Veterans deserve respect, best health care

Veterans deserve respect, best health care
Aug 30, 2012
Written by Robert Collins
Soapbox

“The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional to how they perceive veterans of early wars were treated and appreciated by our nation.” — George Washington

There are hundreds of negative unintended consequences with many more to come from the U.S. involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan. They represent the scars of war; some may heal, some may never heal. The ugliest scar, after the death of more than 6,000 brave men and women, is the treatment of returning wounded veterans.

This generation is the most heavily damaged generation in U.S. history. There are more than 50,000 wounded veterans, and hundreds of thousands of veterans with certifiable “invisible wounds.” The U.S. has never experienced this high ratio of wounded soldiers to slain soldiers — 7 to 1. Medical advances, new technology and faster evacuation capabilities have insured more military personnel recover from battlefield wounds. However, treatment for these wounded heroes is inadequate. The problem, overwhelming now, can only get worse. read more here