Ex Senator Faced '2nd Vietnam'

Former Sen. Max Cleland Details Political War Wounds in Memoir: Post-Traumatic Stress Syndrome

Vietnam Vet Tells ABC News' David Muir: 'I Went Down Into Almost a Death Spiral'

As a young Army platoon leader in Vietnam, Max Cleland sent hours of audio dispatches home to his parents not knowing just how true his words would become.

"I'm definitely coming back a little bit differently than when I came here," he said on tape.

On April 8, 1968, just days from the scheduled end of his tour in Vietnam, Cleland spotted a hand grenade in the grass as he jumped off a helicopter. It had been dropped by another soldier, and Cleland reached for it, not knowing it was live.

In a flash of fire, Cleland lost both legs, his right arm and, almost, his life.

Snip

Cleland's descent began after he lost a bruising battle for re-election to Republican Saxby Chambliss in 2002. Losing was tough enough, but the way he lost added to the pain. Chambliss' campaign questioned Cleland's "courage to lead" in a campaign ad that flashed pictures of Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein.

Snip

Playing on television screens at Walter Reed was the inspirational video Cleland had starred in as a senator to help the newly injured returning from war.

"The irony was overwhelming," he said. "I mean, you know, because I could see myself saying those things and they were great and accurate at the time, but I hadn't received the second wound, the second Vietnam, the second loss of sense of meaning and purpose and direction in life.

"I would look down the hall," he added, "and I would see a younger generation, you know, missing arms, legs ... and I thought, 'Oh my God.'"..>>>>>

Max Cleland talks to David Muir


Max's Book: "Heart of a Patriot: How I Found the Courage to Survive Vietnam, Walter Reed and Karl Rove"

Click here to read an excerpt of Cleland's book, "Heart of a Patriot," in PDF form

The Effects of War One in six Americans soldiers suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder



US: Soldiers Forced to Go AWOL for PTSD Care

With a military health care system over-stretched by two ongoing wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, more soldiers are deciding to go absent without leave (AWOL) in order to find treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Snip

"What I saw and what I did in Iraq caused my PTSD," Jasinski, 23-years-old, told IPS during a phone interview, "Also, I went through a divorce - she left right before I deployed - and my grandmother passed away when I was over there, so it was all super rough on me."

In addition, he lost a friend in Iraq, and another of his friends lost his leg due to a roadside bomb attack.

Snip

During his pre-deployment processessing "they gave me a 90-day supply of meds to get me over to Iraq, and I saw a counsellor during that period, and I told him "I don’t know what I’m going to do if I go back to Iraq."

"He asked if I was suicidal," Jasinski explained, "and I said not right now, I’m not planning on going home and blowing my brains out. He said, ‘well, you’re good to go then.’ And he sent me on my way. I knew at that moment, when they finalised my paperwork for Iraq, that there was no way I could go back with my untreated PTSD. I needed more help."...>>>>>

American Muslim Veterans

Muslim veterans in Charlotte condemn Fort Hood shooting

The vets said they hope not all Muslims would be blamed for the actions of one man. The suspected shooter who killed 13 people is Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, an Army psychiatrist who is said to be a devout Muslim.

"I'm not a terrorist. I love America," said Salahuddin Hasan, a veteran of the Vietnam War.

Hasan and the other vets gathered at the Masjid Ash-Shaheed mosque on West Sugar Creek Road in Charlotte where Khalil Akbar is the Imam...>>>>>Rest Found Here

Commentary: Many Muslims have died in the service of America

Leonard Pitts' latest tackles ugly online comments about Muslims in the military.

I would add to the above commentary by Pitt, the meme's of another group this past decade, So Have Many Hispanics, Citizen and Non Citizen!!

Notice, and it's not hard to, that most of those who are condemning, and have been these past years, a whole group of people, in these times of a religious ideology and the regional countries they live in or are from, because of the acts of a few or in the Ft Hood Extreme Tragedy just one person, have never served this country in any form especially the Military and these aren't only the talking heads of our opinionated, called news? programs, 24hr cable news? channels but also the civilians living in an extremist ideology of hate, racism and fear! Young enough to be serving in these two occupations of choice and the old farts who went out of their way to dodge the draft and service while many of us were sent to our other years long occupation of choice, Vietnam!

