The tragic death of Glen Raeford Mabrey in Raleigh, North Carolina's Central Prison last year is an all too evident example of another needless death of a veteran. Mabrey's death was caused by neglect not just by the state's prison system but more importantly by the failure of the United States government to live up to a promise to take care of war veterans injured in the line of duty - no matter what. When he died, Mabrey was 47 years old. Uncle Sam wants you to join the armed forces. Spend an exciting tour of duty traveling the world fighting to free the oppressed.
Most politicians do the same.
In public, they do a lot of chattering about how much America owes the men and women in uniform who risk their lives and limbs during times of war. Drafted after high school and sent to Vietnam in 1968, Mabrey served escorting convoys, setting up ambushes in the Ia Drang Valley until 1970. Melvin Tharrington, a boyhood friend of Mabrey who served with him in Vietnam, told the reporters about a night he and Mabrey spent pinned down under enemy fire. He was like a brother to me. He wasn't the same Glen I had known after he got back.