Study this

While the tee-vee talking heads bobble and the Iraq Study Group studies, the Iraq war keeps on destroying lives. There is a particularly heartbreaking account in today's Columbian about a young Marine who, among other things, served as a Camp David guard and was also a veteran of the terrible 2004 fighting in Falujah.

Marine's death unexplained

The remains of Marine Sgt. William C. Wold, a 2001 Mountain View High School graduate and a veteran of some of the bloodiest fighting in Iraq, were returned home to his parents here Wednesday.

He died Friday at Balboa Naval Hospital in San Diego of causes that remain under investigation. His funeral will be Friday in Vancouver.

Wold's mother and father, John and Sandra Wold of Camas, angrily charged that the Marine Corps failed to give their son adequate care for post-traumatic stress syndrome and drug abuse. She said her son was harassed and beaten by other Marines.

Sandra Wold said Marine Corps officers told her his cause of death won't be known for at least a month, but she said she believes he died either from an accidental drug overdose or by suicide.

There are many such stories around the country, of course, and sadly there will be more. Among the many important tasks facing Democrats is doing everything they can to make sure veterans get the medical care they need. There can be no excuses. Even though we are firmly opposed to the failed war policy in Iraq, those who volunteer to serve in the armed forces deserve not only the thanks of a grateful nation, but prompt and efficient medical services.

The allegations of other Marines attacking their own is particularly troubling. Wold's family deserves answers, and we trust that elected Democrats in Congress will see to it they are forthcoming.