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September 18, 2006

Veteran's Plea to Fight to Take Back America

By Kenny (Hawk) Peters

"To me, the choice is simple; do we support those who represent the grassroots of America and the men and women who serve, or the servants of the wealthy?"

::::::::

To All Veterans and Concerned Citizens,

The Senate and Congressional races in Missouri are too close to call. At a time when one would think the Republicans would lose in landslides across the nation.

In our own backyard, Claire McCaskill is fighting for a Senate seat against the incumbent rubber stamp of Jim Talent. Duane Burghard against Kenny Hulshof in the northern part of Missouri is also in a tight race. We should be sending a message across the nation that Missourians have had enough. With a little over 50 days until the mid term elections, the polls here should be indicating clear, decisive victories ahead for democratic candidates across the Show Me State. Yet the races remain too close to call.

I am puzzled by those still undecided. What even astonishes me more is: where are the veterans of Missouri? We of all citizens should be able to see the things we were willing to lay our lives down for have disintegrating right before our eyes. We watch in disbelief as our sons and daughters continue to die and become maimed for life in a War of Choice, based on manufactured intelligence, lies, deceit, and the quest of profit and oil. Only to return home to slashed benefits, long waits for treatment, and a life of emotional trauma that will sever family and friends. Many will end up homeless, committing suicide. These things are already happening. The very administration that sent them into harm's way has abandoned them upon their return.

Yet when a call of support goes out, the veteran population of Missouri is eerily invisible. Claire McCaskill, Duane Burghard, and the rest of the democrats running for office in Missouri need more than our vote, they need visible, active support. Why, you ask? Because we support our troops; we support the integrity of the United States of America; and we support reclaiming our country as a humane nation dedicated to peace, freedom and human rights across the globe. This election is not about voting someone out; we need to vote Claire, Duane and the others in!

We can read the records of Talent and Hulshof and find reason enough to vote them out.

Jim Talent has consistently (94% of the time) voted with George Bush. That includes the 23 times he has voted to cut or under-fund veteran benefits, voted against mandatory health care (as recently as March of 2006), supported the tripling of fees veterans must pay for Tricare health care, rejected a request for $47 billion to repair and improve military equipment for our troops to fight this illegal war, and rubber stamped the slashing of the Bush administration's funding for our Veteran Nursing Homes.

This was all done at the same time he voted to protect tax breaks for the wealthiest among us. He has voted to maintain the ridiculously low minimum wage of $5.15 and hour, while voting to give himself $31,000.00 in raises. The hundreds of thousands of American citizens suffering from disease and injury that could someday benefit from Stem Cell research are told by Mr. Talent to continue your suffering, I would rather see the cells thrown it the trash. These examples and so many others provide more than enough reason to oust him.

So what does Claire offer?

Claire McCaskill has developed her Veteran's Bill of Rights. After reading it, I thought, "This is just common sense, this is the least we can do if we ask our youngest and bravest to go into harms way." So I came to the conclusion that supporting Claire McCaskill just makes common sense. She wants to simply do the right thing for those we ask so much of.

If we ask our troops to go into battle on our behalf, we must supply them with adequate equipment and resources to get the job done and return home safely to a grateful nation. This means identifying a clear and present danger to our nation and allies. And that all alternative means of achieving our desired objective have been used and failed before involving the military might of the United States.

No military family should ever have to worry that service to their country could adversely impact their means to provide for their homes, their health care or their future. No family should have their home foreclosed on, their possessions repossessed or their families denied adequate health care while they are being asked to make the ultimate sacrifice.

Therefore, we need to:

Provide for their future by committing to enhance the G. I. Bill through educational opportunities and job training programs. This is already in place of employees who lose their jobs due to companies moving their jobs overseas through the Trade Readjustment Act. The G.I. Bill should not provide less for those who are sent into harms way.

Provide access to affordable and exemplary health care, including mental health services for veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. Currently under the Bush administration's directive, the Department of Veterans Affairs are ordered by Secretary Nicholson to provide no outreach services to seek out and identify emotionally disturbed veterans traumatized by what they encountered in Iraq and Afghanistan. The failure to seek out and treat these veterans has resulted in an alarming rate of divorce, homelessness and suicide of returning veterans.

