The Price of Freedom

The USS Blue Ridge docked in Yokosuka shortly before noon yesterday. For the Seventh Fleet Staff, people like Mike, it was a normal working day so I didn't stroll over to the pier to watch the ship come in this time. For those of you who might wonder about such things, Mike's normal work week includes a briefing every Saturday morning but he and the other senior officers are allowed to skip the Sunday morning briefings.

By way of contrast, this sign shows the typical work week of a shore command here and back home.

The disparity in working hours might strike you as a bit unfair but the Navy is aware of this inequality and provides extra compensation for sailors assigned to sea duty. Mike's "sea pay" amounts to a whopping $100/month.

Just as I was skipping out the door to squander that bonus on mushroom-shaped cookies for you, Mike asked me for the checkbook. "I need to pay my monthly mess bill." "What's that?" "The Navy charges me $200/month for meals on the ship." Math wizard that I am, it took me less than a millisecond to calculate that this job is costing us $100/month. (One of us, of course, is delighted to be getting three square meals a day for the first time in years.)

If you happen to overhear someone questioning the price of freedom, you can tell them from me that it's $1,200/year.