Veterans tour the World War Two Memorial in Washington October 1, 2013. (Reuters / Kevin Lamarque)
Veterans Don’t Want To Be ‘Pawns’ In Shutdown Fight -- McClatchy News
WASHINGTON — As the impact on veterans becomes part of the contentious debate over the government shutdown, the commander of one of the nation’s leading veterans organizations said Friday that they should not become a political “pawn” for warring lawmakers.
In a press conference in front of the barricaded World War II Memorial, American Legion Commander Daniel Dellinger said that the veterans are concerned about the shutdown’s impact on their benefits and services, which he said “transcend politics.”
“You cannot use American veterans or servicemen and -women as pawns in this issue,” Dellinger said. “Veterans earn their benefits through their honorable service, many of them seriously disabled as a result of that service. To threaten suspension of their benefits is not only absurd, it’s cruel.”
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My Comment: Many of these veterans .... if not all of them .... are deeply worried that because of the debt crisis some of their benefits may eventually be cut. This growing realization has resulted in everyone .... veterans included .... in trying their best to position themselves to not be impacted. Sadly .... the money is not there to sustain this entitlement society .... and in the end everyone is going to be impacted .... veterans and visiting their memorials included.
