Sunday papers and morning talking heads were recently full of the "Walter Reed scandal." This is hypocritical. I know that The Advertiser and every member of the Hawai'i congressional delegation has received letters about poor treatment for veterans for years.

In 2002, more than 300,000 veterans were waiting for primary-care appointments at Veterans Administration facilities. The American Legion launched a national campaign to alert Congress of the problem.

On Dec. 22, 2002, Wayne Washington wrote in the Boston Globe, "The leaders of America's most prominent veterans organizations say that President Bush is failing to honor past commitments to military men and women even as he prepares to send a new generation of soldiers and sailors into combat."

Washington continued: "The administration's support for rescinding lifetime health benefits for World War II and Korean War veterans and continuing problems at veterans hospitals stand as proof, veteran leaders say, that America is more than willing to lean on its soldiers during times of war but tolerates them serving as political props in peacetime."

Since the beginning of the United States in 1776, there has never been a prolonged period when the troops were not called upon in the defense of the nation. Also in that regard, there has never been a time when our nation has adequately cared for its veterans.

Veterans of WWI — the Bonus Army — had to set up tents in Washington to make their point to Congress, but were forcefully evicted from the area by Maj. Gen. Douglas MacArthur in 1932.

Women were not considered veterans until after WWII, and before this they were not eligible for VA benefits. Some WWII veterans in more than 60 years still have not had their cases settled suitably. And the WWII Filipino veterans are continuously denied.

Based on the numbers of "atomic veterans" (as well as Korean, Vietnam, Cold War, Gulf War and the present war veterans) who have been denied claims and services, I would have to say that the government does not care about its people who have served willingly and honorably.

Title 38 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Pensions, Bonuses and Veterans Relief states very clearly how veterans are to be treated, yet the VA, with the assistance of the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA), has consistently refused and denied claims of veterans, some going back as far as WWII.

The DTRA is staffed by contractors and is under the direction of the Defense Department.

The veterans treated at Spark Matsunaga VA Medical Center say the treatment is excellent and the facility outstanding, but the paperwork and red tape is unbelievable. Almost every veteran with whom I've talked told me that they had to file their claims at least three times before getting any satisfaction. Most just give up.

And for those who get the claims, their disabilities are minimized. Even the numbers of injured veterans are skewed. The government told us that 23,000 troops were injured. Now we find that the number is more like 200,000.

At the Senate Committee on Education and Military Affairs hearing on March 29, 2006, Maj. Gen. Robert Lee of the state Department of Defense testified that the National Guard did not have the money to test all of the returning Iraq and Afghanistan veterans for depleted uranium.

How can the military at every level not have the money to treat the veterans?

In 2006, Congress denied veterans, as well as residents of Hawai'i, "the right to know" what biological weapons, Project Shad 221, were used on us.

How can Congress and the media pretend they did not know? We are asked to support the troops, yet our own government does not.

MarshaRose Joyner is president of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday Coalition and of the Coalition for Human Rights Education.