"You Picked the Wrong Fight Burr, The Wrong Fight Indeed!!"

For many of us older vets know what is really behind those flag pins, the wrapping of oneself in the flag, the magnetic ribbons, the huge defense budgets and so much more of the words and not actions.

Rachel Maddow 'SLAMS' Republican North Carolina Senator Richard Burr because of his obstruction of confirming Tammy Duckworth to the Veterans Administrations



We take an oath when giving of ourselves to the service of the Country and Constitution:

I, (name), do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God.

Does anyone see any mention of political party affiliation in that oath, does anyone see anything that relates to us being used as political pawns by those we hire to represent?


And Jon Soltz Speaks What Many Vets Are Saying and Thinking

His actions angered some veterans groups Friday.

"Senator Burr has had plenty of time to ask questions of her," Jon Soltz, the chairman of VoteVets.org, an organization of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans, said in a statement. "Senator Burr is only hurting American veterans with this nonsense. He should stop playing petty partisan games, stop needling the White House for the sheer fun of it and grow up."

Burr still has questions about Duckworth's nomination, his office said. >>>>> Rest Here

AKAKA SPEAKS OUT ON BURR'S DELAY....
OF DUCKWORTH CONFIRMATION

"I did not hear any concerns expressed at the hearing that would block her confirmation ... This is a disappointing setback."

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Daniel K. Akaka issued the following statement tonight after the nomination of L. Tammy Duckworth to be VA Assistant Secretary for Public and Intergovernmental Affairs was not considered at a business meeting of the Veterans’ Affairs Committee:

Larry Scott at VA Watchdog!!

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Contact Sen. Richard Burr's Office Through his Online Contact Form

Or:

Asheville
Federal Building
151 Patton Avenue, Suite 204
Asheville, NC 28801
Phone: (828) 350-2437
Fax: (828) 350-2439

Rocky Mount
100 Coast Line Street, Room 210
Rocky Mount, NC 27804
Phone: (252) 977-9522
Fax: (252) 977-7902

Washington, DC
217 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
Phone: (202) 224-3154
Fax: (202) 228-2981


Winston-Salem
2000 West First Street
Suite 508
Winston-Salem, NC 27104
Phone: (800) 685-8916
Phone: (336) 631-5125
Fax: (336) 725-4493

Gastonia
City Hall
181 South Street, Room 222
Gastonia, NC 28052
Phone: (704) 833-0854
Fax: (704) 833-1467

Wilmington
201 North Front Street
Suite 809
Wilmington, NC 28401
Phone: (888) 848-1833
Phone: (910) 251-1058

Now most reading will think, "He's not my Senator so what good would my contacting do, and it's a waste of time and effort.". NOT, the Veterans Administration and the Military are not there just for North Carolina, we serve the Country and it's Constitution. So Contact Today, let him come to work on monday and know, as Jon said: "Grow Up Senator Burr, Grow Up!"

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Major reforms in works for veterans' benefits

""Tammy Duckworth, a helicopter pilot badly wounded in Iraq and now up for a top position in the VA, told lawmakers Wednesday that "If (the VA) cannot be in every hometown across America, we will find partners who are."""

WASHINGTON - For years, government care and benefits for veterans were often hard to get because of bureaucratic or geographic hurdles.

But that may be changing.

Veterans' advocates - including lawmakers and the newly appointed leaders of the Veterans Affairs Department - are pushing sweeping reforms in benefits and management practices to modernize the system.

Sen. Daniel Akaka, D-Hawaii, chairman of the Veterans' Affairs Committee, is shepherding a raft of legislation that would enhance education benefits, increase access to medical care and raise income ceilings that cut off access to services. >>>>>Rest Here

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PSI Supports DoD and VA Mission

to Treat Soldiers with PTSD and TBI

HIMSS 2009 Annual Conference

FALLS CHURCH, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Planned Systems International, Inc. (PSI), a leading provider of information technology (IT) solutions and services to the federal government, is involved in three major initiatives which support the Department of Defense (DoD) and the Veterans Administration (VA) in their mission to deliver critical Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) care for our nation's Wounded Warriors.

An article in US Medicine reported that service members returning from war with PTSD and/or TBI has been a growing concern in the military. In the article, Mike Veasey, Defense Health Services Systems principal deputy program manager, indicated that many of these service-members live in rural areas where they receive care through TRICARE's civilian network. The article highlighted the importance of these civilian physicians having the training they need to care for our veterans.

