Essay #2 -Final Draft

In the current economy, most families find themselves making difficult decisions, clenching onto every extra penny. Among that group of penny clinchers' are military families and the decision to live on or off post. Although living off-post is easier for military families when they PCS, it ultimately causes military families to spend more money because the added BAH doesn’t cover all the living expenses, the families pay extra gas money for travel, and most maintenance fees are not covered by the landlord.
The military pays active duty members a certain allowance or BAH, to cover the rent of a home off-post each month. In most circumstances the actual amount given is averaged out based on the area but doesn’t always cover the house the family chooses to live in. The BAH amount doesn’t include any extras to be paid like: water, sewer, garbage, gas, electric or yard maintenance. Utilities that are not included in BAH on or off post are things like phone, internet or cable. Many families end up having to cut into their pay to cover the extra expenses just to live in the home, not including cable, internet and phone. If a military family chooses to live on post, no BAH is paid but no cost comes out of pocket either. In turn they normally get into a leasing contract which they have to pay out the rest of their lease if no military clause is present when signing the lease. This also adds to the extra amount of money spent to cover living off post expenses.
In most cases, when living off post, military families have to pay additional in travel expenses. This includes an array of things like gas, oil changes, and regular maintenance items that are to be replaced more often. If the soldier decides to come home each day for lunch, it doubles if not triples the amount of miles driven in one day, therefore using more gas, and spending more money. If they choose to not come home, they are left with the fast food choices on post, which also add up equal to the amount of gas used going home. When living on post, there is a free ride taxi service that will drive a military member or dependant to any destination on post, cutting down on the extra money spent in maintaining the vehicle and in gas used to drive the vehicle. If the military family is fortunate enough to have
If something were to happen to anything in the home the military family is renting, the landlords are not always responsible or obligated to fix it. For instance, if a toilet is clogged or a drain is busted the renter has to pay the plumber for the charges of even checking it out. Little things like if the heat stops working or a window seal needs replacing all comes out of the renters pocket, adding to the extra expenses. If a military family moves off post it is usually to avoid the extensive exit inspection that they would go through to leave housing quarters. Most of these charges from moving out of military quarters can be easily fixed by taking advantage of the free maintenance service the military provides. The extra cost is more if the family chooses to buy a home. Which also can cost more in the end if the service member gets stationed somewhere other than there. They then have to worry about two homes if they choose to not sell the house, or if they cannot sell the house. Creating more expenses on the already tight budget.
In the effort of saving money living off post isn’t always the best option. In several cases it costs military families more just in living expenses to do so. Additionally if the housing doesn't include the basic utilities like water, sewer, garbage and electricity, it adds an extra strain to the financial situation. More stress is added with the additional travel and maintenance costs of driving to and from post several times a day, and if they are unfortunate enough the military family faces the extra maintenance costs of the house itself, whether renting or buying the home. Ultimately all of the extra expenses would be solved by choosing to live on post as a military family.

Proposal Essay- Rough Draft

Garbage Solutions on Fort Wainwright

It has been an ongoing battle on Fort Wainwright to have amenities like the posts in the lower 48. The issues range from having all the post housing receive fences in their backyards to the brand-new hospital and take down of the old hospital. One of the most vital issues on post is the decision of the garbage removal system. Although having dumpsters may seem easier on post, Fort Wainwright should have individual trash service for post members because trash builds up in the garages of homes posing a serious fire hazard, ravens or birds get into the dumpsters throwing trash posing serious health hazards to the birds and community, and it forces the communities to own up to putting the wrong things in the trash like oil.
It is evident that the officials in charge of garbage removal on Fort Wainwright have decided that dumpsters are the most efficient way to remove garbage. However, it is not the safest. Trash builds up in the garages of homes because the dumpsters are at the ends of the roads making it difficult to take garbage to it daily. This build up of potentially toxic waste causes many health risks and fire hazards. Having heaters in the garages, it would be as simple as the heater going faulty and falling to the ground into a pile of trash to burn the home down. In the extreme weather conditions of Alaska, it makes it difficult to walk the trash to the dumpsters. Some would argue it is more difficult for spouses of a deployed soldier, who may also be parents, to load up the car daily or walk to take trash out with little ones inside. Not only would this help the daily lives of soldiers and their spouses, but it would create jobs for the community of Fairbanks and help the economy.
A major problem of the main garbage removal system utilizing dumpsters is that the birds get into the trash. There are several reasons why this is not only a nuisance but a hazard to the birds. They range from birds getting sick or dying from eating something poisonous or choking, to the mess that is left over after they are finished scrounging. This also effects communities pets, when the trash is on the ground or scattered about it is easier for the pets to then find garbage to rip up or consume. Depending on the time of year it's difficult to pick up, and the men or women who remove the trash from the dumpster do not pick up the trash that is around the dumpster or left behind. This leaves for even more risks to the communities children and a frustrating glance at the neighborhood. The remaining fragments of trash are blown into residents lawn and children's play areas. Most residents find the original start of the garbage wreckage from the birds frustrating. Even with the doors on the side of the dumpsters, it still seems to be a problem. With individual trash cans it provides the extra insurance that the trash will only be outside one day and gives the community the confidence that they will not have to deal with trash being strung across the neighborhood.
Another major issue with using dumpsters versus using individual curb side pickup is the amount of trash that is set beside the dumpster is increased due to the wrong things being placed in the dumpster. These things include oil, batteries, computer monitors and similar electronic items that have specific disposing requirements. There are places on post that provide a disposal system for those items but the dumpsters provide an easy target for those specific items not be disposed properly. This also ties in with the extra garbage that the birds or pets get into. More importantly then that, it is a serious waste problem that if curb side pickup was in place would not be an issue at all. Also if a resident did decide to put these items in the trash they would be fined and held responsible for the improper disposal of waste.
Using individual curb side garbage removal is beneficial to all sides of the trash problem. For the residents of Fort Wainwright, it will ease an extra burden to the communities to have trash services avoiding the trash building up in their garages causing unnecessary fire risks. In the particular nature of Alaska, it isn't always possible to take the trash out every day, and to some residents is harder when a spouse is deployed with small children. By getting rid of the dumpsters on post, Fort Wainwright would not only save a lot of Alaskan wildlife, but also its residents pets by making it harder for animals to so easily pick through the trash's harmful contents. Environmentally it is a huge step for safety, this system enforces that the residents are cautious of what they are tossing in the trash. It ensures what they do toss away is biodegradable and okay to send to the landfills. A little bit of extra precaution and liability to residents will help to make sure things like batteries, oil, and computer monitors do not end up in our trash bins.