Originally Posted by
reCALcitrant
Happy New Year to you also. I had a small statement in there. I should have been more clear. If Uncle Sam asked you for something in your service that disabled you, I feel it should be taken care of by medical benefits. If the disability kept you from making a living after your service then compensation is definitely in order. If, however, you get out and are not financially damaged by potential earnings by your injury, etc. then the taxpayer should pay nothing.
I.E. if I have a 10% hearing loss over a 20 year career, why should I get money? Our whole society is so damn litigious that even when there is no financial damage, people think they get some sort of "pain and suffering". I am specifically talking about flyers in this regard because I know many who have done it. How come they are on flying duty and then the week before they retire, they are disabled?
Then the week after that, they are working flying again. It's called a lie. We've taken many an oath not to be like the rest of society in that regard.
There are many honorable veterans that deserve our money to take care of injuries caused by what we ask of them. Let's not take from that pot with BS claims.
Again, not painting everybody in this light. Just the dirt bags who wake up with a back ache because they are old and want you and I to pay for it.
I agree in principle.
However, how many times did you not go to the doc because you didn't want to be DNIF and let your squadron down? How many times did you fly when you could've legitimately gone DNIF? How long did you put off that rotator cuff surgery because you knew your squadron would be in a bind, or someone else had to deploy? You know, that ache you felt when you wrenched your arm slipping and catching yourself getting into/out of the plane. How much was your circadian rhythm ignored and abused for 20 years to the point you can either a) sleep anywhere/anytime or b) never get a decent night's sleep? Or how 'bout those knees with almost no cartilage in them because as a condition of employment with Uncle Sugar, you're required to run and stay in their idea of 'shape'? Or that back you tweaked helping to load an airplane?
How much is simple aging and how much is duty? I'm not defending the gross offenders, but to make a blanket statement like, "...if you get out and are not financially damaged by potential earnings by your injury, etc. then the taxpayer should pay nothing" glosses over a lot of sacrifice. I don't think it's nearly as black and white as you see it.
My long-winded point is, there's more to it than just being asked to take a hill and getting shot up. There's a lot of damage done, quite often, by delaying 'routine' care or minor repair out of a sense of duty that the average aging worker in the general population doesn't do and never will do. If you push your body harder as a condition of employment, without the ability to decline, the wear and tear is no longer 'typical' or simple 'aging'.
As for the hearing loss, if you work in the documented loudest cockpit environment in the USAF, I think it's a fair claim. I mean, if the USAF is tracking your entire crew force to monitor for increased hearing loss, there may be something there beyond simple aging and the associated hearing loss.
What about looking at a TV screen 1" from your eyes for hours on end? Does that affect your vision over time? Do you let your kids sit 2" from the TV at home?
My back is still tweaked. I'm in some relatively minor pain every day. It did occur while doing something for the USAF. Same with my knees. My shoulder, I did get surgery on, and it's better, but not perfect and likely never will be and it aches most days at least a little. How much of that is age and how much is injury? Can you tell me? Because the doc couldn't.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not condoning the abuse of the system - which absolutely does happen. But you can't paint all the guys that get all their 'ills' repaired during their last year with the same brush. Likewise, you can't paint all the guys who make claims with the same brush. And just because you toughed it out and flew every day while in, doesn't mean you're lying if you make significant claims when you get out. It also doesn't mean you can't be evaluated by an AME and found fit to continue flying. They're not mutually exclusive.
We may be in violent agreement here - most tend to debate at the 'extremes' of their argument to make points.
And I haven't made a claim. I believe I am entitled to make one based on my knowledge of my injuries and their causes. I have decided to defer making a claim because of the FAA's access to VA medical records and my inherent distrust of bureaucratic entities. But that too is a personal choice.
Besides, unless you reach the 51% point and garner concurrent receipt, all we're talking about is not paying tax on a tiny portion of your income - hardly "taking from the taxpayers" (and I'm not certain it even qualifies as 'compensation') ...but that's a different discussion entirely and gets political.