Dan joins his friend and fellow veteran LTC Daniel Gade, PhD to recount their post-combat injury experiences with the VA's perverse structure of incentivizes which cause veterans to become sicker, poorer, and disempowered. We look at the policies and culture which enable this victimhood mentality among injured and non-injured veterans alike, and what we should be doing to help our veterans thrive in civilian life. LTC Daniel Gade, PhD is the co-author of “Wounding Warriors: How Bad Policy Is Making Veterans Sicker and Poorer.” He is a twice wounded retired US Army lieutenant colonel, professor, public policy leader, and former US Senate candidate from Virginia. Follow him on Twitter at @DanielMGade.