Doonesbury by Garry Trudeau for May 13, 2011

It’s time to send that troop and the other troops home!!!!!

Remember when every Navy Doc was a drafty? Did I believe them or the Corps? Sick Bay dispensed drugs, The Marines taught “Yes Sir, I can!” Wonder which attitude got me ahead in life?

He says his name is Ralph!

Hey, vomiting is good exercise…aerobic……

pouncingtiger said, “It’s time to send that troop and the other troops home!!!!!”

Years overdue…

In all honesty — if we brought all the troops home tomorrow — what would we do with them all? There’s no jobs.

Susan, odds are slim to none unless he’s part of a given elite, but if that were the case he’d have had REMF duty and never seen any combat. The other alternative is if he’s proven himself to certain people and isn’t too damaged, he gets to work for Blackwater, or some other approved (and corrupt) contractor within the military/industrial complex network. In that case he gets a fatter salary, a different set of rules to play by and helps to perpetuate the morally bankrupt status quo. Not what I’d call a great selection of choices.

When your kid’s friend says his “Gunny” rminds him of you so he knows what to do were my parenting skills. My kid I signed into AF. I signed the contract thinking I can teach this even got no pun intended, BSHC but no job with an ADA. Ray leads, bleeds, and does the job. He’ll put his skills to survival with people who see a gray area. He won’t go postal and he won’t commit suicide,he’ll saddle up and go.

randgrithr said, “REMF” Only another Combat type would know with what derision that term is said. Welcome home, Bro (or Sis, as the case may be.) LMAO!

Interesting. My friends from ‘Nam who were really “damaged”, amputees, serious PTSD etc, tended to move on, and without a handout, but a hand up. REMFs tended to be the loudest complainers, AND the ones most “outspoken” about their “courage”. Same today, some of those “elites”, most messed up, aren’t asking for that much, and until recently, weren’t getting it. This new bunch has a different set of injuries to deal with, much more severe in many cases, specifically BECAUSE they SURVIVED!

We broke ‘em, didn’t buy ’em, but we owe ’em.

Can’t necessarily bring them all home, from every post around the world, but it’s long past time to stop sending more, especially where there is much to lose, and little to gain, but bragging rights for REMF “leaders”.

As the wife of a disabled vet I can tell you he won’t get the help he needs. Not unless he’s got someone who’s willing to spend years, probably decades. (yes I mean Decades) fighting the system for him, getting him into therapy, untangling the red tape for him and getting in the face of hundreds of bored, disinterested bureaucrats who don’t give a damn if he gets help or not. Or worse yet, are bored enough to be actively sabotaging his attempts to get help for their amusment. The worst of all are those who not only don’t care but are trying hard to make points with politicals and will deliberately screw the disabled vet in the hopes of getting a promotion out of it. And that happens too.

Uh-oh. I’m thinking brain tumor. Even though it’s a cartoon character, I hope I’m wrong.

^^Rista- check with your local county Veterans Service Officer, DAV, VFW- there are numerous sources to get folks to help you with VA. My experience, and my son’s, he’s disability retiring from the Nave end of this month after 13 years service, has been that a severely underfunded VA is considerably improving their performance, but still under-funded. My nieces husband is NOT a service-connected disabled, but VA in Los Angeles was very good with getting him help after he lost his job and insurance due to a severe stroke. It took a few months to get him signed up, but VA has been very good for him.

Check around for your available resources.

All of the Service Officers where I volunteer at the Sepulveda, (CA) VA work very hard to make sure all the vets who come in for help get everything they are entitled to.

@Davidreefer — Now, you know full well that’s not what I meant.

double amen