What follows below is written by a Vietnam War veteran living in Milwaukee, Bill Christofferson, in reaction to Obama's inugural speech.
Can you guys run this and/or forward:
http://www.uppitywis.org/obama-vietnam-vets-welcome-home
Obama to Vietnam vets: Welcome home
Posted January 20th, 2009 by Bill Christofferson
He had me at 'my fellow citizens.'
But of the many remarkable things Barack Obama said as he assumed this office of president, this simple phrase spoke volumes to me, and no doubt to many of my fellow Vietnam veterans, numbering some 2.5-million with another 6+ million who served during the Vietnam era:
"For us, they fought and died, in places like Concord and Gettysburg; Normandy and Khe Sahn."
I'll leave the analysis to others. I know what hearing that from the lips of our new President meant to me.
Vietnam, like Iraq, was a terrible mistake. But, as Vietnam Veterans Against the War have said for 40 years, it is possible -- and fitting -- to honor the warrior, not the war.
By mentioning Khe Sahn in the same breath as Lexington, Gettysburg, and Normandy, Obama has done that.
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Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Obama to Vietnam vets: Welcome home
Subject: Filner Applauds Confirmation of VA Secretary Shinseki
Subject: Filner Applauds Confirmation of VA Secretary Shinseki
Date: Wednesday, January 21, 2009, 8:27 AM
NEWS FROM…
CHAIRMAN BOB FILNER
HOUSE COMMITTEE ON VETERANS’ AFFAIRS
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 20, 2009
http://veterans.house.gov
FILNER APPLAUDS CONFIRMATION OF VA SECRETARY SHINSEKI
House Veterans’ Affairs Committee Chairman Bob Filner (D-CA) released the following statement on the confirmation of General Eric K. Shinseki as Secretary for Veterans Affairs:
“Today’s inauguration of Barack Obama as President brings me hope for the future of America’s veterans. I believe the confirmation of General Eric Shinseki as Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs goes a long way in restoring confidence in the VA.
“Confidence in an agency must be earned, and will only come when there is accountability, transparency, and results. Over the years, little by little, veterans have lost faith in the VA. Now we need to reinvest in our veterans and prove to them that we will fight for them just like they fought for us.
“Throughout Secretary Shinseki’s long and distinguished career in the Army, he produced real results and proved that his character is of the highest caliber. I am certain that he understands the hard work and dedication necessary to make VA stand for ‘Veterans Advocate,’ instead of what many believe the VA has become – ‘Veterans Adversary.’
“I am excited to work with a new Democratic Administration, but as Chairman of the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, my role and responsibilities remain unchanged. Oversight of the VA will continue because the best interest of our veterans will continue to be my number one priority. Caring for our veterans should not be a partisan issue; therefore, I hope to work with all members of the Veterans’ Affairs Committee, and Congress, to provide the needed resources for the VA to carry out this difficult job.
“The ongoing conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan bring new challenges and new veterans. We must also never forget the sacrifice and service of our veterans from previous conflicts. General Shinseki will have his hands full from day one as he works to keep the promises that have been made to all veterans, but I am convinced that his knowledge and experience will bring actual results. I am eager to work with the new Administration on the challenges ahead.”
author of Vietnam’s Rain…Agents Orange, White and Blue (Weapons of Mass Destruction
This interview is long I know, please be patient. I am actually presenting this article as the first part of a three part series. I crave the comments of you my readers.
Harmon David Biehl
Veterans Affairs Examiner, Miami Office
407-905-0145
407-325-8663
biehlenterprises@yahoo.com
Charles Kelley
SP5Kelley2nd94th@aol.com
http://www.2ndbattalion94thartillery.com/
Mr. Charles Kelley or Kelley as he goes by is a Veterans/Widows Advocate/Herbicide (AO) researcher, Battalion Historian, and author of Vietnam’s Rain…Agents Orange, White and Blue (Weapons of Mass Destruction)
Hello Mr. Kelley, May I call you Chuck? Please call me Harm.