We must repeal the Disabled Veterans Tax, which forces disabled military retirees to give up on a dollar for dollar basis their disability compensation from their retirement benefits. As it stands, the military retiree is the only entity in this nation required to sacrifice payments from two entirely different resources.

As I said, the Veteran Bill of Rights of Claire McCaskill just makes common sense. You cannot on one hand tell our men and women they are serving a grateful nation, and on the other slash their benefits, their rights, and their opportunity to enjoy the way of life they have provided all of us by their service. It is not only our obligation as veterans of past wars to fight for our sons and daughters of the standing military by voting out the Jim Talents, it is also our duty to vote in people like Claire McCaskill. To me, the choice is simple; do we support those who represent the grassroots of America and the men and women who serve, or the servants of the wealthy?

There is a real danger that Jim Talent could be reelected. I do not use the word danger lightly. His reelection would mean the continuation of the Bush rubber stamp. The stamp that has led us to the brink of World War lll. The stamp that continues to fill the pockets of the rich, while stealing from the poor. The stamp that endorses without question (94% of the time) the failed policies of George W. Bush and his renegade administration. The stamp that supports the arrogance of an administration that thumbs its nose at the law of our land as well as international law and treaties that have been in place for the protection of our service men and women.

We, as veterans of this great nation, cannot afford to take the chance that we will continue to be led by George Bush's republican Senate and Congress for two more years. Where will the death toll in his illegal war stand by then? Will we be at war with Iran? Will World War 111 become a reality? Will the deficit continue to cripple is and the generations of ours that follow? These are grave questions and all indications lead to the answers we would rather not hear if we stand idly by and simply hope that November will change the disastrous course this administration has had upon us and the world.

Fact: On March 16, 2006, Senate Democrats introduced Amendment 3141 which would appropriate budgetary levels for fiscal years 2006 and 2008 through 2011. The purpose of this amendment was to provide an assured stream of funding for veteran's health care that would take into account annual changes in the veteran population and inflation. This bill would have been paid for by restoring the pre-2001 top rate for income ever $1 million, closing corporate loopholes and delaying tax cuts for the wealthy. The bill was defeated by a vote along party lines. Nay votes 53 Republicans, 1 Democrat, Yea Votes, 44 Democrats, 2 Republicans.

This vote tells me that while our sons and daughters are facing the horrors of war and returning home traumatized by physical and emotional injury, our grateful Senators still put the interest of the wealthy ahead of the needs of the men and women they have sent into harm's way. To me this is reprehensible! This is just plain wrong! This needs to be changed!!! This is why Senator Talent (and others like him across the United States) must go. It is morally wrong to wrap yourself in the Flag in public view and then go into the Senate Chambers and vote to make the rich even richer, and ignore the plight of the men and women you send to war.

You and I can begin our physical support of Claire McCaskill on Tuesday, September 19th at 12:30 pm when General Wesley Clark will be at the American Legion Post 103 (3212 Sutton Blvd. Maplewood, Mo 63143) to speak in support of her. I realize this is during the week and during normal working hours for most. Yet it is so important for us to show up in maximum numbers to let Missourians and the country know we are fed up and want change in November.

With all respect and love,

Kenny (Hawk) Peters

Kenny Peters is a Marine who spent 5 1/2 months at the siege of Khe Sahn. He lost an eye and sustained several other injuries thanks to the service he provided to his country.

Submitter: Jason Miller

Submitters Bio:
Jason Miller, Senior Editor and Founder of TPC, is a tenacious forty something vegan straight edge activist who lives in Kansas and who has a boundless passion for animal liberation and anti-capitalism. Addicted to reading and learning, he is mostly an autodidact, but he studied liberal arts and philosophy at the University of Missouri Kansas City. In early 2005, he founded the radical blog Thomas Paine's Corner. An accomplished and prolific essayist on social and political issues, his writings have appeared on hundreds of alternative media websites over the last few years. He is also a press officer for the North American Animal Liberation Press Office and the founder of Bite Club of KC, a grassroots animal rights activist group. You can reach him at willpowerfulathotmail.com

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