Ok…let’s
see if
I’ve got
this
correct….we’re
asking
our
young
men and
women to
sign up
(volunteer)
for
service
in our
armed
forces.
Then we
send
them off
for
basic
training
and then
to some
specialized
training,
after
which
they
most
likely
will be
sent off
to our
current
war
de’jure.
There
they
will be
subjected
to
hardships
most of
us will
never be
forced
to
endure.
Heat,
sand,
dirt,
fear,
betrayal,
hunger,
thirst
and oh
yes, I
forgot
to
mention,
possibly
maiming
and
death.
Those
are
somewhat
important
as well.
Losing
your
life
will
certainly
put a
crimp in
your day
as will
the loss
of an
arm, leg
or other
vital
parts we
humans
have
come to
rely
upon.
In
addition
to these
hardships,
we then
say to
our
unsuspecting
innocent
young
men and
women…..’
oh, yes
we
forgot
to tell
you, but
you’re
not
going to
be over
in this
horrible
place
for just
one tour
of duty,
we might
have to
send you
back
there
two or
three
times…..We’re
sure
that’s
ok with
you,
isn’t
it?”
So, our
fine
young
men and
women
just
suck it
up and
carry
on,
doing
the best
they can
for as
long as
they
have to
do it.
That’s
what
they do,
suck it
up and
gut it
out. We
praise
them for
their
valor,
decorate
them for
their
bravery,
and bind
up their
physical
wounds
and send
them
back out
for
another
day.
Hopefully
they
return
each day
with
their
bodies
and
souls
intact.
Then
comes
the time
for them
to
finally
be
discharged.
But
wait,
the
mental
images
of their
friends
and
buddies
being
blown
into
tiny
bits and
pieces
won’t
leave
their
brains.
They
start
having
nightmares
and
stress
issues
because
of the
horrors
and
surreal
aspects
of
warfare
they
have
experienced.
They
suffer
hearing
problems,
loss of
memory,
anxiety
and
insomnia
as they
are
slowly
rotated
back
into our
society.
This
condition
is
normally
known as
PTSD or
post
traumatic
stress
disorder.
In our
civilian
world a
person
who
suffers
this
kind of
injury
is
usually
taken
care of
by
workers
compensation.
Not for
our
brave
men and
women.
No sir.
Not
going to
happen.
In the
case of
over
22,000
of our
current
returning
Army
veterans,
these
poor
troopers
have
been
discharged
under
something
called
Chapter
5-13.
Simply
stated
this is
‘separation
because
of
personality
disorder’.
The Army
calls it
a
‘pre-existing
maladaptive
pattern
of
behavior
of long
duration.’
which
interferes
with the
soldier’s
ability
to
perform
their
duties.
So what
does all
this
mean?
Well, it
allows
the good
old US
military
to
discharge
these
men and
women by
stating
that
their
post
traumatic
stress
disorder
(PTSD)
was a
‘pre-existing’
condition
and so
the
veteran
is not
eligible
for
medical
benefits,
treatment
and in
some
cases
required
to pay
back
their
enlistment
or
re-enlistment
bonuses.
Is this
great or
what? We
can get
volunteers
to sign
up, get
sent
overseas,
get shot
at,
experience
horrible
events.
Then
we’ll
discharge
them and
label
the
discharge
reason
as
something
that was
pre-existing
so we
don’t
have to
pay for
any
treatment
or
future
benefits.
What a
crock.
In the
real
(business)
world if
I hire
someone
with a
pre-existing
health
issue, I
must
live
with it,
no
matter
what. I
can
choose
not to
hire
them if
I do not
want to
accept
the
liability
and
consequences,
but if I
do hire
them,
then
shame on
me if
anything
happens
while
they are
working
that
aggravates
their
pre-existing
medical
issue.
Not our
military,
let’s
use them
up and
then
send
them off
without
any
future
liability
by
saying
something
along
the
lines
of…..’Well,
they
were
sick in
the head
when
they got
here.’
Folks,
this is
just
plain
wrong.
First
off, if
they
were
mentally
ill when
they
enlisted,
then
they
should
not have
been
allowed
to join
up in
the
first
place.
They
should
have
been
weeded
out and
not
allowed
to go
into
combat
where
their
mental
condition
could be
further
harmed
or they
might
possibly
harm
someone
else.
If the
military
hired
them,
then
apply
the same
rules to
them
that
apply to
those of
us in
business.
These
men and
women
are now
their
responsibility
and
should
be
eligible
for
treatment
and
benefits.
The
military
should
have
done a
better
job of
screening
them in
the
first
place if
this is
a big
issue
for
them.
Shame on
the
military
for
accepting
anyone
who
walks in
the door
and then
complain
later
about
‘inadequate
screening
processes.’
In my
book, if
you
volunteer,
put on a
uniform
and
march
off to
war…you
should
be
eligible
to
receive
any type
of
assistance
this
country
has to
offer,
no
matter
how much
it costs
and no
matter
how long
it
takes.
I have
found
only one
Senator,
Kit Bond
of
Missouri,
who is
concerned
over
this and
is
trying
to
reverse
this
process.
You need
to write
him and
thank
him for
his
efforts.
Who
wants to
volunteer
for this
kind of
treatment?
Not me.