This interview is going to be published on the Examiner.com Internet web site from the Miami Office.
I will ask the questions, as H and Chuck will answer as Kelley.
H Chuck, are you are a veteran? Please tell me a little about yourself.
Kelley - Yes, I am a Veteran of Vietnam. I served with a 175mm gun outfit in I Corps along the DMZ from 1967 to 1968. I came home with many medical issues and like many of us that wanted to get on with our lives we just passed it off as the hand we were dealt by nature and worked through it as young men. We had no idea as well as our doctors had no idea what was wrong with us created by the herbicides (plural) exposures. Primarily as I found out years later due to the information void created by our own government.
H Besides being a veteran, you are a Veterans Advocate. As an advocate do you have any first hand knowledge of interaction with the V.A.?
Kelley - Yes I have. I am presently at 50% disability with a BVA held two years ago in Atlanta. It was nothing but a joke. My wife went with me as well as my sister-in-law as witnesses. I thought after 5 years of fighting I would finally get a chance to present my case. I was wrong. I was not allowed to present my case to the judge. If any ten other people in the nation can present a well grounded case on the effects of Agent Orange and the issues that VA Atlanta did not rate me on to begin with I would be surprised. Yet, I was not allowed to present my well grounded case. My case now resides in VA DC appeals remand center where it has been for the last two years. I call and call and call and get the same answer. “It is in the file room waiting for someone to look at it.” One person on the phone told me she had no idea what was going on with my claim and would have to request overtime to work on it and call me back. She also said that if management did not approve the overtime then she could not even status it. Another person told me they use to have five units doing the claim remands and due to budget cuts they were down to one. Congress says they give VA all the money they need but I think this is an example of they did not or VA is creating its own bottleneck for yearly budget control on behalf of the Executive Branch while Veterans suffer in disgrace.
What is even more staggering is in 2007 a report indicated that over 50% of all regional VA claims that are denied are later on either overturned in entirety or remanded. Two centers, Atlanta and St Petersburg had over 63% of their denied claims overturned or remanded. Probably not something you want to put on a resume unless you work for Veterans Affairs. Of course they are just waiting for the Veteran/Widow to just die or just give up and go away using their very adversarial processes.
I hear the same story time after time from Veterans and Widows alike.
H I came back from Vietnam and had a lot of very bad experiences with the nightmares and not sleeping and breathing problems, etc... but mostly I have come to find out just recently that I suffer from PTSD. I am sure it is more than just stress related issues because even I can see that Vietnam Veterans are way different than all the rest of the vets I deal with. Have you noticed a pattern in the responses of the Government or the V.A. in terms of denial or flat out refusal to admit A.O. is directly involved with a whole array of mental problems like PTSD as an example?
Kelley – Yes there is an obvious aversion to even looking at such impacts even though we now know that many of these herbicides were neurotoxic. Neurotoxic with many outcomes such as:
Paranoia, memory loss, somatization, personality changes, suicide, etc. Physical signs of limb weakness or numbness, loss of short term memory, vision, and/or intellect, uncontrollable obsessive and/or compulsive behaviors, delusions, headache, cognitive and behavioral problems and sexual dysfunction. You must remember if this issue were to be brought forward it would explain why non-combatants have the same mental issues, it would explain the suicides, and it would certainly explain the exacerbated PTSD found in Vietnam Veterans. However, then the blame would not be on the enemy soldier but our own government. Even though more and more data points towards herbicide neuropsychological issues, many of which were known early on, it will never be brought forward in our lifetime. The government has minimized or covered up so much now just in cancers and other issues this would be just too damaging for them to face and admit. They prefer the stigma of the deranged Vietnam Veteran rather then the government brain compromised honorable warrior. Early on it was “Waiting for the Vietnam Veterans to die” but recently in some articles we are seeing “When will the U.S. Government Kill the Last Vietnam Veteran”.
