Damn-It, You Can't Close the Commissary

I tried to leave this as a comment on The Military Wallet, but just can't get the comment to post!  I thought maybe the comment was too long, but shortening it didn't help.  So, I'll just post it here instead.  You'll probably want to read the article on The Military Wallet so any of this will make sense.

I can't imagine these closures will become reality for pretty simple reasons.  First, people live on military installations.  Second, military installations can go on lock down with zero prior warning, which means no entering or leaving the installation. 
As long as there are people residing on a military base, the military should be required to provide the basic options available to those who reside in the civilian world.  Can you imagine being a mother living on base with a young child on 9/11?  She would have needed a place where she could easily get food.  Same goes for single soldiers living in barracks.

I agree with previous comments that there is some mixup between commissary and post exchange (or px).  Fort Campbell has had two commissaries in the past 15 years and neither have had a "mini mall" of vendors setup right outside it's door.  But, the PX has always had these, making the PX very much like a small shopping mall in the civilian world, complete with fast food court.

As for saving money by shopping at the commissary....I don't think the figures make sense.  You do drive a great distance, in some cases, to save a buck on that gallon of milk.  Plus you're paying a surcharge, which is less than my areas sales tax, but just barely.  And you can't forget to tip your bagger/carry out person.  I also agree that many items are priced higher at the commissary, things like toilet paper and laundry detergent, while other things are basically the same price as Walmart every day of the week.  How is the commissary selling "at cost" when Walmart sells the same can of cat food at exactly the same price?

I would love to see our elected officials take the biggest hit with these impending budget cuts.  Let them clean their own toilets for a change.  I told my husband just last week, as we sat waiting for our retired ID cards, "You know, 15 years ago when I got my first ID card, there was a little ticket machine and a person called out numbers indicating it's your turn.  Today there's flat screen televisions on every wall, one of which has a fancy number display telling us who's next.  How much do you think those things cost?" 

The simple fact is, the civilian world has managed to stay current, pay employees, and make a profit.  Why can't the military do this as well?  Maybe the solution should be as simple as privatizing the Commissaries and PXs?  Would Walmart have closed it's doors one day a week to save money during the furlough?  No, they would have cut back hours each day to cater to the needs of their customers rather than inconveniencing shoppers to suit their own twisted purposes.