Wasatch Rambler: Kicking Into Gear
There are no comments for this page [ Add Comment ]Tuesday, February 13, 2007
By Charles Trentelman
Standard-Examiner staff
Veterans using soccer ball to lobby legislature
Well, that was a quick game.
Dennis Howland, the former commander of Ogden's Fred Grant VFW post, and I only managed to kick the soccer ball around a few times Monday afternoon here at the Standard-Examiner. Then other veterans started showing up, and then someone said "Let's all sign the ball and give it to whoever's the biggest roadblock to this at the Legislature," and that was the last I saw of it.
Now the veterans have my soccer ball, and I can't think of a better fate for it. Maybe it will bounce some sense into the Legislature. The plan is to take it to Salt Lake City on Wednesday and give it to legislative leaders.
Why?
On Sunday I used this space to vent my outrage over the Legislature's willingness to throw $35 million at Real Salt Lake's soccer stadium needs. That's the same Legislature that's dragging its feet over the nursing home needs of veterans in this state.
Bonding for the state share of a 120-bed home in Weber County was approved in 2005 but has been held up because the federal government is slow with its share of the money. Vets say building the home now would save millions, and bring in more millions.
The Legislature, sitting on a $1.6 billion surplus, can't seem to find the $20 million it would take.
I was almost willing to give lawmakers the benefit of the doubt, but then they went and found $35 million for soccer. That took three whole days.
So, I said, "If it's soccer they're anxious to fund, let's play soccer."
More than 40 vets, from Bountiful to Brigham City, showed up Monday afternoon. They were a world beater team, too: World War II, Korea, Vietnam, Desert Storm and active duty.
Play soccer? Some of those guys looked as if they were a lot more spry invading France or wading through rice paddies, but they were willing. And all of them were just as outraged as I am.
"These men and women that have worn this uniform have done so much for the United States and for the people of the United States that it's the right thing to do," said Terry Sawyer, who is active duty Air Force stationed at Hill Air Force Base and who showed up in uniform.
Sawyer said he was visited last week by a soldier who had been burned over 80 percent of his body in Iraq. "That young man is the epitome of courage, and he said he would do it all over again. That's the kind of courage our Legislature in Salt Lake needs to have."
Roy Brown, who works at Hill Air Force Base, said he and some others have formed the Red Rose Foundation to raise money for the nursing home.
Red Rose? That's a military call sign for "blood shed." He saw where a group in San Antonio, Texas, got sick of waiting for their Legislature to build a home, formed a similar group and raised the funds themselves.
"There's more than two million people in the state of Utah," he said. "Ten dollars apiece and that would do it."
And it would, but why should they have to? The money is already there. Everyone in the state has already paid it. The Legislature just has to want to spend it.
Why don't our lawmakers want to help veterans as much as they want to help soccer?
I don't know. When Norm Nelson, state commander of the VFW, gives the leaders of the Legislature my ball, the one all those vets signed, he will ask that question. I'll be anxious to hear the answer.
As will every vet in the state -- all 212,000 of them.
Wasatch Rambler is the opinion of Charles Trentelman. You can reach him at 625-4232, or e-mail at ctrentelman@standard.net.
Text 
