Every Day Should Be Veterans Day

It is eleventh day of November and according to the calendar and a certain President and subsequent Congress, we celebrate our Veterans today. Throughout the 20th century and in the first few years of this millenia, elected officials have thrown many praises at those that serve our country yet very few tangible benefits accorded to them. That has especially been the case since George Bush took office, sending hundreds of thousands of troops to an illegal and immoral war in Iraq while treating them like dogs once they come home and the cameras find another story. It hasn't solely been his doing, but Bush is definitely a huge part of the problem.

Now he's leaving, and in less than seventy days he'll be gone and President Obama will take the oath to uphold the Constitution, defend us against enemies foreign and domestic and everything else included in that important secular scripture. The problem is there will still be many enemies both inside and outside the country. We know about al Qaeda, rumblings from various countries around the world and others that wish to do us harm, but there are too many here at home that only wish to give platitudes to our vets and nothing more. Thankfully we have organizations like Iraq and Afghanistan Vets of America to help and advocates like Joseph Violante to speak up on their behalf.

From Mr. Violante at The Huffington Post:

Too little attention has been paid to the plight of family caregivers, as well. It is spouses, parents, children, and siblings who drop everything -- withdraw from school or quit a job -- to race to be at the bedside of wounded combat veterans, and remain with them throughout their treatment, recovery and rehabilitation. They are providing this care without adequate psychological and financial support.

The seminal issue, however, for us next year is VA finance reform.

In too many cases, VA is unable to properly treat the physical and mental scars of war, in part because its budget is late and unpredictable. VA doesn't know when during the year it will get its funding from Congress, nor does it know how much money it will receive from year to year. Such wacky financing causes unnecessary delays, hold ups, and backlogs in the system. Hiring key staff is put off, or just not done, while injuries like PTSD or TBI are too often not diagnosed in a timely manner. Robert Perreault, a former VA health official, has rightly noted in congressional testimony that "VA funding and the appropriations process is a process no effective business would tolerate."

The problem of VA financing is so important that a partnership of nine veteran service organizations has been created to encourage Congress to provide timely and predictable funding for veterans medical care. Our solution is simple: Congress should allocate funding for the VA health care system one year in advance of when the funds are actually needed, a method already used by Congress to finance some housing and education programs.

There is so much we need to start doing for our vets, but getting their finances in order is a good start. Dealing with PTSD and helping families of impoverished veterans is also extremely important. There are so many issues affecting veterans that need our attention because we as a nation have neglected them for so long.

So when you see the Veteran Day sales and random local news story about a Vet that served in WWII, remember that we have hundreds of thousands of young vets who have given so much to their country and now they need for us to give back (not to discount the service of those that were in WWII). Speaking up for them and to your elected representatives is the only way to get things going. Not everyone is as dedicated to our troops as Senator Webb so we as citizens must motivate them from the grassroots. Use the tools offered by VoteVets and IAVA and help make a difference!