I posted on babylon sisters post earlier about my son who died

[az chela]

due to negligencefrom the va.The story is so long that I left out so much of it but I forgot to tell what they did to him at the va hospital in Boise Idaho.He went to the er one night because he was in such pain.The va had amputated his foot and he had quit taking his pain pills and the pain was so bad that he went to the er for some help.He was very agitated and was getting loud as he was being ignored and they sprayed him in the face with pepper spray and handcuffed him and pushed him in his wheel chair out to the curb and left him there.A cop came by and saw him and took him home.He was so humiliated that he just quit fighting.He was dead less than a month later from methadone the va gave him.There were no other drugs or alcohol in his toxicology report just methadone and not a lot of it.I had talked to him that morning and he was in a good mood but mentally he just couldnt take it anymore.He lost his will to live.

[Swamp Rat]

1. .

:hug:

[nicknameless]

34. Link to babylonsister's thread OP refers to:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x345650

:cry:

[flamingyouth]

2. ...

:cry::hug:

[GreenPartyVoter]

3. I am so sorry *hugs*

[samdogmom]

9. There are no words that can fix this!

Damn you George W. Bush! Damn you Richard Cheney! And damn you rest the of this pathetic, useless, sorry excuse of an administration!

[auntAgonist]

4. I'm SO sorry for your loss

:cry:

:hug:

aA
kesha

[La_Fourmi_Rouge]

5. .....

[Nite Owl]

6. What have we done...

The fight for him and those others in such pain will never stop. Our fight will never stop.

I'm so sorry for your loss, know that you are not alone.

[Straight Shooter]

7. Good gawd.

To nurture your child through infancy and into the adult years, to have dreams for your child, to believe that he will be happy someday, then to watch those who don't even bother getting to know him destroy his life, and destroy your dreams ...

I'm so sorry we have come to this in America. :hug:

[Erika]

8. The VA let us down

Period.

[man4allcats]

10. I am so sorry for the grief you are enduring.

This is a sad story. It is sad for you and sad for your son. His battle is over though not in a good way, but it is over nevertheless. You need to concentrate on yourself now. I'm sure that's what your son would have wanted you to do. Take care, and you can PM me anytime and if ever you want.

[ancient_nomad]

11. Words escape me....

I am so very sorry.

:hug:

[rockymountaindem]

12. Wow. I'm so sorry

I hope you get some justice for you and your son.

[grace0418]

13. I'm so sorry.

What else can anyone say? How terribly, terribly tragic.

:hug:

[Monkeyman]

14. You have this vets heart

[SeattleGirl]

15. What a horrible thing for them to do to your son.

I'm so sorry for your loss, and for how badly your son was treated. :hug:

[Breeze54]

16. I'm so sad for you and outraged!

My gawd! They are pathetic!

How dare they treat a veteran that way?? How dare they?!? :grr: :grr:

I didn't see the topic you posted in and now I wish I had....

I'm so sorry this happened to you and your family. :cry:

Thank You for sharing your painful story with all of us.

I hope you have shared it with other military families, as well.

I'm sure MFSO http://www.mfso.org/ would love to hear about this!

Maybe you could write to Cindy Sheehan? Gold Star Mothers? http://www.gsfso.org/

More people need to hear what is happening at the VA, how the Vets are treated and where this happened!



:hug:

[az chela]

26. Cindy is a very close friend of mine and my son died a few

months before Casey and we have been friends for almost 3 years and we share each others pain and sorrow.

[Breeze54]

28. Thanks for the info.

I'm still outraged and sorry this happened to your son and your family.

:hug:

Cindy and You :yourock:

[lyonn]

17. Oh the sadness, we can't take your pain away but we can

let you know how much we care. Hopefully there will be help for all the other dear soldiers that have needs similar to your son's and up until now have gone unheard about. Take care.

[Spangle]

18. I'm sorry

Words don't help. I know. But I still wanted you to know that I'm sorry and ashamed that your son was treated this way. For his part in defending our country, he deserved so much more. Your aware of this. Sadly, so many are not aware how these young men and women are being treated.

