BuzzFlash Reader Contribution

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A Veteran Who Has Had Enough Guano from the Government

A BUZZFLASH READER CONTRIBUTION
by Ray Haberland

Dear Congress,

I hope that this letter finds you and your loved ones in the best of health and very happy. I am very upset at the course this country is moving in, not only by the Republicans, but also by the Democrats. I went to great lengths to get your attention during the last campaign, writing to you, asking if I could help in anyway and if I could meet with you. However, I was asked more about giving money to the campaign than anything else. I am not singling you out in this letter, I do believe you to be a person of honor. But, if anything in this letter hits home, then you are doing something wrong.

There is no leadership in this country anymore. Our elected officials have forgotten where they have come from, what America has stood for in the past and what we must stand for again. If we don't make changes in our course we will go the way all the other super powers in history have gone, we will destroy ourselves with greed and corruption and we will go down the bilge. Perhaps we have come to this place in time because so many of our leaders, political and religious leaders alike, have changed the meaning or at the very least diluted the meaning of honor, duty, dedication, patriotism, compassion and truth. Who knows what the truth is that comes out of Washington?

There is only one truth, it doesn't belong to the Republicans, the Democrats, the Christians or non-Christians. There is only the truth or a lie, nothing more, nothing less: no gray areas, just black or white or has the Congress passed a bill that has changed that too? American are generous, compassionate and dedicated to furthering the hopes and dreams that our Founding Fathers had for this great country and its people, but our leaders have lost that along the way. The regime in Washington seems to be more interested in fulfilling the hopes and dreams of lobbyists, than the citizens of this country. They have divided us into groups and have encouraged hate, fear and suspicion of each other. But, we are not blue or red, we are Americans. We are not republicans, democrats or liberals, we are Americans. We are not Christians, not Muslims, we are Americans. We are not black, white or any other color, we are all these things and more because we are Americans. All voices need to be heard, not just one person or one group. As long as we are kept in the dark and afraid, Washington will go on with business as usual.

Our leaders have always had a love affair with pointing a finger at certain groups and saying there is our problem and we must eliminate them or our way of life will come to an end. In the past it started with the Native American and continued with each group of people that emigrated, the Irish, the Germans, the Asians, the Jew, the Catholic and the list goes on. This administration claims our problems are caused by the gays, the liberals, Hollywood, the people that don't want school prayer or under God in the pledge allegiance.

This is another smoke screen to hide the moral decline of our elected officials. The moral decline, it starts and ends in Washington! The more our leaders point a finger at certain people, the closer we move to a fascist form of government and it keeps us from watching our Government. When we elect our representatives we expect that they act in honorable and honest ways, that they listen to all the people in their districts, not just the ones in their own party. However, all I see from both parties is magic acts and illusions, watch the pretty girl while I trick you. I read and hear about politicians again and again being caught doing something wrong, but the laws have been changed to protect Congress. Congress has become the fox guarding the chicken coop and all the while talking about honor, duty, morals and serving this country.

I now believe that most of our politicians are cowards and that includes the present occupants in the White House. Cowards, who are afraid to admit that they were wrong, Cowards, afraid to say they changed their minds about something. Cowards, afraid to say this is just wrong and go against the President or their party.

Being elected to an office and putting your hand on the bible to take an oath does not make you honorable or patriotic. It is not something you instantly become. It is a way of life, a way of living to serve others before yourself. Our leaders take money, gifts, plane rides on vacations from lobbyists, which is morally wrong and against the law but Congress keeps changing or tries to change the rules to justify their greed and moral decline. When you are a leader you lead by example, you stand up and say I was wrong, I screwed up!

This is the biggest lie of all is how well we are taking care of our Veterans. In fact it is such a big lie that I am surprised that these cowards don't have two-foot long noses. They may be getting these kids to sign up to receive their benefits but there are not enough beds, Drs., Nurses, technicians and all the way down the line. A priority disabled Veteran sometimes has to wait up to three years just to see a dentist and Congress keeps telling us how much they care. Perhaps we can solve the problem at the VA hospitals by making all members of Congress and their families use the VA Hospitals, boy, would we see changes then. How long has it been since you dropped by a VA hospital unannounced and just talk to the veterans or the staff?

