Seattle Post-Intelligencer: Support the Troops Just a Slogan?

Wow, the editorial board at the Seattle PI comes out swinging for our troops and the families that have to help them heal as they return home in Thursday's (now online) Opinion: "The slogan adorns bumper stickers and those yellow-ribbon trunk magnets: 'Support Our Troops.' Great slogan. But is it anything more?" Find out what's got them so tweaked, and be sure to take the poll ("Is America doing enough to help severely injured and disabled Iraq war veterans?") at the bottom of the page.

Click on 'Article Link' below tags for more...

Continuing from the Post-Intelligencer:

Most Americans have enjoyed a separate peace during the three-years-and-counting war in Iraq. The war has brought no hardships, demanded no sacrifices, except from the soldiers who've been called to fight it and their families, for whom the hardships and sacrifices have been very real.

P-I reporter Mike Barber brought that home Wednesday with the story of Staff Sgt. John Bennett, his wife, Dena, and their four children. Bennett was severely wounded in Iraq. Much of his long recovery and rehabilitation -- including his time at the Seattle VA facility -- was a nightmare for the family. They lived on credit cards and stayed in seedy hotels, far from home.

The war is producing a steady stream of badly wounded and disabled soldiers for which our veterans' facilities are unprepared. Now Seattle has a chance to support our troops with more than a bumper sticker.

The Fisher House philanthropy has helped build 33 wheelchair-friendly centers where families can live and visit wounded soldiers. We need one here. Half of the estimated $4 million to build the Seattle Fisher House must be raised locally. As of this week, the tally stood at about $70,000.

Seattle, home to software billionaires and $1 billion in sports stadia, should do better than that.

I took the liberty of quoting the editorial in full, for educational purposes only.

Please, if you would like:

• Thank the Seattle PI for their strong show of support for their local veterans and their families.
  
• Share your comments in their 'Sound Off' area.
  
• Consider donating to the Fisher House (national/international donations welcomed).
  
• And don't forget to take the poll found at the bottom of the editorial page.