Enrolling in the armed forces is a vocation. Choosing to dedicate yourself to the protection of your country, your president and the people of your nation is admirable. You are choosing to risk your life when called up to head to war. The chances are that if you serve for twenty five years, you will eventually see military action. This can make or break you as an individual. You will need to grow up fast, implement all that you have learned in training and go home a different person after what you have seen and experienced. However what about when you decide to leave the armed forces through retirement or injury? Does the government do enough to support armed forces veterans?
Benefits
As a veteran, your service is rewarded. While you received a salary when you were part of your regiment, after leaving you will be due a pension that is relatively generous. You will also get help to find housing, reintegrate into civilian life and claim any disability benefits should you have the right. You will need to fill out VA form 21-4142 to ensure that the relevant government department has access to your medical records. Only then, can they assess any benefits claim you are making.
Emotions
The government attempts to help veterans financially and socially. However what it often fails to deal with appropriately is the emotional scars left behind by combat. Many army, navy and air force personnel witness acts that they choose not to speak of again. When your son or daughter returns from the front line, don’t expect them to regale you with fun tales of fighting hand to hand combat or dodging IEDs. These are not tales to be told.
Bottling up these sorts of experiences can lead to anxiety, depression, and post traumatic stress disorder. The government will attempt to place veterans who are suffering with a counselor, but the waiting list is long. As such, charities like the Armed Forces Veterans step in to try and help. This charity is not funded by the government at all, and all of its money comes from donations. Why won’t a government choose to help a charity dedicated to supporting veterans once they are reintegrated into civilian life? This charity supports Gulf War Veterans, ex-POWs, Korean War veterans and veterans from ethnic minorities. They don’t discriminate and just want to help.
Many veterans leave the army to find themselves with little or no emotional support network. The government does little to help this other than offering financial aid. Many veterans find themselves homeless and lacking the skills to move forward with their lives. As such, charities need to get involved, helping to feed, clothe and house veterans.
We owe a huge amount of gratitude and respect to our veterans. The government owes them an even greater debt. They should be pumping more money into initiatives to help these men and women recover from their experiences on the front line, make it easier to claim benefits, and ensure that they are housed, comfortable and healthy in the future.
