Don’t believe all the bashing you hear about Walter Reed Army Medical Center. No, I am not condoning the conditions of the rooms in Building 18 described by the media. Not nearly ALL the facts have come out, and quite frankly, I am not sure they ever will. The entire issue has become a media and political frenzy (almost a witch hunt from both sides) instead of a real attempt to fix the problems in the system that lead to the entire situation.

There are plenty of problems with the “socialized” health care system our military Veteran’s are forced to endure. These problems have existed for decades. The system is full of bureaucracy, the chain of command leaves much room for finger pointing, and dealing with Congress to fix anything is skull splittingly painful. Unless of course you break the rules. Media and reporters are strictly forbidden inside- they take the whole right to medical privacy thing very seriously- and rightfully so! Could you imagine if reporters were allowed to wander the halls of hospitals? If you are willing and able to break the rules, you can always find someone disenfranchised and then publish an article intended to trash Republicans, while painting the image that your real agenda is to "support the troops."

Even then, it’s not likely that Congress will actually fix the cause of the problem. Instead they will merely waste a lot of hot air trashing anyone other than their own, holding public hearings to share their “deep concern,” and finally just whipping out a big fat band aid to battle the growing cancer sore. These clowns countinuously practice knee-jerk reactionary politics; always running to a fire, but never bothering to notice the matches in the hands of a two year old.

When reading about the terrible conditions at Walter Reed's Building 18, keep a few things in mind. The residents of Building 18 have a few “perks” not available in other buildings. Some facilities may provide satellite, cable and internet access while others may provide cable and DVD players, etc- or any variance of such commodities. My sources tell me that one of the soldiers complaining was offered other accommodations, but was unwilling to move to another facility because he didn’t want to give up certain perks. Some of his fellow soldiers are quite angry with this guy, but are not able to share with the media, assuming the media would even care to bother with such information.

There is a lot more information I found out during my visit (none of this information was gained inside any Walter Reed facilities), but sharing it would just lead to more problems. For starters, I would be smeared for accusing a soldier of some very unbecoming behavior; and with the “PC police” out there we are not allowed to tell the truth about “victims” (in fact I bank on getting smeared for just sharing this much). Secondly, it would all just be discounted as “rumors” since I am not a professional journalist. Although I could take a few lessons from Rather and Mapes and just claim I received this information from an Hispanic woman in Texas, via kinkos and dare anyone to “prove” I lied, since this seems to be the new journalistic standard.

But I digress.

The third and most significant reason I won’t share is because I very much want and plan to return to Walter Reed (and other military facilities). The highlight of my visit to DC was not the rally on Saturday; it was my visits to Walter Reed on Thursday and Friday when I was able to welcome home, support, and love on our troops. If I don’t respect and adhere to their rules, they won’t allow me to come back. This just goes to prove that I am not cut out to be a reporter (see "the new journalistic standards" above). I hold values that would leave my family and me starving. I learned this lesson about myself 2 years ago when I traveled to La Grange, GA to cover an important story.

There is one very important thing to point out. The medical care for our troops inside Walter Reed is extraordinary. Walter Reed is a place of miracles and life. Walter Reed is responsible for many children not losing their mothers and fathers. The medical care our troops receive at Walter Reed Army Medical Hospital is exceptional. The problems (that our media has so courageously uncovered) start once a patient is released. Like any business or household, prioritizing is a necessary tool for optimum effectiveness, success, and growth. The majority of resources are spent treating the patients at Walter Reed in their most critical stages. Once a soldier has healed enough to check out of the hospital, the soldier slips down the list of priorities. There is nothing sadistic or malicious about this, it is just a logical step based on reality.

My point is this; the problem is NOT Walter Reed and the quality of medical care our troops receive there. In fact the real problems and the real sotry lies in the system in place to deal with the living facilities for outpatient care and follow up medical needs once our veterans return home. This is what socialized medicine looks like folks. This is Hillary and gang’s plan for you and your family. Could you imagine having to call or write your Congressman in order to receive adequate health care? Anyone ever heard of the phrase, “It would take an act of Congress?” As if this is not encumber some enough, it’s strange how the media seems to support socialized health care, and yet write about this “scandal” with total blindness to how they are actually proving how socialized medicine is so ineffective.

It is also sickening that so many in DC have known about these problems for years, but neglected to do anything effective to address it. It has been a “pass the buck game” of utter neglect in the halls of Congress until the media was able to find a smoking gun. Instead of the media and politicians focusing on how Congress is responsible for not just enabling but actually creating such problems (Building 18 is a sniffle compared to the real fractures in the system), they are hiding under their desks, and lobbing bombs at those men who have served this country with dignity and honor for most of their lives.