you will relieve a percentage of money for the work and rank you yourself achieve. TWO: VA benefits which you can not claim until you actually leave the service and are considered a veteran under the federal definition of the word, thats right all you folks still service honorably as most people consider you veterans your really not until you are actually separated, retired ect under the federal definition of the term Veteran. VA is a system that "veterans" are allowed to utilize and is a totally separate system from DOD retirement and Social Security systems all three come from different budgets, or have their own budget to sustain themselves. Now while you serve since soldiers do have to pay taxes, and social security tax as well that entitles them to utilize those systems that soldiers themselves have PAID FOR. Otherwise if someone is ass hurt about soldiers using those systems stop taxing soldiers pay save one, stop collecting social security taxes from them. These systems are not duplicated or being abused as people and some of our elected leadership would have you believe, soldiers paid for the use of these systems out of the taxes they paid over the years. Since your average Congressional Leader makes a tidy sum each year, and all the haters out their that are not eligible to receive these benefits whine and cry about how much a triple recipient of earned benefits that they actually participate in and pay for remember that its a all volunteer force, everyone has opportunity to join the service, complete a career, ect ect instead of writing and misguiding the public about how much veterans are making, how about either you go down to the recruiters office and sign your name do your time, pay your taxes if you want eligibility or otherwise just say thank you and move on. But leave the veterans alone they are not getting rich off anyone's money and they are owed these benefits as they all paid for every single one of them with actual money, blood, injury, time, and paid costs for every one of them.

We have been trying to get the Senate to amend and pass H.R 677. This bill deals with VA cost of adjustment making it automatic. We are asking for three amendments. The first would give veterans a 25% disability pay increase. This was requested by the veterans disability commission in 2007. The next amendment would only effect veterans that have a disability rating of 60% or greater. We are asking that the VA be allowed to pay quality of life adjustment to veterans who are 60% or more disabled by using the disability scale. The is supported by the veterans disability commission report to Congress in 2007. Finally we are asking that those veterans who are 100% or permanent and totally disabled due to a service connected disability and are not receiving retirement pay be allowed to receive the maximum VA pension since SsDi and VA disability isn't taxable income and VA pension income isn't reportable taxable or reportable to the IRS or the Social Security Administration. We need every veteran to call, write, and email their Senator. The bill is currently in the Senate veterans oversight committee.

When I retired in 2001 I had health issues from my years of service. I was initially rated at 80% disabled by the VA. I didn't feel disabled but felt as though I had issues that were going to cause me problems later in life. Well guess what - later in life started earlier. Since retirement I tried to work, even at 80% I passed the physical and physical performance testing for a Customs and Border Protection Officer. In hindsight - that is a young man or woman's job. In the 10-1/2 years I did work all my disabilities progressed from bad to worse. I had two cervical discs fused, both knees replaced, 4 cardiac stents; and to add insult to injury, in April, 2014 I had a severe heart attack. All those conditions were service connected; well documented over my 30 years active duty.

When I asked my cardiologist when I could return to work he said never. Between the heart and the other issues I'm pretty much useless when it comes to working; I can't stand for more the 10-15 minutes without severe pain; I take 10 different medications daily including 4 different pain medications. When the medication is working I try to live a normal life and usually end up doing more then I should and pay for it the next day...

I would not wish my health issues on anyone - would much rather be able to work. I had to retire at 61 for good. So yes get all that you can....

Military Retirement - sacrificed time, effort, family = earned
VA Disabaility - sacrificed body and mind (sometimes soul) = earned
Social Security Insurance - paid in over working lifetime = earned
Social Security Disability Insurance - body broken and financially qualify = earned

People hear triple dipping and they think you're getting his huge paycheck from uncle Sam. Bullshit. At best you might bring in 3-4000 a month. Ànd with today's prices that's just getting by