Honoring Veterans Means Changing the System That Cares for Them
You are appreciated and loved, but this country owes you more
The sacrifices veterans make for everyone in this country warrant far more than one day of appreciation per year and small percentages off goods and services.
This country bears responsibility and must be held accountable. We need the military, and I, for one, am a grateful citizen knowing there are people far more courageous than I who ensure our freedom. However, the young men and women indoctrinated into military culture, killing to keep this country safe, living in remote parts of the world away from their families, are left hanging once their usefulness ends.
That is wrong.
Citizens of this country demand equity and protection, yet the people charged with the most dangerous calling in the nation are at ridiculous risks of physical and mental health problems, unemployment, substance use, homelessness, and suicide. They leave their families for months and years at a time, and kids grow up without a parent there for them.
When veterans seek help for these things, the bureaucracy of the VA takes precedence over ensuring a service member and his or her family are treated well.
