European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - October 22, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Age 10 a the stars and stripes monday october 22,1990 letters Kkt of cartoon riles readers artist apologizes during this period of International tension when a great number of our military personnel Are facing a possible full scale Battle it was with disgust that i read a recent Dennis the menace cartoon. I found it to be exceptionally tasteless. As an editor of a publication that primarily serves a military Public you should certainly have recognized the absolute Lack of humor in the cartoon caption. I feel that you owe your military Public an apology for allowing such a disrespectful remark to appear in your paper. A a. Michael Lavka Knie Lingen Germany the cartoon showed Dennis walking by an army recruiting office and the caption read a i think fringe benefits Means that if you get killed in the morning you get paid for the whole  i Felt this cartoon was offensive and insensitive to those of us in the military who Are willing to sacrifice our lives for our country. I Hope others who have lost a loved one who was serving their country in the military write to express How much pain is Felt Over the loss. I am sure that they found no humor in the idea a a fringe benefits was getting paid for the last Day of their loved ones life. A master sgt. Richard e. Deuel Simbach a Germany i understand your disclaimer a contents of the stars and stripes Are not necessarily the official views of or endorsed by the . , i done to think that relieves you from the responsibility to not exhibit blatant bad taste and poor judgment. File Hank Ketcham in Light of recent events and the deployment of hundreds of thousands of american soldiers i see no humor in this cartoon. Who Are your readers every one of us stationed in Germany and the rest of Europe with our military spouses or parents must face the terrible realization that some Day our Soldier May not return. Now with the threat of War and deployment looming higher than Many of us had Ever anticipated we struggle to with those harsh realities. 6 Eal i know and accept the risks in Loving a military Ner. Son but i do not find one shred of humor in jokes about him or any other Soldier getting killed. Some things just Arentt a bit funny j a Stephanie David Hillesheim Germany editors note a Hank Ketcham replies kneeling beside his bed Dennis the menace one time confessed a Well god i goofed  i feel the same Way about the Dennis daily panel of aug. 23, and i Send along my sincerest apologies for allowing this tasteless disrespectful and uncharacteristic Dennis the menace panel to be released. Many months ago when our armed forces were just sitting around with not much to do and Long before we became involved in operation desert shield i guess that i thought that this recruiting comment was amusing. Well it Wasny to and it Isnit and i should be sent to my Corner. I Pride myself in the fact that Over the past 40 years Dennis has enjoyed an excellent batting average and i want to assure All of the Loyal Dennis watchers that this sort of thing will not happen  readers discuss subsistence allowance 1 would like to Point out a problem that is troubling me a first of All watching news accounts of soldiers and the plight of families of those stationed in or deployed to saudi Arabia. We in service must understand that our a separate rations a or Basic allowance for subsistence basis not a right but a privilege. Not Only should soldiers understand this but also family members who go Public with their misunderstanding. When i was first authorized separate rations some 11 years ago my Coic first sergeant and commander told me this is an allowance and not to base my livelihood on it. They told me that when i go on an fax Field training exercise this would Stop and if a War were to happen and i were deployed again this allowance would Stop. I would like to say that Many families in the 18th engr brigade whose loved ones were involved in the wind Flucken project Here in Germany lost this allowance and no one not to radio an nor Usa eur update told of this in such a Way As they Are doing for these soldiers deployed to saudi Arabia. Soldiers and their family members alike should understand this. Most soldiers participating in desert shield Are being deployed from the United states where most spouses can find work readily if needed to overcome what everyone including Dod Media is considering a hardship. Pull together and get smart. Separate rations Are not to be used for family member subsistence. It is to help soldiers who Are authorized to eat away from dining facilities. When your loved one deploys on training exercises or other Field duties and your tax dollars operate dining facilities you done to pay for Idle Cooks. Do not base your Bills and livelihood on allowances but on Basic pay. A name withheld Knie Lingen Germany our world is changing at a fever pitch and these changes Are impacting significantly on the military. In a concerned however about some recent events and