Letter to the editor

To the Editor:

The Pentagon keeps two sets of books on injured GIs in Iraq, and the VA will not request enough resources to care for the troops. The Pentagon has the official number of wounded in Iraq as 29,320 on one set of books, on the other set they have an additional 31,325 wounded.

The Department of Veterans Affairs has estimated it will treat 263,000 Vets in 2008 and 330,000 in 2009 for Iraq service-related medical conditions. But the only number you see repeated by the government and the media is the 29,320 wounded. Why the deceit? You can see the story at http://www.vawatchdog.org/08/nf08/nfMAR08/nf030708-3.htm .

The VA now has over 400,000 undecided claims and is estimating the number will rise to 800,000.

Meanwhile in Mississippi, I really wasn’t surprised to see our own state legislature turn down for the third straight year a proposal to help veterans who have been 100 permanently and totally disabled from combat. The bill to give them a better break on their homestead exemption died in committee.

Presently, a guy who gets drunk and drives his vehicle into a tree causing him to be permanently and totally disabled and the combat disabled veteran are treated the same under MS Homestead Exemption Laws. I can only assume the Legislators think this is fair  since they have disregarded for three years in a row my attempts to get the law changed to give 100% Combat Disabled Vets a better break.

Disabled veterans don’t have the availability to send huge campaign contributions, so I suppose the issue is dead. As for me, I’ve had three strikes and like in the ball game, I’m out. I will not ask again for it seems clear to me that our state legislators have higher priorities than helping our 100% combat disabled veterans — priorities like long discussions on pay increases for themselves and a bill to have consumers pay in advance for private utility companies to build new power plants. The CEO of one of these companies makes over $7,000.00 per hour, so it’s looks like the one who has the ability to give the most in campaign contributions is who gets the most attention.

/s/ Bobby D. Jefcoat