It's hard to serve your country in Baghdad or Kabul. It shouldn't be hard to pay for college once you've come back home.
Comment: It is an Election Year. But when Congressional Approval Rate is at a dismal LOW you might think constituents would vote politicians out of office based on their actions. Not so. Likelyhood of reelection of an incumbent is around 98%. Go figure. This action is ling over due. Great article!
As a retired US Army
Comment: It is an election year. If it can't be passed now ... it never will be. Pretty simple to get it passed... talk to them Washington folks with the simple truth... pass it or lose the upcoming elections big time. :-) Have a nice day all... and just ignore all the negative comments... some folks get out of bed on the wrong side and really need some anger management classes. P.S. Check out the article on building America's Berlin Wall between US and Mexico. :-) have fun today.
Comment: This article is right on. I'm a disabled Iraq vet attending an ivy league school (Columbia) right now and I'm racking up debt faster than I can blink. I get the maximum amount of money possible that any veteran can recieve from the GI Bill / college fund from the VA for education, sadly it's only going to cover 33% of my undergrad education. Also I have done my paperwork for the VA perfectly and the VA is four months behind on my GI Bill payments right at this moment in time. I talk with the milvets group at Columbia reguraly and with out a doubt the trend here is veterans have become plagued with fininacial problems while trying to juggle ivy academics. Right now I???m more worried about bankruptcy than I am about my homework which is flat out unfair.
Comment: We seen to have an inordinate number of "Dogs in the Manger" residing in the Congress as a whole. They didn't want to help the wounded at first because we needed that money for bullets. Now they are so short sighted they don't know or care we need well educated ambitious people to run the military - definitely NOT the calibar of the present Presiodent.
Comment: One other clarfication regarding delkja's post below. He said, "If you check the numbers you will find that 75% of the Veterans never use benefits that are available including continued education...." THIS IS ENTIRELY WRONG - 70% USE EDUCATION BENEFITS, ONLY 30% DO NOT. You should get your facts straight before making it sound like you're some kind of expert on the topic. According to the most recent DoD information, as cited in USA Today**, "95% of active-duty service members sign up for the GI Bill (which costs $1,200), as many as 29% of those who are eligible when the separate from the military never use the benefit."
**You can go to USA Today article at...
http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2007-12-26-gi-bill-side_N.htm
Comment: Anna, thanks for raising awareness of this important issue as only distinguished members of the press can do. Because we work with military students and colleges to actually do something to change the establishment, we can confirm Anna's article is an accurate representation of the situation in the military by verifying the following:
Anna Quindlen...
"It's hard to serve your country in Baghdad or Kabul. It shouldn't be hard to pay for college once you've come back home."
Verification...
Explains Captain Matt Thompson, US Army Ranger. ???I???ve had more difficulty finding scholarship money for veterans pursuing graduate study than leading my platoon during the invasion of Iraq!???
Anna Quindlen...
"Watch the commericals. It looks as though you're going to be able to go whereever you want. College costs have escalated, and benefits have shrunk...It does not seem to have occurred to them (military brass) that a better long-rangel plan would be to offer true educational incentives so that more focused and ambitious people would enlist. Senator Webb's revamped GI Bill..."
Verification...
According to Military MBA, "While the recruiting system promises to educate and promote troops dedicated to advancing their careers and education, those qualified who cannot fund a graduate education are often left behind, choosing lower priced and lower quality education alternatives."
Anna Quindlen...
"Every dollar spent on the GI Bill was multiplied many times over in benefits to the postwar U.S. economy. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that unemployment among young veterans is three times the national average (i.e., underemployed). Already some Iraq vets are homeless and have substance abuse problems."
Verification...
In 2007 a study by the National Alliance to End Homelessness, concluded that while veterans represent about 11% of the adult civilian population, they account for 26% of the homeless population.
On what happens when veterans further their education...
According to a November 2007 study by Military MBA, MBA graduates who have a background of military service are currently earning an average annual compensation package of $109,720, which includes an annual salary offer and signing bonuses. According to the Graduate Management Admission Council, which reported salary information across the entire pool of MBA graduates in May 2006, new MBA graduates were earning $92,360 in first-year compensation.
While it is admirable to continue raising awarenes, we all need to write our gov't representatives and support Senator Webb's updated GI Bill.
