The USA has been at war for over 200 years of its existence. The tragedy of war seems to be part of the fabric of our country’s being. The best and the brightest of our youngsters never return from war. Those who are injured return, but at what cost to them? We patch them up physically, some of the time. We seem not to care that so many have witnessed unspeakable sights of warfare and are in a constant state of trauma.
We see veterans missing limbs. Oh sure, we cheer the few who play wheelchair basketball or ski on modified skis.
But what of the ones we see homeless on the streets. We seem not to care about that. Since the advances in medical care, often made possible by the medical care learned in war, have made it possible to put the vet back together as best we can, but sadly when the maximum medical care is over, we think it’s just fine to discharge the vet from a hospital or rehab center and he or she will be just fine from then on.
Nobody seems to care that the now pronounced ‘just fine’ vet is not at all just fine. He needs a place to sleep, help with finding a job, help with medical devices, mobility devices, but nope, we have no money for that.
We can pay billions of dollars for one war machine, but not a dime for a power chair for someone who needs it to function. Hell, we can’t even put self opening doors on businesses, so if the vet can move, has a few dollars and needs to buy a shirt, he can't get in the door.
Aren’t we proud of ourselves!
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