There's a real push these days for a resurgence of the U.S. Middle Class -- this is something you hear mentioned in Secretary of Labor, Hilda Solis's, rhetoric, Nobel-Prize winning economist, Paul Krugman's writing, and is the principal catalyst for Obama's stimulus plan and budget proposal.
There are nearly 1million Iraq and Afghanistan War Veterans -- with 200,000 troops currently stationed in both countries. That's a large, trained, patriotic, and very able work force.
Let's start there. These are the people who should be first in line for the New Economy jobs we're hearing about. Education, Wind Energy, Solar Power, Infrastructure Improvements, and the controversial Healthcare Reforms.
The albatross represented by the Veterans Administration and its failed policies should be revamped and reassessed with a gratuitous nod toward the people who have been, and continue to be, responsible for our domestic and foreign security.
It's not about whether the initiatives for the Iraq War were fabricated -- though Colin Powell would love to tell you about his version of "Curveball" and subsequent events. It's about the absolutely necessary integration of these 1million people as the backbone of our nation, the foundation of our democracy, and the new generation of America's Middle Class.
This is not a polemic on Foreign Policy, or even domestic class wars. It's about a good, solid approach to enlisting our servicemen as leaders for a New America -- just as the GIs returning from WWII became the Baby Boomer generation, who supported a strong, proud movement of the U.S. through the trying Cold War years.
Let's put America back to work by rewarding the emerging Middle Class with their just due. That's an idea for how to kickstart our New America.