What's the Life of a Veteran Worth?
Evidently, it's not worth even $50. The Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) used to receive a fifty dollar stipend from the Federal Government to reimburse them for their services at military funerals. This would help pay for a flag for the survivors, bullets for the salute, gas to get to the cemetery, and clean their uniforms. Now that the government is running out of money, the Middle East is blowing up--and the President is going golfing on the weekend--this benefit has been discontinued. This is shameful, appalling, and offensive. I have attended military funerals before. This simple act, to honor the memory of a fallen comrade has provided comfort to many, many grieving families and provided them the reassurance the sacrifice of their loved one was not forgotten. This nation has repeatedly asked it's young men and women to put up their lives in its defense, with promises of education, training, a possible career, and the respect of a grateful nation. And now, we take their s...