There would be no United States without the dedication and sacrifice of its military professionals; however when they return from combat, too many veterans are discovering an unfortunate reality. It is nearly impossible to find medical services necessary to begin a new chapter of their life. The United States does not put its soldiers and other military workers as a top priority when it comes to taking care of its own.

     Every day, someone new is introduced to the hardships of wartime military service or the horrid conditions of combat. Just because a veteran steps off a plane onto U.S. soil it is not evidence they have overcome the war. According to CNN about 20% of all suicides in the United States are committed by veterans. Many veterans come home and are left to deal with lasting wounds and ramifications for the rest of their lives.

     There is some discussion of restructuring the military pension system and raising the cost of health insurance for future service members to cut costs. This would not be such a questionable decision if the ones who are proposing such a policy were also the ones receiving a pay cut. But that is not the case. That our country needs to get its fiscal house in order is not in question; what should be examined is the tendency of our government to view military service as something to put on the backburner.

     In the U.S., politicians propose cutting military pensions and health benefits. Overseas fighting in combat veterans see the potential reduction of military benefits and can see that their service and sacrifices, over many years and multiple deployments are not a priority to the very politicians that sent them to war. While millions of dollars are spent on funding these candidates’ campaigns, millions of dollars is being taken away from those sacrificing much more overseas.

     Military pensions and health care for active and retired troops now cost the government about $100 billion a year. Any significant savings that would result from this cut would take years to see a difference. But military officials say, the intense push in Congress this year to reduce the debt and the possibility that the Pentagon might have to begin trimming core programs like weapons procurement, research, training and construction have suddenly made retiree benefits a “reasonable” solution. Retirees outnumber the active duty, 2.3 million to 1.4 million.

     Americans who are willing to die for their country should be treated differently than the average worker. Out of many unnecessary things the government chooses to spend money, military benefits should not be on the list. The American Legion has sent a letter to every member of the House and Senate pleading with them to spare health care benefits. These men and women sacrifice so much of their time, lives, and dedication that they deserve to be given compensation. If changes are going to be made to the military retirement benefits, it should be added too, not taken away. Senator Susan Collins said, “I think we have to look at whether savings can be achieved, but we have to keep our promise to people who were recruited based on those benefits, and we also ought to look at whether there's ways to improve the benefit structure.”

     If the government is trying to come up with ways to ease their checkbook, the solution may be closer then they think and before they start pointing fingers at other organizations, they should notice the other three fingers pointing back at them.