The first rule of differential diagnostics in DSM-IV (PTSD and Mental Disorders) is if an outside source such as drugs, alcohol, and most importantly exposures to toxic chemicals is creating the problem. This is not being done nor is it even being considered.
If you are talking about your COPD breathing problems there is enough scientific and statistical evidence to sink a battleship as this group of disorders being ‘dioxin associated’ all of it is denied by Veterans Affairs by some subjective process that stakeholders are not privy. Sort of like Germany circa 1939. If you are talking about apnea that also should be associated.
Subject: Miami Veterans Affairs Examiner: Agent Orange, an interesting commentary
__._,_.___ Kelley on Agent Orange
Nuclear test veterans launch case
Nuclear test veterans launch case
Veterans involved in British nuclear tests in the South Pacific are to launch a legal bid against the government at the High Court later.
Ex-servicemen want compensation for illnesses they claim are the result of exposure to radiation in the 1950s.
But MoD lawyers will try to derail their claims before a full hearing, by arguing the tests happened too long ago for compensation to be considered.
The MoD says it recognises the troops' "vital role" in British nuclear tests.
At the height of the Cold War in the 1950s, Britain carried out a series of nuclear weapons tests in mainland Australia, the Montebello islands off the west Australian coast and on Christmas Island, in the South Pacific.
Veterans who served in the Army, Royal Navy and Air Force, as well as personnel from New Zealand and Fiji, were involved in the tests.
We are the frontline heroes from the Cold War
Douglas Hern, British Nuclear Test Veterans' Association
They say there were not properly protected from the blasts and did not know the possible consequences.
Many blame ill health, including cancers, skin defects, fertility problems and reduced life expectancy, on radiation exposure.
The High Court hearing to assess whether the claims are barred by the Limitation Act 1980 begins on Wednesday and may take two weeks.
Solicitors representing the veterans say if a compensation hearing can go ahead, the MoD could face claims from up to 1,000 individuals, potentially costing millions of pounds.
Douglas Hern, of the British Nuclear Test Veterans Association, said the serving troops had been "part of an experiment".
"We were human guinea pigs. We are the frontline heroes from the Cold War. There was no-one closer to it than us," he said.
He blames radiation exposure for causing his diabetes. He also believes that the death of his daughter from cancer at the age of 13 had a hereditary link to what he calls the "genetic confusion" in his own body.
An MoD spokesman said: "The UK government recognises the vital contribution service personnel played in the UK's nuclear tests during the 1950s and understands its obligation to veterans.
"When compensation claims are received they are considered on the basis of whether or not the Ministry of Defence has a legal liability to pay compensation.
"Where there is a proven legal liability, compensation is paid. There is a case ongoing and therefore it would be inappropriate to comment further."
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There is so much wrong with this the United States has even compensated the veterans used in the nuclear experiments, but they also have the same arguments about the genetic changes and the cancers their children suffer from. They are having enormous problems trying to establish those links.
Talk about fast: the new White House scored an A+.
Jon Soltz
Co-Founder of VoteVets.org, served as a Captain in Operation Iraqi Freedom
Posted January 20, 2009 | 02:22 PM (EST)
On Veterans, President Obama Off To a Great Start
Read More: Department Of Veterans Affairs, Obama Administration, Obama Veterans, Obama Website, President Obama, Veterans, Votevets, Votevets.Org, Whitehouse.Gov, Politics News
Talk about fast. At 12 noon, the White House website flipped over from President Bush to President Obama. Of particular concern to me and all of the veterans with VoteVets.org was what the agenda was for veterans. On that, just one second after 12 noon, the new White House scored an A+.
Just before the inauguration, VoteVets.org polled the over 45,000 veterans and veteran families in its over 100,000 person email base for suggestions on what the new administration should tackle at the VA. Today, the White House website makes clear that the message was loud and clear.