Service means No ideology, political and Especially religion, always has and always will, and us older Vets have known and served with many who Honorably Serve then are dumped by a Nation after that service.

Just like a society the Military is no different in it's diversity and those that try and use diversity and condemn should and will be called out for their embedded hatreds and false flag waving!!

Rest In Peace {UpDate}

Marine killed in Afghanistan served country in many ways

Marine Sgt. Bill Cahir was a public servant his whole life.

He served as a congressional staffer, as a journalist, as a political candidate and, finally, as a Marine reservist in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Snip

"There it was," Cahir wrote. "My last, best chance to serve."

Marine Sgt. Bill Cahir's Arlington funeral

Cahir served two tours of duty in Iraq, blending his military work with his journalism.

A year ago, Cahir bought a home in Pennsylvania and settled down to run for Congress, filing for the 5th Congressional District seat left open by the retirement of Rep. John Peterson.

Cahir was one of three Democrats in the race, and he faced criticism for living away from State College for so long. However, Cahir was quick to emphasize his roots, talking about the hospital where he was born, recalling his youth and greeting a former English teacher from the dais at a political forum.

On the stump, Cahir advocated a responsible exit from the war in Iraq and pushed for universal health coverage............Rest Here

Marine Sgt. Bill Cahir's first-person account of his training as a Marine

They spoke of his thoughtfulness and humor, of his integrity and sense of fairness.

But when Capt. Jason C. Brezler recalled his friend and colleague Bill Cahir, he honed in on Cahir's dedication to his comrades and country.

"On paper I was his commanding officer and team leader," Brezler said. "But his opinion mattered to me as much as any senior officer." ...........Read Rest Here

The Question 'Why?'

A Hero's Death in Afghanistan, and the Question 'Why?'

Bill Cahir joined the Marines after 9/11 to fight in Afghanistan, and he finally got there after two tours in Iraq. He was buried Monday at Arlington.

On Saturday, millions watched as Ted Kennedy made his final trip to Arlington National Cemetery. With rather less attention, Arlington's soil opened again Monday to accept the remains of one of Kennedy's former aides, 40-year-old Bill Cahir.

The deceased, an Alexandria resident, was unknown to most Americans, but he did no less for his country than his old boss -- and, gauged by the last full measure of devotion, he did even more. He went from his job working for Kennedy in the Senate to become, at various points, a Washington journalist and a failed congressional candidate. But it was the Sept. 11 attacks that inspired Cahir, at age 34, to get an age waiver from military recruiters in 2003 and enlist in the Marines...............

Rest In Peace with the rest of your, and those of us who preceded in our service to, brothers and sisters, the best of the best, who have fallen while in service to your country, right or wrong it's policies may be, the Noble Cause becomes the protection of those serving with you and they to you!

Maybe some day we will find this countries promised direction once more, that which we had pride once of what we said we were and in many ways showed that, maybe!

The above could be about any of the 5,149 who have fallen, and that continues, in these occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan, and while the Country was burying Sgt. Cahir at Arlington two more U.S. and two British troops were killed in Afghanistan, from the many cities and small towns around this country, but it's just one of the recent Honors given to those who serve with pride and honor, their country and constitution.

The pride and honor from many, in this country, seems more towards tearing it and the constitution apart, especially that coming from the extreme groups, and present and previous public servants, given the microphones and press to loudly condemn anything and everything and not backtracking and apologizing when caught in their many lies, just bringing on more!

UpDate: Statement From Rene

Cahir's widow: "Bill was a hero to me"

The following statement was issued Monday by Bill Cahir's widow, Rene Browne:

"While this is a time of incredible loss and sadness for our family, we are deeply grateful for the tremendous outpouring of care and support we've received since the news of Bill's death.

