From foreign death trap to homeland hell hole - recovery is just another word at Walter Reed
The WaPo continues its series on the atrocities our wounded troops are suffering at Walter Reed. Today's installment focuses on those "lucky" enough to be staying in the good outbuilding, Mologne House, a four-story hotel on a grassy slope behind the hospital and on the battle the injured must fight at home for appropriate care and promised benefits.
One reason these soldiers are stuck in outpatient facilities for so long is the most egregiously injured must wait to have their disability level designated. Many times, the Pentagon's bureaucrats are desiginating the soldiers at low or zero disability levels because of "pre-existing" conditions. For instance saying one soldier's confusion wasn't caused by head trauma from being blown up in Iraq but rather a natural progression from his retardation as evidenced by the remedial math class he took in grammar school. The PTSD victim that received mental health services as a troubled teenager, gets no benefits because he was going to lose his mind anyway.
The recruiters had no problem signing up these kids and the military had no problem deploying them but when it comes to keeping their promise to take care of them when they get home, suddenly they're pre-damaged goods. And the wingnuts are accusing us of perfidy?
I'm working today and I'm already sputtering with outrage overload but I don't have time to get into this today. I don't whether to scream, cry or break the crockery out of body-wracking fury. What I'd like to see is some serious secret rendition on every mealy mouthed stay at home war supporter and see them all wake up on the front lines of the conflict they so blithely support. Let those effers do a little surging and come home to fighting another hellish war with the bureaucracy and see how long their stalwart support holds.
One reason these soldiers are stuck in outpatient facilities for so long is the most egregiously injured must wait to have their disability level designated. Many times, the Pentagon's bureaucrats are desiginating the soldiers at low or zero disability levels because of "pre-existing" conditions. For instance saying one soldier's confusion wasn't caused by head trauma from being blown up in Iraq but rather a natural progression from his retardation as evidenced by the remedial math class he took in grammar school. The PTSD victim that received mental health services as a troubled teenager, gets no benefits because he was going to lose his mind anyway.
The recruiters had no problem signing up these kids and the military had no problem deploying them but when it comes to keeping their promise to take care of them when they get home, suddenly they're pre-damaged goods. And the wingnuts are accusing us of perfidy?
I'm working today and I'm already sputtering with outrage overload but I don't have time to get into this today. I don't whether to scream, cry or break the crockery out of body-wracking fury. What I'd like to see is some serious secret rendition on every mealy mouthed stay at home war supporter and see them all wake up on the front lines of the conflict they so blithely support. Let those effers do a little surging and come home to fighting another hellish war with the bureaucracy and see how long their stalwart support holds.
posted by Libby Spencer at 10:04 AM
2 Comments:
But perhaps Bush's pre-existing conditions help us understand the kid who was the intellectual runt in a family of (sometimes crooked) over-achievers.
Anyway, he was a loser when he was appointed president. We didn't make him a loser and so we shouldn't have to pay him a pension.
Good point Fogg. It does rankle to think we'll be paying him and for him forever.
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