WHAT'S ALARMING is that too many — half — haven’t received help. An ongoing class-action lawsuit by two veterans groups accuses the Veterans Administration of keeping mental health treatment inaccessible, forcing troops who do seek it to jump through hoops and wait months for referrals. That many are silently struggling may be reflected by military divorce rates, which have risen since 2003.

It’s certainly evinced in the startling numbers of Iraq and Afghanistan vets trying to take their own lives, numbers the VA apparently tried to conceal. A CBS News investigation last fall revealed that the VA’s reported number of suicide attempts — 800 in 2007 — was grossly low. In fact, a memo from the VA’s chief of mental health revealed the figure was 1,000 attempts a month.

THEN THERE'S the debacle of the Chapter 5-13 discharge, a classification that has denied more than 20,000 service members disability and medical benefits. Illinois Sen. Barack Obama and Congressman Phil Hare of Rock Island are among those who have argued that thousands of troops were wrongly discharged for having a so-called pre-existing “personality disorder” when they were actually suffering from PTSD or head trauma.

Is there a motive behind using the 5-13? The Nation reported that the Army stood to save $12.5 billion in disability and medical care by discharging soldiers for personality disorders. A Chillicothe soldier was even asked to return his signing bonus. For a strained military, this policy is hardly a boon to recruitment.

MEANWHILE, there is a bright spot in the form of a 21st-century GI Bill. The proposal, which has bipartisan support, would guarantee many of America’s newest veterans the equivalent of a four-year schooling at a public university.

There are plenty of reasons to back this. One, it’s tradition. Since World War II this nation has rewarded brave service with education benefits.

Two, it has been a phenomenal investment, producing a return many times over in economic productivity and contributions to society. Third, it finally asks civilian Americans to sacrifice, if not all that much: It would be covered by a half percent tax hike on those earning $500,000 or more. Fourth, it is just absolutely the right thing to do.

That President Bush is threatening to veto this is unconscionable, given that the roughly $52 billion price tag over 10 years equals a few months of spending in Iraq. Even more galling is the Pentagon’s warning that offering college benefits will hurt retention. Now that’s a winning attitude — give the troops little to look forward to so they’re more likely to re-enlist.

Those of us who say we support the troops must acknowledge the need for federal and state support systems worthy of the sacrifices they’ve made.

On Memorial Day, we think the best way to honor the dead is to care for the living.