"He was a loved and cherished husband, son, brother and excited father-to-be, as well as a friend and colleague who touched the lives of so many. From across the globe, the shared prayers, tributes and stories have meant so much and will keep Bill's memory alive for all of us.

"Bill was a hero to me, and to his family and friends, long before he gave his life for his country. He acted with the courage of his convictions in every facet of his life. Although I will forever miss him, I am blessed for the years that we spent together and for the stories that I will be able to share with our children of Bill's ideals, bravery, love and compassion.

"Bill would also be grateful to see that his story helped to raise awareness of the untold sacrifices of the men and women serving their country around the world today. It is their sense of duty and patriotism that inspired Bill to serve and will be the legacy of honor and commitment that he leaves to our children, and to the rest of us."

August 7th is Purple Heart Day

A Day to Honor America's Combat Wounded and Fallen Heroes

By Executive Order 9277, dated December 3, 1942, the decoration was extended to be applicable to all services and required that regulations of the Services be uniform in application as far as practicable. This executive order also authorized the award only for wounds received.

PURPLE HEART RECIPIENTS

War I: 250,000¹
War II: 964,409
Korea: 136,936
Vietnam: 200,676
Persian Gulf: 590
Afghanistan: 3,495 *
Iraq: 34,808 *
Total Estimated: 1.7 M¹

NOTE¹: Estimates only. Battlefield awards and incomplete records; 1974 fire in St. Louis repository.

*Data as of 6/20/2009

And what will the 'rushlicans' do, why they'll bring out fresh 'purple heart bandages' and laugh and laugh and laugh........................................!!

Like this:



Showing they don't respect those that serve, even the ones amoung them that did, but this is what the Purple Heart and it's being Awarded Means:

Each year on August 7th, Americans should pause to remember and honor the brave men and women who were either wounded on the battlefield or paid the ultimate sacrifice with their lives. The Purple Heart is awarded to any member of the U.S. Armed Forces that has been wounded or died as a result of a wound in battle.

This now includes those persons who died in captivity while a prisoner of war (POW). We now celebrate Purple Heart Day on the anniversary of its inception, August 7th. On this day it is our patriotic duty to remember and recognize those people willing to serve our country, no matter the price..............Rest Found Here

"Capture the Flag"

‘Capture the Flag: A Political History of American Patriotism’

The flag is not powerful in spite of its ambiguity; it is powerful because of its ambiguity. It has stood, at different times, for radical democracy, opposition to immigration, the abolition of slavery, unregulated capitalism, segregation, integration, and a hawkish war policy, among many other things.

Read a selection from the introduction of "Capture the Flag: A Political History of American Patriotism" by Woden Teachout

A winter wind swept across New York Harbor on a late after noon the day after Christmas in 1971. Tourists riding the last two ferries from Manhattan to the Statue of Liberty huddled against the bulkheads, sheltering themselves from the gusts. Among the passengers were clusters of long-haired adults in well used army-surplus clothing, looking for all the world like hippies taking in the world-famous landmark. The mission of these fifteen men, however, went far beyond tourism.

Immediately upon docking at the island, the men performed a quick reconnaissance. They wedged open a few doors and then took refuge from sight; some crouched behind the massive supporting columns in the base of the statue. Some found storage closets and tucked themselves away......................Read Rest Here

Description

Americans honor the flag with a fervor seen in few other countries: The Stars and Stripes decorate American homes and businesses; wave over sports events and funerals; and embellish everything from politicians’ lapels to the surface of the moon.

But what does the flag mean? In Capture the Flag, historian Woden Teachout reveals that it has held vastly different meanings over time. It has been claimed by both the right and left; by racists and revolutionaries; by immigrants and nativists. In tracing the political history of the flag from its origins in the American Revolution through the present day, Teachout demonstrates that the shifting symbolism of the flag reveals a broader shift in the definition of American patriotism.

A story of a nation in search of itself, Capture the Flag offers a probing account of the flag that has become America’s icon.

