George Brown > Richard Samuel NajjarJuly 21, 2011 at 10:07am
Your points are well taken, especially about benefits. In short, when I got off active duty in 1958 I went on to college. At that time there was no peacetime college assistance. In fact it wasn't till I got out of grad school that peacetime benefits came about. It would have been nice to have received some aid.
That said, and the issue of medals aside, I would agree that the same benefits should be accorded all who serve, regardless of the time frame and degree to which a person is in harm's way.
At this point in time, however, a much more significant issue faces us, that being the bankrupt nature of our once truly great nation. My concern is the same concern of many realists in our nation: unmanageable debt and out of control spending by our presidents and congress. It mattered not whether the head of state was republican or democrat. My persuasion is that of a conservative. Yet it was a moderate liberal in the mid 90s that brought spending (visa vi revenues) under control. And it was a moderate conservative in the last decade that started the ballooning process. Of course we all know what the current president is like.
George, I can't argue that we have to get our fiscal house in order. I believe that Ronald Reagan showed the way, and in spite of a Democrat congress during six out of his eight years, managed to spend what was necessary to end the Cold War and at the same time instill business and consumer confidence enough to bring us out of double digit inflation and a major recession. The recovery momentum started to stall when American businesses decided to go international, partly because of an emerging global consumer economy and partly because of the rising cost of labor here.
I believe that we can again recover -- and take care of our veterans. Like the Cold War veterans of your era, the Cold War veterans in the 80s were left out of VA Educational Benefits which were not reinstated until the '90/91 Persian Gulf War. As a veteran of the immediate post-Vietnam era, I was fortunate to benefit from Chapter 34 (the old 1944 GI Bill) and I may have been among the last veterans to receive it. After that, veterans had to pay into the Montgomery GI Bill or get no educational benefits. They -- or perhaps their children/grand children -- should be entitled to some sort of educational compensation, however little -- or however late. Likewise, ALL veterans should have access to VA Health Care. Remember, many veterans who make good money and have good health insurance would gladly sign on their insurance benefits to the VA instead of an outside health provider who would hit them for a much bigger deductable. The insurance money would help offset the VA's costs and keep more accurate data on the medical needs of veterans. Needless to say, VA Health Care is considered world class according to the latest medical industry standards.
The bottom line is that all veterans need to be treated better and we all need to not let ourselves to get divided by Congress -- or divided among ourselves. I blame veterans’ service organizations for much of the division and that has to end too. We can start by bringing in 45 years of Cold War vets as men and women who “signed that blank check” when thermo-nuclear war was a near certainty, and by looking out for the younger vets that come after us by staying involved in the legislative process and keeping our voices heard.
George Brown > Richard Samuel NajjarJuly 22, 2011 at 9:49am
Richard, I would agree with the substance of much of what you're saying about benefits. The problem facing us (those in the U.S.) is that we're broke. Broke. As a consequence, the idea of spending more is somewhat frightening.
One of the main problem is entitlements. Social security, medicare, welfare. The list goes on & on. Many, if not most in America, believe that we are entitled to something. That includes me. I contributed over my working lifetime, and still do, handsomely to social security. Considering the imputed earnings that I would have received had I been allowed to invest this money means that the government still owes me a great deal. I'm entitled to it. Those on welfare feel they're entitled to it. Those receiving medicare feel they're entitled to it. This includes me.
Now, what's the solution? Clearly, a total reexamination of all entitlements. All. VA benefits included. Welfare especially. Social security, medicare, the whole lot. I've told many that I would be willing to give up one third of my social security provided that the entire entitlement issue is dealt with. We both know that this won't happen.
In the interim, I'm like many of Tea Party people. No new spending. Cut spending. Bring about a restoration of reality now. Later is too late. This means no additional benefits to anyone, including peacetimers in the military. And certainly scrap the idea of awarding medals to those serving in peacetime. My position remains the same: medals should be awarded for valor, only true valor.
You and I will never agree on many issues, Richard.. That's good. We need to have a diversity of ideas. Even Obama can't quiet this process. Of course I realize that my views will never sync with many, be they military, vets, or just plain ordinary folks.
