Last week the VA's new director, Robert McDonald, in an attempt to deflect further criticism of the VA's treatment of veterans, dared to proclaim that sick veterans need to just shut their mouths and wait in line for treatment, just like the kids at Disneyland wait for a ride.
Folks, the VA is not going to change until YOU force it to change, until YOU demand better treatment of our veterans.
Yes, veterans are still dying while waiting for treatment. Yes, the VA continues to find sickness and diseases that they can declare "not combat related." Yes, veterans are still dying through VA neglect, and, yes, the VA bureaucrats are still getting their annual bonuses, even as they administer abysmal treatment in our nation's VA hospitals.
None of this is new...it's been going on for fifty years. Oh sure, every few years someone focuses a little attention of the VA mess, it grabs a few headlines, citizens are outraged, and our government masters throw a little temporary money to the program, then cut funding as soon as no one is watching.
We will not end these VA horrors until America finally begins to recognize the true costs of war....not just the cost of bullets and tanks and airplanes...but the human costs of every war we've chosen to wage.
No, our vets cannot be equated to a kid waiting in line for a ride at Disneyland...war is not Disneyland.
Sad. Damned Sad.
4 comments:
Time for a change, Scribe? One word for you. Trump. The Idiots in Washington won't change. An Outsider has a chance. The Vets will support him.You don't. So, if he doesn't get elected, quit your Bitching. I see it. Millions see it. You don't. Better get your eyes checked.
This administration's attitude towards veterans was summed up succinctly by the Gumby ostensibly in charge, but before we blame Obama exclusively, think about how our veterans have been treated for over 100 years. They have been used and discarded, having served their purpose. John McCain, supposed staunch defender of all things military, has called for reductions in things like commissary privileges, retirement pay, and availability of health care supplied by active duty physicians, citing the "cost to the taxpayers". No, folks, thinking Trump will fix it ignores the reality - veterans are too small in number to be a significant voting block. Plus, most (not all ) veterans are conservatives - they don't vote the "right way". Congress waves the flag for veterans when it benefits them, then quietly goes about the business of undermining the only group this nation owes a debt to. Clinton despises folks in uniform (read Lt. Col.Buzz Patterson's book "Dereliction of Duty" for a full account of how she treats soldiers.).
Frank, re Trump, you are so desperate for a savior you're swallowing the Kool Aid as easily as the libs swallow theirs. Yes, an outsider is needed, but it ain't Trump. And, as to "my bitching", I gave my country 22 years of my life...that earns me the right to express my opinion any damn time I want.
Randy, I totally agree. Both parties sold the veterans out a long time ago.
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