OK, gotta get this off my chest

[ashling]

this has bothered me for some time, but listening to Patrick Murphy's show on MSNBC devoted to veterans' issues.

Before I begin I just want to say that this country does not do right by its veterans.

When we send a person to serve in the hell that often awaits them, we owe it to them and their families to be here for them when they come back.

And when they come back with varying states of depression, traumatic stress, lost limbs - and worse - brain injury , ad nauseum, because of the horror in which they were forced to exist due to out government's inability or refusal to address our geopolitical responsibilities in a sane manner, we owe it to them and their families to give them whatever is needed to have some semblance of a life of dignity, self-worth, and opportunity . . .

O yeah, and we owe that to every child and school kid in America . . . but that's another rant

I believe all of that, but I hate "The Wounded Warrior's Project."

I don't hate what they do

- or what they profess to do. I cannot say that I know whether or not they do what they say, whether or not they are good at it, or whether or not they spend their money wisely. I just can't comment on that -

I hate their name. . . .

(with about the same degree of passion that I hate the name of the Washington DC football team. - and that is yet another rant . . .)

And I cringe every time I hear their ads on TV.

They, and Patrick Murphy, and the guests on his show - particularly on his show today - and even when Rachel Maddow uses this term.

let me say this clearly:

[font size = 4]This is not a warrior nation!
[/font size = 4]

at least it is not supposed to be . . .

and yet the name warrior is glorified in each and every instance it is used on TV to talk about the military service and the people they - and we - have sent into harms way.

There, I'm finished . . . you may return to your regularly scheduled . . . whatever it is that you have regularly scheduled.

[mike_c]

1. I can't get past the knowledge that the military has been little more than muscle...

...for imperialism and corporate profit since the last world war. Is that "service?" To whom? You argue that you and I should do more for our veterans, but that implies that their military service was in defense of us, in our names. But mostly, it wasn't. We support one of the worlds most efficient and brutal organizations for imposing the will of our rich and powerful upon mostly poor people around the world who have something that our lords and ladies want.

I guess my cynicism is showing today.

[Cleita]

3. Oh it definitely is. Our diplomatic corp and state dept. are all there to

protect the interests of American companies operating overseas too. Protecting the interests of ordinary Americans abroad not so much. That comes last. I saw it operate first hand in South America when I lived there.

[ashling]

6. That is not what I was saying

We should take care of our people, whether they are school kids that suffer because we don't spend the money necessary to upgrade our schools rather than turn it over to private corporations, whether it is people wit asthma, cancer, and other debilitating conditions resulting from our refusal to do what is necessary to clean up our environment rather than allowing corporations to destroy it, . . .

and on and on . . .

including when we send people to fight and die and worse.

I agree wholeheartedly with your last sentence . . . to which I would add:

which we do - not by harming a hair on the persons or fortunes of those "lords and ladies" but by training up and brutalizing the youth of this nation and dumping them into the hopper to be ground down in unspeakable horror in the "service" to these lords and ladies.

I am only saying that we should do right by those that we have sent.

We use the word warrior as if it is somehow honorable. The next step in that thinking is that what they do in our name is somehow honorable and even glorious. It is a false mantra which contributes to the very thing to which both you and I repel in horror and disgust.

That is all I was addressing. Only that piece of it.

It's a vicious circle and it must be stopped - all of it.


If you have warriors then you have to have wars . . . but, (oops, my 70s are showing) Suppose they gave a war and nobody came?

[mike_c]

8. ah-- thanks for clarifying....

Sounds like we're pretty much in agreement.

[TxGrandpa]

12. I have to agree. I am retired from the Army [over 30 years ago], and

Last edited Sun Feb 23, 2014, 06:28 PM - Edit history (1)

I don't consider that I was a 'warrior'. No, I was an American soldier serving this country. No doubt the term warrior was brought up by the Bush/Cheney administration to encourage those fighting for them.

Even from the beginning of our invasion of Iraq, it brought to my mind a repeat of Vietnam. We had absolutely no business invading Iraq.

[TexasTowelie]

16. At great risk of disapproval,

there are times when I believe the noun that fits more appropriately is "mercenary".

mercenary (n) -- a soldier who is paid by a foreign country to fight in its army : a soldier who will fight for any group or country that hires him
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mercenary

Why would I make such a comment? The cost of the war to the United States was calculated by the U.S. Congress to be $61.1 billion. About $52 billion of that amount was paid by other countries: $36 billion by Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and other Arab states of the Persian Gulf; $16 billion by Germany and Japan (which sent no combat forces due to their constitutions).

My brother is a veteran who served in Iraq during the first Gulf War and I know that he couldn't avoid fighting in that war without receiving a dishonorable discharge. I'm proud that he served his country, but his military service changed him and he is due the benefits that he earned for his service.