The Civilian Provider Training Portal, a pilot web portal developed by a team of PSI specialists for the TRICARE Management Activity (TMA), provides training to civilian health care providers who care for service members and veterans with PTSD and TBI. With PSI's assistance, MHS Learn delivers this training through a new front-end portal, complete with continuing medical education certificates, custom reports, and a refined Self Registration process. The pilot program is taking place for six (6) months and will then be evaluated for potential production of additional education courses to help providers treat patients suffering from disorders related to military experiences. The Civilian Provider Training Portal is also supported by Oracle Corporation's (Oracle) iLearning software and On Demand services and can be accessed at Mil/Civilian Provider Education.***** >>>>>Rest Here

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To Last Decades...........

Vets' homelessness, mental problems expected to last decades

Homelessness, family strains and psychological problems among returning veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars will persist in the United States for generations to come, the top U.S. military officer said Thursday.
"This is not a 10-year problem. It is a 50- or 60- or 70-year problem," Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told an audience of the Hudson Union Society, a group that promotes non-partisan debate.

Something us 'Nam Vets already know as many of our Brothers have gone through and continue to, for the decades since, as the Nation looks the other way!!!

National Geographic Explorer: Inside Guantanamo

Inside Guantanamo - Watch This Sunday, April 5th



Visit Site for much more, National Geographic Explorer: Inside Guantanamo.

"Inside Guantanamo" Panel Discussion

ACTION NEEDED, to Help Tammy and Vets {UpDate}

Yesterday they had the hearing, finally, on the Tammy Duckworth and Scott Gould nominations to the Veterans Administration.

During the hearing Senator Burr, of North Carolina, stated he had some questions he wanted to pass on to Tammy in written form and have answered. I thought that very odd at the time as the reason for these hearings is to have the nominees answer questions, also if there were more than he thought his alloted time would take he had plenty of time to have already written and sent to her, this hearing had already been delayed far to long, especially as we need these personal in place with these two theaters still on going and Afghanistan ramping up.

Senator delays VA nomination for Duckworth

Well apparently he's playing some sort of delaying game, obstructionism anyone, for only his own purposes and certainly not the veterans. Maybe sending some sort of message as to him being the senior senator from NC. He and Dole were AWOL on a whole lot of issues but especially on Military Care, i.e. Walter Reed and more, and on Veterans issues. Ask anyone here, North Carolina, how many responses they received from either staff as to requests for information or just questions.

Disabled Iraq war veteran Tammy Duckworth’s hopes of a Friday swearing-in ceremony at Walter Reed Army Medical Center to become part of the Obama administration are on hold because the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee won’t vote Thursday on her nomination.

Sen. Richard Burr of North Carolina, ranking Republican on the veterans committee, objected to allowing a vote on Duckworth’s nomination, but will allow a Thursday vote to confirm Scott Gould as the deputy secretary of veterans affairs.

Visit his site and make your thoughts known. I've sent him a message already as well as an LTE to the Charlotte Observer. I've been making a bit of noise lately as all of a sudden he seems to have remembered there re Military Bases in North Carolina as well as many Veterans of. He's started to finally mention these in recent rhetoric, I welcome any support but don't buy hs speak, it wasn't there before and seems odd it is coming now.

I told him in my letters we're watching , very closely!

Dole is gone, Burr could well be next if game playing and not representation is his politics!

But this is about helping Tammy get confirmed and sworn in and seated in the VA we need them to start correcting what hasn't been these last 7plus years and helping us older veterans get what they already should be getting, the help for their service!!

UpDate:

On Burr Hold on Tammy: This Is GOOD!!!

His actions angered some veterans groups Friday.

"Senator Burr has had plenty of time to ask questions of her," Jon Soltz, the chairman of VoteVets.org, an organization of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans, said in a statement. "Senator Burr is only hurting American veterans with this nonsense. He should stop playing petty partisan games, stop needling the White House for the sheer fun of it and grow up."

Burr still has questions about Duckworth's nomination, his office said. >>>>> Rest Here

Great Statement Jon, and a Big HatTip from this older Vet!!

"The Lonely Soldier"

The Diane Rehm Show - NPR

Show date 4.01.09 - second hour

Helen Benedict: "The Lonely Soldier" (Beacon)

Guest host: Susan Page

More American women have fought and died in Iraq than in any war since World War II. A Columbia journalism professor reports on their struggles and challenges.
Guests

Helen Benedict, A novelist and journalism professor at Colombia University.

Kaye Whitley, director of the Defense Department's Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office

To Listen: This brings up WMPlayer

Helen Benedicts Book: "The Lonely Soldier: The Private War of Women Serving in Iraq"

Coming Home: Military Families Cope with Change

Tune in to PBS on April 1st at 8 p.m.

