After seeing and hearing how our troops are not getting the medical attention they deserve when they return from overseas, we were compelled to write a letter to our congressman to help raise awareness. Copy the letter below and send it to your government officials! 

Dear :

We are members of the rock band Drowning Pool, and we are reaching out to you today on behalf of the men and women who serve in – and have returned home from – the Iraq/Afghanistan wars.  We are seeking an opportunity to testify before Congress on behalf of these troops and veterans who need mental, emotional and medical support services.  We ask you for your help in our efforts.

During the last year and a half, we have been incredibly fortunate to spend a great deal of time with American troops overseas while performing on three USO tours of BaghdadKuwait.  During our visits and shows, we received an overwhelmingly positive response from the troops, which indicated to us a profound yearning for enduring morale-boosting and overall support.

After returning from the Persian Gulf, our priority was to write and a song about our troops, for our troops.  The song, "Soldiers," is a tribute, an expression of gratitude and a call to action, urging the public to support our troops – even if they don't agree with the war. 

We recorded "Soldiers" and wanted to give the song to the troops as soon as possible.  In collaboration with the USO, last month we offered the song as a free download on the online music/social networking site MySpace. 

Again, the troops showed intense acknowledgment:  In the few weeks since "Soldiers" was made available on MySpace, it has been listened to over 500,000 times.  We believe that a major portion of this massive listenership is a direct result of our relationship with the men and women fighting in the Iraq/Afghanistan wars.

Once home in the United States, we connected with Iraq/Afghanistan war veterans who have returned home.  Though back on safe shores, these individuals are facing a steep uphill battle to reclaim their health after facing the trauma of war. 

We were startled to learn the following figures from the nonprofit organization Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans Association

• At least one in three Iraq veterans, and one in nine Afghanistan veterans, will face a mental health issue, including depression, anxiety or Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder;

• The average wait-time on a disability claim is 127 days;

• For claims that are appealed, the wait-time skyrockets to a staggering 657 days;

• In the past three years, the VA claims backlog increased by over 50%, to 378,000 pending disability claims;

• Approximately 150,000 wounded veterans suffer from traumatic brain injuries; and

• The VA has decreased full-time claims-processing staff since 2003

This was an issue a few weeks ago when Walter Reed Hospital was a sound byte and now it is gone. We want to make sure that it stays in the public eye and gets the attention it deserves.  It doesn't matter if you are a Democrat, Republican, or independent; this is an issue that deserves attention.

We believe that testifying at an appropriate Congressional hearing is a critical next step in our efforts.  We will be in touch with your office again shortly.  Thank you for your time.

Kind Regards,

Ryan McCombs, Stevie Benton, CJ Pierce, Mike Luce