The other thing that Congress has never even considered or doesn't care about is the family of the Veteran. When a person comes back from a war, the whole family also becomes veteran of that war. When a person dies in a war, the whole family died in that war. When you have a disabled veteran in the family, the whole family becomes a disabled veteran. However, the family members don't get any medical benefits from the VA, so how does a disabled vet pay for medical insurance for their family? The disabled vet has to pay for it from the disability check and no DAV can afford to do that!

I know this to be true because I am a 100% disabled Vietnam Veteran. I never stayed on my disability, I believe that everyone should find work. I have had both hips replaced and two revisions on each side. I did not use the VA hospital for the operations. After each operation I was told not to go back to work and if I did, I needed at least six months to recover. After each operation I would apply to have my benefits reinstated. However, no one can wait seven months to have a case reviewed before the checks start again. Bill collectors don't care that the Veteran is waiting for their benefits to start.

Congress, in its rush to balance the budget, cut back funding to the Veterans Administration without considering the effects to the Veteran. These cutbacks forced me into bankruptcy. And yet most people in this country are not informed or do not care about the vet. I even had one young Republican once tell me that all Disabled Veterans do is sit around complaining and wait for a check. It made me feel the same way I did when I came home from Vietnam a 'Tin Soldier.'

It's all talk and no walk from the cowards in Washington. As a disabled vet for over 30+ years, I know what it is to be in pain. This constant pain makes me think that somewhere, right now, a member of our Armed forces is about to be wounded or receive injuries that will affect him and his family for the rest of their lives. Will our Government be there to help, to complete their side of the contract?

Now, tell me what idiot planned the war in Iraq? No one goes into a war with the idea that the enemy will throw down his or her weapons and lay flowers at your feet. You plan a war for the worst possible situations and a long stay and you don't try to bring the war in under budget. The Administration and Congress have caused people to be killed, wounded and disabled, as if you pulled the trigger yourselves. Our servicemen are fighting your war, they do not need continued fighting when they come home.

My ancestors have fought in every war this country has been in, some were killed, some came back with Purple Hearts, others came back disabled defending this great country. But we were raised to serve this country, to answer its call for help. Everyone went into the service after High School. However, the next time if you want members of my family to fight a war, the President and members of the Congress had better be leading the charge.

If our leadership would stop listening and taking money from lobbyists and special interest groups, maybe we can learn to believe and trust our leaders. Now, with this investigation into a Texas Senator's trips as a gift from a lobbyist, so many members of both parties are rushing around to correct their paper work and explaining they didn't know they had to file certain papers. Isn't that what your job is, making laws to govern the country? Why aren't you living by the rules? Hasn't a crime been committed? Why aren't you setting a higher example for us to follow? Such excuses are no better than "my dog ate my homework!"

Maybe, just maybe, our leaders could look at our country and solve a problem once in while. Maybe we can even stop the polluting of our air, water, streams and lakes. But the lobbyists have control of votes and breathing clean air and drinking clean water isn't good for business. Hell, our government allows addictive drugs to be bought in any store, because there is profit in selling tobacco to our citizens even though every Doctor and scientist says that they should be banned. Even the companies that create the biggest pollution problems get away with it, but it is going to be my tax dollars that will have to pay to clean it up.

These companies move their corporate headquarters offshore to cheat this country and its citizens of their fair share of tax dollars. Do these companies now have to pay an import tax? How can you, as elected officials and supposed leaders, send our children off to war faster and easier than passing a real fair tax bill law. The Congress allows the lobbyists from auto industry to dictate what kind of mileage cars can get and they too are lying. I have already raised the MPG by 50% in my truck.

I heard the President say the energy crisis in this country has been in the making for a long time. The last President that pushed through a real energy conservation bill was President Carter. How many barrels of oil were saved when the speed limits were reduced to 55 mph? Sorry again, the lobbyists from the trucking industry will not allow you to do that, besides after that big tax break, you need those tax dollars. There is a real problem and Washington caused it, sat back and ignored it and now it is out of control. Gas prices have gone sky high since we destabilized the Middle East. Soon the big three automakers are going to take big losses as Japan starts pushing full size trucks with better gas mileage. I wonder where the government will steal the money from this time to bail them out of problems they created and the Congress allowed to happen!

