Veterans: Groundhog Day with Perfect Storm

Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
June 18, 2014

We need to get really honest really fast because frankly veterans have been suffering far too long while politicians play games and reporters, well, they don't seem too interested in reporting facts anymore.

Some want to blame Obama but don't have a clue why. I agree, he does have part of the responsibility on his shoulders simply because he was in the Senate at the time it all went to hell. He was on the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee when Nicholson got blamed after he walked into a billion dollar shortfall and two wars going on producing more wounded in need of care.

Over the last few days Wounded Times has been posting some of the videos from CSPAN, like the following. Right now Congress seems so proud of themselves for passing the latest bill for caring for our veterans but not interested in reminding folks they've already been there and done that and there is nothing new in what they just did.

If you only read what people want you to know, you must not be a veteran or hanging around with them since the topic of their conversations is, they are fed up with excuses.

So, here's yet one more reminder of what congress knew and when they knew it.

Senator Kit Bond, Chairman of the Veterans Affairs Subcommittee said "Felt like we were in Groundhog Day"


Bond then used another movie to describe what was happening to our veterans, "Perfect Storm"

APRIL 6, 2004
Veterans Affairs Budget, Senate Veterans Affairs Subcommittee
Witnesses testified regarding the proposed fiscal year 2005 budget for the Department of Veterans Affairs. Committee members expressed concern that the proposed budget was insufficient. Among the other issues addressed were waiting times and fees charged for health care, and efficient use of funds.

The first part of the chairman’s opening statement is not included.

Veterans waiting for appointments longer than six months for an appointment from 300,000 to 20,000. Wonder how many died waiting to be seen back then?

233 days to 187 days, for claims.

Principi left a $1 billion shortfall. The VA answer was to charge new fees. Senator Bond said they were not going to balance the books on the backs of veterans.

Storm created by Congress.

The number of veterans served by the VA went from 2.7 to 4.7 million since 1996.

Seeing veterans within 30 days for appointments was at only 48.1%.

Suspended priority 8 veterans from seeking care.

2005 request is inadequate.


By the way, there were a quarter of a million homeless veterans.

Veterans Center waiting lines

Over 2,000 veterans waiting for blind veterans center.

Members were also told they were reducing staff of claims processors by 500. Yes, 500.

Office of budget management was looking at spending $75 million outsourcing study.

Senator Shelby talked about hearing from his constituents about troubles they face.

Funding for research went down by $20 million.

They only anticipated a 4% increase.

Virtual VA project.

Concourent VA and DOD claims.

Everything that has been in the news lately were problems that could have been fixed a long time ago if the people sitting on the 4 Committees overseeing the VA really gave a damn about not just what was happening when they were in the chair, but what happened when others were. Maybe if there were not so many empty chairs during all the hearings covered by CSPAN, our elected officials would have paid attention. Then again, maybe if they were held accountable, no one would be so ready to just pretend they were fixing anything.

We owed our veterans honesty. We owed them accountability. We owed them nothing but the best we could give them in return for the "blank check up to and including" their lives.

See, the issue is not that veterans are suffering. It is "why are they still suffering?" Why after all these hearings do all the same problems still vex them?

We allowed it to happen. We allowed them to get away with pretending they didn't know. We allowed them to pretend to be shocked in public after their offices were bombarded by complaints coming straight from the veterans as most politicians admitted they were hearing from.

We also allowed reporters to pretend none of it really mattered. How did they get away with reporting on the sky falling without investigating on how it cracked in the first place? It was irresponsible for them to not even be curious enough to figure out who or what did the damaged at least allowing someone to come up with the right blend to fix the cracks in the sky.

We're really stupid. We rush to judge what we do not know as much as we are just too lazy learn what the reality is. We make sure we record our favorite shows so we don't miss anything yet we avoid CSPAN like the plague. What the hell is wrong with us?

Sure you know right now I am swearing my head off as I type but that does little good since few have heard the loud screams of our veterans as they beg for help, borrow money to pay the bills they can't pay while waiting for claims to be approved so they can take care of themselves after giving everything they had to give. We thought we did something when we got angry and got on our little Facebook groups and complained in between copying recipes of things we'll never make and looking at the newest picture of a baby we don't even know.

How horrible are we? How much would it have cost us to actually spend some time not just thinking about them but doing something for them in return? Would it take so much effort for you to read something and then leave a comment about what the reporter missed? Would it harm you in anyway to ask them questions you'd like to have answered?

What other bull are you willing to deal with? How much longer will it take before you can figure out that this has in fact been Groundhog Day for our veterans and their families needlessly because Congress saw the "Perfect Storm" coming years ago and put up an umbrella full of holes. Reporters just didn't notice the sky fell through those holes and a lot of veterans suffered because we were too stupid to really care.