Actually, it was my second encounter. The first was in 1971, when I used the G.I. Bill to go to graduate school. But that was just by mail. This was the local health clinic, where this morning I began the process of getting on the Agent Orange Registry. I though it was to be a health checkup. Instead, it was a signup, getting a picture i.d. done and being assigned to a doctor. The first checkup with him will be at the end of October.
The clinic was packed. They handle military retirees these days as well as veterans with little or no private health insurance. The Military Order of the Purple Heart was serving coffee. The security guard asked me if I was carrying a weapon or a knife. I said no. There was a long table of service caps and unit pins for sale, mostly Vietnam units, in case you shed your military identity years ago and now you want it back. The clinic is in the highest-crime part of town–where the land is cheapest, I suppose–so it’s surrounded by a high fence topped with concertina razor-wire. That’s a reminder of how military service is degraded in this country: Once the pols, the news media and Hollywood finish beating you up, you get shabby health care. It’s a wonder anyone serves. Better would be the system that Navy veteran Robert Heinlein wrote about in "Starship Troopers," where only veterans were allowed to vote or hold public office. That would really shake up this society.
THE TEXAS SCRIBBLER 
The VA facilities I have been to; East Orange in New Jersey was old but very clean and is also a hospital.(Was about 10 miles from our home in NJ). The one in Littleton, NH is locate in a section of the local hospital and is brand new but they do not have all the equipment to perfom certain tests. (About 50 miles from our VT home). The other one in White River Junction, VT is old, similiar to the one in East Orange. (About 100 miles from our home). All the staff and volunteers at all of these facilities are very courteous and helpful and I have never seen any razor wire or have been asked about knives or guns. I guess that it all depends when the facilities were opened. East Orange is not in the best area of New Jersey or is White River (for Vermont). The main question is – can they provide the best service to the Veteran. Joe
The VA facilities I have been to; East Orange in New Jersey was old but very clean and is also a hospital.(Was about 10 miles from our home in NJ). The one in Littleton, NH is locate in a section of the local hospital and is brand new but they do not have all the equipment to perfom certain tests. (About 50 miles from our VT home). The other one in White River Junction, VT is old, similiar to the one in East Orange. (About 100 miles from our home). All the staff and volunteers at all of these facilities are very courteous and helpful and I have never seen any razor wire or have been asked about knives or guns. I guess that it all depends when the facilities were opened. East Orange is not in the best area of New Jersey or is White River (for Vermont). The main question is – can they provide the best service to the Veteran. Joe
The VA facilities I have been to; East Orange in New Jersey was old but very clean and is also a hospital.(Was about 10 miles from our home in NJ). The one in Littleton, NH is locate in a section of the local hospital and is brand new but they do not have all the equipment to perfom certain tests. (About 50 miles from our VT home). The other one in White River Junction, VT is old, similiar to the one in East Orange. (About 100 miles from our home). All the staff and volunteers at all of these facilities are very courteous and helpful and I have never seen any razor wire or have been asked about knives or guns. I guess that it all depends when the facilities were opened. East Orange is not in the best area of New Jersey or is White River (for Vermont). The main question is – can they provide the best service to the Veteran. Joe
I can’t speak to the services yet. I’ll let you know. The employees were courteous, though a little harried even fifteen minutes after opening (the place was, as I say, packed) but the ambiance was decidedly low- rent. It would be nice if the VA would build in a better part of town, but knowing the government, and the lying pols who determine its spending, that’s a hopeless wish, I expect.
I can’t speak to the services yet. I’ll let you know. The employees were courteous, though a little harried even fifteen minutes after opening (the place was, as I say, packed) but the ambiance was decidedly low- rent. It would be nice if the VA would build in a better part of town, but knowing the government, and the lying pols who determine its spending, that’s a hopeless wish, I expect.