Tune in to PBS on April 1, 2009 at 8 p.m. to join Queen Latifah, John Mayer, and your Sesame Street friends for “Coming Home: Military Families Cope With Change.” This family television special tells the stories of military families coping with the challenges and impact of combat-related injuries—both visible (such as the loss of a limb) and invisible (such as post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury). Join these families as they recount their heroic struggles and discover the remarkable resiliency that sets them on the path to finding a “new normal.” With help from Elmo, Rosita, and the Sesame Street friends, "Coming Home" gives voice to children as they play a central role in the family's adjustment process, and encourages them to be what they are: kids. The program also features coping strategies and powerful real stories aimed to help these families and others find ways to be there for each other.

Health: PBS Frontline and Veterans - VA Updates

Below is a small collection of very recent reports of America's Health Care and Veterans Issues and Care, coming out yesterday or within the last few days.

Once again the Frontline report is a must see!

FRONTLINE: Sick Around America: Watch the Full Program | PBS

As the worsening economy leads to massive job losses—potentially forcing millions more Americans to go without health insurance—FRONTLINE travels the country examining the nation's broken health care system and explores the need for a fundamental overhaul. ...

Watch The Program

*****

Q&A on document shredding incident

U.S. Veterans Administration's

1. What happened?

• An audit of mail processing procedures at four Veterans Adminstration regional offices by VA's Office of Inspector General (OIG) found 36 claims documents had been inappropriately placed in shred bins for disposal. VA immediately ceased all shredding activities while a nationwide review was conducted of all documents in shred bins. Approximately 500 documents that could potentially affect a claimant's entitlement to benefits were found improperly placed in shred bins at various regional offices. These regional offices are taking appropriate action on all of the documents found.

2. What is VA doing to keep this from happening again?m >>>>Rest Here

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More Incompetence at VA Under.....
cheney/bush/rushlicans! Possible Corruption?

VA program to schedule patient appointments on verge of collapse

The Replacement Scheduling Application Development Program, which VA began building in 2001, "still has not developed a single scheduling capability it can provide to the field, nor is there any expectation of delivery in the near future," wrote Dr. Michael Kussman, undersecretary for health at the Veterans Health Administration, in a March 20 memo to Stephen Warren, acting assistant secretary for information and technology.

SNIP

The botched effort comes on the heels of another scheduling program -- a five-year, $75 million failed project started in 2001.

SNIP

"VA has a decade-long history of initiating IT programs, only to experience extensive delays and major cost overruns," said Gerald Manar, deputy director of the National Veterans Service at the Veterans of Foreign Wars. "The fact that VA has frittered away eight years and millions of dollars in developing the RSA, with no viable results and no end in sight, is extremely disappointing but, based on its track record, not surprising."

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Waiting on VA -- No Longer, CIO Named

Update: Within minutes of posting this item, the White House announced Roger Baker's appointment as CIO at the Veterans Affairs Departrment. It still doesn't change, however, what a tough job he has in fornt oif him. read below.

After today's news, which Nextgov editor at large Bob Brewin broke, Baker may have second thoughts about the job that might await him if he is nominated and confirmed.

From the White House announcement: >>>>>Rest Here

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VA Nomination Hearings Today:

Hearing: Nomination of W. Scott Gould to be Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the nomination of L. Tammy Duckworth to be an Assistant Secretary of Veterans Affairs for Public and Intergovernmental Affairs.
April,1,2009

United States Senate

Committee on Veterans' Affairs

April 1, 2009 9:30 a.m.

Russell 418

(note: hearing stream will begin approx. 15 minutes prior to start of hearing)

Click link above to get link to the live coverage.

*****

Senator Murray intro's the: Women Veterans Health Improvement Act of 2009

Senator Patty Murray, (D-WA), a senior member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, has introduced bi-partisan legislation to prepare the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for the influx of women veterans who will access care there in the coming years.

According to her office’s press release the bill, named the Women Veterans Health Improvement Act of 2009, will, “address unique needs of women veterans, provide improved care for Military Sexual Trauma, and explore the effects service in Iraq and Afghanistan has had on female veterans.” >>>>>Rest Here

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Bloomberg 3? NYC Veterans 0

by Veterans Joe Bello & Luis Carlos Montalván

Every Memorial and Veterans' Day, elected officials praise veterans and the sacrifices they have made while in uniform. However, that sacrifice does not end when they return home to their families and communities.

For many veterans, the hardest and most enduring sacrifice begins the moment they return home. The combat load they shouldered for their country endures long after war is over.

For most, it lasts a lifetime.

