Artwork by Michael DiMilo
(Originally posted on May 31, 2019 in Honor of our Veterans)
By Geoff Carter
Ah, Memorial Day: the harbinger of summer, the first family picnic, and the grill master’s opening day. Memorial Day also happens to be the holiday recognizing and honoring those who have made the ultimate sacrifice defending our nation and Constitution. It is a national salute to all the soldiers who have died in battle during the long and bloody history of our country, a saga reaching from the American Revolution to the Civil War to the World Wars to Korea to Vietnam to Afghanistan and to Iraq. And all the bloody skirmishes in between.
With all the hustle and bustle of planning the picnics or family reunions or the long weekend getaways, it’s easy to forget the men and women who paid for the everyday freedoms the rest of us enjoy so unthinkingly. It’s easy to forget the physical and emotional hardships these warriors endured. And even when we do remember and join in the singing of the national anthem or hang our heads in a moment of silent remembrance, we don’t do begin to give these people the appreciation and respect they deserve. What we owe these fallen soldiers can never be repaid. But we do have the ability to repay and repair those who have served and who are still among us.
It’s become fashionable and politically correct to honor our veterans, and rightly so. They are ubiquitously recognized at political events, during stump speeches and at national sporting events. But while we champion the valor and sacrifice of these men and women with whom we entrust the protection of our country, our nation ignores and neglects their physical and emotional needs when they return home from their tours of duty.
Post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression, traumatic brain injury, and substance abuse are only a few of the health issues facing some of our returning veterans. This is besides the challenge of coping with physical trauma and injury sustained during combat. It would be reasonable to assume that because of their service to our country, our veterans should be the first to receive the assistance necessary for them to regain and sustain their regular standing in our community. But, unfortunately, in America, this isn’t the case.
Statistics about the number of homeless veterans in the United States are difficult to find, but it is known that over 39,000 veterans are presently homeless. Some have substance abuse problems, others have mental health issues, while others are simply unemployed. While this number has been dropping significantly—by over 50% during the past decade—it is still far too high.
During the Afghanistan and Iraq campaigns under the Bush administration, some soldiers were required to complete three or even four tours of duty, leading to increased incidences of PTSD, anxiety, and strained relationships at home. But the soldiers of this all-volunteer force did it. Their health suffered, their marriages suffered, and they suffered, but they did it.
Suicide rates for veterans are significantly higher than those of the general population. Guilt, depression, substance abuse, and PTSD are only some of the causes. Approximately twenty veterans commit suicide every day, and many of the mental health treatment facilities at VA hospitals are insufficiently funded and terribly understaffed. As a result, many vets are rushed through appointments or even denied treatment. There have been a few instances of veterans committing suicide in VA waiting rooms and parking lots after falling through the cracks or being shuffled off through the system.
Vets are told they can turn to the Veterans Administration for help and many do, only to find that not all their health needs are covered by government insurance. Eligibility is determined by a number of factors, including income and service-connected disabilities. Family members do not receive coverage in all cases. All of this is shameful, almost criminal, especially in this era of flag-waving and chest-thumping histrionics. The sheer hypocrisy of our treatment of these soldiers is appalling.
At the very least, our veterans should be guaranteed free life-long quality healthcare for themselves and their families. How can our leaders, how can we—the electorate—glibly send our young women and men off to war and turn our backs on them when they return home? A round of applause and a few pats on the back are nice, but they don’t pay the bills.
There is help out there: The Fisher House Foundation, Semper Fi, The Wounded Warrior Project, and other charitable organizations reach out to veterans struggling to reintegrate themselves into mainstream society, which is laudable. But the truth is that private citizens, through their own generosity of time and money, are picking up the load that our Veteran’s Administration and state governments should be carrying. In short, if the American government were fulfilling its moral obligations to the citizens who have been willing to risk everything for their country, these charities would not be carrying the lion’s share of this responsibility.
We say we love our veterans, that we appreciate their sacrifices and their love for country, but this is obviously only lip service. On Memorial Day, we, as a people, need to not only honor our dead, but to honor and aid the heroes who have returned to us.
Give them shelter, give them care, give them a good living, and give them a decent life back. It’s the least we can do.
“…that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion — that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain — that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom — and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”
–The Gettysburg Address by Abraham Lincoln