George Corneliussen
It is time not only to acknowledge the thing we are doing right when it comes to honoring those who have served in our Armed Forces, but also the thing we are doing that is wrong, horribly wrong.
Memorial Day has been set aside as a tribute for all those who have given their lives to protect our country. It has also been set aside to honor those who have survived the process of serving our country. We honor the dead with the all-inclusive sense of respect and thanks that they deserve. The sacrifices they have made dwarf any of those we who stand on the sidelines have made when it come to protecting all that is our country.
However, when it comes to how we honor those who have survived, we fall woefully short. We honor those who are fit enough to march in parades and make speeches. We also honor some of our veterans who are confined to wheel chairs, crutches and canes. But those veterans who have been maimed and damaged beyond the point of being able to live a normal life, we have abandoned.
Some may argue the degree to which we have abandoned them, but none can argue the fact that we, as a nation, prefer to " not think about " those who have left the service brain-damaged, paraplegic, or emotionally destroyed. Are we finally mature enough, as a nation, to ask ourselves the question: " Why is that ? "
All the images of those who have served that we honor are of the strong, the willing, and the brave. None of the images that we honor are of the crippled in mind, body, and spirit. In fact, we disgracefully tend to treat these veterans as outcasts.
If an "outcast" is truly " a person or animal cast out from home and friends ", as defined by the dictionary, what offense did those we shun commit ? If we are honest with ourselves, we will answer the ony true answer there is. Those who returned from war, crippled beyond the ability to function, destroy the myth of war we hold dear. That is the myth that war is only noble and successful. The reality of war is that those we love are destroyed, as well as saved.
One day a year is fitting and proper for honoring those who we currently honor on Memorial Day. But refusing to acknowlegde the existence of those who have served, but returned damaged beyond "acceptable limits ", is a disgrace. Our greater sin is the resentment we hold toward these unfortunate survivors. When will the next parade to honor these tainted survivors be held ? When will the next stamp to honor the veterans who suffer from brain-trauma be issued ? When will we stop wishing that they would all "just go away " ?
We are obligated as a nation that claims to hold human life in esteem to face this issue and deal with it. I will close with one final question: " Do you even know where the veteran's hospital in your community is located ?"
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Comments: 42
As for your closing question, we have a fairly new VA nursing facility not far from here, and its quite nice. A couple of former co workers work there, and say is is state of the art, and well staffed, which in itself isa a miracle, considering the history of the VA in this country.
Thank you for this strong reminder, George. And yes, I do know. Have been to them to visit as well.
Love ya for lovin' our special vets .
To all readers, please don't be afraid to contact your local VFW or American Legion post to see what "auxiliary" opportunities they may offer. Both organizations operate on the premise of honoring the dead by helping the living. Since the members are veterans and the families of veterans you are dealing directly with the folks who are in the situation. Hospital visits, offering transportation to those who can't drive, providing meals, educational seminars and more are things offered by local posts. There's more to VFW and Americal Legion than just holiday parades!
Call the place and insist to talk to "whoever is in charge" . Be polite, but be insistent, these are our veterans , not their veterans.
The term "righteous indignation" needs to be dusted off and put back into use on this issue. In other words, get mad at whoever refuses to deal with this issue, and use facts to answer them when they ask you why you're so mad.
The day we see the hair-sprayed, coat-hanger smiling, low- IQ, news anchors on TV featuring these vets as valid-equal to every other American-individuals, we'll we headed in the right direction.
It's time we, the people, got real on this subject.
memorial (as an adjective):
[ helping people to remember some person, thing, or event: commemorative. ]
Sounds like the right day to me.
We dare not ever let war be thought of as the ultimate Super Bowl. When a player gets injured during the Super Bowl, the entire nation stands and cheers his courage as he leaves the field. Once he is off the field, however, he is forgotten and the fans sit back down and get back to cheering the game.
Sad.
I don't think it's because people are bad, I think it's because they have allowed themselves to forget what is real and what is not.
There's nothing I can do for my father but remember him, which I do every day. So for him I try to help individuals who have been wounded. It's what he would do if he were alive today. In memory of PFC Alvin R. Gillett DOW at Ormac, Layte, Phillippines Dec. 17, 1944.
for the past few days when I first saw this site, I have been contiplating how best to say what I am feeling...
