How we treat our Vets
68Recently I found out that a man I knew, a Viet Nam vet, had died. Homeless. Under an overpass in Redwood City, California.
He was an Army Ranger, and a highly-trained sniper. He and a team of four or five guys would disappear into the Viet Nam jungle for a month at a time and take out various strongholds, and strategic members of the Viet Cong. Through this work, he saved thousands of American lives, as well as thousands of South Viet Namese lives. He did a job no one wanted to do and not many could do.
When he came back to the US he had a hard time relating to life here, after the life he had led there, so he went back for a second stint. Also, all of America had decided to spit in his face for just being a Vet. And not just a Vet, a Viet Nam Vet. It was ok to be a WWII Vet. Or a Korean War Vet. But Viet Nam? No. They were just baby killers, right?
When he did finally come home for good he worked for a living like everybody else. But an unusual thing started to happen in the US. Slowly, it became wrong to defend one's country. Wrong to be the one to do the dirty jobs. Wrong to have to kill ones enemies.
So wrong, in fact, that there are now many who would say that this man deserved what happened to him. Dying alone and sick under an overpass.
But look at what he, and men like him did for us. For one, we're not all shouting "Heil Hitler". For another, he helped to hold Communism at bay. We're not a communist country (not yet, anyway).
His contribution to our freedom was immense. He did what most people would find horrifying, but still had to be done. Benjamin Franklin said that, "Freedom often depends upon the actions of a few rough men."
And yet our culture has degenerated so far as to let this brave, patriotic man die in such a way. Even going so far as to sneer at his homelessness.
So, I want to offer a prayer for Richard. That was his name. Richard Kraft. Sergeant Richard Kraft. And I ask everyone else to offer a prayer also, if you believe in freedom as defined by our Constitution, if you think our Vets deserve better, for doing the nasty job of fighting and dying so we may be free, or if you just think that no one should have to suffer like he did.
God Bless you Richard. I know you're in a better place.
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Comments
James - Thank you. The people who do the hardest jobs for us deserve a lot more than we are obviously giving them. I have heard that the current admin wants vets to pay for their own healthcare! Oh, we'll pay for everyone else, but not them. Did I hear correctly? Anyway, thank you for your compassion.
Its all part of the sacrafice, as a vet myself
going over there no one has to say it
you just know it
your no longer apart of the citizen world
and then you get out its a limbo not apart of either society
its a shame some guys cope some fall apart but your never the same
J.Stump - no, you're never the same, but with just a little more support from our fellow countrymen, maybe, just maybe, such a tragic end could have been avoided. Lots of people like the benefits of freedom without having to pay for it. Freedom, after all, is not free.
as a tgree tour nam vet (swift boats) i know exactly how he felt
thats why i hide in the bayous of the gulf of mexico
me and my wolf
riverChief - God Bless you. Say hello to your wolf for me.
Veterans are on my mind all the time. I reminded everybody how many died in WW1 and WW2 in my blog "Obama - remember Memorial day"
Vietnam veterans had a hard time being recognized for many years.
I'm a French veteran in the war in Algeria 1954-1962. No recognition either.
Thanks for all your comments.
SGT Richard Kraft bless you and rest in peace brother. And you too madame X for publishing this.
Thanks, thinking our loud - I'm sure Richard hears our prayers on his behalf.
Just a sad than you for your page. It is truly shameul for how we Vets are treated. I am one, yet blessed by God that I never had to experience the loneliness that he must of felt or abandoment from his country after he served. I sent a prayer for him after reading your message.
It is a disgusting thing the politicians have done to Vets. We give illegal aliens,terrorists and criminal better care than we give our soldiers and veterans. The news and all the political hacks and even the new president all use fancy words and fake sadness to act like they care...It is a farce, if they put true actions to words then it would mean something, they keep cutting Veterans programs and medical care or to give homeless vets a hand.
So please write your representives and tell them to do more and most of all pray for them. And is your a Vet and see another Vet on the street homeless, give them a firm handshake and a meal and whatever is in your heart to do.
william - thanks for your heartfelt comments. Our vets won't be treated well until people recognize that the only reason they have their freedom is because of veterans. The problem is that there is a concerted effort to "redefine" what freedom really is.
Great hub. Both of my brothers were in Viet Nam. As most everyone now knows, they were not welcomed home as heroes but quite the opposite. Where would we be without our brave men and women who put their lives on the line for the rest of us to enjoy the freedoms that we have? Our veterans deserve not only our heartfelt thanks, but any other help that we can give them. God bless them each and every one!
Thanks Peggy - I know a lot of Viet Nam vets weren't welcomed back and that's a stain on our culture - especially in light of what they sacrificed for us. Seems the only Nam vets that were honored are the dead ones. We've learned our lesson though. Many people don't agree with the war in Iraq but everyone honors our troops, and rightly so. Thanks for stopping by.
Thank you for your expression of honor and grief for Sgt. Richard Kraft. I join with you. My brother came back from Viet Nam with injury disabilities and he struggled through till he became rewarded with 'Teacher of the Year' in his school district for three years. We owe these soldiers a BUNCH!
