I am very disappointed with our government that allows a civilian to take advantage of them or use the loop holes in the law for there own benefit. The law was formed at a time when a lower percentage of spouces (women) were stay at home mothers and did not get the opportunity to have a career and the government though that they would try to be fair by giving that stay at home spouce half the military members retirement, a good thing at the time. Now times have changed, spouces are able to get out into the work force, get education (through the military), change job locations along with there military spouce and get preferentual treatment in job placement on base while there military spouce is in the military. Ex-spouces do not need the support or assistance that they were unable to get in the past. If it comes a time when they separate from one another that ex-spouce should maybe receive payments for a period of time say 2 or 3 years as it is done in the civilian sector(alamony)this should be plenty of time to make the transition as a single member. The military member worked very hard earning there pay, in many cases long diployments, long hours and some risking there life for there country. I bet if you asked most ex-spouces, they could not tell you there military spouce's career title and we reward them with a retirement pay. Things need to change.

DEAR SIR,

YOU MISSPELLED ALAMOMY. THE CORRECT SPELLING IS
ALIMONY, AND WE EXSPOUSES AFTER MANY YEARS OF MARRIAGE, ARE DESERVING OF THE FORMER SPOUSES INCOME, WHAT EVER IT MAY BE.

OMG!!! Someone is actually correcting spelling in this forum. One should not correct someone else's spelling when they've made two of their own. Now, if a female is a homemaker, has no job skills, makes a home and the husband divorces her after 10 years, then I say get what you can, which is usually 50% of their retirement. It works both ways though---if the wife is a drunk barfly and sleeps with all people whose last name starts with "S", then the husband ought to get the stupid award. Had a friend who got fed up, shot his wife in the backyard and subsequently buried her there. He called me first, told me what he'd done and I asked him she was alive and he said she'd said yes, but then stated she always lied anyway. I agreed and wished him the best.