[donheld]

19. I'm so very sorry

How can they sleep at night?

[TomInTib]

20. Good God, what have we come to?

Pepper-sprayed and handcuffed?

When he was already missing a foot?

I have spent a lot of time in military hospitals.

And now it has come to this...

[Duppers]

21. I don't have words except

to say that I am SO SORRY. I sense your outrage and your sorrow and hope that you find a good lawyer.
THIS SHOULD NOT HAVE HAPPENED!

(I lost a baby once and as painful as that was, I realize your pain is so much greater.)

Sending you my deepest condolences.

[TacticalPeek]

22. I am so very sorry.

We all have lost.

A Poem That I Wrote In A High Fever

You who are lengthening your lives
with the best doctors and the best medicines
remember those who are shortening their lives
with the wars
that you in your long lives are not
preventing.

You who are again screwing
the younger generations
and winking at each other
the winking of your eyelids
is like the chill of the swinging shutters
in an empty house.


-- Yehuda Amichai

[Hekate]

23. Az Chela, I am so sorry for your terrible loss. I don't recognize my country any more...

I just don't. Your story brings me to tears. I am glad you post here, and hope for your continued strength of heart. :hug:

Hekate

[earth mom]

24. I'm so sorry for your loss.

:hug:

[intaglio]

25. THEY do not recognise pain

not his - nor yours.

:hug: from an ally

[ninkasi]

27. That is truly heartbreaking

I am so very, very sorry for your loss. How can this country continue to permit those who serve to protect us, be treated this shabbily? I agree completely with you, that the trauma of being abused by the country he served, or the government which put him in the condition he was in, must have completely shattered his will to live. Your son lived up to the commitment he made when he enlisted. The government which took control of his life after he made that commitment let him down.

Again, I am so, so sorry. Parents should never have to bury their children. :hug: I did not see the thread you mentioned, do you mind giving a link, because I do want to read it. What happened to your son should never have happened.

[az chela]

29. The post that I wrote is on here on the greatest page

It is called LAND OF HOPE by Cindy Sheehan and posted by Babylon sister.
Thank you so much from my heart to all of you.I spend hours on the computer every day doing what I can to take down this government and DU is my strenght

[fooj]

30. I wish I could take some of your pain...

I feel so ashamed. I feel helpless. I'm so sorry you have been through so much. Your loss must seem unbearable at times. Always know that we are here for you. We are a community. We care. :grouphug:

[NoSheep]

68. I am so sorry for what you and your son have been through.

This is just so very sad.

[Solly Mack]

31. .

((az chela))

no words

[BlueIris]

32. OMG. My sincerest condolences.

That is one of the most terrible stories I have ever heard.

[nicknameless]

33. .

Too obscene and tragic for words.

K&R

[xchrom]

35. i can't imagine your loss.

my most heartfelt condolences go out to you and yours.

[malaise]

36. I am speechless

I can't imagine your pain. :cry:

[SalmonChantedEvening]

37. Truly sorry for your loss az chela

:hug: :cry: :hug: :cry: :hug:

[salin]

38. az chela

deepest condolences for you - and great sorrow for the loss of your son - first the loss of his vitality, later his dignity and finally his life. :cry:

[stellanoir]

39. ((((((((((((((((((((((( az chela )))))))))))))))))))))))))

Glad to see you typed it all out on the other thread. Hope that was cathartic for you even if it can't possibly bring him back.

I wonder how many similar stories are out there. Ranging from some older guy I remember when I was really young who would wander the streets cursing really loudly, still shell shocked from WWII, to the number of Nam vets who never got care and where esssentially kicked to the curb, to the vets from desert strom suffering and dying silently (the percentages are really unbelievably high) from the unmentionably curious ill effects of desert storm syndrome, to the incalculable suffering of those grieving from the deaths and injuries from this heinous and purposeless war, Iraqi, American, and the formerly coaliton of the coerced, it's just such an incredible and colossally senseless waste and not even remotely humane.

