Tonight I want to talk about an issue that is very near and dear to my heart, because I, like many others in this country AM a VETERAN of the United States of America's Armed Services. For those who do not know, or perhaps are simply uninformed, these branches of service are as follows:
United States Marine Corps (also under the department of the Navy, despite their dislike of one another, at times)
United States Navy
United States ARMY
United States Air Force
Coast Guard
all Reserves and National Guard
My personal service was between 2002 to 2006 in the Navy. I want to say first and foremost for anyone who reads this blog that I am a PATRIOT to this nation. I served with honor and courage and I forever will remember those with whom I served as well as those who I served. I seek NOT to tarnish the reputation of the Navy or other branches with this blog, only to open some eyes to what really happens when you sign up with Uncle Sam and volunteer to serve, to protect, and to help those who cannot help themselves.
It starts with a dream... the American dream. We all know the one where the "bad guys" are overseas and Americans could go on eating their cheeseburgers and "freedom" fries without worry. We swore to protect this nation from enemies both FOREIGN and DOMESTIC, but I had NO idea what that meant. I was swept away by the fantasy of seeing the world in exchange for a small sacrifice of 4 years. Sounds pretty good when the recruiters tell you all the stories of the glory and the glamour...
Then comes boot camp. You are demoralized, beaten down, and stripped of any and all INDIVIDUALITY only to be called by last name and last 4 of your social security number. They don't want you using first names, you see, cause that would add humanity and personality. THEY don't want that. They train you to be a machine, free of thought, only to say "yes sir!" or "yes petty officer!", in my situation. After 2 months of grueling physical conditioning, mental abuse, and a whole host of vaccinations, blood and urine testing, they send you to school to learn a job... but remember, your duty is to the branch of service and country FIRST, God and self second or NONE. And you were NEVER encouraged, often punished for asking even the simplest of questions.
So, I will admit that school was very enjoyable. I held out at MEPS (Military Entrance Processing Station) for the exact job I wanted and was excited and pleased to go to the school I had chosen. Fast forward a bit skipping a lot of personal details in between...
Needless to say, my time in did NOT turn out how I expected or wanted. I was injured and forced out of the service... and admittedly, by the time I was asked to leave, I was READY to. In my talking to many other veterans, I heard this same repeated story again and again. Those with intelligence that were inquisitive and asked questions, no matter how thought out were punished repeatedly by their superiors, forced to do degrading and demeaning tasks repetitively. And the harder you worked toward the elusive "advancement", the farther away it seemed, the MORE work they piled on you, only to watch the not quite as intelligent (often ass kissing) soldier or shipmate next to you receive endless praise over his ability to follow orders and excel on physical fitness tests, but nothing more. Brains are NOT required for service, ONLY blind obedience to do anything and everything no matter how assinine, repetitive, or against your morals it seemed.
Many veterans I have spoken to over the years recall this same story again and again. Coincidence? The Quiet Mouse thinks not...
When serving the nation, especially with pride and patriotism, it is quite insulting to be treated like a slave. To be treated like garbage. Why even in the galley's and mess halls, the food boxes were labeled "fit for only prisons and military", it's TRUE. Is that all we were to them? Prisoners in a neatly starched uniform it seemed, always fearful of what to say and how to act, never knowing when the next punishment or reprimand would come, often over the most insignificant or trivial issues.
Many I would meet over the years told stories of being discharged from the service over issues that were either NON-EXISTENT, or were extremely trumped up. Why would they do this to those who yearned to do good? To those who wanted to fight that good fight? Again: THEY want people to follow blindly orders into battle, and especially in the Marine Corps, they want you to KILL, KILL, KILL. Period. Without question.
Over the years, through war and peace, there has been many renaming titles of the same condition. Let me know, please, if you have heard of any of these or know anyone with these severe mental illnesses caused by war:
Battle fatigue, shell shock, combat fatigue, combat neurosis, complete exhaustion, or the one we all have heard of PTSD, or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
Having boots on the ground overseas is NOT exclusive for a service member or veteran to be diagnosed with this disorder. I repeat, you do NOT have to have seen actual combat to suffer this illness during and after your enlistment in the military.
I spent two years working in Critical Care/ ICU/ Cardio-Thoracic units as a hospital corpsman and I have seen at least 15 deaths first hand in those two years and I will tell you now that the nightmares of seeing death firsthand is the SAME in a hospital as it is in the battlefield and there is NOTHING as traumatic as being part of the crash team and doing everything you can to save someone only for the flat line to register on the monitor and the patient dies a painful, horrific death in front of your eyes. Tears are coming to my eyes as I write this because THESE are the burdens carried in the hearts of men and women, returning home from their service to be neglected and mistreated by a VA system that is UNDER-FUNDED, UNDER-EQUIPPED, and often UNDER-STAFFED (well, at least by caring individuals that are there for MORE than just a government job with benefits)!!
According to the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans (NCHV), in this country there are an estimated 1.5 MILLION homeless veterans and that does NOT include millions more that are on the verge of homelessness and poverty due to lack of support networks, dismal living conditions, or lack of affordable or subsidized housing. The majority of these homeless veterans are men; well over half of those men are black or Hispanic. Why are there so many homeless veterans, you might wonder?
In addition to the complex set of factors influencing all homelessness – extreme shortage of affordable housing, livable income and access to health care – a large number of displaced and at-risk veterans live with lingering effects of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and substance abuse (alcohol, tobacco, methamphetamines, prescription pain medications, and more), which are compounded by a lack of family and social support networks.
