Zach LarkinsGREY MATTERS
Cpl. Bruce Moncur is a soldier in the Canadian army. He was stationed in Afghanistan and got wounded. A lot of our men and women have been either wounded or killed. So what makes Moncur such a standout? He happened to lose about 5% of his brain due to the attack that wounded him, 30 others and killed Pte. Mark Graham.
Moncur is resting and rehabilitating at his home in Harrow, Ont. and wonders what the military considers fair compensation for his injuries. How much cash will he get? "I am not sure," he says, "We are in negotiations." Believe it or not, there are guidelines in place to help determine this. It's called the new Veteran's Charter where just about every scenario has been considered, with $250,000 tax-free being the high end of what someone can get in compensation for losing a body part.
This Charter, called a meat chart by soldiers, takes many things into account when determining how much each piece of a GI's body is worth. For example, someone who loses fingers or a hand and used to play the piano will receive more than someone with the same injury who didn't play.
Veteran's Affairs Canada's Ken Miller says the lump-sum award for the loss of a finger would pay up to approximately $25,000, the loss of a thumb up to approximately $64,000 and the loss of a lower limb up to approximately $243,000. The actual amount varies depending on factors as explained in the Table of Disabilities, which has headings such as Paired Organs and Paired Limbs, Urinary, Sexual and Reproductive Impairment, Visual Impairment, Hearing Loss and Ear Impairment, Nose, Throat and Sinus Impairment, Cardiorespiratory Impairment, Hypertension and Vascular Impairment, and Neurological and Psychiatric Impairment. There are compensation amounts for the more than 1,000 Canadian soldiers in the system, which also has an earning replacement program that can pay up to 75% (taxable) of the income they were earning at the time of the incident. Considering the low pay of a soldier to begin with, to cut his lump sum payment to 3/4's of what he was earning when he got hurt and then tax him on top of that seems ludicrous.
In Moncur's case, it all goes back to Sept. 4, 2006, when two American Warthogs accidentally fired on a Canadian base. "I just remember flying in the air (five metres)," he says, "I could feel a warm sensation and then the blood started pouring. Someone had noticed there was a yellow fluid coming out of my ear and then someone else asked how do you bandage a fractured skull?" He was treated at an emergency field hospital, then flown to Germany for more surgery. There they removed depleted uranium from his brain. Within weeks, he was home, could barely walk, was constantly dizzy, couldn't remember much. But the days turned into weeks and before he knew it, he was starting to heal. "At first I couldn't even remember my phone number," he jokes. "But everything has come back so fast."
This is a sad tale and I'm sure everyone wishes Moncur a speedy and full recovery. I'm also sure that everyone hopes they give him the same as they gave Maher Arar for his suffering at the hands of the Syrians. More in fact. Arar was a suspected terrorist who, through no fault of his own, was deported to Syria and tortured for a year before his release. Moncur is a brave young man, willing to give his all for Canada and the Afghans.
But, for you cut and runners out there, the story doesn't end here. Now he wants to go back to help his buddies. "I'd love to do another tour." They are a special breed, our soldiers. The likes of Jack Layton, Cindy Sheehan and the rest of the cowards who want to abandon our duty overseas would learn a lot from these brave people. It would never change their twisted minds, of course, but it might make them ashamed enough to shut up.
Sources: Joe Warmington -Lost in Grey Area -The Toronto Sun
Moncur is resting and rehabilitating at his home in Harrow, Ont. and wonders what the military considers fair compensation for his injuries. How much cash will he get? "I am not sure," he says, "We are in negotiations." Believe it or not, there are guidelines in place to help determine this. It's called the new Veteran's Charter where just about every scenario has been considered, with $250,000 tax-free being the high end of what someone can get in compensation for losing a body part.
Veteran's Affairs Canada's Ken Miller says the lump-sum award for the loss of a finger would pay up to approximately $25,000, the loss of a thumb up to approximately $64,000 and the loss of a lower limb up to approximately $243,000. The actual amount varies depending on factors as explained in the Table of Disabilities, which has headings such as Paired Organs and Paired Limbs, Urinary, Sexual and Reproductive Impairment, Visual Impairment, Hearing Loss and Ear Impairment, Nose, Throat and Sinus Impairment, Cardiorespiratory Impairment, Hypertension and Vascular Impairment, and Neurological and Psychiatric Impairment. There are compensation amounts for the more than 1,000 Canadian soldiers in the system, which also has an earning replacement program that can pay up to 75% (taxable) of the income they were earning at the time of the incident. Considering the low pay of a soldier to begin with, to cut his lump sum payment to 3/4's of what he was earning when he got hurt and then tax him on top of that seems ludicrous.
This is a sad tale and I'm sure everyone wishes Moncur a speedy and full recovery. I'm also sure that everyone hopes they give him the same as they gave Maher Arar for his suffering at the hands of the Syrians. More in fact. Arar was a suspected terrorist who, through no fault of his own, was deported to Syria and tortured for a year before his release. Moncur is a brave young man, willing to give his all for Canada and the Afghans.
But, for you cut and runners out there, the story doesn't end here. Now he wants to go back to help his buddies. "I'd love to do another tour." They are a special breed, our soldiers. The likes of Jack Layton, Cindy Sheehan and the rest of the cowards who want to abandon our duty overseas would learn a lot from these brave people. It would never change their twisted minds, of course, but it might make them ashamed enough to shut up.
Sources: Joe Warmington -Lost in Grey Area -The Toronto Sun