This is especially true in New York.

New York has sent over 70,000 troops to Iraq and Afghanistan and has the fourth largest veteran population in the country. Overall, there are almost 12,000 service members from the state currently deployed in both the Iraq and Afghanistan theaters of combat, many of whom are from the New York City area.

However, six years into the war in Iraq, and eight into the war in Afghanistan, many Active Duty, Reserve and National Guard veterans have come home to a city administration that does a lot of talking and thanking but nothing, other than a breakfast at Gracie Mansion on Veterans' Day, in terms of actual, tangible services. >>>>>Rest Here

Greg Mortenson: Three Cups of Tea

Targeted by the Taliban, the 'Three Cups of Tea' Author Never Gave Up on His Peacebuilding Efforts

The ABC Video Report

His Book: Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace . . . One School at a Time (Paperback)

How Peace Is Won!! The Hearts and Minds Understand, That's Universal!!

A Short List of Reading

That some may find very helpful, others should find to be useful in the educational quality of understanding and research, and not only for combat veterans but civilian suffers of:

I Can Still Hear Their Cries, Even In My Sleep: A Journey Into PTSD

Veterans's PTSD Handbook: How to File and Collect on Claims for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

The War Comes Home: Washington's Battle against America's Veterans

Vets Under Siege: How America Deceives and Dishonors Those Who Fight Our Battles

After the War Zone: A Practical Guide for Returning Troops and Their Families

Life After Deployment: Military families share reunion stories and advice

Moving A Nation to Care: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and America's Returning Troops

Betrayed in Iraq

March 30, 2009

Leila Fadel: Leaders of Awakening Councils are arrested, tortured and killed by Iraq government

Leila Fadel, Baghdad Bureau Chief of McClatchy Newspapers speaks to Paul Jay about the recent escalation in violence in Iraq's capital. She says the former fighters termed the "Sons of Iraq" who have turned on Al Qaeda and joined the U.S. are now being persecuted by the Iraq government. She says the Maliki government is afraid of the power they've accumulated in the neighborhoods they were put to protect by the U.S. and many are now in exile or in hiding.

The Real News Network

Today, March 30, In History

This Day in History 1891:

"Sockless" Simpson rallies populist farmers

Angered over low crop prices, high-interest bank loans and unaffordable shipping rates, farmers began to unite in self-help groups like the Grange and the Farmers' Alliances. Initially, these groups primarily provided mutual assistance to members while agitating for the regulation of railroads and grain elevators. Increasingly, though, they became centers of support for more sweeping political change by uniting to help form the nationwide third-party movement known as the Populists.

This Day in History 1948:

Henry Wallace criticizes Truman's Cold War policies

Wallace and his supporters were among the few Americans who actively voiced criticisms of America's Cold War mindset during the late 1940s and 1950s.

Today, March 30, is Palestinian Land Day.

Since 2004, the U.S. has stated support for a viable Palestinian state but at the same time has done little to check Israeli government activities that have fragmented the occupied West Bank. Expanded settlements, Israeli-only bypass roads, checkpoints, and the separation barrier cut deep into the Palestinian territory.

We believe the U.S. government must play a more constructive and even-handed role in Israel and Palestine.

AFSC has produced a new two-minute video about the fragmentation of the West Bank. With a new administration in Washington and the possibility of a fresh diplomatic approach in the Middle East, it’s an important time to raise this issue and to make our voices heard.

AFSC Westbank Action Site

Bill Moyers Journal: Economy, March 27

Bill Moyers-James Thindwa

James Thindwa, whose campaign for economic fairness for working people in Chicago has brought him up against the city's powerful political establishment and corporate giant Wal-Mart.

""Your average person is getting up every day to go to work, and to care for a family, doesn't have a lobbyist in Washington. They don't have a lobbyist in the city council. They don't have a lobbyist at the state legislature. The community organization gathers facts for them. They call meetings. They invite people to come. They invite elected officials to come, attend those meetings, so that they can listen to the community's grievance. It makes for participation."">>>>Read Transcript & Watch

Bill Moyers-William Greider

For years best-selling author William Greider sounded the alarm about Washington's unholy alliance with Wall Street and the failure of the Federal Reserve and other regulators to take preventive measures to avoid disaster. Now, he offers some suggestions to the question everyone is asking: "What do we do now?". >>>>Read Transcript & Watch

Bill Moyers-Questions for the President What would you ask the President?

And this from the American Chronicle: Ronald Reagan: Betrayer of Main Street America!

"When it came to corporate greed, the Great Communicator [Ronald Reagan] was also the Great Enabler." - William Kleinknecht