James Patterson, author of "Brown v. Board of Education: A Civil Rights Milestone and Its Troubled Legacy"
“Displaying a fine eye and narrative skill in recounting key episodes—among them the Revolution, nativist riots, the bombardment of Fort Sumter, civil rights activism, and the New York City hard hat riot of 1970—Woden Teachout reminds us of how important the American flag has been as a symbol for a wide variety of patriotic causes.”

Back in December 2006 I posted about this and than again in December 2008 a repost with some added material Distress: December 26th 1971 and December 26th 2008

In that one I started it out with some words and this repost part:

December 26, 1971
Two dozen members of Vietnam Veterans Against the War "liberated" the Statue of Liberty with a sit-in to protest resumed U.S. aerial bombings in Vietnam. They flew an inverted U.S. flag from the crown as a signal of distress.


We've now had many years of not one but two Invasions and Occupations better known as Wars of Choice, though soldiers and those occupied are still dying in one it has become a stagnant theater on a hair trigger, the other rapidly ramping up in deaths and destruction, both are and have been recruiting actions for what we now call 'International Terrorism', Criminal Terrorism that will rear it's head, with no boundries, over and over for decades, as the number of those who will carry out these acts have greatly increased due to own terror forced on others!


Below is the '06 post with little change, to remember that shoutout of Distress on it's Anniversary, and as a call for Thought of what we now are facing. Still two occupations of others, this time those serving are doing so over and over and over.............., and to eight years of extremely failed policies and total incompetence as well as multiple corruptions and crimes, in and out of government, but also to the crimes against humanity this country has allowed and seems unwilling to face nor call accountability for!

If you visit this you will find the rest of the 2006 post as well as a few more clips with links and a bigger photo, of the one directly above, of the Distress Flag flying from the crown of the Statue.

While wrapping ourselves in 'Old Glory' we as a Nation are moving further apart under the manipulation of changing political ideologies or the twisting of their meanings, in fear by the voices of the few.

President Obama: Honor Veterans This Memorial Day

A 'Nation' Honoring It's Fallen, Past Due

This started out as just a 'to be comment', with the NPR report just below, updating the reports surfacing about the revisit of the policy on our returning soldiers killed in action in the two combat theaters. I kept finding abit more so included, along with an upcoming HBO presentation, this coming weekend, of a documentary on the journal written by an officer as he accompanied a soldier back to his family and community.

Rethinking Media Coverage Of Fallen Troops

Talk of the Nation, February 17, 2009 · President Obama has indicated that the Pentagon will review a policy banning the press from photographing the remains of U.S. troops returning to the states in flag-draped "transfer cases" at Dover Air Force Base. The ban has been in effect since the Gulf War in 1991.

John Barry, national security correspondent for Newsweek, once attended the unloading of the coffins from a C-17 at Dover. He writes that witnessing "an event so moving in its intimacy and restraint" made him feel like an intruder.

Listen In

Below is an earlier discussion right after President Obama made his statement as to the new Administration looking in to this policy of hiding the return of our fallen.

Ban On Media Coverage Of Military Coffins Revisited

All Things Considered, February 11, 2009 · A longtime Pentagon policy bars the media from covering the arrival of coffins carrying the military's dead. But that may change under the Obama administration.

Listen In

At the University of Delaware, professor Ralph Begleiter, a former CNN correspondent, has fought unsuccessfully in the courts for the release of government photos taken at Dover. He says it's an important element of the story of any war.

"What I'm about to say, I say with the fullest respect of the family members who have made that sacrifice by giving up their family members," Begleiter said. "I would say the people who die make that sacrifice not solely for the families but also for the nation. So it's not just a matter of privacy for the families. It's a matter of national grieving."

This is also an earlier NPR show and discussion on this important topic:

After Death, a Soldier's Journey Is Not Over

Talk of the Nation, April 7, 2008 · Writer Chris Jones followed a soldier's body from Baghdad to its final resting place in the soldier's hometown of Scottsburg, Ind. Jones discusses the long journey in "The Things That Carried Him," a detailed article in Esquire magazine about the transfer of remains.

Listen In

Esquire magazine "The Things That Carried Him", By Chris Jones.

