The veteran’s plight…
While I’ve tried to portray something about what awaits a veteran when he returns home in some of my books (the homeless man Walter Jones in The Midas Bomb, my detectives Chen and Castilblanco, and, more recently, Mary Jo Melendez of Muddlin Through, are some examples of characters who are veterans—Walter and Mary Jo both talk about a wounded vet’s problems with homecoming, for example), my personal experience with veterans has been via what they tell me, my relatives and friends. For example, one life experience I will always treasure is tutoring a blind veteran in Spanish so he could finish his psych degree—he wanted to help other vets. I probably learned much more from Richard than he learned from me.
Just from Richard, two uncles—one Navy man and one Marine in World War II—and from a nephew who served in the Army in Iraq, I was able to determine that (1) the horrors of war they experienced are hard for anyone to imagine who hasn’t experienced them, and (2) physical wounds are all too often trumped by mental ones. I can’t remember ever hearing the acronym PTSD in relation to Vietnam vets while that war was going on, but Richard’s blindness wasn’t his worst affliction, which is why he wanted a degree in psychology. Back then, and even going farther back in time to WW I and II and the Korean War, the official attitude respect to mental problems from the Defense Department was pretty much, “Man up and get on with your life,” but, like Walter’s case, this isn’t a slam dunk.
Tomorrow, this Wednesday, I will review John Hohn’s Breached here in this blog. One of the most interesting things about John’s book is his accurate portrayal of a Vietnam veteran like Richard wounded in mind and spirit. It’s a mystery, so this is a subtheme, but, for today, let’s say it’s the most important one. It leads to the question: Does our country do enough for its veterans and their families? I add families, because while a soldier, sailor, or aviator is overseas putting his or her life at risk, there’s often a family left behind that’s wondering if their loved one will return, and in what conditions. The stress is dished out all around.
The answer to that question is a resounding no! of course. Even without the recent scandals about the VA, that’s been one constant across the decades. You can argue that we become embroiled in too many wars, or that Pentagon priorities are wrong, or even that the draft should come back—all possible and justifiable positions when thinking of our national interests—but the fact is that we must take care of our veterans if we’ve sent them off to fight. That was one problem I had with Vietnam protesters. I was against that war, as many were, but I also found it unconscionable that veterans who returned from it were berated, bullied, and vilified. We’ve learned a wee bit since then, but I still hear stupid remarks like, “Well, they’re volunteers now, and they know what their choice implies.” Somehow we’re equating volunteers to mercenaries? Does that make sense?
9/11 saw a rash of volunteers and a swelling in the ROTC ranks. Young men and women were pissed that America had been directly attacked—not by a nation, but buy a group of mad dog extremists. And for good reason. They recognized that radical Islam and fanatic jihadists represent a new, insidious enemy that must be defeated. Whether our leaders have the common sense and brains to recognize the menace and beat it is debatable, but it’s clear that a generation of Americans has been willing to try. Leadership has always been the problem, from Johnson and Nixon to Bush and Obama, and their administrations, especially the Pentagon. Our veterans aren’t responsible for leadership failures. And while political fat cats and Pentagon wonks are debating strategies that put our armed forces in danger, those same armed forces have always expressed a patriotism and esprit de corps beyond reproach.
We are always holding up bipartisanship as an unattainable goal these days. But I think there’s one thing we should all be able to agree on, whether Republican or Democrat, whether progressive or conservative: We should strive to do what’s fair and just for our veterans and make the political hacks in Congress, the Executive, and government agencies, including the Pentagon, do the same. Think about that this Veteran’s Day! And give your veterans a big hug….
And so it goes….