I sincerely hope that I am not the only person that thinks this is a tragedy of epidemic proportions. Just this morning I gave money out the window of my car to a crippled old man on the street corner as I was going out for lunch. He held a sign stating that he was a disabled veteran, homeless, and 68 years old. I have been blessed in my life so I gave him a few bucks that I could spare, but drove away, with a deep sadness in the pit of my soul. What happened to this man that he became this way? He was obviously too old and feeble for gainful employment, most likely suffering from a long term mental illness and I suspect that he was forced to leave his home unwillingly by some greedy toad of a banker or bean counter only concerned about the red ink on the bottom line.
Over and over I have heard the tired banter of the war machine saying "Support the Troops", but THIS old man is a clear example of where our country has gone MASSIVELY WRONG!! We need to support the Veterans, damn it!! Recently I saw a detailed report which contained a graph chart showing the estimated government budget for the Veterans Administration. It was going steadily up at a very slow rate. However, on the same graph there was another line, much much steeper showing the NEED for assistance from the VA going higher and higher, far exceeding the budget of money that was allotted to the system.
What does this mean? How does this happen?
Well, quite simply there are two main issues that I see in the system.
1) Failure to properly plan for the continued needs of the veterans, especially with an aging population of seniors that served in the Korean and Vietnam conflicts (wars)
2) Failure of the government to adequately anticipate the mortality of not one, but 2 and sometimes more international conflicts being Iraq and Afghanistan... i.e. the unprecedented number of soldiers and sailors returning with PTSD or blown up, missing limbs, etc.
What does this mean for the veterans that NEED medical attention today?
Well, often they cannot get it in a timely manner for starters. It takes months often to be seen by a provider which only leads to further exacerbating the illness or injury. Another issue is medicine. Now you would think in a society such as this where the pharmaceutical companies are pushing out pills that the Vets would be able to get some relief, but that is often NOT the case. I personally have 3 distinct medicines that would help me tremendously, but the VA will NOT supply them for me and I have NO INSURANCE to seek outside medical care to get them, NOR could I afford them due to the ever rising costs. The VA will not give me these meds: 1) because of the cost. A one month supply of my anti-depressants costs $120. 2) Another they will not give because it is "habit forming", and 3) another because they just simply REFUSE. I am not the only one in this situation and like many other veterans I feel HOSTAGE to the VA system that is inadequate, at times highly unprofessional, and insensitive.
The fastest way to get care at the VA is to be dead or dying. So much for preventive care that could potentially save them millions. The only thing they want to give out like candy is VACCINES (which is an upcoming blog in and of itself, my friends).
Do I have all the answers? I am afraid not. All I am doing is urging people to NOT forget about those who have served and given blood, sweat, and tears for this nation, for YOU and I to be here today. More funds are needed immediately, but it's hard to get those monies from a country that is bleeding out every pore like a stuck pig.
I have a radical idea that perhaps my fellow readers might support. I would love any and all assistance with this goal... I would like to start a charity for disabled veterans to help supply them with food and daily needs
DAVEN:
Disabled
American
Veterans
Everyday
Needs
Every single day veterans are faced with not enough money to pay for food and go starving or eating ramen.
Every day they NEED simple things like clean socks, razors, toothpaste & toothbrush, shoes, deodorant and other toiletries. Clean clothes are often not affordable for many veterans either. Sometimes they need a haircut and cannot afford one. And they even need cigarettes too sometimes... hate it or love it...
It shouldn't have to take a STAND DOWN operation for people to look inside and give what they can to those who fought to make this nation safe. Christmas shouldn't be the ONLY time people introspectively look inside their hearts and do what is right. Society OWES a debt of gratitude for the men and women, young and old who have served with pride. Disabled Veterans just need a little bit MORE that has been denied.
That brings me to my last and final point of this blog. The last injustice that makes my blood steam with shame and anger. Our country has turned so far upside down since 9/11 under the guise of "terror". According to a statement released recently from the pentagon... the new #1 threat of domestic "terror" is unhappy and disgruntled VETERANS that cling onto radical ideas like the first and second ammendments. Oh it's TRUE. And SAD. Is this really how far we've come? Not only are the Veterans mistreated and displaced from their homes, left with inadequate health care and long term psychological damage, but THIS... it is unconstitutional and Anti-American to even think that these men and women who have fought and given so much would be considered a "threat"...
Thank you for reading. Spread the message!! That is the ONLY way to create change. ONE person at a time. This has been the Quiet Mouse. Good night and Good luck!!
Peace. Love. Respect. Truth.
Honor, Courage, and Commitment.
How very sad this makes me. A lot of us don't think about what people that have served have gone through, or only take a few minutes (i.e. on Veteran's Day)to think about them. I hear that Applebee's gave free meals on Veteran's Day. How about going out into the community to give on a regular basis? There are people still fighting for our freedom, but there are those that did fight for our lives and are fighting for their own just to survive. I'm totally supportive of a charity. Perhaps you can contact the VA hospital there in Portland, and give them your ideas. If they approve and give something to you in writing, talk to local businesses to see if you can put boxes in their stores for those things the Veterans need. You can also post flyers in the stores. Once those boxes fill up, go take them to the VA, or even see if the VA has a list that shows where Veterans are housed and take those things there. Definitely worth a shot. I'll help any way I can.
ReplyDelete