Wounded Vets--The Next Generation

This is an impressive crowd: the Have's and Have-mores. Some people call you the elites. I call you my base"
--President George W. Bush

I'm not talking about the elites, here. Just troops trying to get the benefits which they were promised and to which they are entitled.

Since the latest elective wars have created large numbers of disabled veterans, there has been considerable evidence that benefit allowances are not reaching the veterans in a timely manner. Seventeen-month waiting periods are not uncommon.

Considering the U.S. has been fighting wars since 1775, it seems that somebody should have a handle on the correct methodology for disability determination and disbursement to injured vets.

Here is my idea for solving this problem plaguing injured veterans:

No Soldier, Sailor, Marine or Airman should be discharged from active service until his or her veterans benefits claims are fully adjudicated. In other words, the day you are discharged from active duty is the day your benefits begin. This would apply to Reserve force personnel serving on active duty, also.

Seems strange to this dumb Ranger that this isn't the law of the land. Since the veterans application for disability is adversarial and makes veterans compete for sparse dollars, it seems the entire disability procedure is a cruel hoax that nobody in the Federal system really cares to fix.

It is a competition that is fueled by misery, rather than a liberal budget.