The full memo VoteVets.org sent to the transition on our findings can be found here. The White House page on veterans can be found here. Notice similarities?
VoteVets.org Memo - Lack of easy access should be met with more VA hospitals and clinics and/or ability to get care elsewhere.
White House Page- Expand Vet Centers
VoteVets.org Memo - Prescriptions are often too expensive for many vets to afford; and Emergency services need to be covered.
White House Page - Fully fund the VA so it has all the resources it needs to serve the veterans who need it, when they need it.
VoteVets.org Memo - Advocates are needed.
White House Page - Hire additional claims workers, and improve training and accountability so that VA benefit decisions are rated fairly and consistently.
VoteVets.org Memo - Streamline and make the disability process easier to understand.
White House Page - Fix the Benefits Bureaucracy
How refreshing to have an administration that hears veterans, listens to veterans, and plans to fight for veterans!
We'll see what happens the rest of the week with an Executive Order closing Guantanamo, banning torture practices, and setting a new course in Iraq. But, if the new White House page on veterans is any indication, we finally have a President who is listening to us.
Jon Soltz on Huffington Post
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
General Shinseki is confirmed as Secretary of the VA, SALUTE
Senate approves 7 Obama nominees
The Swamp
by Jim Tankersley
The Senate quickly confirmed seven of President Obama's cabinet nominees this afternoon, mere hours after the Inauguration - but it left many more, including Hillary Clinton, to wait at least another day.
Among those winning approval by unanimous consent: Interior Secretary Ken Salazar; Energy Secretary Steven Chu; Education Secretary Arne Duncan; Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano; Peter Orszag, director of the Office of Management and Budget; Eric Shinseki, the secretary of Veterans' Affairs; and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack.
Secretary-of-State-nominee Clinton was originally expected to make that list, but Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) held her up by a day over conflict-of-interest objections to her husband, former Bill Clinton, and his charitable foundation's foreign donors.
Others who face a more protracted process include Labor nominee Hilda Solis, Treasury nominee Timothy Geithner, Attorney General nominee Eric Holder and Transportation nominee Ray LaHood. Obama also still needs tp nominate a commerce secretary pick to replace Bill Richardson, who withdrew from consideration amidst a scandal in his home state New Mexico.
Most observers expect all of Obama's nominees to eventually win confirmation. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) urged as much in a statement this afternoon.
"President Obama has nominated a cabinet of exceptionally bright and capable people," Reid said. "They represent a cross-section of our country, geographically and politically. It is up to us, Democrats and Republicans in the Senate, to confirm these worthy nominees quickly so that they, along with our new President, can hit the ground running."
Senate approves 7 Obama nominees
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I hope General Shinseki moves quickly to adopt many of the transition teams recommendations for fixing what is wrong with the compensation claims process and Dr. Linda Blimes is finally paid attention to, her recommendations will help the disabled veterans of this nation and it will ease the workload of the regional office employees. Instead of wasting time making every veteran prove every claim, and being antagonistic to disabled veterans andtheir widows, maybe they can focus on thier mission and HELP the nations veterans.
Testimony shows scope of meal problems at McCoy
Testimony shows scope of meal problems at McCoy
By Ryan J. Foley - The Associated Press
Posted : Sunday Jan 18, 2009 14:23:05 EST
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/01/ap_mccoy_meals_011809/
MADISON, Wis. — Food service was so poor at one of the nation’s largest military training bases in 2005 and 2006 that meals were not available, bugs were mealtime companions and workers didn’t follow basic safety rules, according to testimony recently made public.
The Army blames the state of Wisconsin for mismanaging the multimillion-dollar food service contract at Fort McCoy under a program for blind vendors. A state official who oversaw the contract acknowledged problems but testified that shoddy Army facilities were largely at fault.
“Until the Army builds modern buildings of dining facilities for its soldiers, we will not be back there,” workforce development official Joseph D’Costa testified in an arbitration hearing last year. “The garrison buildings are not able to provide the environment for a pleasant food service experience for our soldiers.”
