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Ovid (2709)
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Stuff with the Perl Foundation. A couple of patches in the Perl core. A few CPAN modules. That about sums it up.
Leadership?
Unlike Presidents Reagan, Bush I and Clinton, who all attended memorial ceremonies for troops killed in overseas terrorist attacks, Bush II declines to be present at services for soldiers who have died in Iraq. The pictures wouldn't be helpful.
This "compassionate conservative" has worked hard to send our soldiers to their deaths and he can't be bothered to attend their funerals? Of course, this should come as no surprise to us. Despite his campaign rhetoric about treating our veterans with respect, how has the Bush administration and the Republican controlled congress really treated our veterans?
- The VA has 20,000 fewer employees than in 1996
- Since 1995, VA hospital enrollment has increased by 1.7 million
- Another 600,000 will enroll this year
- New $250.00 enrollment fees have been imposed
- Outreach programs are being scaled down
- Many vets will have to wait up to 10 months for treatments
- Some VA clinics and hospitals cannot afford to admit new patients
- Almost a million veteran disability claims are still pending
I can't say I'm happy about us being over there, but damn it, our veterans deserve more than this. These are men and women who are dying for us. Our troops deserve our support. Too bad Bush isn't willing to give it.
I pour myself a cup of strong coffee. :-)
-- Jarkko Hietaniemi
Lincoln and Civil War Casualties (Score:2, Interesting)
Do you think Abraham Lincoln attended 360,000 Union funerals [civilwarhome.com]? That's only 72,000 a year or some 200 per day. Assuming no travel time and four hours of sleep per night, Lincoln could have spent six minutes at each funeral.
Now that's leadership.
Re:Lincoln and Civil War Casualties (Score:3, Insightful)
Er, I'm not sure what your point is. My point is that Bush is attending none of the funerals. Not one. That's pretty sad. You would think that, as Commander in Chief, he would at least make a show of sympathy.
Re:Lincoln and Civil War Casualties (Score:1)
If he held (or attended) a service for all casualties, I could see him being lambasted for a largely symbolic gesture.
If he attended services for several, but not all, casualties, I could see him being criticized for not showing enough sympathy, especially as more soldiers are killed and wounded.
If he attended services for all casualties, I could see him being ridiculed for spending all of his time attending funerals.
I'm of the opinion that doing what he can do for every family equally (pretty much wh
Re:Lincoln and Civil War Casualties (Score:3, Informative)
Anyway, Lincoln did attend a post-battle solemnity (honoring how many thousands of American dead at one go?) at Gettysburg.
Gave a right nice speech, too.
Bush? (Score:3, Informative)
As to new fees and less outreach, that doesn't bother me too much, in principle. What does bother me is the delays, and even refusal of treatment for some, etc. I am not sure who is primarily to blame for that. Again, Congress does this sort of thing, primarily.
But as to funerals, yeah, Bush can't win. I agree he should attend some funerals, but I disagree entirely that this is indicative of lack of support for veterans. I think you're missing the larger issue, which is the Bush administration's tendency to hide. Whether it is about the economy, or homeland security, or war, or whatever, the Bush administration does not like to deal with, in public, things that might make the public feel like everything isn't perfect. I think that's the real issue.
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Re:Bush? (Score:2)
I didn't mean to sound like I was blaming Bush for the VA cuts that happened before he took office. However, he has continued to support the VA cuts. I think that if he truly cared about the vets and wanted to support them, he could easily kick up a fuss about how Congress is treating them and people would listen. Today is Veteran's day here in the US. It would be a great day to hear him talk about that. That might actually demonstrate a bit of leadership (if his handlers let him).
I do completely agr