I shocked myself by saying to Steph after she told me in great detail of her son's Nikki maltreatment in the military from boot camp through gimping through two tours in Iraq and the acute degree of his injuries and suffering, "He's better off dead." She amazingly agreed with me. Yikes.

I also wonder how long it'll take for our short sighted and selfishly unelightened leadership to realize that wars are no longer winnable in this still new millennium.

I'm pleased at least, that you and Cindy have each other.

Blessings dear.

:grouphug:

[Vinca]

40. How horrible. I'm so sorry for him and for you. nt

[Carni]

41. You should contact the IMUS show about this

First of all let me say how sorry I am for your loss.

Second, I don't like IMUS but he is on a real roll about how poorly US troops are being treated and speaks at length on the topic daily (I have to give the devil his due he is doing something useful for a change)

I know that the families of the troops need their privacy and that sharing this info must be very painful, but the more quickly the public knows what is going on the sooner this will all end.

Again I am so sorry.

[Missy M]

42. What is wrong with this country. How could such a thing happen..

to anyone, specially someone who served his country. It's a good thing the Walter Reed situation is in the news and hopefully it will lead to looking into the other VA Hospital conditions. I am horrified over what happened to your son and my heart goes out to you and your family.

[Tsiyu]

43. This is so disgusting and sad

:cry:

and my heart goes out to you. I cannot believe how depraved and lacking in mercy the VA has become under Bush.

The HELL they have put our Vets through is a statement of how low and how sick the nation is under "conservative" rule. Conservatives do not know what mercy, compassion or even competence mean. All they know is brute force, neglect and denial.

I am so sorry for what your son - and you - went through. :hug:

[yellerpup]

44. Such cruelty and hardheartedness from the 'Greatest Nation'

I am so sorry for your loss. More and more of us are working every day to change things, to stop the war, to get the best medical help that can be found for those afflicted so that they, like your precious son, will not give up hope. My deepest condolences. :cry: :hug:

[lonestarnot]

45. OMG I hate these people!

I am so sorry about your son. :cry: :hug:

[Horse with no Name]

46. I am so sorry.

My Uncle utilized the Boise VA as well.
He served 3 tours in Viet Nam. He was exposed to Agent Orange and had lung and heart problems because of it.
The Boise VA told him he needed bypass surgery. They sent him to Seattle I believe (it was Washington I remember).
Anyway, he died on the table having the bypass surgery. He was in his late 40's.
When his wife tried to get his benefits, she met a stone wall. They said he had never served in Viet Nam.
It took a couple of years to get everything straightened out because they weren't married when he served and she had no idea he had squirreled away every document he could. She didn't find the stash until he was dead for two years. And then there was nothing they could say.

[H2O Man]

47. There are

no words.

[all.of.me]

48. ugh. that is awful. i am so sorry. n/t

[hlthe2b]

49. I am so very very very sorry az chela...

I am so sorry our government and country let your son down-let you down.

May you find the peace that your son is surely feeling now.

[Time for change]

50. That is such a sad story

Thank you for letting us know about it.

Publicizing things like this will hopefully lead to making the culprits accountable for such vile actions -- and ultimately to changes in the system.

I wonder how much of this is endemic to the VA system, and how much is attributable more to the current administration. I suspect the latter. :hug:

[Cerridwen]

51. .

I couldn't speak even if I had any words to say.

:cry: :hug:

[LibDemAlways]

52. So sorry to read this. It must have been a

nightmare for your entire family.

More families need to come forward and speak out about abuse in the VA hospital system. I hope you will contact your Congressional Representative and Senators and share this. For once, you'll have their attention.

[madokie]

53. I'm sorry for his and your loss, none of this is right

isn't methadone dangerous in that it takes longer for it to clear out of your system than the therapeutic benefits last.

[wryter2000]

54. OMG

I'm so sorry. This is horrible. Have you contacted Waxman? This must all be documented.

