VA Claims Backlog in PWOT

VFW Magazine (February 07) reports, "VA Backlog is Out of Control":

"Bill Bradshaw [VFW's director of National Veteran's Service] noted that VA's claims backlog of 825,846 in mid-December 2006, was more than 55,000 higher than the backlog in December 2005. Of that number, he says 600,473 were new compensation and pension claims, 70,326 were for education and 155,047 were on appeal.

The reader should note that the claimed VA adjudication error rate is 15%, with a 6-month average to get a claim processed. From experience, as well as talking with other veterans, I would guess the 15% estimate is low- balling it. But note that 155,047 claims are on appeal. Mine is one of them, and it's over a year old. Obviously, claims are like fine wine, and get get better after aging in wooden boxes.

Bradshaw says it is "a system that is failing veterans." Of course, if you play the rhetoric game, stating that the number of claims processed is down might be submitted as some sort of victory by an administration looking for anything hopeful out this quagmire. But the lower than expected number does not imply less need, but rather, less efficiency in processing what's already in the queue.

Hell, if the DVA delays long enough, the veteran might just up and die (what a relief). Wooden boxes are so much tidier than scattered claims lying about.

Again, the Bush administration carefully and craftily hides these human and financial costs of the PWOT (Phony War on Terror) from the American taxpayer. That is, the non-veteran household taxpayers.