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Jasmin Singh
Professor Bruner
English 120-001
21 April 2015
Land of the Free, Home of the Brave?
Selfless, brave, and strong; these are some of the words I would use to describe
todays veterans. Although they may not ask for help or recognition, it is our job as
United States Citizens to support them. According to NPR statistics, our current military
is composed of 0.45% of our countrys population (NPR). Essentially a small percentage
of Americans "put their lives on the line" to protect every citizen's rights and freedom,
and what do they get in return? A country that does not pay them the respect they have
earned and deserve or provide them the services and programs to protect and support
them. This situation is not only appalling- and should be recognized by all Americans as
such- but it is unacceptable on every level and can no longer be tolerated. Society's
treatment of veteran's in the United States must change.
One of the biggest challenges surrounding this issue is the culture of the military
that, to a certain extent, may unfortunately "add fuel to the fire." There is also a distinct
tendency of military both active and inactive to not "complain". As these paradigms
persist, veterans will continue to be marginalized. Careful considerations to general
disrespect of our retired military, seeking creative solutions to challenges related to
veterans issues and providing a voice for a population that is generally recognized as a
voiceless group should and must be a priority...a call to action!

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The significance of this issue is great. Failure to support our veterans adds to the
segment of people dependent on government assistance. This, in turn, impacts social and
financial issues that are on the forefront of the minds of our citizens. This also affects us
politically. Not recognizing and respecting our veterans is contributing to the decline of
the moral fiber of our society. These faults in our system are ultimately weakening our
global status as a superior world super power.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the unemployment rate for veterans
who served since 2001 is 9%, which is higher than the countries unemployment rate of
5.8%. Veterans ages 18-24 have an unemployment rate of 21.4%. These are the type of
people who offer much to our workforce. They have the tools to provide employers skills,
and talents to help private sector service and industry be more productive, competitive,
and profitable. This is another example of the gap between the general population and
veterans in this country that must be bridged (Bureau of Labor).
Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (otherwise known as PTSD) is an anxiety
condition that occurs after experiencing extreme emotional trauma. According to the
Justice for Vets program, one in five (of the 2.4 million) Iraq and Afghanistan veterans
suffer from PTSD or major depression. In 2012, more veterans committed suicide than
the total number of troops killed in ten years of war in the region. This is a serious issue
facing our country that we are not currently confronting. The only way to overcome
PTSD is through treatment. Programs such as Veterans Treatment Court provides a
healing space where Veterans appear in front of a court to discuss their problems as well
as receive treatment sessions and testing for substance abuse (Justice for Veterans).

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The severity of war leaves many veterans with wounds from battle, some visible,
some hidden. Both long and short-term injuries can occur. The Veterans Affairs
healthcare system has been put in place to assist in the recovery of these wounded
soldiers. In the past and continuing into the present, the healthcare system has had many
problems and scandals ranging from failure to schedule timely appointments to faulty
record keeping. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) is a non-partisan
organization that tracks the Governments programs and spending. While investigating
veterans healthcare, the GAO found that two-thirds of specialty care clinics for veterans
examined, had wait times longer than thirty days for disabled vets. Under the 1996
Veterans Improvement Act, it is mandated that disabled veterans receive care within a
thirty-day period. Situations such as these occur everyday (GAO).
The main solution to fixing the problems todays veterans face involves the use of
federal spending. Some, who dont support the United States past use of military power,
will argue that our country is at no economic state to spend extra money. Most of
Americans oppose the large amount of military spending that our budget goes towards.
Most of Americans dont realize that Veterans Affairs is not branched under military
spending. Some also question how qualified Veterans are to fill job positions in this
country. In the 2014 December issue of The Economist, there was an argument against
hiring veterans in the workforce. The article argued that hiring someone strictly because
they are a veteran, does not mean they are the most qualified person for the job. They feel
that hiring a veteran is like hiring someone randomly off the street (The Economist).
I would argue that this cause is one of the things America should be putting our
efforts towards (both in federal spending and job placement). A shift in federal spending

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could eliminate the need for more money in the first place. According to the Department
of Veteran Affairs, they are the fifth largest agency measured by spending. (Behind the
Department of Health and Human Services, the Social Security Administration, the
Department of Defense and the Department of Treasury). Medical care comprises the
highest amount of spending by the VA at 36.4%. Although this is the most important
aspect of Veterans Affairs, the distribution of funds through medical care, is unbalanced.
Homelessness receives 1.6 billion of the budget and mental health receives 7.2 billion.
These two topics, discussed earlier, are in the forefront of the challenges facing veterans.
More spending needs to be allocated toward these problems. The extra spending should
come from either the existing budget of the VA or an outside department that is above the
VA on the spending list, such as the Department of Health and Human Services.
Additional funding on mental health could go towards programs such as the
Veterans Treatment Court also discussed earlier. More appropriations on homelessness of
veterans should go towards the development of services such as New Jerseys Hope for
Veterans Programs. The Hope for Veterans Programs strive to support veterans and their
families overcome poverty, homelessness, mental illness and addiction by providing
support services and housing. More housing programs like these could help homeless
veterans get back their feet; proud and ready to face world (Hope for Veterans).
The problems and solutions of veterans affairs are clear. Now it is Americas job
to take action. In the words of famous author George Orwell, People sleep peaceably in
their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf. It
is now time to honor and protect those who protected us; before its too late (Orwell).

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Works Cited
"About GAO." U.S. Government Accountability Office. Web. 5 April 2015.
Bureau of Labor Statistics. Employment Situation of Veterans Summary." United States
Department of Labor. United Government, 20 Mar. 2014. Web. 5 April 2015.
"Hope for Veterans Program." Community Hope. Web. 5 April. 2015.
"Office of Budget." U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Web. 5 April 2015.
"Veterans Affairs in the Federal Budget." Cato Institute. Ed. Chris Edwards. Web. 5 April
2015.
"Veterans: What Next?" The Economist. The Economist Newspaper, 6 December 2014.
Web. 21 Apr. 2015.
"What is a Veterans Treatment Court?" Justice for Veterans. Web. 5 April 2015.

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Jasmin Singh
Reflection Letter
This paper definitely took the most time to prepare. From picking a topic to
research, this was definitely a long process! The hardest part of this writing assignment
was picking a topic. I wanted something I felt passionate about, but I also wanted good
research to back it up. I originally started writing my paper on womens equality in
sports. I found myself writing in a style that was too aggressive because I felt so
passionately about the topic. I changed my topic to Veterans affairs. I was able to find
good research and write in a manner in which I got my point across, but I wasnt
aggressiveat least I hope so!
When revising my paper the biggest change I made was adding the opposing
view. I was shocked to see the large group in society that doesnt support federal
spending on Veterans. When adding this information, I added a new source and a new
paragraph. Professor Bruner gave me the advice to add a new section in my paper with
the opposing view.
My favorite part of the paper is when I described multiple solutions to the
problem. Although in reality, Im sure these procedures would be very complex in
application, I seem to make it obvious that there is a simple solution, making it easier to
agree with me. If I had more time I would probably expand my paper with different
sources. I would add testimonies from veterans who have returned home and received
this treatment.

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Although this wasnt my favorite paper, I did ultimately enjoy this writing
process. I enjoyed it because I cared about my topic. Im very interested what my
classmates wrote about and how they felt about the writing process.