Veterans merit our praise, assistance and apologies

In the Mahoning and Shenango valleys, as throughout the nation, triumphant parades, solemn memorials and educational programs pay homage to America’s veterans today on this 53rd official observance of Veterans Day.

Originally designated Armistice Day to mark the end of World War I on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month of 1918, Veterans Day became a federal holiday to honor all veterans of all conflicts in 1954.

America’s 25 million living veterans – from those who fought in the Battle of the Bulge to those braving the firestorm of Fallujah – deserve our collective praise. Their duty, sacrifice and skillful battlefield prowess brought honor to themselves and to their nation.

But after a year in which revelations of blatant mistreatment, bureaucratic bungling and downright abuse toward America’s war heroes have dominated the headlines, those same veterans deserve our apologies and our assistance.

Shameful conditions

Early this year, a four-month investigation by The Washington Post revealed severe shortcomings in care for outpatient veterans at Walter Reed Army Hospital, commonly viewed as the crown jewel of veterans hospitals.

Some injured veterans returning from the front lines of the war on terror said they would have preferred to have stayed in Iraq than endure the shameful conditions at Walter Reed. Can you blame them? One of the major buildings of the complex was described as rodent- and cockroach-infested, with stained carpets, cheap mattresses and black mold, wit h no heat and water.

As for mental health care, the picture is not much brighter. A report from the Government Accountability Office concluded that only 22 percent of service members identified as at risk for post-traumatic stress disorder on a post-deployment questionnaire were referred for mental health treatment.

Further, an NPR investigation at Colorado’s Ft. Carson earlier this year found that even those returning GIs who say they felt depressed and suicidal had trouble getting the help they needed. In fact, its evidence suggested that some officers punish those who complain, up to and including dismissal from the military.

Then, just last week, the nonprofit Alliance to End Homelessness reported that veterans now account for 25 percent of the 750,000 documented homeless people in the United States, even though they make up only 11 percent of the adult population. Some 1,700 homeless veterans walk the streets of Ohio, the group reported.

Homelessness and helplessness

Many of these veterans are those who are newly returned to American soil from the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. Clearly, their homelessness, a symptom of helplessness, serves as a poor reflection of the Department of Veterans Affairs’ ability to transition returning soldiers back to civilian life.

Fortunately, in some circles, these and other depressing findings have been taken seriously. After the revelations at Walter Reed became public, a presidential commission investigated the problems and recommended wholesale changes to improve veterans’ physical and mental health care. Reforms are packaged in the Wounded Warrior Act now pending in Congress.

In the short term, Americans should urge speedy passage — before the Thanksgiving break — of the reforms. In the long term, Americans must serve as vigilant watchdogs to ensure the government never allows those fighting in the front lines to be subject to second-rate treatment.