To the editor:

This morning I was watching the early news before going to work — I always do. This morning was just a bit different for me.

I know that our veterans are treated like dirt by the Veterans Affairs administration, you see it almost every day on the news. The veterans’ paperwork or claims are lost and in most cases just thrown away. It is a disgrace to treat these men and women this way.

These men and woman have given so much to all of us. They protect us from our enemies who seek to do us harm. These veterans of today and of 200 years ago deserve our utmost respect, in life and death. The VA has let hundreds of them die while waiting for treatment; this is just wrong. Heads should roll from the top down within this administration, but they never will.

The story that I wish to tell you about takes place in Missouri. It seems almost 200 grave markers were found in a landfill. I could hardly believe what I was hearing. How and why? It made no sense. There are a lot of things in these days and times that do not make any sense. But this was disgraceful to treat these stones in this manner.

It only gets worse. These headstones were being used as a walkway and as steps. Not all of the stones were face-up, but enough were. What kind of man could walk on these sacred memorial stones? I hope there is a warm place in HELL for him and others who would do this to our honorable veterans.

I did not think that it could get worse — it did. I did a bit of research on this subject. It has happened more that once. In the city of Providence, Rhode Island. A man by the name of Kevin Maynard has pleaded guilty to stealing 150 grave markers from the Rhode Island Veterans Cemetery. He was in federal court on July 13.

A search of his home found that he was using the stones as flooring in a shed and two garages. In the garages, the stones were covered with automotive fluids and debris was scattered all over them. This disrespect to our veterans cannot stand. As I have said, these brave men and women have given to much of their life to this country and to our people.

I will never be able to understand what could be in the minds of people who would disrespect these headstones. Would they want someone to take their mother’s headstone and use it for a floor to be walked on? You know they would not want this to take place. So how could they do this to someone’s mother’s or father’s headstone?

The way that I personally feel about people who would be this disrespectful is they should go to jail. It’s just wrong. More respect should be shown to all of our veterans in life and in death.

Robert Lee

Rockingham