Veteran's Day is still important

Veteran's Day came and went this week without much regard by the general public, or at least with any regard on ISU's campus.

I could not recall whether or not this student newspaper even bothered to mention Veteran's Day in any recent issues. After using the Web site I was appalled to find no mention of Veteran's Day. I do not have in my possession the paper copies of the newspaper preceding the Nov. 14, 2007 issue, so I am hesitant to say for sure that nothing was written about Veteran's Day in our paper. With that said, this is not intended to be a dig at The Statesman or any of its staff. It is intended to express outrage and concern with the lack of support that we as a community on this campus give to our veterans.

Right now as you are reading this, I ask you to pause and think about the men and women who are fighting right now to protect our freedoms that we so dearly cherish. Frankly, I do not care if you support the War in Iraq or any other military involvements that the United States is currently engaged in. That is not of any importance to me or to this topic.

I do care if you support the men and women who are giving everything so that you may continue to enjoy the freedoms here at home. These soldiers do not receive enough support from our campus community, but a more pressing issue is the absolute lack of support that the returning veterans receive from the government.

Every day, more and more soldiers are returning home with physical and mental issues that stem from their experiences in combat. If you turn on the news you will hear reports of lack of care to physical injuries that soldiers have received and also lack of long-term care for soldiers injured during combat.

Along with the physical injuries, many soldiers also suffer from mental issues, including Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Without treatment, PTSD can permanently handicap those who suffer and prohibit them from living 'normal' dayto- day lives.

The veterans need and deserve proper medical treatment when they return from war. We know this, and the government knows this. However, time and again the soldiers have been refused the proper care and respect deserved upon their return.

Our country extended veterans returning from Vietnam the same lack of gratitude that we are now showing to the veterans returning from Iraq and other places. We need to learn from our mistakes. This disregard for the returning soldiers is detrimental to their health and also to the well-being of the country as a whole.

Instead of looking the other way, we need to stand together and create one voice in support of our veterans and demand from our government that they respect and support our veterans.

Whether this tragic disregard for our fellow Americans will come to an end soon I do not know, but I would like to end this column by showing my gratitude to those who have so bravely served our country. Thank you.