When we joined the Military, along with all the papers to sign and more, we took an Oath, and Oath that stays with all who serve, wether one stays in or finishes his or hers enlistment, the Oath and the Experinces never leave:

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; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. { So help me God }

This is the same Oath but for the officers who serve:

I, [name], do solemly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State (Commonwealth, District, Territory) of ___ against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the Governor of the State (Commonwealth, District, Territory) of ___, that I make this obligation freely, without any mental reservations or purpose of evasion, and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the Office of [grade] in the Army/Air National Guard of the State (Commonwealth, District, Territory) of ___ upon which I am about to enter, { so help me God.}

You serve for Country and Constitution and deserve to be Honored, right or wrong the decisions of the civilian and military leadership, by the Country, and they must know the true cost of that service especially after being sent into conflicts far from home!

Grief for War Dead Shrouds Casket Photo Ban
Military Families Want Sons' and Daughters' Stories Told -- but Privacy Respected

Insets, from left to right: A1C. Elizabeth N. Jacobson, LCpl. Justin Mark Ellsworth, Pfc. Brandon Sapp and Sgt. Patrick McCaffrey. Back, in this Department of Defense photo soldiers drape U.S. flags over the caskets of members of a Black Hawk helicopter crew killed in Kuwait in 2005.

"His life was the American middle-class dream," said his mother, Nadia McCaffrey, 63, a veterans' rights activist who lives in the house her son left in Tracy, Calif. "He didn't realize war could happen."

The family was besieged by the press nonstop for 10 days, and because they had so many unanswered questions about their son's death, they allowed the media to join them when Patrick's body arrived in Sacramento.

"The day my son left for Iraq he was hoping to make a difference," his father, Bob McCaffrey, told ABCNews.com. "He left behind his children, his wife and his own life. We are not going to hide him when he comes home."

The McCaffrey's decision defied a longstanding military ban on photographing the caskets of America's war dead -- a policy that had been enacted in 1991 during the first Gulf War. Many mistakenly believe that it was President George W. Bush who enacted the ban.

"It's like they're hiding the service members killed in action," said McCaffrey, 64, of Bella Vista, Calif. "It disgusted me from the beginning."

Below is a part of a previous post:

Film tells story of final journey for soldier

We as a Nation, for these past 7plus years, have not been allowed to Honor the Returning Soldiers killed while serving this Country in these Two Theaters of Occupations, and because of that few know or even think about the real cost of War, especially Wars of Choice!

President Obama has now said he will be revisiting that policy, set by those who sent our Military into both Theaters.

GILLETTE, Wyo. — It was just one soldier’s story. Lance Cpl. Chance Phelps, 19, was killed in an ambush outside of Baghdad on Good Friday 2004. Within the next week, his body would be escorted from Iraq, across the Atlantic Ocean and across most of the United States to his hometown of Dubois in northwest Wyoming.

To national audiences, it was one more military casualty.

But like every soldier felled in battle, Chance left behind a world of connections: family, friends and a small Wyoming town devastated by his loss. The man who accompanied his casket from Philadelphia to Dubois, Lt. Col. Michael Strobl, provided a glimpse into that world by journaling the cross-country trip.

Premiered at the Sundance Festival on January 16th 2009, and will air on HBO in February 2009.

A ‘behind-the-scenes’ clip from the Sundance premier of Taking Chance.


"Taking Chance" trailer


Chance Phelps Foundation

HBO airing dates and times, airing through the 1st of March.

Duckworth Tapped for VA Assistant Secretary

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama has announced his intent to nominate L. Tammy Duckworth, director of the Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs, to be the Assistant Secretary of Public and Intergovernmental Affairs for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).

As assistant secretary, Duckworth will direct VA’s public affairs, internal communications and intergovernmental relations. She also will oversee programs for homeless Veterans, consumer affairs and special rehabilitative events.

Veterans offered health care help

For veterans struggling financially because of a job loss or decreased income, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs offers programs that can relieve the costs of health care or provide care at no cost.

