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Letter to the Editor

By John Lindquist

Dear Sir or Madam,

I am a disabled Vietnam Veteran Marine currently living in England. I was lucky enough to marry a lovely English woman.

President Trump and Elon Musk have started to cut healthcare staff at the Veterans Administration Hospital system. So far, 2,080 have been cut, and many are military veterans.

I have been a member of Vietnam Veterans Against the War since 1970. We fought to end that war and for decent benefits for all veterans. It took us ten years to get Veterans Centers and treatment and compensation for PTSD. We fought for twenty-three years to get testing, treatment, and compensation for Agent Orange poisoning. We will have to fight again to beat these cuts.

The President evaded Vietnam and Cold War service with seven deferments for heel spurs, which his Dad paid for!

President Trump has also gotten into bed with Putin. He said the Ukrainians started the war. It was Putin and the Russian Army who invaded in 2014 and 2022. The Russian Empire and the USSR occupied Ukraine for 250 years. Russia signed the 1991 Minsk Treaty to recognize Ukraine's sovereignty and borders if they gave up the nukes in the country. President Trump is willing to sell out the people of Ukraine and turn his back on Europe. Ronald Reagan is rolling over in his grave!

We will stop these cuts to Veterans Health Care and will support the Ukrainian people in their war against the invaders. President Trump's actions are un-American.

Semper fidelis.
John A. Lindquist
USMC 1967–1969, Radio Operator, 3rd Marine Division.

John Lindquist, Minster Lovell, Oxfordshire, England. March 8, 2025.

John Lindquist, Minster Lovell, Oxfordshire, England. March 8, 2025.

Des Barkus, British Merchant Marine delivered fuel to Vietnam 1968 to 1970. Minster Lovell, Oxfordshire, England. March 8, 2025.