Earlier this week I wrote about a soldier from Pennsylvania who was wounded in Iraq, only then to be handed a bill by the Army demanding repayment of his signing bonus. (Though my original post bears today’s date, I drafted it last week, before this site was ready for broadcast). After KDKA in Pittsburg broke the story, the Army came under intense criticism for its callous action and announced that Jordan Fox, the serviceman in question, could keep the signing bonus that he very clearly earned.

But the story may not be over. As a KDKA follow-up story explains:

The Pentagon will not comment on allegations that thousands of other soldiers just sent home from Iraq and other invasions, including Afghanistan, will not receive these sorts of bills. They cannot comment on those cases.

KDKA has learned that our local congressional delegation, as well as both Pennsylvania senators, are demanding answers. We’re also being told they are pressuring the President to get involved.

The controversy over signing bonuses is just the tip of the iceberg. A recent Associated Press article explains that tens of thousands of Iraq War veterans - particularly those who were wounded in combat - are finding it difficult to make ends meet upon their return to the United States. Many are slipping through the cracks of a system that has clearly failed to meet the financial and medical needs of our servicemen and servicewomen.

As a history teacher, I’m struck by the terrible parallels between the treatment that Iraq War veterans are receiving, and the treatment that many Vietnam War veterans received in the early 1970s.

By 1973 one-third of veterans aged 25 and under were unemployed. While returning veterans of World War II received full college tuition and $75 per month in living expenses (equivalent in 1975 dollars to about $225), Vietnam vets were entitled to just $200 per month to cover both education and maintenance. For the 270,000 soldiers who were wounded in the war, and for the tens of thousands who experienced post-traumatic stress, the Veterans Administration hospital system had little to offer. “We came back really [troubled] in the head,” one Vietnam combat veteran remembered. “…I went to Walter Reed first. They put me in a situation with about 34 people in the room. How in the hell are you going to talk to me about my problems with 34 other problems in your face? I went to the VA hospital in Baltimore, and they gave me two aspirins and told me to go to bed and call in the morning.”

Our government let the Vietnam War veterans down. It’s imperative that we do right by Iraq War veterans. Four years into the current conflict, George Bush and Congress have failed in their duty to care for those who put their lives on the line.