Thanks to Gregg Terhune. His letter was published in the Reporter-Times of Martinsville and Morgan County, Indiana.

May 28, 2008

Recently the U. S. House of Representatives passed an undated version of the GI Bill. The bill must now go to the Senate for approval there.

Both President Bush and presidential candidate John McCain spoke out against the bill. President Bush implied that that the benefits in the bill were too expensive and that he would veto it if it passed in the Senate. Senator McCain said that the educational benefits in the bill would encourage the troops to leave the service so they could take advantage of those benefits, so therefore, he intends to vote against the bill. John McCain is just out of touch. When I enlisted in the Army in 1965, it was the educational benefits that drew me into the service in the first place.

Nels Ackerson, candidate for United States Congress in Indiana’s 4th District, said this: “Education is one of the benefits promised to our military veterans since World War II. With unemployment rates for veterans much higher than the rest of the population, it is crucial to provide adequate education and job training to individuals as they transition from active duty back to the workforce.”

Where Mr. Ackerson sees this bill as just one way that we can honor the service men and women for the sacrifice that they are making on our behalf, President Bush and Senator McCain don’t seem to care about the troops.

President Bush says that the GI Bill is too expensive, but there are several sources showing that the educational benefits of the GI Bill have paid us back seven times over. The following Web sites all say that the original GI Bill turned out not only to be the right thing to do, but also to be a good investment:

http://www.intel-dump.com/archives/archive_2008_01_27-2008_02_02.shtml

http://freehighered.org/h_gifact.html

http://www.gibill2008.org/news/

We need people like Nels Ackerson serving Indiana in Congress to support our troops and our values.

Gregg Terhune

Community activist