Veterans whose previous income was ruled too high for VA health care may be able to enter the system based on a hardship if their current year's income is projected to fall below federal income thresholds because of a job loss, separation from service or some other financial setback. Those eligible due to hardship can avoid co-pays applied to higher-income veterans. Qualifying veterans might be eligible for enrollment and receive health care at no cost.

Also eligible for no-cost VA care are most veterans who recently returned from a combat zone.

Halvorson speaks on veterans' affairs

"I also believe that the veterans' issues are going to be a huge priority for me," Halvorson said, immediately acknowledging concerns. "The last administration has created so many veterans, it's going to be up to us to figure out a way to make sure that they're a top priority and that we are ready for them when they come home…"

"We've got to do whatever we can to take care of that."

America’s Wounded Warriors March on Washington, DC

Responding to President Obama’s call for all Americans to get more involved, America’s Wounded Warriors from across the country will converge on Washington, D.C. the second week of February, 2009 to meet with their Senators and Members of Congress. Their purpose will be to educate their Representatives on the issues of greatest importance to all Veterans, not just those who have been wounded in combat.

Coming by twos and threes from almost every State and Territory, Capitol Hill will be awash in a sea of color as some 100 members of the Military Order of the Purple Heart travel the halls of Congress, their distinctive blue blazers adorned with the medals they were awarded for defending our National freedoms. The most prominent of these will be the Purple Heart Medal worn on their lapel, the symbol of dedicated service to the country.

Enough Joe the Plumber;

McClatchy carries one of the realities further in this article I just caught. The subject title above is the beginning of theirs and it finishes with this: here's to Kareem the Soldier

Khan was a 20-year-old soldier from Manahawkin, N.J., who wanted to enlist in the Army from the time he was 10. He was an all-American boy who visited Disney World after he completed his training at Fort Benning, Ga., and made his comrades in Iraq watch "Saving Private Ryan" every week.

Kareem was brought up, as most know, by Colin Powell, on Sunday on Meet The Press. When he started telling how he had seen a picture, a picture of a Mother at her sons grave stone, a gravestone that then told everyone that this was an American 'Goldstar Mother', a 'Goldstar Mother' who had lost her American Soldier Son while he served this Country, America, in it's now Volunteer Military!


This is that picture Powell first saw:





That I know many have seen, but should be shone over and over, as there are others also, because as Powell started to describe the photo you could see this always a Soldier start to choke up but caught himself and continued, and as you read his eyes he continued with true conviction of his feelings about this Country and what it stands for, or should, but has been torn apart from it's beliefs and morality!

"He was an American soldier first," said his father, Feroze Khan. "But he also looked at fighting in this war as fighting for his faith. He was fighting radicalism."

These picture's could have been replaced with many pictures, not only of the soldier but of the 'Goldstar Mother'. Pictures of African-American mothers and fallen U.S. Military sons or daughters! Pictures of Hispanic, legal and illegal, mothers and fallen U.S. Military sons or daughters! Pictures of White European decent mothers and fallen U.S. Military sons or daughters! Pictures of Other Nationalities and Immigrants from many countries around this planet mothers and fallen U.S. Military sons or daughters! Pictures of the tens of thousands of mothers and fallen U.S. Military sons and daughters of all the conflicts, right or wrong, showing all the faces of differing Nationalities, Skin Color, Different Religious Beliefs, Different Political Ideologies, Differing Life Circumstances................................................!

Khan, a child of immigrant parents from Trinidad, was 14 when the Sept. 11 attacks happened. Feroze Khan said he remembered his son watching in stunned silence: "I could tell that inside a lot of things were going through his head."

One Sunday morning, his son sent an instant message: "Hey Dad. Are you there?" Feroze Khan was out, and he saw the message when he returned.

A few hours later, his ex-wife called. Soldiers had knocked on her door in Maryland. Their only child was dead.

Different stories from all mentioned above, but with the same outcome, their son or daughter had died serving their country!

"He was an American," Powell said.