Fort McCoy spokeswoman Linda Fournier said it was the poor quality of the food, not the outdated buildings, that caused complaints from soldiers in 2005 and 2006. She said food service has improved under the current contractor and the Army has spent $14 million upgrading older dining facilities in the last two years.
“Fort McCoy is working diligently to provide superior dining facilities and dining services for its soldiers,” she said in a statement.
More than 100,000 reserve and active military personnel from all branches receive training at Fort McCoy every year. The western Wisconsin base has also served as the point of mobilization and demobilization for tens of thousands of troops who have fought in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The past problems were made public this month in records related to a federal lawsuit filed by the state asking a judge to throw out a $225,000 arbitration ruling in favor of the blind manager, Janet Dickey.
Dickey lost her job at the base in 2006 when the Army canceled the contract. An arbitration panel agreed last year that D’Costa failed to supervise her work, causing the contract to fail.
In 2003, the state Department of Workforce Development won the Army contract to serve meals to thousands of soldiers under the Randolph-Sheppard law that gives preference to blind vendors. The state hired Blackstone Consulting Inc., which has experience in meal service, as a subcontractor to run the operation alongside Dickey.
The Army was happy with the arrangement in the first two years, but service started to deteriorate in 2005.
A small and unreliable staff meant dining facilities opened later than they should have or, in some cases, not at all, records show. Soldiers and generals missed some meals and were forced to go to classes or training exercises on empty stomachs or late.
At that time, only two out of 16 buildings where food was served had air conditioning (Fournier said a majority of them now do). In the summers, workers were forced to open the doors because of the extreme heat in kitchens with ovens but that attracted flies and other bugs.
“As a result, insects, rodents, all kinds of creatures come in through the garrison buildings,” D’Costa testified. “And the soldiers started complaining, that this is not a good experience for them to have meals.”
In 2005, a metal bolt that came in a can of pork and beans was mistakenly served to one of the troops. The Army took a picture of it and demanded to know what happened; the manufacturer of the can and a worker who wasn’t paying attention were apparently to blame, according to testimony.
For the Christmas meal that year, hundreds of base employees and their families were nearly served roast beef that had been left in a warmer for 11 hours at an unsafe temperature. Workers were preparing to serve the meat but were stopped after Dickey objected, warning about food-borne illness, testimony shows.
The Army warned the state at least three times the contract was at risk if they did not correct the problems before it was canceled.
In July 2006, an Army contracting officer documented inadequate staffing levels and instances of running out of food and where undercooked chicken was served. He followed up the next month with a letter repeating those problems as well as a lack of sanitation by employees such as hand-washing and using hairnets.
D’Costa blamed Blackstone for cutting staff to save money and for not training those the company did hire on food safety. “Basic rudimentary rules were not being followed,” he said.
At least two of the workers got in legal trouble with military police — one for possessing drugs on the base and another for driving with a suspended license — and were fired, D’Costa testified.
He also said some delays were caused by a dishwasher carousel that repeatedly broke down. That problem led to longer lines and the use of disposable plates and silverware, he said.
“The dishwasher broke down so frequently ... that our soldiers were being fed without adequate plates, without adequate plastic silverware,” he said. “(The Army) put that equipment in knowing that equipment was deficient.”
Fournier said the carousel did not perform as the designers of the dining facility intended and has since been replaced.
The contract is now managed by contractor Austin & Associates but the Army is seeking competitive bids for the deal by June 30.
A coalition of advocates for the blind is lobbying the state to again seek the contract, saying improvements at Fort McCoy mean it is more likely to succeed this time. Under a national program, blind vendors have won about 40 contracts to manage military food service facilities.
But Department of Workforce Development spokesman Dick Jones said the state will not seek the contract because of the past problems. “We firmly believe better opportunities exist for people with disabilities,” he said in a statement.
__._,_.___ Troubles at Fort McCoy