And would someone please tell me what is so bad about paying taxes? Why is our country so against taxes? You gave income tax breaks to all of us, some get more than others, which I understand and I agree with to a certain point! However, the people who receive most of the benefits of living in this country should pay more in taxes, but again the big business always seems to find the loopholes in the system. I think those loopholes were put there on purpose. Taxes are without a doubt the best buy for the buck. How else for the little bit of money, can we have police protection, firefighters, free education for our children (even though the school program with testing for graduation does not work, you can teach a monkey to pass a test, but you can't teach them to reason). Taxes pay for the building of new roads, highways and an armed force second to none. Taxes make it possible to care for our veterans, the disabled, our parents, but maybe some members of Congress never knew their parents. Don't we owe this to our country, our children and grandchildren so that they can have this life and a better one? How many people in this country, and this includes all the politicians, can say they would be better off, better educated, have a better life if they were born in another country?

The topping on the cake is when I hear members of congress talking about God and quoting the scriptures. Boy, does that make my sphincter muscle pucker. They love to pull out certain quotes from the bible and again point the finger at anyone who doesn't agree with them. Yet they always forget or maybe they don't know any passages from their savior Jesus Christ, "Judge not, that ye be not judged." These very same people have raised themselves to up so high that they consider themselves worthy to judge the rest of the world's life style or beliefs for God! God surely must be appalled. Who has given these people the right to talk for God? I think judgement day will be very interesting. To see God judging all those that have told everyone that this is what God wants you to do. I can't wait to hear God say at judgement day, "You are my creations and you said to do what in my name?"

And now the work habits of our elected officials, why aren't our congressmen in Congress working? When I watched the House and Senate on TV and much of the time there are large number of the empty seats. Someone should be fired for not showing up for work or maybe members of Congress should only get paid for the number of bills they have voted on. Even better, perhaps you shouldn't get paid at all, we should allow members of Congress to keep whatever the lobbyists pay for a vote, or whatever they steal, they can keep. That way we do not have to spend 20 million on some investigator who will just report that it may not have been proper, but no real laws were broken.

I also do not want to hear how the members of Congress who live away from the Washington area must leave early to get home because they have a long flight and miss their family, BOO HOO, too bad for you! The congress of this country sent our men and women to fight Bush's war on nothing more than a hunch. If you have a hunch, take it to the horse races, but you don't start a war! What makes you think you have a right not to be in congress and to be at home with your families when our military personnel are fighting your war? They sure can't get home from the fighting for the weekends, at the very least you can do, is the job that you took an oath to do. Do your job and figure out an end to this madness. I keep hearing about the sacrifices that are being made in Washington because of this war, but I don't see any examples of sacrifice. It's just another lie. If you can't do the job in an honorable and dedicated way to the betterment of the citizens of this country then make a hole and make it wide so a person with honor can do the job!

Now we bring up Social Security. There is nothing wrong with the system, if the Congress and the President would leave it alone, stop stealing the money to pay for tax breaks, the national dept, pork barrel projects, giving monthly checks to immigrants from the social security system. The system was not designed to work that way. If the social security system is broken, Congress broke it! All you are doing is robbing Peter to pay Paul, but the bill is still going to come due and our children should not have to pay for it! It is time that we are heard, that we tell you what we want done, politicians have a habit of forgetting whom they work for and whom they represent. You do not work for the Democrats, do not work for DNC, the republicans do not work for the GOP, and you certainly don't work for the President! You are supposed to work for all the people in your district, not just the people in your party.

The last thing I want to know is why it is so hard to meet with you? I call to make an appointment and I get questions on why I want to see you. To send in my request and someone will get back about the appointment if they think it is important. I'll tell you why you need to meet with me, I am a voter and I voted for you. I helped raise money for your campaign, my tax dollars pay your salary and you are my Congressperson, I assure you that if you can not find time for me, I will not find time for you in the next election. Someone will get my vote and time. If our elected officials find time to meet with lobbyists and special interest groups, you can meet with me. The majority of the lobbyists do not vote in your State, I do, and that makes me more important!

I am so disgusted with the actions of our government that I would rather eat my own excrement than shake most of their hands, and that includes the President.

Ray Haberland
USN Retired
Holliston, Massachusetts

A BUZZFLASH READER CONTRIBUTION