Although I was already stationed in Germany and thus not shipped to Viet Nam when we officially opened hostilities in that country, I am definitely a Viet Nam ERA Vet. A close friend (and brother to my sister's wife) was in the same draft allotment with me, and he DID go in-country.
I've said my prayer for Sgt. Richard Kraft, and my sense of things is that he definitely heard me, brother to brother.
My best friend when I lived in South Dakota was a sniper in Viet Nam. He told me his worst experience over there. I believe it truly was the worst, and certainly not mine to share here--besides which, your readers could not take it. He also warned me not to get to close to him--that he could not be trusted.
He later proved the truth to his words in a sense, though under circumstances for which I could not truly blame him. But we believe he blamed himself. We never saw him again, and when we tried to make contact, his phone was disconnected and the home in which he had lived for years was vacant.
The only closure was a dream Pam had a couple of years after we left the state. Our friend was hiking down a road. I was driving a big rig, Pam was with me, and we stopped to offer him a ride. He was hesitant. Pam assured him we did not blame him for anything. Whether he accepted her reassurance, we do not know; she woke up.
Ghost - Richard blamed himself also. He didn't talk to me about it as much as he did my husband, but I could see it eating away at him. There was no one for him with which to process all that he'd been through. They send these guys out, have them do the dirtiest work, and then when they get out say, ok bud, you're on your own. It's terrible.
As for Pam's dreams, I am a great believer in the communications that dreams deliver. They are very important messages, if you can read them correctly. In this case I'd agree with you - you did get closure.
Thanks for all your kind words.
Madame X thanks for this wonderful hub as it fulfilled the one thing I think all of us old soldiers that is to be remembered. God Bless you Ma'am
Hmrjmr1 - Again, you're welcome. I take very much to heart the saying,
"If you live in a free country, thank a vet!"
I am genuinely thankful for all the the sacrifices, and especially the ultimate sacrifice, that are made by men and women in uniform so that I may be free.
God Bless you.
War is hell in many ways. I salute the fine men who have fought for us in all the conflicts. Snipers are a different breed altogether. May Richard at least rest in peace. It is so sad what those men went through, my late brother was one of them. thanks MX
ralwus - I'm sorry about your brother, may he rest in peace. Thank you for your kind words.
Thank you so very much for paying tribute to this fallen soldier who made it through Viet Nam but wasn't able to make it through the life he faced when he returned. How heartbreaking.
My husband just returned from Iraq and my son is serving in Afghanistan right now. My daughter's boyfriend will be deployed to Afghanistan in a month -- this means so much to an Army wife and Army Mom - recognition of ALL of our service members who give so much is sometimes taken for granted. I thank God for our men and women who serve and who have served. Thank you Madame X for calling attention to our American heroes.
cjv123 - You are very welcome. I think of our servicemen and women all the time, and how through their efforts and courage I may continue to rest easy in the joys of freedom. God Bless your husband and son and your daughter's bf. No one gives as much as they do. Thanks for posting.
Sgt. Richard Kraft I believe you are with our Lord and Savior now. Your are being rewarded in Heaven for your service to your/our country. You in all truth gave your life in Viet Nam, as many others did, for that is when the life you once new and enjoyed ended. When you returned to your country, you should have done so with a Hero's welcome. You should have had psychological, medical and financial care provided by the government which sent you to Viet Nam. You should have had friends and family surrounding you with support. I am thankful to God that you are now cared for and loved the way you always should have been. Thank you Lord, my God. It is a disgrace to look back and see the way our soldiers were treated. It is shameful and disrespectful. The soldiers of today are given Heroes welcomes when they return home and they are cared for. The Veterans Administration can still do more though. The budget is too tight where they are concerned! Improvements to Veterans Hospitals still need to be made. I am so sorry for your pain over this Madame X, it should NEVER have happened.
Kebennet1 - thank you so much for your heartfelt prayers. I believe Richard can hear you - can hear all of us. And I hope he feels the warmth and gratitude we all share towards him. Thank you :)
My dad and uncles were all World War II vets, and my grandfather fought in World War I. All the men and women who serve deserve our utmost repsect and gratitude. Great hub!
Thanks habee. It's always closer to home when family members have served.
As a combat soldier from the N company 75th Rangers 173rd Airborne I salute you for the way you told this Veterans story. Many of us came back to become very successful. I became a police officer was decorated many times including a law enforcement medal of honor, live saving awards, was selected officer of the year for the City of San Diego twice, Narcotics officer for the State of California once.
I was the youngest lieutenant in the history of the city. Then my world caved in and I became nothing but an empty shell. The war came rushing back to destroy my life.
It is only through luck and a will to see my grandchildren grown that I'm here today.
Oh yes and writing, my therapy. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your caring understanding description of one of my fellow soldiers.
James A Watkins says:
7 months ago
Well, this story brings tears to my eyes. I knew many boys who came home from VietNam in rough shape psychologically. Many have done well, too. I did, just now, say a prayer for Sgt. Richard Kraft and for you, too, as obviously this man's end troubles you deeply. Our war veterans should be honored and cared for to the utmost. Thank you for a heartfelt Hub about an important subject.