During a recent visit to the veterans hospital in Los Angeles, I ran across a young man fresh out of the Army. He had fought in Afghanistan and was recovering from some of his wounds.
It had taken weeks to finish his separation paperwork, months to get his disability rating (which determines his compensation), and it will likely take years before he can be completely self-sufficient. Simple things like holding down a job and owning a home seem anything but simple to him right now.
"I gave my country 100%," he said. "All I ask for is 100% in return."
Maybe I'm biased, but that doesn't seem like too much to ask.
But I worry a lot about the wounds we don't see, the ones we don't yet fully understand.
We have to change our culture. Leaders at all levels need to step forward and seek for themselves and their people the counseling they all deserve.
It's also not too much to ask that we look after the families of the fallen.
All they want in return is our gratitude, 100% of it.
clipped from: www.latimes.com