2008 Woodie Awards
Ten percent soldiers are one hundred percent mishandled
Why the U.S. devalues its fighting and wounded soldiers during Iraq war
Danny Acosta
Issue date: 4/24/07 Section: Opinion
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Too bad it's in the wrong places.
Walter Reed Army Medical Center effectively illuminated hapless post-Iraq life of America's brave. Substandard conditions prompted President George W. Bush's pleasant promises about correcting the situation. But the situation is far worse than what Walter Reed showcased.
Tim Ngo has a whole in his head.
The U.S. Army veteran was injured while serving and survived. He lost his ability to walk and talk after sustaining a head injury, which required surgeons cut out part of his skull.
Ngo was treated at Walter Reed.
April Croft served in the U.S. military in Afghanistan. She was diagnosed with leukemia.
Croft received the same treatment Ngo did; they were deemed 10 percent disabled.
Thirty percent disability or higher qualifies soldiers for monthly disability checks and a stay in the military's health care system. At 10 percent, these two Americans received neither.
Croft contested her rating three times. She was rejected three times. Ngo suffered a stroke related to his injury while uninsured by the U.S. Army, amounting to $10,000 in medical bills his severance pay-what would have been disability checks had he been diagnosed properly-cannot cover.
Labeling injured soldiers 10 percent is a nothing more than a money-saving technique, a testament to deemphasizing human lives during war time, whatever side they may be on.
The war was supposed to be a Dessert Storm replay, an in-and-out operation that asserted America's identity with no real repercussions.
It was not.
And 10 percent is the result.
Soldiers enter the military to serve their country, but they do so assuming they will receive protection in return for themselves and their families.
Iraq's aimless mission against guerilla fighters places soldiers in lose-lose situations on both fronts.
According to Pentagon statistics, fewer military benefits are being distributed since the start of the Iraq war.
Before it propelled itself into pre-emptive attack, the government should have ensured it could provide benefits for its defenders. Furthermore, thousands more are leaving the military, but through desertion. Deserters cannot claim benefits, thus there must be more available.