Readers React: Is VA disability waste really a big problem?

To the editor: If there is going to be any waste in my federal government, I prefer it to be with the Department of Veterans Affairs’ disability payments made to those who served. I’d rather it be there than with money given to foreign countries or to pay for politicians’ junkets and boondoggles. (“Disability system for veterans strays far from its official purpose,” Nov. 16)

Our veterans deserve whatever they can get from the government, especially when it comes to disability payments. We ought to show our thanks to them for their service in all ways possible.

Lawrence Loughlin, Culver City

The writer is a retired Army sergeant first class.

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To the editor: “Support the troops” has taken on a whole new meaning now that I have read this article.

All this time, I thought I was offering my tax dollars to those veterans whose wounds prevented them from earning a living and the support of my gratitude to all the rest who have served. It is shocking and appalling to learn that some veterans are getting paid, for life, for medical conditions that happen to most of us as we age.

I also “suffer” from many of the “disabilities” on that list but would never dream of asking taxpayers to compensate me for them. Veterans who engage in this deception, and the politicians who are too chicken to correct it, should be ashamed.

Diane Scholfield, Vista, Calif.

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