Myths Canadians have about their military

• Military members don't pay tax. Not true. We pay EI, CPP/QPP, and income tax. We pay all the taxes a regular civilian does. The only thing we get tax-free is liquor in our own mess on base (or ship).
• Canadian Armed Forces members don't pay sales taxes when they shop on the military base at Canex Stores. Not true. We pay the same sales tax as anyone else.
• Military members get a pension equal to their salary when they leave. I wish this were true. We (members who joined in the 1970s and 80s) got 2% of our salary for every year we served.  So a member who retired after 20 years got 40% of an average of their best 6 years' salary. But only if we completed a contract that is eligible for a pension at its conclusion. If you don't fulfill your contract, you don't get a pension.
• Members who live in barracks live there for free. Not true. We pay for our meals and lodgings, although it works out less than what you'd pay for a small apartment off base. Of course, you don't need to keep your apartment off base ready for inspection.....
• Join the military, see the world! Sometimes. I got to spend one month in Germany on an exchange program. Other than that, no. My friends got to visit awesome genocidal places like Bosnia, Kosovo, Somalia, Afghanistan. Mentally messed them up royally too.
• Members know well in advance where they're going next. Not true for deployments, not true for postings either. We were told we were leaving in hours or days for Quebec in the aftermath of the ice storms of 1998. Although I knew I would be posted from Kingston to Calgary 6 months ahead of time, many friends of mine were not that lucky. Some even found out almost last minute that postings had changed location or been cancelled entirely. That's fun for buying a new home and selling your old one, never mind your spouse trying to find a new job and saying goodbye to the old one.
• Family members of Canadian Armed Forces can fly anywhere in the world for free. Not quite, there is a fee. But more importantly, CF flights are for military or government business first. That doesn't leave much room for standby seats for family members. I've heard too many stories of families stranded somewhere because the flight they might have caught back home was full.
• Family members of Canadian Armed Forces are taken care of by military doctors and dentists. Nope. They have to get their own doctors and dentists through the province's health system.
• Members get to choose where they are posted (where they work/live). They can provide a top 3 request list, but there is no guarantee any of their wished for postings will materialize. While in Kingston, I asked for Montreal, Ottawa and Toronto. I was offered Shilo and Gagetown. It took a lot of arguing back and forth before I was finally offered Calgary, which I accepted.
• Members get to keep all of their gear when they leave. If only! No, those awesome mukluks and arctic mitts and everything else goes back. The only thing you get to keep is your dress uniform. Oh, and your underwear and socks. They don't want those back.