Yep, as a nominally disabled veteran, and my father was a career SGM, I still say a military pension should kick in at 65.
Just because somebody served in the Armed forces shouldn’t give them a free ride for the rest of their life. A guy could go in at 18, and “retire” at 38. That’s just not right.
By the way, that goes for Socialist Security as well. I'm all for doing away with SS and encouraging people to provide for their own retirement.
Serve up-or-out, so potentially you can serve 15 years, go to war, get shot at, and then at 15yrs, get riffed and be gone, not vested in any pension, no 401 with matching funds, nothing. In the civilian world you can work and be vested in a retirement scheme at 15-yrs and move on. . .why not military?
Military moves you all the time and you write a blank check to Uncle Sam when you enter, payable up to your life. Somehow I don't think Target or Bank of America demands your life, and in fact, those places fire you if you fight some robber threatening your life.
Families are another factor. Moving means uplifting the family constantly; wife can't really get her own career going, kids going to multiple high schools, bases usually surrounded by gawd-awful and dangerous parts of town, if near a town at all.
Comparing military retirement with civilian retirement is akin to comparing apples and oranges.
Not at all alike.