Replies
Your points are well taken, especially about benefits. In short, when I got off active duty in 1958 I went on to college. At that time there was no peacetime college assistance. In fact it wasn't till I got out of grad school that peacetime benefits came about. It would have been nice to have received some aid.
That said, and the issue of medals aside, I would agree that the same benefits should be accorded all who serve, regardless of the time frame and degree to which a person is in harm's way.
At this point in time, however, a much more significant issue faces us, that being the bankrupt nature of our once truly great nation. My concern is the same concern of many realists in our nation: unmanageable debt and out of control spending by our presidents and congress. It mattered not whether the head of state was republican or democrat. My persuasion is that of a conservative. Yet it was a moderate liberal in the mid 90s that brought spending (visa vi revenues) under control. And it was a moderate conservative in the last decade that started the ballooning process. Of course we all know what the current president is like.
George, I can't argue that we have to get our fiscal house in order. I believe that Ronald Reagan showed the way, and in spite of a Democrat congress during six out of his eight years, managed to spend what was necessary to end the Cold War and at the same time instill business and consumer confidence enough to bring us out of double digit inflation and a major recession. The recovery momentum started to stall when American businesses decided to go international, partly because of an emerging global consumer economy and partly because of the rising cost of labor here.
I believe that we can again recover -- and take care of our veterans. Like the Cold War veterans of your era, the Cold War veterans in the 80s were left out of VA Educational Benefits which were not reinstated until the '90/91 Persian Gulf War. As a veteran of the immediate post-Vietnam era, I was fortunate to benefit from Chapter 34 (the old 1944 GI Bill) and I may have been among the last veterans to receive it. After that, veterans had to pay into the Montgomery GI Bill or get no educational benefits. They -- or perhaps their children/grand children -- should be entitled to some sort of educational compensation, however little -- or however late. Likewise, ALL veterans should have access to VA Health Care. Remember, many veterans who make good money and have good health insurance would gladly sign on their insurance benefits to the VA instead of an outside health provider who would hit them for a much bigger deductable. The insurance money would help offset the VA's costs and keep more accurate data on the medical needs of veterans. Needless to say, VA Health Care is considered world class according to the latest medical industry standards.
The bottom line is that all veterans need to be treated better and we all need to not let ourselves to get divided by Congress -- or divided among ourselves. I blame veterans’ service organizations for much of the division and that has to end too. We can start by bringing in 45 years of Cold War vets as men and women who “signed that blank check” when thermo-nuclear war was a near certainty, and by looking out for the younger vets that come after us by staying involved in the legislative process and keeping our voices heard.
Richard, I would agree with the substance of much of what you're saying about benefits. The problem facing us (those in the U.S.) is that we're broke. Broke. As a consequence, the idea of spending more is somewhat frightening.
One of the main problem is entitlements. Social security, medicare, welfare. The list goes on & on. Many, if not most in America, believe that we are entitled to something. That includes me. I contributed over my working lifetime, and still do, handsomely to social security. Considering the imputed earnings that I would have received had I been allowed to invest this money means that the government still owes me a great deal. I'm entitled to it. Those on welfare feel they're entitled to it. Those receiving medicare feel they're entitled to it. This includes me.
Now, what's the solution? Clearly, a total reexamination of all entitlements. All. VA benefits included. Welfare especially. Social security, medicare, the whole lot. I've told many that I would be willing to give up one third of my social security provided that the entire entitlement issue is dealt with. We both know that this won't happen.
In the interim, I'm like many of Tea Party people. No new spending. Cut spending. Bring about a restoration of reality now. Later is too late. This means no additional benefits to anyone, including peacetimers in the military. And certainly scrap the idea of awarding medals to those serving in peacetime. My position remains the same: medals should be awarded for valor, only true valor.
You and I will never agree on many issues, Richard.. That's good. We need to have a diversity of ideas. Even Obama can't quiet this process. Of course I realize that my views will never sync with many, be they military, vets, or just plain ordinary folks.
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