Are veterans really the "most deserving of Americans?"

[Gravitycollapse]

Because I'm getting really goddamn tired of that berating my ears for 7 hour shifts at a time. Every 10 minutes or so at my work I have a celebrity coming over the radio telling me that VA employees care for "perhaps the most deserving of Americans."

Is that what it comes down to? If you serve in the armed forces you are automatically elevated to status of "most deserving American." Great, I'll make sure to tell the other hundreds of millions of Americans busting their ass to keep it all together that they just aren't measuring up.



This country has its priorities so ass backwards.

[TreasonousBastard]

1. I'm a veteran and I am not in any way...

the "most deserving" of anything.

What I am is incredibly grateful that the VA had health services I could use when I had no money and no health insurance. But "deserving"? Not the way I consider "deserving."

It's just a very welcome goodie I get for being drafted all those years ago.

[denbot]

3. They (we) are most certainly the most deserving of care by V.A. employees.

After all, they are V.A. employees, treating veterans, at V.A. facilities..

[Gravitycollapse]

4. That's not what the jingoist ad says. It says they are the most deserving of Americans.

Which is at face value complete and utter bollocks.

[kelliekat44]

10. Except the black ones...Ask any Tea-bagger or other GOPer.

[jberryhill]

5. How does not eating meat make any American more deserving than another?

[LuvNewcastle]

6. That's one of the many ways they entice people to join the military

and risk their lives, limbs, and sanity for the 1%. They have to show that the military is an elite class above the rest of us useless eaters. A lot of civilians and military people believe that bullshit. That's why you don't hear many people complaining that ex-soldiers get top priority in this shitty job market. Hell, we even have people who want to bring back the draft. They won't need to draft anybody if things stay the same. Except for the people at the top, everybody will have to join the military just to make it in this country.

[davidpdx]

7. I don't think they are the most deserving people just because they are vets

But they do deserve our respect and gratitude for their service. I don't have that many people in my family that have served. My grandfather was in WWII and I posted his picture on Facebook today to thank him and anyone else who has served for their service.

[Victor_c3]

8. I would never call myself "most deserving", but I believe I'm entitled to the benefits I get

The only thing I think I deserve is an apology along with the entire population of Iraq from every politician that ever supported the war on Iraq.

My parents signed a waiver so that I could join the Army when I was 17 years old and I truly believed that I was joining a force for good. My childhood was filled with what I saw (and was told) were nothing but justified uses and applications of our military. In 1997 when I joined, I never saw us ever heading to war in Iraq. And, when I took my ROTC scholarship in 1998 (and thus committed myself to 4 years of military service effective from my graduation in 2002) bush 43 and his exploitation of September 11th was incomprehensible.

I was misused and taken advantage of by our politicians as was the rest of our military. The altruistic image I had of our military conducting operations to help the oppressed in situation like Bosnia and Kosovo (and others that we never were involved in like Rawanda, Darfur, etc...) was shattered when I went to Iraq in 2004. So yes, I feel that I deserve the benefits that I get - but I'd never call myself the most deserving. The most deserving are the Iraqi people.

My experience has been that the only people who believe that our military is the "most deserving" are those who are truly sorry for what our politicians did to our military by sending them on a war only thinly disguised as a revenge on Arab people (with a goal of doing nothing more than killing a whole lot of Arabs [which we did a great job of doing that in Iraq]). Or these are people who never actually experienced combat and have no concept of what it feels like to partake in killing.

Me personally, I hate it when I'm thanked for my military service. If anyone who thanked me knew what I did in the name of our country to the people of Iraq they'd be outright disgusted and I'd be labeled a complete piece of shit. In fact, that actually happened to me once. I was at the DMV and, for whatever reason, I decided to get a licence plate illustrating that I had a military award for valor in combat. The people around me at the counter started to probe and asked me what I did to get that award and I simply answered "I killed a whole bunch of people". I guess they were hoping for some epic story of heroism that they could waive their little flag at, but those stories never really exist. The response I got was "oh" and they quickly stepped away and got out of my face. I didn't even have to get into the details about a child that I got had the "privilege" of watching die after I found him in a field after one of our firefights or the honor I had bestowed on me when I had to fight the grieving families away as I stuffed body bags with the remains of their loved ones and my chain of command told me to not let the families have them. Nope, the feelings of disgust, shame, and horror come alive when you see exactly what the impacts of your weapon fire are on real people. Feelings of patriotism and pride after events like these are reserved only for people who were never involved.

So why do some people call veterans "the most deserving"? I'd like to think so because they are sorry for what our country did to our veterans, but I doubt it. That would suggest that they actually gave a damn about human life, which they clearly showed they don't by supporting our war on Iraq.

I'm sorry if any part of this post seemed like I was attacking anyone for anything that was said in their post. I'm in agreement with everyone else here that labeling our troops as "most deserving" and worshiping the ground they walk on is wrong.

Also, I'm sorry for the long rambling rant. War and the shame associated with it is a topic that is very real to me.

[Katashi_itto]

9. +100

Agree with everything you said. I joined the Navy when I was seventeen.

[etherealtruth]

12. Excellent response

I am not a vet, nor do I come from a long line of veterans .... but, what you say rings very true.

[polichick]

16. Thanks for sharing this - I think it deserves it's own op and of course you deserve...

an apology from the politicians who caused or enabled the war.

It's heartbreaking to hear that vets aren't getting the services they need - they're just pawns to the chickenhawks who wage war all over the world.

[Surya Gayatri]

17. Thanks for sharing your "real" experience as a veteran here, Victor...

You and your brothers and sisters in arms should be heard. Only you know the true horror of war.

Like polichick says downthread, this deserves its own OP.

[B Calm]

11. I hate it when I'm thanked for my military service, especially when

the person doing the thanking is someone like Dick Cheney!

[HereSince1628]

14. It's certainly became vacuously de rigueur,

Last edited Mon Nov 4, 2013, 08:42 AM - Edit history (1)

I'd rather have someone apologetically acknowledge that my service was part of a 65 year trend of the US sending military into stupid and pointless conflicts primarily so that politicians could look tough on foreign policy.

[kelliekat44]

13. I thought my mother, who stayed home, raised kids when dad was away fighting was most deserving.

I also think that parents scrimping and scrapping to make ends meet everyday trying to feed, clothe, and house their families while living by the rules, not doing any harm to anyone, and teaching their children to do the same, being helpful and not hurtful to others, working hard and not complaining, not hating, being responsible for their own actions, and seeking justice for themselves and others are the most deserving of help when they need it.

[cali]

15. do we realy need to pit groups against one another as YOU are doing with this op?

First of all, if you think Veterans are treated so well in this country, you'd be wrong. Oh and why don't you send this little lecture to Bernie? Veterans care and rights is one of his highest priorities. Tell him he has his priorties all wrong.

ugh to your divisive, mean spirited op.

[Logical]

21. It is a "discussion" board, quit whining! nt

[trumad]

18. Adding the word "Most" to make your point?

Bullshit.

Vet's are treated rather badly when they return home.

[JVS]

19. It's already hedged behind a "perhaps", you're exaggerating the rhetoric.

[Logical]

20. No they are not. nt