Is This Any Way to Treat Our Heroes?

A close family friend's son recently returned from Afghanistan where he had been working as a government contractor for the US war there. He is a Veteran Marine who joined in 2002 right after terrorists flew airplanes into the World Trade Center buildings on 9/11/01. He unselfishly wanted to serve his country and defend us from these attacks.

He was readily accepted by the United States Marine Corp. and his fellow soldiers, having been voted #1 Honor Man of his boot camp even though he was at least 10 years older than most of his peers. He worked his way up to Staff Sergeant and was so well liked by his battalion that they resisted sending him out to the battlefield. They didn't want to lose him.

But go to war he did with tours in both Iraq and Afghanistan. He served proudly with many honors and awards until 2006 when he started contract work in Afghanistan.

He has a wife and young son, two parents and a sister who love him dearly. You can imagine his family's sense of relief every time he returned home safely and in one piece after each tour of duty. His last trip home in September of this year seemed as any other, but then something very strange and frightening happened. He tried to commit suicide by shooting himself in the head. Luckily, he was a bad shot and survived, ending up needing surgery to repair his eye socket, but the emotional damage is the harder part to heal. We are told he is suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) which afflicts many soldiers and anyone who has been in life threatening situations. We can only imagine what horrors he has endured being in a war zone off and on for over six years.

This is where we are failing our heroes and veterans. How can Congress pass a $680 billion defense authorization bill on October 22, 2009 to keep spending money and sending soldiers to die or be maimed overseas and not allocate enough for their recovery when they return?

The mother of this heroic Marine informed me that they wanted to get their son transferred to a VA hospital near them so they could visit and support him. Initially, the local VA hospital said no because they didn't want to take responsibility for this ex-soldier being a danger to himself and others. Then they changed their mind and agreed to admit him, only to days later refuse to take him once again. Finally, they admitted him as a patient the following week. The family has been "tearing their hair out" over the bureaucratic red tape and hoops they have had to go through just to get their son treatment. Hasn't this family suffered enough from this tragic event? Why has our country's military hospital system failed them in their greatest hour of need?

So now that he is in the hospital, all is well, right? Well, not exactly. I am told he is currently in a four week Substance Abuse program, although he maintains he does not have an alcohol or drug problem. He agreed to go on the program because the waiting list is far shorter than the PTSD list. Once he began the treatment classes he realized he didn't relate to the others because it was for "the worst of the worst -- guys who have sold their children for alcohol or have drunk rubbing alcohol," his mother has told me. "But he is choosing to stay because it is important to his future to be able to say he completed the program, however inadequate it is."

The PTSD program is six weeks long and even though our favorite son is rated at the 90% level on the VA scale of PTSD, he doesn't qualify because again it is for the worst of the worst and has a very long waiting list. I am told by his parents that thinking six weeks will cure PTSD is like "putting a band-aid on cancer." The only other approach these government-run hospitals have is to give the patients an RX for anti-depressants and a monthly check from Uncle Sam. To quote our courageous soldier's mom: "Doesn't cure a thing."

She says and I wholeheartedly agree: "It is quite criminal how we're treating the vets from yet again, another war." These brave souls have risked lives, limbs, and psyches to keep us safe. They are our sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, nieces and nephews, and aunts and uncles. They are true American heroes.

I recently saw an alarming statistic that said that 43% of homeless males over 25 are veterans. What kind of a country are we when the men and women who fight for us overseas return to a system that neglects and discards them at home? Where is the moral outrage?

If you feel as I do, then join me and other friends and family members of these selfless veterans and write to your Representatives, Senators and the President and demand that more be done to care for our returning war heroes.

Comments

[vippy]

After Vietnam I said the same thing, so many suffered from the Agent Orange, then again during Kuwait with the desert storm syndrome the government tried to deny. Now they are coming back with PTSD and depleted uranium in their system and no one cares. Why even bother to fight for a country that does absolute nothing for its people is my question? I guess, most are so brainwashed with their pledge to allegiance they can't see what is going on.

[Jimboy17]

The problem is that military service is not about heroism, nor patriotism. It is about getting enough cannon fodder together to win military operations for whatever ideological machine dominates the nation. In the case of the US, it is capitalism. When the lucky ones return, they find that the skill sets they have learned do not serve the civilian market, and that their psychological situations makes it difficult to become the docile, compliant serfs the system requires them to be. Why would we care about such men when all they were to the army, navy and air force was so much meat?

