I have looked through the comments hoping to see someone else talking about this story. I find it hard to believe but it has only come up a couple of times. First let me say something about myself: I am a Vet (US Army 1986-1991). I did not serve in the 1st Gulf War, rather, I was stationed with the 2nd Infantry Division in South Korea. Since my ETS I completed college and Grad School. I now work in a psychiatric hospital as a social worker. My patients include a wide range of chronic mental illnesses including: PTSD, Brain Injury and severely traumatized.
As a Vet I feel outrage that our soldiers are being treated so poorly. I want heads to roll. I want someone to pay. However, as a Social Worker (and an advocate for those who have been marginalized) I also know this problem is not just the responsibility of some bureaucrat at The Walter Reed Medical Center.
In the past I have posted a defense regarding the misdeeds of some soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan. My argument typically follows the same line of thinking. If individual soldiers have committed crimes then they must be held accountable. However, we must also recognize our soldiers are in an impossible situation. That they have not been adequately trained, equipped or prepared to accomplish they're mission successfully. This is a systemic problem and the fault lies directly with the Bush administration. So yes, hold individual responsible for individual bad acts, but also recognize the systemic problems and hold the administration accountable.
The same basic argument holds true for The Walter Reed Medical Center story: Over the past several years we have talked about this many times. I do not see anyone making the connection though: The Bush administration cut the VA budget to pay for tax cuts. In a time of war, when our troops are being injured over seas, The Bush Administration decided to cut taxes. Our soldiers are coming home in body bags and much worse: disfigured and brain injured. The likes of Tom Delay said, "In a time of war, the best thing we can do to help the troops is give a tax cut to the American people". Everyone earning over 200K / year cheered. Along with those cuts came cuts in programs for the disadvantaged as well as our veterans.
It is not patriotic to give tax cuts. People who wish to live in an advanced pluralistic democratic society have to pay to do so. It is patriotic to believe in one's country and support its cause. This includes paying taxes. It includes supporting our soldiers in a time of war. It includes caring for the men and women who are wounded while they defend this great country.
Once again the responsibility for this outrage does not lie with some individual or some top-heavy-with-management VA hospital. It lies with the Bush Administration and the politicians who enabled them by cutting taxes in a time of war.