Does this surprise anyone? In every war we've had we always say we're going to do better at supporting and providing for the troops but it always rings hollow. Does anyone remember the Bonus Army or how the Vietnam War were treated? Hopefully we'll get it right this time and step up to the plate.
It will surprise me if they ever bring these guys into line of being paid enough. I fought for more than 15 years to get my benefits and still feel like I am underpaid for my committment to "our government". This nation of ours was not ready for war when they started shipping our guys off and they are even more unready to pay them for their sacrifice now. I am so angry that I could just eat steel and crap nails now, but they will not relent and give these guys their due for a long time to come. This country has a long history of deceiving their vets and then expecting them to make nice so that the world is convinced that they are being taken care of. One day, our boys will wake up and say "we no longer fight your wars if you are going to continue cheating us out of our just dues". This great country of ours that robs young men of their lives and their livelihood in the interest of pursuing lost cause! Am I proud to be American.......ask me in about 2 or 3 more years of sending our men into the meatgrinder...........Doc Sorber
Service-connected PTSD/Anxiety has made it near impossible for me to work but since the VA pays out bonuses for upper management before taking care of the veterans, I have to be heavily medicated just to make it through the work day.
Originally posted by JimSorber: It will surprise me if they ever bring these guys into line of being paid enough. I fought for more than 15 years to get my benefits and still feel like I am underpaid for my committment to "our government". This nation of ours was not ready for war when they started shipping our guys off and they are even more unready to pay them for their sacrifice now. I am so angry that I could just eat steel and crap nails now, but they will not relent and give these guys their due for a long time to come. This country has a long history of deceiving their vets and then expecting them to make nice so that the world is convinced that they are being taken care of. One day, our boys will wake up and say "we no longer fight your wars if you are going to continue cheating us out of our just dues". This great country of ours that robs young men of their lives and their livelihood in the interest of pursuing lost cause! Am I proud to be American.......ask me in about 2 or 3 more years of sending our men into the meatgrinder...........Doc Sorber
I couldn't agree more with you. When I applied for Social Security benefits because of my severe disability it only took three months for them to process my claim they even gave me three months back pay what it was approved. If they can do that for disabled civilians why can't they do that for our soldiers? It's absolutely ludicrous that it takes years or that families face financial ruin because the wives or husbands mothers or fathers had to quit their jobs in order to care for the wounded soldier. I know how hard it is to try to live independently when you're disabled it is very difficult as a civilian I can only imavolunteering must be for veterans who in general have a harder time getting services than we do. This pay gap thing really infuriates me and so does the disability rating system. When I started graduate school in 2005 I had no idea what I wanted to do in public administration but after I started volunteering with a veterans organization at my college I started learning about the issues that veterans face. In particular I focused on disabled veterans issues because I myself am disabled so I'm familiar with the system on the civilian side I had been determined to help veterans in some capacity when I graduated but the whole Walter Reed situation just steeled my resolve even more and that's when I decided that I was going to do my best and dedicate my career to hoping veterans as much as I could. The part that bothers me the most is when I hear injured soldiers say things like they were treated badly by civilians working for the Army or other military agency and they wouldn't even try to help the soldiers with what they needed. I can't change the whole system but if I can make life easier for one vet it will have been worth it. Our soldiers deserve the very best treatment. That's something that we both can agree on.
“I think we should be zealous in trying to fix that,” said Grady. “I mean the average is interesting but so what?”
I'm waiting to see what happens on this one... Does this affect the members that make the decisions? As big_daddySPS said "Both houses will say it cost to much, but check out their retirement benifits.
Originally posted by crazyhorse1564: Does this surprise anyone? In every war we've had we always say we're going to do better at supporting and providing for the troops but it always rings hollow. Does anyone remember the Bonus Army or how the Vietnam War were treated? Hopefully we'll get it right this time and step up to the plate.
I wish they would get it right also, but as the saying goes "Wish in one hand and shite in the other, which will get full first???"
So now they agree that they have been underpaying wounded veterans for decades. Now that the Vietnam veterans are turning 65, they think that they are being overpaid. They were not complain ing forty years ago, when the Vietnam veterans were being underpaid.
Me again. The House and the Senate will pick the committee's report apart. They will agree with the commission on benefit reduction strategies and disagree on benefit enhancement strategies.
Sounds like the idea is to take the money from those who served in past wars and give to those who served in current wars. Then, do the same thing again at the time of future conflicts, creating a whole new system of inequities that will have to be solved.
I don't disagree that the severely wounded deserve a helluva lot more than they get from the current system. Frankly, nothing can ever repay our comrades for their loss. But those of us who have now aged don't deserve to be left out in the cold simply because some think tank believes we can get along on less because we're now old. Leave it to the gummint to figure out ways to screw the vets in one way or another in the guise of helping. Maybe if they just took the money they spend on researching these issues and spent it on the veterans????
This is nothing more than a scheme to cheat the older vets. When I left the military 27 years ago, the VA was knowingly under-rating Vets with disabilities. I was denied employment by government agencies and worked a part-time job until I quit at age 64. I watched this Joyce Mcmahon on a hearing of the Armed services committed this past week. The first thing she brought up was that "we should not be paying disabled vets the top percentages right away". It is quite obvious that the intent is to start cheating the vets who serve this country. It is obvious though that this would happen since they knew this war was going to be expensive. If they can't get the life of a vet on the battlefield, they will starve him/her family to death.
I am curious to what was found out about all those veterans in the reviews who were cheated from correct ratings and will they get any back pay.
I also believe that all us veterans are in big trouble as before a veteran can get more pay, the Congress must increase their own pay first up another 50% as they did in the past.
Last, it is troubling that when our President send US troops to war, he don't do more for them when they return home all broken up. This includes keeping Tricare and another health care coverage form increasing coverage’s.
Part of the problem is that the "System" does not take into consideration the human factor. They have boiled it down to simple mathamatics. To hell with the guy that has 2 kids and no legs. He'll be alright because the averages show that he should be able to just barely make it..."What? He expects quality of life too, on top of the $210.00 a month." They need to revamp the formulas and look at it from the human side. Uncle always wants to cheap out to those that deserve the very best, but he'll give free money if you get hit by a hurricane or flood or some Bull$%#@ like that. Semper Fi