[patpacer]

Understand military is a loved profession, & way of life. Below is Gen Petraeus lecture April '09. Note his ending & the many who voluntarily re-enlisted in the combat zone. It is their chosen profession by choice. No matter your view on this war or how good a grade in War Strategy 101 you need to understand our military is a chosen profession. End of lecture;
“Last July 4th, I had the honor of raising my right hand in Baghdad with 1,215 of our soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines as they reenlisted in a combat zone for another tour of service. They did this knowing that they likely would be asked to deploy again during the term of their new enlistment. Needless to say I cannot say enough about these and all our great young Americans in uniform and there is no question in my mind that they deserve the description that Tom Brokaw offered after seeing them in action in Iraq, calling them, America's new greatest generation­.”
“Beyond that I can assure you that there is no greater privilege than serving with the members of the new greatest generation as they strive to do what our country has asked of them. We should all be very proud of them and grateful for their courage, commitment, determination, and skill. They are our very best and it has been an honor to describe their actions to you today.”Gen­. David PetraeusLandon http://www.k-state.edu/media/newsreleases/landonlect/petraeustext409.html09.html

[Jimboy17]

You completely misunderstand my post. The question asked by the blogger is why we treat our veterans so poorly. I am not questioning why people choose service, nor am I denigrating that choice. I am rather attacking the very concept of an ideological system which promotes militarism as service. The crucial difference is that I respect individual choice while I am disgusted with a system that makes such choices "necessary".

[Joan E. Dowlin - Huffpost Blogger]

Thank you for this link. All the more reason we should support our veterans when they return. They deserve the best treatment available to man and womankind.

[Rog49Thomas]

It's more than skills not demanded back home in civilian life.

War is hell.

People who go through hell are fundamentally changed.

First, there is the killing. The killing that one does and the killing that others have done that one sees. It's seeing comrades dead and wounded. Seeing them getting killed right in front of you. Getting a face or mouth full of blood and guts when the guy next to you gets hit.

Second, there is the constant stress of being in harm's way. Of never knowing if one is completely secure.

Third, there are the wounds. Some are obvious. Some aren't as obvious. Every time one of our brave servicemen/women discharges a weapon using depleted uranium, he or she and other folks in the neighborhood inhale a deep draft of radioactive gas. When one later patrols through fields in which these weapons have been used, one is exposed again. And generally one doesn't get to bathe or change clothes as frequently as one would like during combat tours.

[sposton]

It is the same country that sent them to bleed and die in a foreign land and for whom? American national interests? And who defines what American national interests are?

There is nothing new in this. Remember the "forgotten men"? They used tanks, cavalry and gas to kick them our of Washington.

Read General Smedley Butler's "War is a Racket" and everything becomes clear. Nothing has changed.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smedley_Butler

[WilliamL]

You piece is appreciated.

Let us not forget how this country treated Vets from Vietnam.

Why would all of a sudden this country treat these Vets any better or differently ?

I never expect it to improve.

If the American people, those in Congress really wanted it to, it would.

But most simply do not care enough, as much as they say they do.

[flyribbon]

"43% of homeless males over 25 are veterans. What kind of a country are we when the men and women who fight for us overseas return to a system that neglects and discards them at home?"

A lot of people in this country don't want to pay for anything at all. Especially something that doesn't benefit them directly. They are obsessed with "No New Taxes".

Oddly, in my experience, most of these people are VERY right wing.

Go figure.

[SamKnause]

I don't understand why the military personel are so loyal to a country that sends them into illegal wars without proper equipment for fighting, and then abandons them once they are home.

[guitargeorge1964]

What kind of ridiculous question is this? If you really don't understand then I feel sorry for you. I served for for everyone. My friends , my family, even strangers like you. This is my country and I would have laid down my life for it then, and even now.
My country never abandoned me. Go visit a VA Hospital and meet some of the extremely hard working men and women patriots who bust their butts for us every day. Volunteers and employees who are doing their best with what they have.
The problem, like everything in this country, is funding. It's Congress and apathetical people who don't push your congressmen to work for what's best for America, not the special interest.
We are loyal to our country because of the people who make it up. I've been all around the world and I wouldn't trade my country for any other.

[SamKnause]

Thanks for your reply. My father, 3 uncles, and my brother-in-law all served in the military, during wartime. Don't feel sorry for me because I asked an honest question. I know you are proud to serve and you are doing it for the citizens of the U.S. Don't you ever question risking your life for a war that was started under false pretense? Don't you question things when your humvee's had no armour plate? Don't you question how many suicides there are conected to these wars? Don't you question how so many verterans can be homeless. Don't you question why after you have risked life and limb you have to fight for health care? I am sorry if I offended you, but my qestion stands.

