The Longest Yard.....

[Steppenwolf]

Look at the name of this great website: HADIT Interesting name for a site dedicated to those few of us who "served" to protect the many.

Listen to all of the stories and it hard to fathom that the longest, hardest, nastiest, battle happens after your hitch is done. Don't remember anyone telling me it would be this way. i seem to remember many lectures from brothers who probably believed what they were telling us about how we would be taken cared of not about how we would be taken advantage of...in their hearts and mind they were telling us "the truth" about all "the benefits" we'd get if we made it through "this mans army"...the GI BILL, the education, the loans, the health care....in another mans army they're promised 72 virgins and an easy pass to paradise. At least in that army they don't have to apply to the VA which in some ways is a war of another kind.

Not so long ago the now infamous Congressman Tim Mahoney (FL-16) who took the place of Mark Foley held a town hall meeting that i went to. During the Q&A i asked him if there was any truth to the story that i heard that the VA budget was second only to the pentagon but that the VA pockets got picked everytime there wasn't enough money elsewhere? Mr Baloney seemed distracted, he must of been thinking of a call he had to make to his sectretary or intern...he said, "sorry, what was your question"? As i started to repeat it he must have remembered that he heard it and blew me off with: " Whatever they take it's only chump change ". " Chump Change"? "CHUMP CHANGE"? A few of us looked at each other and there was a low moan in the group that he heard and tried to correct himself by saying: " I meant to say that that doesn't happen often and it's not that much ". " When did you serve Congressman "? "Listen!" he barked at me. " I serve in a different way and I called this meeting because I'm your ally; talk to my assitant when you leave. I have another meeting that I'm already late for, thank you all for coming." Behind me was most of the line that formed to ask questions. i wonder how many other gov officals think that our budget is ok to pick from for their bridges to nowhere and other pet projects....i wonder how many others think that it's only CHUMP CHANGE? Who are the CHUMPS?

How is it that after we serve it's not important enough to make sure that the damage done to our body and minds is cared for as we were led to believe it would be?

"CHUMP CHANGE"

HADIT? You bet we have!!!

[Steppenwolf]

Slithering along the edge of a straight razor.....whooooops, I fall off one side & the DRO can't find my C-file, I slither a little more.....whooooops, I fell off into the shredder,.....I'm done. May be we Vets are on the wrong side of the razor?

I like the term "slither" as it is a good depiction on the speed of most VARO's.

VARO in latin means Sloth

In the Christian moral tradition, sloth (Latin: acedia, accidia, pigritia) is one of the seven capital sins, often called the seven deadly sins; these sins are called the capital sins because they destroy charity in the person's heart and thus may lead to final impenitence and eternal death. Sloth is defined as spiritual and/or actual apathy or laziness, putting off what God asks you to do, or not doing it or anything at all. Acedia is a Latin word, from Greek akedia, literally meaning "absence of caring". Acedia is also deemed to lead to God's wrath.

Sloth can also concern wasting due to lack of use or allowing entropy, expanding into almost any person, place, thing, skills, or intangible ideal that would require maintenance, refinement and/or support to continue to exist.

Acedia is an old word from the Greek describing a state of listlessness, of not caring or not being concerned with one's position or condition in the world. It can lead to a state of being unable to perform one's duties in life. It is distinct from depression. Acedia was originally noted as a problem among monks and other ascetics who maintained a solitary life.

[Steppenwolf]

I am not afraid of the government I pretty much have decided that on paper it is the best thing going but its the people who muck it up.

No matter what I feel that many who work at VA begrudge anything that the VA awards to Veterans and they make it much more difficult than it should be.

"The players all played at once without waiting for turns, quarrelling all the while, and fighting for the hedgehogs; and in a very short time the Queen was in a furious passion, and went stamping about, and shouting `Off with his head!' or `Off with her head!' about once in a minute."

http://www.cs.indiana.edu/metastuff/wonder/ch8.html

[Steppenwolf]

Out of order.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k8N2rciqnRo...feature=related

Let the good times roll....

Edited October 30, 2008 by Steppenwolf

[Steppenwolf]

If- Rudyard Kipling

[MARINEVET]

Steppenwolf. I like the way you think.

Slithering along the edge of a straight razor.....whooooops, I fall off one side & the DRO can't find my C-file, I slither a little more.....whooooops, I fell off into the shredder,.....I'm done. May be we Vets are on the wrong side of the razor?

I like the term "slither" as it is a good depiction on the speed of most VARO's.