:hug: :cry:

[riderinthestorm]

55. You are so strong in the face of such pain and sorrow.

I can't even imagine how hard this all must be. I admire you so much for your work so that others can be more fortunate than your son. :hug:

[Eurobabe]

56. I am so sorry for you, this is just an OUTRAGE!!

how awful for your son and for you to have to endure this. I think the US is coming apart at the seams.

[Morgana LaFey]

57. OMG. Every person who works in that place needs to be forced

to face what went on and the result, your son's death. EVERY ONE OF THEM, esp. the individuals who did that and esp. the head of the place.

In the meantime, please get this to Waxman and others in Congress who are working on the Walter Reed scandal. This fits right in with what Waxman said, "This is just the tip of the iceberg."

Please.

I am so sorry. But if you have the strength at all, please honor your son's death by sharing the details with Waxman, et. al., if you haven't already.

Dammit. I want a beautiful black WALL somewhere for people like your son.

[ThatsMyBarack]

58. That is....

INEXCUSABLE AND HEINOUS! :mad:

[Cabcere]

59. I am so sorry, az chela.

:cry: There are no words I can say to make this better, but your family and others like you who have lost loved ones are constantly in my thoughts and prayers. :hug:

[sonias]

60. Such a sad story az chela

I am so sorry for your loss. Please try to put the account in a letter to your congressman/woman. I think now that the failures of the V.A. are front and center, your story could do other good men and women having to deal with them some good. Do it for your son.

:hug:

Sonia

[terip64]

61. I'm sorry...

[libodem]

62. My heart goes out to you

I am troubled to hear of the circumstances under which your son passed. Loosing a child is the worst pain a mother can suffer. So very sorry. My prayers are with you. Perhaps your story can make a difference for another soldier and your son's death will serve a higher purpose.

[Child_Of_Isis]

63. Sorry for your loss.

I heard on the news that methodone is responsible for quite a few lives being lost. I was under the impression that something is going to be done about it.

[Maraya1969]

64. I am so sorry

:hug:

[wicket]

65. Words fail

You and your family are in my thoughts and prayers.

:hug:

[bonito]

66. Wishing you peace

In a heartbreaking world:hug:

[Joe Chi Minh]

67. Why is it that the scum in our two countries always floats to the top,

while, since the end of WWII, in the advanced countries of continental Western Europe, their people have managed to contain the scum in some kind of suspension; the people have not been so comprehensively marginalised by the criminal underbelly of the business world and government, and actually have a say in the way in which their country is governed?

What a horror story, particularly, in a country which purports to honour its service men and women! I'm sure we'll all be prompted to pray for you and your son, in our different ways.

[Malmo Blue]

69. I'm sorry to hear about your loss. :'(

Whoever came up with the phrase "'compassionate' conservative" - I want to punch that person in the face.

[Th1onein]

70. OH. MY. GOD.

Those sorry bastards! This story needs to be spread far and wide. Oh my god.

[mmonk]

71. I'm so sorry.

I hope you find peace and get justice.

[Delphinus]

72. My friend,

I am so sorry to hear that your son died - and that he suffered at the hands of the inept VA. May he now be at peace; may you find your own peace in this life.

[ourbluenation]

73. .

[Mnemosyne]

74. There are no words, az chela. I am so terribly sorry.

:hug::cry::hug:

[ray of light]

75. words can't say how sorry I am for you and for your beloved son.

[MissWaverly]

76. I am so sorry for your loss

I am sorry that he wasn't treated better, I am sorry that his injury and his care wore
him down to nothing, tell his story everywhere, the only way people will change is when
they know what has been done in our name, nobody here would treat anybody like that, yesterday, I wheeled a man who had lost a leg, halfway across the hospital when he got lost,
something is wrong, we are on the wrong track, how do we get back on the right track,
I dunno, but we got to keep on trying, I would write your senator and congressman what
happened and DEMAND an apology from them, they weren't providing any oversight, they
are not on paid vacation down there in DC, hold them accountable.