I agree that it's the wrong place to begin cutting; these benefits are the primary draw of enlistment. But we still have a large OIF/OEF force that is transitioning to civilian now and in the near future. These compensation benefits are relatively new in their advertisement -- a lot of Vietnam era veterans don't even know about them, whereas every modern veteran is doing their best to receive the most of them. Pensions are a drop in the well compared to them, since very few of them are willing to stay in for 20 years. And they are long-term. I think the concern is that these costs will dig into our ability to maintain the most advanced military force, in which Reapers will eventually replace F-35s. I think they'd rather tech be the main dish.