Our Soldiers Deserve Better!

Good evening,

In some upsetting news, it seems that the current administration that has gone the extra mile in wrapping itself in a shroud of "patriotism", even to the point of questioning the patriotism of anyone who asks questions, falls short when it comes to providing even the most basic care for our soldiers.

First there was the talk about not enough armour on the humvee vehicles being sent into battle, then there was talk about not enough body armor being issued to our troops, then there was talk about the body armor that was being sent, not being up to par with what it was our soldiers were facing in combat. Not enough good armor, and shoddy armor could only lead to more casualties in the field, but the care those fallen soldiers received has now also been reported to be sub-par at best.

In press conferences, the president would like for us to believe he is shocked and appalled by the news of rat and roach infested hospital areas, as well as rooms inundated with mold, but how can we believe there was no prior knowledge of the crappy hospital conditions when one of the places in question is right in his own backyard? Yep, I'm talking about Walter Reed Medical Center located in Washington DC.

C'mon, who really believes this is the first time anyone in a position of power has heard anything about this? And by position of power, I mean both Republicans and Democrats alike, there's more than enough blame to go around. By now we've all heard just how much both sides is supposed to care about the soldiers, how both sides have their best interests in mind, but then why hasn't someone taken the short walk over to tour the facilities? Someone, anyone, I don't care who, but surely someone had to have known the place was a dump and had to know our soldiers deserved so much better.

If any of us were to go to any military hospital to talk with the soldiers, and if any of us were to mention the word "hero", most soldiers would show their humility and say something about themselves not being the hero, but that the real heroes were those who didn't return, still I say they are all heroes, and in such, deserve so much more respect and care than they are receiving. It just makes me mad to think of our bravest coming home wounded and being forced to live in such conditions while they try to recover well enough to rejoin their families. Why is this sort of thing still going on?

I ask why it is still going on, because it is a well known story that was told by many of the Vietnam era soldiers, of shoddy, rundown conditions of hospitals they returned home to, even the movie "Born on the Fourth of July" showed rat infested conditions within an army hospital that looked oddly similiar to Walter Reed. So, I say it's no big secret, it's a tragically hidden truth about the true nature of our VA healthcare system.

Once again I say, "c'mon!", haven't we all seen the pictures of the president pinning Purple Heart medals on wounded soldiers within that very same hospital? Is there any excuse for the president not to have toured the entire facility? Surely his concern didn't end when the cameras left, did it? If there was concern at all.

Something needs to be done, there is no excuse for this sort of thing to be going on within our country while billions upon billions are being spent on this terrible war. Somebody better step up and ask the proper questions, though even at this time, I have yet to hear much outrage coming from either political party. Could it be that there is just too much blame to go around for both sides? Sadly, I say that's probably what is going on.

I salute each and every person brave enough to put on the uniform of this nation's military, who would answer the call and put themselves in harms way. Something needs to be done asap to fix this, then someone needs to ask the hard questions, starting with "why?".

I can't believe the amount of outrage I feel about this story, it's just wrong on so many levels. With all of my hope that I have in for country being able to "just do the right thing", I hope someone decides to just do it... do the right thing and do right by our soldiers and their families, give them good care, give them good supplies, give them the respect due them when it comes to planning a war, carrying it out, and making them the main factor in the grand equation. Our soldiers are more than assets to be used, they are mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, sons and daughters to someone if not all of us in some way, we rely upon them to do our fighting for us. Shouldn't we all demand that they be treated respectfully?