[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 147 (2001), Part 16]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 22382]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                     IN HONOR OF AMERICAN VETERANS

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. J. RANDY FORBES

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, November 13, 2001

  Mr. FORBES. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor the veterans of this great 
land. In 1918, on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day in the eleventh 
month, the world rejoiced and celebrated. After four years of bitter 
war, an armistics was signed. The ``war to end all wars'' was over. A 
year later, Armistice Day was declared in the United States, to 
remember the sacrifices that men and women made in order to ensure a 
lasting peace. Later this holiday was renamed Veterans' Day, and while 
it has traditionally been a day of parades and speeches by politicians, 
this year it means much more than that. This day is America's chance to 
thank those who have protected them, even when the threat against the 
homeland was not so clearly defined. This day is America's chance to 
honor those who lost their lives in service to our nation. This day is 
America's chance to unite behind the men and women who are now wearing 
the uniform that generations of heroes wore before them.
  As our nation's 1.3 million active servicemembers fight this war, let 
us not forget that thousands of our nation's veterans are dying each 
day. Congress has made some great strides on behalf of our veterans 
this year. Since January, the House has passed legislation that will 
benefit the 2.3 million disabled veterans or survivors of disabled 
veterans, increasing their benefits by $2.7 billion. We have expanded 
the available hours of the VA's toll free information service. We have 
expanded health and life insurance coverage for surviving dependants of 
veterans, and we have provided $550 million over the next two years to 
repair and renovate VA medical facilities. Finally, we have increased 
GI Bill educational benefits to qualifying servicemembers by 70%.
  We are on the right track, but we need to keep pressing forward. We 
need to make a real effort to make progress on remaining issues. 
Implementing concurrent receipt, making further improvements on 
military retiree health care, cutting the red tape for veterans claims. 
Our veterans sacrificed their lives and liberties. We should make every 
effort to show our gratitude by taking action on the issues that 
concern them. I appreciate all the hard work of our leadership and our 
Veterans Affairs Committee members, and encourage my colleagues to join 
in this important effort.

                          ____________________