Comment: isn't military service a choice? aren't those who participate compensated for their service? why should taxpayers foot the bill for expensive universities when there are plenty of working poor americans who can't afford college as well and are unable to receive any assistace.
Comment: Yes the military is a choice.....for now. And while our service people are compensated it is not fairly. Plus there are not enough programs to help those that come back with PTSD. What you have to look at is the fact that all of those working poor you are refering to are the ones that signed up so that they would be able to get help paying for college. Yes college is a privlidge, and being in 120 degree heat for a year or more and being shot at, yelled at, spit at, and everything else that sucks about serving our service men and women have more than earned that privlidge. If you are mad at taxes yell at Bush for getting us into this pointless war in the first place. That tax money could be used to help even more people get scholarships for college!!!
Comment: Anna Quindlen's editorial should be read by the Clinton, Obama and McClain;Sen. Webb's bill needs to
be acted on. In the prime of their youth, young Americans have been sent to protect us; do we ignore and
cheapen their sacrifices by not providing for their future! This issue isn't political, it is about what it
means to be an American; willing to risk all for freedom. Quindlen's piece rings true!
Bill
Comment: I was a navy wife for 25 years. Our family now has two sons on active duty , one is standing the watch somewhere in the Persian Gulf the other with Pacific Fleet aircraft carriers. More astounding to me then the issue of educational assistance is the very real situation of America's licensed physicians who do not accept our TRICARE (Military medical insurance). Issues at Walter Reed came to the fore over substandard treatment, however, no one seems to know that servicemen, their spouses and children have their insurance found unacceptable or told it is accepted and then are required to pay the balance that TRICARE has not allowed. How do physicians turn down our military health care policies and sleep at night - quite soundly I suspect. My thanks to Anna Quindlen but, " Because it's right "is a measure that apparently can not be applied when money is involved.
Comment: After returning from Iraq in 2005, I started attending the University of Nebraska at Omaha full-time, only to realize the Gov't only covers half. Coming to the end of my junior year, I'm about $5000 in debt with student loans. Being a resident of Nebraska, tuition is only $2200 a semester. Upon graduation in May of 2009, I'll probably be about $8000-$10000 in debt. I'm a US Marine reservist who's already devoted four and a half years of service, including 2 years on active duty with a tour in Iraq. Something needs to change. One of the reasons I joined was the recruiter promised me a free education.
Comment: Thank you for bringing a public voice to this topic. I find it disturbing and odd that John McCain will not take a stand on the issue. He is the only presidental canidate that is for leaving troops in Iraq for a long period of time, yet will not provide more incentives or benefits for the military. That does not comput with this voter. My husband and I are both heading to Iraq this summer so this issue is close to my heart. As a member of the Armed Serivces and the wife of a Solider that has already served one tour of duty in Iraq, I urge everyone that reads this article to write their senator and encourage them to support this bill!!
Comment: If John McCain does not support this legislation he is not a supporter of Veterans. The New GI-BIll should of never been passed. It changed because the war in Vietnam was over and we came home some used the Old Gi-Bill and it payed off for both the Veteran and the rest of society. The Defense Department has never been in touch with the Soldier. To think passing a New GI-Bill increasing benefits for the Vet would cause a retention problem is crazy thoughts from a insecure group of Leaders. Those that choose to stay in the Military chose to do so because that is what they want as a career. If you check the numbers, you will find that 75% of the Veterans never use benefits that are available including continued education...The reason for Department of Defense to take the position that a Kinder GI BIll would cause a retention problem is because it would be a threat to the Defense Budget. Directly or Indirectly.