He was a Muslim serving his Country with Honor giving, as his family has, Much More than the greater majority of the Country are willing to give while some of them would slander to an extreme his Religious Beliefs!!

Sums It Up, Merry? Christmas

As to the present, Remember who had Total Control of Washington and what they were passing and saying in the leadup to the 'Shock and Awe', leaving out the Most Important Legislation and Funding!!

Their excuse for Walter Reed, "Oh it's closing in a couple of years!", as they were rubber stamping a War of Choice knowing Reed would be where many would pass through, was/is a Total Disgrace, another Deja-Vu Vietnam Era!!

It's simply, Powerfully, titled "The Disgraceful Treatment of our Veterans"

As you do your holiday shopping this year and think about a big turkey dinner and piles of gifts and the good life that most Americans enjoy, please spare a
thought for those who made it all possible: Those who serve in our military and the veterans who've worn the uniform.

Be it in justifiable? conflicts or Wars of Choice, benefitting only a few in ways No One should Prosper!

Bullets:

* An average of 18 veterans commit suicide each and every day of the year, according to recent statistics from the Veterans Administration (VA). That’s 126 veterans who kill themselves every week. Or some 6,552 who take their own lives each year. Our veterans are killing themselves at twice the rate of other Americans.
* One quarter of the homeless people in America are military veterans. That’s one in every four. Is that ragged man huddled on the steam grate in a brutal winter wind a Vietnam vet? Did that younger man panhandling for pocket change on the street corner fight in Kandahar or Fallujah?

Add to above All we've found out about, many of us already knew what was coming, these past six years!!

The next smarmy politician who shouts, “God bless our troops” ought to be tarred and feathered and ridden out of Washington on a rail for sheer hypocrisy.

As for the Greater Majority of this Country, the sheer numbers would leave the rails in total disrepair, but Shame should pass through All Our Thoughts, Shame at ourselves!

McClatchy Newspapers has been running a sreies of articles, this week. Kansans At War.

Twenty percent of the U.S. troops fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan come from the Army National Guard. Many are from small towns, and go to war alongside family and friends. This is Part One of a four-part story about one of those units, Bravo Battery of the Kansas National Guard's 161st Field Artillery, and one night in Iraq that changed many lives.

And pay a visit to Ilona Meaghers site PTSD Combat: Winning the War Within, she has this Free Downloadable Suicide Prevention Book posted up. Links to the Free Download can be found there along with a cut from the book, as well as this Video:



Oh ya, for those a little slow on the brain thrust or to involved arguing about who's the Bestest to lead this Troubled Nation, a lightbulb for you, Pass The Link To The Free Book Download On!!

Is 'Funding' Really For Troops?

What Happened To Funding and Oversite For Military/Veteran Care In Previous Congresses?

Wounded Soldier's Family Feels Forgotten by Army

Army Spc. Ron Hinkle was deployed to Iraq in December 2005. He was injured in an IED blast four months later.

This is the first of a two-part report.

All Things Considered, September 12, 2007 · Two years ago, Army Specialist Ronald Hinkle left a good trucking job, a working ranch, a wife and two daughters in Byers, Colo., to serve in Iraq.

Now Hinkle is one of more than 13,000 American service men and women who have suffered serious wounds in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Hinkle survived an IED blast but festering wounds nearly killed him.

He and his family are struggling to rebuild lives completely transformed by that explosion in Iraq.

SNIP: View and Listen to this NPR story and find links to all related media content Here

This is the second of the two-part report.

Wounded Soldier's Care Tangled in Military System

All Things Considered, September 13, 2007 · Four months after Army Spc. Ronald Hinkle left his ranch and family in Colorado to serve his country in Iraq, he was injured in an IED blast. He now suffers from a traumatic brain injury and is unable to think clearly. He suffers from seizures and cannot be left alone.

Ron's wife, Reece, quit her high-paying job to care for him. They live on their Byers, Colo., ranch with their two daughters, Rebecca, 14, and Callie, 13, and Reece's mother, Lois White.

SNIP: View and Listen to this NPR story and find links to all related media content Here