In response to the "Taking Exception" letter by Capt. David Kinzler to (AUSA President) Gen. Gordon R. Sullivan’s letter published in the Washington Post titled "Don’t Cut Troops’ Pay and Benefits," I would like to address a few critical issues.As a career soldier I have watched the transformation of our military forces from a conscript/draft military force to the professional all-volunteer force we have today.So the views and thoughts I have come from almost 40 years of working with all our military services and serving in the Army.Approximately 85 percent of our forces are enlisted volunteers. The remaining 15 percent are commissioned officers and warrant officers.The focus of Gen. Sullivan’s article was on these enlisted soldiers and noncommissioned officers who serve as the backbone of our military and represent the largest demographic and greatest challenge for recruiting.Young people today enlist for a variety of reasons – patriotism and service to the nation are two. Recruiting today’s high quality volunteer force is more a challenging than the average citizen can understand unless they have served as a recruiter and worked with recruits.As an example of the military’s recruiting challenge today, a little more than 50 percent of our recruits come from the 17-24 age male category. On average, only 24 percent of every 10 are qualified to wear a uniform .When I heard these statistics, I asked what disqualified the remaining 76 percent from joining.Education is the biggest discriminator with 40 percent not having a high school level education or they scored low on the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery test.Another 26 percent are physically or morally unqualified to serve.Physical fitness is a critical component of serving and obesity is a growing concern throughout our society. Moral qualifications speak for themselves and we cannot put criminals, drug users and individuals with questionable character in uniform.The remaining 10 percent is the all others category that includes body piercings and tattoos.So the 24 percent in this 17-24 age male category are qualified to serve. But the reality is half of this 24 percent are those who will attend college or have no desire to serve in the military.The remaining 12 percent is a population of 3 to 3.5 million Americans living in a nation of 310 million who are spread across the country.Compounding this challenge for the Army in recruiting from this 12 percent is all the military services, police departments, state and federal government agencies, etc. are seeking this elite population.So what is the pay structure of 85 percent of our military force?In the enlisted force, 50 percent are junior enlisted, pay grades E-4 and below.The remaining 50 percent are noncommissioned officers broken down across the top five enlisted pay grades E-5 through E-9.With approximately 25 years of service when promoted, less than 1percent of the enlisted force serves at the E-9 pay grade, and would draw more pay and total allowances than a captain, pay grade O-3, with six years of service.The remaining structure reflects approximately 2.5 percent at the E-8, 10 percent at the E-7, 16.5 percent at the E-6 and 20 percent at the E-5 pay grade levels.For the vast majority of service members who make the military a career, they retire at the E-6 or E-7 pay grades.Today’s military pay scale system was established in the 1940s.Over the years, there have been many adjustments that included across-the-board pay raises for all pay grades, to targeted pay raises for individual pay grades.As an example, two individuals graduate high school, one joins the military service and the other pursues a civilian career.The junior enlisted military member will draw as much money as 70 percent of his or her peers entering the civilian workforce with a high school degree.The E-7 service member with 14 years of service will be at the 70 percentile of their peers with 14 years of seniority, some college but not required to have a degree.The military officer who is commissioned after graduating from a military academy or college is considered to be at the 70 percentile of their peers graduating with an undergraduate degree and entering the workforce.The O-5 with 20 years of service and experience in the military and a graduate level education is considered to be at the 70 percentile of their peers in the corporate world.Education is a key component for the military pay structure.So is the 70 percentile enough for the crème of our society to serve our nation? That determination is ultimately made by Congress who is charged with manning and equipping our forces. Our military is manned and equipped with tax payer dollars, which includes all our military members as tax paying citizens.While the military service member is held to a 70 percentile standard, 30 percent of our service members’ civilian peers have the opportunity to receive higher wages.A room in the barracks and three meals a day in the dining facility for single junior enlisted, or a housing and subsistence allowance for married service members, medical and dental care, use of the commissary and military facilities are all part of the pay and benefits offered to those who defend our nation.Over the course of 20 years of service or more, this 30 percent difference in pay is substantial, which is why retired military pay is considered deferred compensation and not a reward.Over the years, I have found three reasons why service members re-enlist and continue their service.The first is command climate. A positive command climate is one where the service member wants to continue to serve, to continue to be part of something bigger than him or herself – to be part of that band of brothers and sisters.Second is job satisfaction that goes much deeper than an occupational career field or a job. It is the self-satisfaction, the responsibility, the trust given to the service member and the appreciation of the American people that count.The third is quality of life. For military service members quality of life means being able to provide for themselves and their families as well or better than they would in home town USA.Quality of life includes pay and compensation, but it also includes dwell time at home, time with family and friends and time to pursue personal and educational goals.Our military force today is a national treasure, and I hope we do not forget the lessons of conflicts past, America’s first battles that we have paid for in blood.It’s not about the money, but with 60 percent of our service members married, we should not put them in a position where they are forced to leave the profession they love to provide a quality of life commensurate with the service they provide our nation. Still Serving, Still Saluting!