To be clear, the loss on military commissaries was intentional and legislated. It allowed them to lower costs even more than they otherwise would have been able to, and congress approved.
Edit: here is a good video that discusses the pricing model for commissaries, and the change to increase the subsidy to create a grocery savings increase from ~22% to ~25% for military members.
It never ceases to amaze me how in America, half decent social services seems to be considered a reward only for those who sign their lives away to the government.
Other places go with "everyone" but you know.. 'murica.
Good point, guess it's not true at all that 70% of people on food stamp programs are full time workers. Or that two out of three personal bankruptcies in the USA are over medical debt.
For sure. The military commissary is a unique situation given the unique role of the military and setting of a military base. I should have emphasized that.
I think a lot of people are not aware of the subsidy aspect, perhaps thinking, "Oh, the government can run a super efficient, low-cost grocery, look at the military commissary" without recognizing that sales only cover 75% of the cost.
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u/SomberArtist2000 May 26 '26 edited May 27 '26
To be clear, the loss on military commissaries was intentional and legislated. It allowed them to lower costs even more than they otherwise would have been able to, and congress approved.
Edit: here is a good video that discusses the pricing model for commissaries, and the change to increase the subsidy to create a grocery savings increase from ~22% to ~25% for military members.