We have seen this before.
In 2003, under Operation Iraqi Freedom, the United States launched what was branded as “shock and awe.” Overwhelming force. Rapid dominance. Swift victory. That was the plan.
What followed was years of instability, insurgency, trauma, and long-term consequences that were nowhere near as easy to manage as the opening air campaign.
The rush was confident.
The aftermath was costly.
And it was not policymakers who carried that cost.
It was the 19-year-old soldier clearing houses.
It was the convoy driver on unsecured roads.
It was the medic who never forgot what they saw.
Now we are watching escalation with Iran unfold in real time, including what has been reported as Operation Epic Fury. Missiles. Retaliation. Regional instability. Again, the language is urgent. Again, the long-term plan is unclear.
And here is the part that should make every American stop and think.
Just last month, proposed and reviewed changes within the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs sparked concern among veterans advocates who warned that certain disability rating criteria could become more restrictive.
While preparations for possible military action were underway, conversations were also happening about recalibrating how veterans’ disabilities are measured and rated. War planning and disability rulemaking were unfolding in the same month.
Those two realities should make us uncomfortable.
We can move quickly when it comes to military action. But when it comes to long-term care, we slow down. We tighten definitions. We reexamine eligibility.
Unseen injuries are not hypothetical.
Post-traumatic stress.
Traumatic brain injuries.
Chronic pain.
Sleep disorders.
Moral injury.
Substance dependency tied directly to service stress, that we know a percentage of these military members fighting as we speak will develop.
These are not fringe outcomes. They are common realities of modern warfare.
And when disability standards are narrowed or reinterpreted, the burden shifts from the institution that sent them to the individual who served.
Colorado is home to roughly 330,000 to 350,000 veterans, roughly one in every fourteen adults. That means in our neighborhoods, in our workplaces, and in our schools, there are families who have already carried the cost of America’s last wars.
When federal policy debates tightening disability criteria, it is not a line item in Washington.
It is a mortgage payment in Pueblo.
It is a therapy appointment in Colorado Springs.
It is a young family in Fountain trying to navigate a claims process while living with invisible injuries.
Escalation abroad becomes impact at home.
Here in Colorado’s 5th Congressional District, there is an active race for a U.S. House seat that will vote on war authorizations and oversee the VA.
If you attend a forum or meet a candidate seeking that seat, ask them directly:
Will you oppose any effort that restricts veterans’ disability access while military engagements expand?
If you want the seat, answer for the service members.
If you support the troops, then support them all the way, from enlistment to deployment to lifelong care.
Contact members of the Colorado General Assembly and demand public statements on escalation, transparency, and full defense of veterans’ disability rights.
Contact your members of the United States Congress and ask them directly:
Will you oppose regulatory changes that reduce access to earned disability benefits? Will you guarantee funding for long-term veteran care before approving expanded military engagement?
Show up at town halls. Write the emails. Make the calls.
War headlines fade. Budget negotiations get quiet.
The injuries do not disappear.
If you send them, you owe them.
All of it.
Shaun Walls served over two decades in the U.S. Army, a combat veteran leading soldiers and learning the value of action over words. He is a Pikes Peak Bulletin board member and is not compensated for his writing.