However, since I know that the term is mercenary is even more contentious than warrior, I think the correct noun to use is "veterans" and it should be left at that.

[freshwest]

21. Thanks for the funding figures. Wish I had a link to that. But it was something I've harped on.

They did not give us that money out of love or affection. They expect a return.

What is that return? Jobs, manufacturing, land, orivileges, contracts, what?

The USA is part of a global system and has been for some time. Our media teaches kids that war is sexy and natural.

That the bigger our machines of death, the smarter we are, that our efficiency proves our superiority to others. That to win is all that matters.

This is in many aspects of domestic life. And why did the USA take on this role?

I know of what WW2 changed, and why we are stuck in this position, partly. The nations of the western world did not want to see that happen again and decided to pass the burden on to us as their children, by law if not by blood and culture.

It frightened me when Tony Blair spoke before the Congress in the Bush years. He said that the USA was created for the war that was being prosecuted in Iraq, it was our destiny.



I found that idea a mystery and a horror at the same time. It may have been just a sales job.

I think much of our economic woes come from the payments of those debts to other nations and that they are paid in trade agreements for the wars.

[TexasTowelie]

22. The financial figures came

from a Wikipedia article on the Gulf War.

[freshwest]

25. Thanks, will go and find it. n/t

[The CCC]

14. I can't get past the knowledge that the military has been little more than muscle...

Whatever the motivation of the politicians that send our best to bleed and die in our names. The individual soldier is the innocent pawn in the game.

[mike_c]

24. they volunteer for pawnship....

There is that.

[rwsanders]

15. Earlier than that according to "War is a Racket" by Maj. Gen. Smedly Butler

[GP6971]

27. Truly

a man ahead of his time concerning speaking out

[Cleita]

2. I really wish we could send the Bush/Cheney/Rumsfeld/Rice junta

to The Hague for war crimes. There is no doubt they will be convicted. As part of their sentence, their fortunes should be turned over into a trust as reparations for those who have suffered through those wars both civilian and military. Lastly, corporations like Chevron, Halliburton, Xe, who profited from the wars should have to pay 10% of their gross revenue, not net (too easy for accounting tricks) into support for the veterans and their families in perpetuity until the last vet dies.

In a just world that would happen.

[Hoyt]

4. I don't like the "warrior" reference either. We need to move away from that whole idea in our

military.

[WillyT]

5. Off To The Greatest Page !!!

[ashling]

7. Thank you, Willy

[90-percent]

9. I do not think the OP Support the Troops?

My my my

How Unpatriotic!

You should not stand in the way of some willing to destroy their lives and bodies to serve their country. We need them to fight the perpetual wars needed to protect the Fatherland!

I suspect we have some in our DU midst that are for the terrorists!

-90% Jimmy

[progressoid]

10. This is not a warrior nation.

God, I wish that were true.

It's certainly not the only thing we are, but militarism is at the core of our nation's psyche.

mil·i·ta·rism (mĭl′ĭ-tə-rĭz′əm)
n.

1. Glorification of the ideals of a professional military class.
2. Predominance of the armed forces in the administration or policy of the state.
3. A policy in which military preparedness is of primary importance to a state.

Also, K&Rec.

[sorefeet]

11. I don't like that commercial either

it's like war is ok. Why don't the filthy rich who make their money off of war, have to take care of the soldier for the rest of his life. OR how about WAR NO MORE FOREVER.

[heaven05]

13. you're right

since 2003 we've been an imperialist nation sending young men and women into the meat grinder of war for corporate profit and greed, necessitated by every SUV out there over 2000 pounds. PNAC has made this a nation of 'warriors'. Glorification not justified, you're right. Don't get me wrong, most are in the armed services because there are no opportunities out there for the non college bound young man or woman. If they want to go to college, most can't afford it without the help they get from VA after their ETS. So most are just trying to gain a skill and to have a job. I call them forced into service because of the american economic system. I joined to get money for college. I was also an army brat. It's all I knew.

[BobbyBoring]

17. Actually

Since 1964. Same benefactors, Brown + Root, which is now known as Haliburton, Bell, General Dynamics to name a few, different boogy man, Commies!
At least they got rid of the draft. I wish they would reinstate it with NO deferments. Maybe the people that start wars would think a bit more if one of their kids was going.

[heaven05]

18. no argument from me

[GP6971]

28. History proves

that the rich will,always find ways to keep their kids from serving.

[ashling]

29. Since the 1840s

and even before. Since we decided that this everything west of the Appalachian Mtns .... I mean, Mississippi River ... that is, Hawaii ... and the philippines was ours . . . and that we could do whatever the hell we want whenever the hell we want.

