Will Burn Pits be our generations Agent Orange?

I believe it may be. Hard to tell. I think government agencies have done a much better job on dealing with burn pits than with Agent Orange. I say that to their benefit NOT ours. They are careful on what to say and admit in reference to burn pits both, one-on-one and publicly. This helps keep the limelight/media off target (for now).

My experience is horrendous but could have been so much worse...maybe I am not out of the woods yet. Who knows? Let me hope that I don't have any additional residual effects. First the good. I have received documents confirming exposure to dioxin and phosgene due to me guarding the wonderful hell-fires. This is a rarity as you can imagine.

The recipe of exposure, sweat, pressure (helmet webbing), and other factors has made my scalp prone to painful lesions. They puss out, bleed, leave bald spots and are simply grotesque. They were so painful I had to get a profile to not wear ANY headgear once redeployed back home and to help heal. Trying running around in uniform without your beret. I had to laminate my profile due excessive and repeated 'on-spot' corrections. But that is another story best for later.

How is that good? Simple, the Army, then the VA, tried everything possible to fix my issue. They tried various forms of antibiotics, NSAIDs, and other remedies, Accutane was no help and finally Humira had saved my life. No, I was not suicidal but I hated my life as it was but never gave up hope. They finally found something that can at least control it. I am not bleeding all over my pillows (as much), I can walk in public with scaring kids, the pain is greatly diminished, I feel better about myself and the most important part...I can breathe. My symptoms were mostly unique (as were others). I had for a short time coughed up this black 'crud' and it was not fun but once out of the environment it went away. Some of my counterparts were inflicted with this crud and theirs got WORSE. They could do nothing. One Soldier had to be sent back home for further evaluation. Mine started to improve after a day or two away from the pits and its entirety, as far as outward symptoms go, in about a month after last exposure.

So in short, it has been a mixed bag. As I get older, I do believe I may be a bit more prone to cancers or other ailments due to my exposure but I fear that the VA has already been 'programmed' to 'link' it to something other than what I have been exposed to. In fact, other than the two specific exposures previously disclosed they refuse to link my scalp issues to the pits. Let us all relook at this query in 10 or 20 years. It will be Agent Burn-Pit scandal or "Don't know anything about burning pits."

Yes only no one has recognized them. Some can be worse than AO.

Aren't they?