[Carl Caroli]

First, as Bill Moyer's said last night, we need to reinstate the draft. If the war mongering neocon's want to send our boys to war, they need to put their flesh and blood at risk as well. Second, in case you haven't noticed, the republicans are good at telling people what to do, but not so good at making sure the results are consistent with their demands. Take any issue - abortion. They want to overturn Roe v. Wade, yet are they willing to increase healthcare for kids? Support mothers that can't afford another child? Of course not. They were against social security, medicare and now health care reform claiming all are budget busters. They don't care, if your living in the streets - whether you served in Iraq or not, lost your home do to unscrupulous lenders, or went into medical bankruptcy. They just don't care. Anyone that thinks republicans are interested in the general welfare of this people in this country are deluding themselves. Wake up, America.

[SamKnause]

I saw Bill Moyer's last night. I don't think reinstating the draft is a good idea. I don't think any of our soldiers should be in Iraq or Afgahistan. The rich and priviledged can avoid the draft so it wouldn't do what it was intended to do. It is usually the poor, under privledged, and those who don't have the means to attend college, that get drafted.

[Rog49Thomas]

One point about re-instating the draft is that it will force more people to confront the issue of whether a war is just or not.

With our current system, a very large part of our country is immune from the war.

Those who are in Iraqistan volunteered to serve in the Armed Forces or are there earning relatively big bucks (compared to servicemen).

Since the war is remote for most other people, they can focus on more important things like Dancing with the Stars and Octomom.

The folks who want and promote wars learned the lesson of Vietnam very very well.

[respectingothers]

there should only be a draft for wars that are necessary not for peremptory wars or nation-building wars or bush & Cheney getting rich wars. people who philosophically disagree shouldn't have to shoot at other people. It's different if our homeland is attacked by another country.

[guitargeorge1964]

I think that commentators like Moyers are suggesting a draft in an effort to get Americans talking about this war, as they should have done over the course of the past 7 years. If more Americans had a stake in it, then we would probably come up with a better solution than the quagmire we are in.

[Carl Caroli]

Exactly. We'd never get sucked into never ending occupations if more people were concerned and actually paid attention to geopolitical realities instead of Jon and Kate.

[patpacer]

Joan thank you this is a good article, and it needs to be mention there are also many female veterans with children whom are also homeless. While I have used the VA there in Philadelphia for 31 years I have use the VA here in Corrupt Luzerne County Pa. I have tried your suggestion of contacting my representative on July 16, 2006 in a letter to the editor in our local newspaper here (Times Leader), I addressed our Congressman Kanjorski asking for better care at VA hospitals, and it is over three years now and Veteran Affairs is still grossly underfunded, understaffed, and badly mismanaged. Not only are most of our politicians’ exploiting veterans issues, they are also speaking of amnesty for 23 million illegal border jumpers. This is a slap in the face to every Hero we have lost in every war, and a slap in the face to the hundreds of thousands of veteran presently needing good medical care. What scares me the most though is the very thought of government run healthcare for my own daughter . . .?

[guitargeorge1964]

My Girlfriends oldest son was wounded in Afghanistan several months ago. He was a passenger in a vehicle that was blown up by an IED, the driver was killed. She was notified right away, by his Company Commander of all people, who called right from Afghanistan.
It's amazing how communications have changed so radically since I served just 20 years ago. Her other son is in Iraq and is calling her or his friends several times a week. I think that may be part of the problem with morale. These kids should not be hearing about all the Halloween parties and birthdays and whatnot. They are homesick, nothing more complicated than that. I didn't miss anything when I was stationed overseas or during Desert Storm because I didn't hear about it until after the fact. A picture here or there was appreciated.
But the reason I'm posting is to also comment on the beauracracy. Her son was at Walter Reed Hosp within a few days. The Red Cross was trying to get her help for transportation and a hotel room to go see him in Washington. They never were able to get it done. But he was transferred to San Antonio within a couple of weeks and they were able to visit him there.
I'm sure they did their best. With all these young people getting wounded over there right now, the system is going to get worse before it gets better.

[Joan E. Dowlin - Huffpost Blogger]

Interesting observation about how communication during wartime has changed. Guess it has to do with the advent of the cell phone etc.

Walter Reed Hospital is another black eye on the vet. medical system.

Thank you for your service and I'm glad you made it back in one piece. I hope we start allocating more funds to take care of these pressing needs for the wounded.

[muscel]

Good article. I can't remember ever reading or hearing about our returning vets being treated well going back to WWI. Maybe we should send our Congresspeople over there to fight instead. Then there would be all kinds of benefits for returning vets who have sacrificed so much for us.

[Joan E. Dowlin - Huffpost Blogger]

That is true. I think few Congress people even have sons or daughters over there. With all of this fuss about health care for all, Congress has their excellent plans while the vets and the rest of us suffer.