I have and still do many Vets. I have been there to listen to them when no one else would, when their familys have turn away from them. Why? because and you said, they don't quite fit in anymore...
the turning point seem to be Viet Nam, before that it was a real honor to server and come back with all the war stories and maybe a body part missing.
the first man I men was when I was a very little girl, at first he scared me...always running, always twitching, never sitting still for a moment... later I found out he had worked in ammunition factory that had exploded. He was told that he was one of the lucky ones that made it out alive.
you asked the question do we know where the local VA hospital is? I have to say that since I was 15 yrs old and my brother went into one while in a coma, I have made a point to know where they are no matter where I have lived.
another sad thing to say, and this I do know first hand from experience. is that not all VA hospitals treat the Vets with respect and dignity that they so deserve. I can not tell you how many times I have gone round with staff, nurses or even doctors that are either over worked and dont care anymore, or think that they are gods gift and how dare you question them.
for many Vets that just shut up and take what is given and not what is truly avaliable to them, it is a shame. at some VA hospitals there is a book that is given out every year that shows the benefits. some hospitals do not put them out and only give them to you if you ASK. how can you ask for something that you do not know exsist?
one VA adminstrator when questioned about treatment for a Vet said to me "What you think that you should have to contact Congress to get something for him?" my reply to her was, "IF I have to have a SECOND letter from the PRESIDENT tell you that you are to give this terminally ill Vetern what is due him then I will get it!!!" at that point she shut up and made avalible the services that should have been provided in the first place.
my question is tho, how many others will stand up and fight for what is suppose to be given according to the contract they made with the US Government when they first came/went into the service?
again with the question of honor, I know for reasons of national security, there are many men and women that have jobs that their families and friends have no idea what they are doing. however, when they are in need or medical health why can't they be given it fully, there could be a different coding or something that does not reveal their jobs but to be ignored because your 'official records' do not show your real service time or obligations??? and what I find even worst than that is that after they have crossed over, even then they can not be honored with total respect and dinity that is due them.
the US has many good things about it, but turning their backs on the very people that have made the country what it is, is not one of them and it brings tears to my eyes each time I see a young man or women going into the service so full of hope for the betterment just to learn so quickly that they are not respected at times by their own government and peers...
pls let us try to do better... pls let us not forget...
My dad was like your dad. My dad was badly wounded during World War II and he never let it slow him down, and he remained an active member of the DAV until the day he died.
Thanks, very much.
People like you are a blessing to not only the veterans of this country but everyone else as well. Simply put, if we can't bring ourselves to honor and respect all our veterans, there is no way we can have any honor or respect for ourselves. Without honor and respect, no nation can stand.
I have now also finally accepted this to my "Everything" group, sorry for any delays...
Real life figures, like the Marines you speak off, make the entertainment world look small and insignificant by comparison. I guess people are so addicted to the fantasy in life that they don't even know how to begin honoring something real.
Thanks, have a good weekend.
There is no such thing as a "clean" war. Neither is there any such thing as a war with only "clean" casualties. We OWE every veteran all the help they need. We also OWE it them to never forget a single one of them.
Every single person that took the time to find out what happens to veterans when they come home from war/injury would have their eyes opened to where we really stand as a country.
What a beautiful piece you have written!
I am native american and I honor all the vets that have given us our freedoms. At every pow wow, we have a special dance that is in honor of the vets, their families and for the vets that didn't make it home. They all have a place of honor and not just for a special day of the year, but every time we get together, we honor what they have done for us and are still doing!
Thank You!!!
You have a much better grasp on the situation than most of us do. Thank You !
Yes, I know where my local VA hospital is; it's outdated and underfunded. If you're a vet here, you have a long wait if you need medical care. Still, they do all they can and more. But, vets shouldn't have to beg for what we all agree is due them.
We all know far too many stories of vets who were marginalized and/or ignored by the VA and by society as a whole (remember Agent Orange?). It's far past time for this travesty to be changed.
"vets shouldn't have to beg for what we all agree is due them."
This one sentence says it all.
If you are so inclined, visit a veteran at a VA hospital or retirement home and get to know them. The biggest shame is that we simply forget these veterans exist.
Veterans are not the only folks left out to pasture.
Millions are being earned at nursing homes and the like, simply because we do not honor our elders. When my granfather got placed in a nursing home, he lasted a mere 6 months and died. It would have been no different if he had been put in "Papillon's" isolation cell.
I was too young to have any say in the matter, but needless to say, his home and posessions were liquidated and the is no longer any trace he ever existed. He was a kind man, a silver-star awardee in WWII, and for what little time I had to enjoy his company, I will forever be grateful.
I absolutely agree. My wife and I spend a lot of time at a nursing home near us. We have made some of the best friends we've ever had there.
There are already so many 'special' taxes already being charged to Americans!
Many of which already address this issue....the problem is that although Americans contribute approximately 50% of their income to tax requirements every day from your (never was legal) income tax to taxes on everything your purchase, then again on what you already purchased as 'property taxes' etc etc.
(Great Britian has returned to haunt us)
Forget the tax.
Go visit a Veteran.
Bring your donations DIRECTLY to the facility they are in (in a Cashier's check written to the institution) for the purpose of cutting out all the middle-men who take their share for 'handling' the donation.
Actions are the true test of your convictions!
That sounds good to me.