Remembrance day gives us all an opportunity to pay our respects to the men and women who are in the position to make or have made the ultimate sacrifice on our behalf. We attend services and say prayers of support during the silence held to remember those who died so we can live safe and free.
But what about the veterans who return from the war, how do we treat them? Do they receive the medial care they need? Do they receive emotional support and counseling to help them adjust to the traumas they experienced? Is there sufficient support for their families? I am asking because I don’t know.
In the United States, the “Occupy” movement has a poster boy, ex-marine Scott Olsen who at age 24 is recovering in hospital after being struck on the head by a tear gas canister fired by police. The obvious irony is Olsen survived two tours of duty in Iraq only to be seriously injured in a peaceful protest in his home country. Olsen was at the movement because after returning from the war, he became involved in a veterans rights movement.
More recently, about 100 military veterans marched in uniform to the Stock Exchange in New York where they were stopped by a heavy police presence. It seems particularly disturbing when the military and the police are meeting face to face on American streets.
The “Occupy” movement is about people who feel oppressed by the failures inherent in a capitalistic system. People feel the result of goods and services, wealth and power distributed unfairly, with too much going to the wealthy few.
Military veterans are identifying with the Occupy group because they too feel alienated and abandoned by the capitalist system. They are not receiving the services and support they need and deserve.
It’s easy to dismiss the movement as American but we know the spirit of the “Occupy” movement has spread to Canada and other countries with protests in many cities including Edmonton, only 200 km away.
I would feel a great deal of shame if our Canadian military veterans felt alienated and unappreciated. If they felt frustrated to the point where they needed to take to the streets in uniform to protest against the very system they fought to protect.
So when I ask the questions, I sincerely want to know. Canadian veterans, are you receiving the support you need? Do you know how much we appreciate all you have done and all you do every day? Let me know because although I most certainly am not a member of the wealthy one per cent, I would pay higher taxes to know that our veterans are getting better services.
