president bush extolls wwII warriors

Responses Below:

President Bush Extols WWII Warriors Impact On Freedom

"I mean what I say"?

I watched and listened to President Bush speak to a group in California, extolling the impact of our WWII warriors on democracy and liberty .

I suppose the President could have used stronger adjectives to describe the dedication, patriotism, impact on liberty, relative to the victory over Japan and Germany, but it was obvious he was making a case in the strongest terms reflecting what our WWII warriors accomplished.

Sadly, the dichotomy of words and reality is stark....remember President Bush's words in a pre-inaugural address on 19 January, 2001 when he said "In order to make sure that morale is high with those who wear the uniform today, we must keep our commitment to those who wore the uniform in the past.... We will make sure promises made to our veterans will be promises kept." and in a news conference April 13, 2004, he stated "I mean what I say"?

Given that medical care benefits due WWII military retirees have been denied; other warrior, family, and widow compensation is recognized somewhere behind benefits for "illegal aliens; one can only conclude political statements we hear from the President and members of Congress is little more than hot air. Even the courts have recognized the medical care obligation America has to it's WWII troops.

It is absolutely mind boggling that the leadership of America can, with a straight face, use the magnificent success of our WWII victories, and our military force success in general, to score political points or advance some other agenda, while willingly ignoring or worse, denying earned compensation and benefits to the service members that secured the liberty we enjoy.

To make matters worse, elements in Department of Defense routinely attack earned benefits as a "drain on national security"; create crafty diversions to delay or deny veteran compensation; Congress schemes to cap military compensation while exempting other federal categories; in short, it appears military compensation and benefits are near the first to suffer when a funding crunch exists...the question is how can such devious behavior be tolerated by America?

The answer: Most politicians and most Americans for that matter, do not understand warrior, family and widow sacrifices.

The government that commits to it's warriors in battle and other crisis and then reneges when the smoke clears and the floods recede is in jeopardy as a nation.

Harry Riley, COL, USA, Ret

Responses To:

President Bush Extols WWII Warriors Impact On Freedom

Amen brother. Was I taken in by this administration - you bet. At least I have the courage to say it. Listen to Delay, Chu, the Indiana congressmen who wants to cut our benefits, including retired pay, but wants to fund the parking lot for the swim park in his district - they all want to cut our entitlements. What we need is a law that permits only those that have served in the military for a minimum of two years before elected to the Congress. Why are we having a problem recruiting in the Army and Marines - Duh!!

Richard Slager, Retired with 22 years enlisted and Vietnam service

To: WL Boatwright. Are you saying that during the last 30 some years of a Democrat controlled government, you received all the benefits you deserved and it is only now under a Republican government that you are suffering. I am a veteran who never served in combat. I grateful to all who did. Lim Graff

I wish to make a simple statement, I am a WW2/Korea Military member my service is from Sep. 1942 thru Sep 1972, 22 years active and the rest reserve I have a wall Certificate thanking me for my service during the COLD War. I have tried to tell my folks in Congress that the VA does not consider me a Vet because I am a Retiree and with no Purple Heart I am nobody. I served in Italy 43-45 and worked in the 50s on Korean wounded, as I am a Medic. Bbeing 83+ I will not be around much longer so I have given up with this lousy Government. This is the WORST run Government I have ever seen, they are all a bunch of crooks from the Top Down to the bottom. Look how they are handling the Gulf Coast, ALL OF THEM SHOULD RESIGN, and a lot of them should be courts marshaled.

W L Boatright USA/USAF Retired

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