[onethatcares]

19. personally,

I get more upset with everyone being called a "hero" and with the parades for one individual returning from a conflict that we shouldn't even be in be it Iraq or Afghanistan.

This is not written to demean actual "heros", like the person that gives out of their meager resources to feed the hungry or prevent more bloodshed.

[janlyn]

20. I personally am more outraged

by the fact that an organization like that exists.
That there has to be a non profit group doing for our vets what our government should be doing!!

[Lifelong Protester]

34. That is my opinion, too.

I am baffled by getting a free toothbrush and being asked to donate so our soldiers can have toothbrushes and such. Really? We ask these folks to go and fight and we can't afford to give them a damn toothbrush? I should not be surprised, since the government has to be shamed into providing proper armor-plating for vehicles.

[redqueen]

23. Thanks for this post.

Glorifying war and violence is a very serious problem, thanks for spelling it out the way you did.

[WhiteTara]

26. here! here!

[raven mad]

30. No, we are not a warrior nation.

My stepdaughter, the gentlest person I've ever know, as well as the most loving, joined the Army to provide for her children after her husband left. She did well, as I said, because she is gentle and loving, and obeyed orders well.

In Iraq, the truck she was driving was totaled by an IED. She sustained a traumatic brain injury, broken hips, and internal damage. The TBI and limp from the hips will be with her forever.

She has to drive from Kenai to Fairbanks or Anchorage to get medical attention from the VA and not even the gas is paid for.

It's absurd that we NEED "The Wounded Warriors Project" or any other "Project" to help our veterans get the assistance that we OWE them. I agree that Iraq/Afghanistan and certainly Viet Nam were wrong "wars" and should never have happened. But they did; and those who served certainly deserve more than a good job pat on the back, a cheap pin, and a certificate showing an honorable discharge.

[Victor_c3]

31. Are you sure that the VA won't pay travel expenses?

It might be because she receives too much money from the VA or her income is too high. Not that I'm saying this is alright, but that would explain it. The VA does cover travel expenses each month up to a certain point.

If she has any questions, I'd have her ask her OIF/OEF program manager or representative at the VA. If you go to the VA, you'll see signs all over the place advertising OIF/OEF program manager. It is basically their job to answer questions from vets like her and to get her all of the benefits she has earned.

[raven mad]

32. She has no income except that of her husbands, and the little farm.

They sell eggs, goat milk, and produce in season.

In order for her to go to OIF/OEF, they have to take time off the farm, drive to Anchorage, spend at least one night, and hope for the best.

I don't know the ins and outs of the VA system well enough to help. Her brain injury prevents her from absorbing a lot of information; her husband (my stepson) is amazing but is bipolar and on meds. We're at a loss. They drive a 15 year old car, or ride bicycles, or go on foot. We have tried to get a VA rep to go visit them - their place is not hard to find, and not that far out of town. No go, she has to be seen "in the office". Her parents are useless, his are deceased, so me and spouse are it for help. And I want to help, very much so, but trying to work around a system I know nothing about!?

Any links you can provide; any information for us "idiots without VA experience" (I are one!) anything! would be appreciated. I'll send good karma your way, regardless - and some aurora, as the lights have been strong the past few nights!

[Victor_c3]

33. two contacts I found for you

Troy Townsend, LCSW
OEF/OIF/OND Program Manager
888-353-7574 x7432
907-257-7432

Michael Pascale
OEF/OIF/OND Transition Patient Advocate
888-353-7574 x7435
907-257-7535

These are two contacts that I found for the Anchorage VA (off of their website).

Both of the above numbers I found on the VA website for the patient advocates that mentioned in my previous post. For what is is worth, they are government employees and they work for you. Their main purpose in life is to help answer questions you may have and to make it easier for disabled vets to get what they deserve.

As an aside, I've had a lot of issues off and on with PTSD over the last couple of years and the VA has been a huge savior to me. The patient advocates have helped me out tremendously both in my VA care and in personal matters and even with stuff like helping me locate a job when my PTSD issues lead to me being unemployed for a while. If you have a question or a concern, please don't hesitate to call them. Again, that is their purpose in life and every one of them I've had an interaction with seemed to care about what they were doing.

These people might even know of non government organizations that might be able to assist you and your family as well.

I don't want to delve too deeply into your personal business, but is your daughter rated at 100%? If so, there might be some additional financial assistance you or her spouse could receive as caregivers. I'm not completely sure with what I'm talking about, but it can't hurt to ask the people I listed above.

Anyways, best of luck to you and your family.

[Bandit]

35. I live in Juneau and all we have here is a VA Clinic. Anytime I need to go to Anchorage

for the VA they pay for my travel, even taxi ride from airport. Because you are on a road system it may be different, but they should at least reimburse for the gas used.