subsequent press coverage. I refer first to a decision approving imminent danger pay for service members stationed in the persian Gulf. What concerns and angers me was using the loss of subsistence allowance As a a a valid reason for authorizing this payment. Basic allowance for subsistence Bas is not authorized for uniformed service members on the basis of having a family. Its an allowance paid to and for the serv  member Only. When they deploy a Field meal card is issued and Bas is stopped. Its illegal to simultaneously possess a meal card and receive Bas. It seems we be conveniently gotten around this Legal Issue by prematurely authorizing a different Type of payment imminent danger to the tune of $16.5 million a month. Another unnecessary Burden has been Success fully shifted to the taxpayer. Conditions in the persian Gulf May be unusual but certainly not extraordinary. As Long As we Wear the uniform deployment is to be expected. Done to use it As an excuse to justify poor planning or inadequate household budgets. My second concern is press coverage of the scheduled unit and installation changes Here in Europe. In bold letters the headline read a a Here a the hit  this headline sends a profoundly negative message. The reduction of forces in Europe represents a peace Victory not something we be done wrong. This headline is an example of How sensationalistic journalism moves to incite emotional images rather than simply report the facts. Another example is a More recent article about a unit in Bamberg which stated they re facing a the bad news  again a negative message intended not to report a bad news a but to create bad feelings. The actions now taking place in Europe reflect the positive result of a Victory achieved. We should feel proud and gratified by this not made to feel we be failed. The images created by these first of Many unit departures set the stage for future deployments let s not create bad feelings but rather strive to accentuate the positive and lets find More productive ways to spend our tax dollars. A master sgt. Robert a. Redfield Stuttgart Germany wearing earrings defended As privilege this is in response to the person who was a a irked by the Safe policy on the wearing of earrings off duty. He or she states that the a real problem with the new policy is the fact that it is clearly another change without Good reason. It goes to show that not even the strongest institutions can avoid changes in  perhaps he would like to see the Berlin Wall go Back up the cold War Start up again and United nations agreement end. Why not weren tall these things caused by a changes in society society does change and institutions must change with it when the change has benefits. What a the Benefit of earrings to the person who Ould Wear them its the right to individualism a right to a personal life off duty i would never Wear earrings but i surely done to have the right to Tell someone else they can to Wear them off duty. Sure when individualism affects the Mission or Job safety . Long hair with a Gas mask Etc then the line must be drawn. Earrings off duty taken off prior to duty cause no harm. Earrings Are not the Point of this letter. The Point is a free society will change at times. As far As the military is concerned if it builds up the morale in just one person without infringing on the rights of others and does no to affect the Mission Why not a Art a Mccolgan Rhein main a Germany i would like to congratulate the policy makers of Safe for their initiative. As a male Soldier who happens to Wear an earring during my off duty time i feel this policy is Long overdue. I have never been Able to figure out what All the paranoia is about. Its Fine that you done to like my earring. That a your Choice. My Choice is to Wear the earring. In Case you Haven to heard in America each of us is guaranteed the Freedom of Choice. I for one done to appreciate having my personal choices infringed upon. It proves to me something has gone wrong in our system when i am Given the Choice of either taking out my earring or have entry denied onto a military installation. Would it make a difference to the Community commander who so willing barred me that id just graduated the Basic noncommissioned officer course on the commandants list somehow i get the feeling it . I am a responsible adult capable of making my own decisions without the help of those so willing to give their opinion. The main concern should be that each of us in the military report to duty with a Clear head ready for any challenges that arise. Clothing items such As spandex Cowboy hats loud print shirts and yes even my earring will be left at Home awaiting their next turn to be worn. Those opposed should just relax because males wearing earrings Are a reality. Look around you anywhere everywhere you h find men of All cultures and nationalities wearing an ear piece. We re supposed to be different you say you Are Correct we Are. Some of us Are Able to perform the worlds most demanding Job and still maintain our own individuality. A sgt. Kenneth d. Williams Hanau Germany