Comment: Thanks so much for this column. I've contacted several cable news shows asking them to bring Senator Webb on to discuss the bill AND to find out just what Senator McCaln's position is on the issue(esp. when you said HE benefited from such a program, himself).Once again, our government under Bush shows it's lack of true concern and how empty the words" Support the troops" can really be by this administration. Our priorities of money being spent in Iraq would be better served helping our soldiers both in better equipment , better care for the wounded and better treatment for those who served when they return back home. Thanks for bringing this to my attention. Gail Hennessey
Comment: Thanks so much for this column. I've contacted several cable news shows asking them to bring Senator Webb on to discuss the bill AND to find out just what Senator McCaln's position is on the issue(esp. when you said HE benefited from such a program, himself).Once again, our government under Bush shows it's lack of true concern and how empty the words" Support the troops" can really be by this administration. Our priorities of money being spent in Iraq would be better served helping our soldiers both in better equipment , better care for the wounded and better treatment for those who served when they return back home. Thanks for bringing this to my attention. Gail Hennessey
Comment: Thanks, Anna, for raising this issue. I'm also the mother a former Marine (4 combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan). Our son now has to decide between putting gas in his truck (so he can keep going to job interviews and VA appointments) or trying to pay tuition. This kid entered the military on the promise of educational help if he served his country. He provided more service than he ever bargained for, but Uncle Sam has not kept up his end of the deal (it's not worth using the current limited educational benefits on lower division college credits - money runs out before the vet completes the degree).. Please keep writing, Anna - your pen is a formidable offensive weapon against this arrogant, hypocritical and incompetent administration
Comment: The present situation regarding politicians who will not commit to increasing veterans' educational funds makes me sick. It clearly indicates the lack of character most politicians have and it explains why I do not even want to cast my vote this election year. I will though becasue my Marine veteran son said he will be very dissappointed if I fail to vote. I am so very proud and grateful to him for his 8 years of service to his country that I would never want to fail him. The politicians though(including his Commander in Chief) are not worthy to wipe the sand of his well worn combat boots.
Comment: The present situation regarding politicians who will not commit to increasing veterans' educational funds makes me sick. It clearly indicates the lack of character most politicians have and it explains why I do not even want to cast my vote this election year. I will though becasue my Marine veteran son said he will be very dissappointed if I fail to vote. I am so very proud and grateful to him for his 8 years of service to his country that I would never want to fail him. The politicians though(including his Commander in Chief) are not worthy to wipe the sand of his well worn combat boots.
Comment: I enjoyed every word of this article, and found myself saying "Yes!' at the end of almost every sentece. The existing GI Bill has failed to keep up with the rising costs of college, and it is time to do something about it. Any politician who does not support a change to the bill should be questioned. My husband is currently serving in the Marine Corp, and knows that staying in the military would be better at this point, because his options would be limited in the civilian world without college. Covering those expenses would be nearly impossible right now, even with the help of the GI Bill. I hope the in the future the discrepencies can be resolved for all of those who serve our country.
Comment: My husband served in Vietnam and was able to take advantage of the GI bill to obtain his education, upon returning from the war. I, too, served during Vietnam, but began my family and did not use my GI bill benefits. Now, our 20-year-old son has returned from Iraq and looks forward to having some money for an education when he finishes his commitment to the Army, in 2009. If we can send our young people to fight for our freedom, surely they deserve the finances to have a decent education when they finish serving their country.
Comment: The Liberal Democrtaic Congress killed the GI bill in 1979 and introduced VEAP or Veterans Educational Assistance Program, whereby a soldier contributes money to the fund and the DOD matches that contribution up to $2. Meaning you give $2 and DOD gives$2. It was weak then and later came the Montgomery GI Bill. I am not sure how it worked, but iI have not heard about it since the Clinton years.
I am not a liberal and do approve of most social spending programs, but this would be a good idea. Thanks for bringing it up.
Comment: Iwas in the U.S. Army for four years. I joined to serve my country like all of the men in my families history. I paid for the G.I.Bill but it expired and I never got to use a dime of it. My father past away when I first went in ,when I served my time and got out I had to work two jobs to help support my Mother and younger siblings. In order to get the G.I.Bill stated you almost had to go to school full time and I could never afford that oppurtunity. So I continued to work two jobs and save all that I could. I am now 37years old. I paid off four houses working my two jobs. I am semi retired and live off my rental income.If your going to join the military do it to serve your country don't do it for the college money. You may be very disapointed....
Comment: The original GI Bill was an earned benefit for honorable military service -- not just an educational benefit -- it provided access to VA medical facilities, job training opportunities, guaranteed home loans, and unemployment compensation. Most of all it was available for all eligible veterans two decades before major civil rights legislation. Many minority veterans and economically disadvantaged veterans had equal access to the benefits. These were earned benefits from a grateful nation for honorable military service. Clearly, a "hand up" rather than a "hand out." As a third-generation Legionnaire, I am proud of the role of The American Legion in getting this bill signed into law -- it almost died in Committee passing by just one vote.
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