While Veterans Day was a time to honor and celebrate veterans who served our nation, this day of celebration and parades left me feeling strangely melancholy.
It seems a bit wrong to honor people with our words when we don’t truly honor them with our deeds.
Sure, we sincerely thank veterans for their service and we appreciate the sacrifices they made and continue to make on our country’s behalf, but as a country we have not honored them as they deserve.
If we truly honored them, the backlog of Veteran Administration (VA) cases that have been mishandled over the decades would be nonexistent.
Consider some of these sobering statistics recently compiled by writer Bill Quigley:
- 22 vets kill themselves every day
- Veterans are twice as likely to commit suicide than their civilian counterparts
- Throughout the United States, more than 57,000 veterans are homeless on any given night
- Unemployment is higher for 9/11 vets than the general population
- More than 1.4 million veterans are below the federal poverty level
- An additional 1.4 million are only slightly above the federal poverty level
- Over 900,000 veterans live in households that receive food stamps
- The number of active-duty service members who receive food stamps is at an all-time high (though some active-duty members qualify to receive Family Subsistence Supplemental Allowance, a subsidy used to replace food stamps for current service members)
- Recent reports note that veteran care has been less than acceptable in recent years
- During the years 2000-2011 nearly one million veterans were diagnosed with at least one mental disorder, while over half of that number had more than one psychological disorder
- Nearly 8 percent of service members who reported to Afghanistan or Iraq now have post traumatic stress disorder
These statistics are horrific. Going further, when you consider the sacrifices millions of men and women make everyday while serving this country, these statistics are also incredibly sad.
Holding a parade, offering free or discounted meals once a year and giving state, federal and local government employees a day off are great gestures, but don’t cut the celebratory cake because those efforts aren’t worthy of celebration just yet.
Perhaps after we see consistent evidence that the VA is properly managing files by reducing the hundreds of thousands of open and pending cases we can celebrate… but not entirely. There are still those other alarming statistics that need to be addressed such as the 57,000 veterans who are homeless every night.
Why is that an issue – specifically here in Indiana where we have an influx of abandoned houses? Why not give those houses to veterans. Why can’t developers build more veteran communities like they are doing with senior-living communities? How is it that a service man or woman who currently risks life and limb everyday not earn enough money to prevent their families from needing food assistance each month?
And sure, we argue that some of those 22 male and female veterans who kill themselves every day received treatment from the VA. Can we honestly say they received proper follow-up care?
Make no mistake about it, I thanked veterans I know for their service on Veterans Day. I even thanked veterans unknown to me, whom I encountered throughout my day. But that wasn’t enough for me, and it shouldn’t be enough for you. I want to do more than simply “say” thank you. I want “show” them how much I appreciate their efforts. Part of showing them means we have to become engaged in veterans’ affairs and do our individual part to enhance their quality of life.
One organization doing that is Connect2Help 211. Connect2Help assists veterans with career opportunities, self-sufficiency, and with various physical and emotional challenges. I encourage you to help a veteran by giving them access to an entity that has the capacity to assist. Have Indianapolis veterans dial 2-1-1 for help. They can also call (317) 926-4357.
