King: Life is bare bones on the Lakota reservation
Story Highlights
In nation's poorest county, about 56 percent of residents live below poverty line
Herbert Hale, who is a member of the Lakota tribe, is unemployed
Hale gets about $17 a week from a tribal welfare fund; tries to find odd jobs
Lawmakers don't get "the plight on the reservation," tribal council member says
By John King
CNN Chief National Correspondent
Editor's note: On CNN's "State of the Union," host and Chief National Correspondent John King goes outside the Beltway to report on the issues affecting communities across the country.
Herbert Hale lives on a check of a little less than $17 a week and whatever he can pick up from odd jobs.
CHERRY CREEK, South Dakota (CNN) -- The tiny one-room house rests on a hill; no electricity and no running water. A creaky metal cot and a rusting wood-burning stove is all the comfort Herbert Hale says he needs.
"All it is is logs, glue -- dirt and water put together -- then cement and the chicken string," Hale says of his home. "Long as the windows don't break, it's nice and warm in here."
The roof leaks a bit, and the floorboards are rotted in one corner, but Hale isn't one to complain.
"It's home," he says, almost under his breath, as he invites a visitor to have a look.
Firewood is stacked in one corner inside, and more outside as Hale uses the summer months to stockpile for prairie winters, where 20 below zero is not all that uncommon.
He also pulls bunches of long weeds in the prairie grass, to dry for use as a firestarter.
"I have to be careful," Hale says matter-of-factly as he pulls a few fistfuls. "Sometimes there are some snakes. Rattlesnakes. Nothing to mess around with."
He is 54 years old, a veteran of two Army combat tours in Vietnam, a member of the Lakota tribe and part of two stunning statistics, even as communities across America deal with the pain and challenges of recession:
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Life is bare bones on the Lakota reservation
Showing posts with label Lakota. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lakota. Show all posts
Friday, August 14, 2009
Friday, August 22, 2008
His war but her battle, when husband came home
Wife’s persistence helps save Private Ryan
By JODI RAVE - 08/22/08
As an active duty soldier, Ryan LeCompte spends most of his days sleeping at his home on the Lower Brule Reservation in South Dakota.
“He’s not the same kid who left,” said Orville “Red” Langdeau, a Lakota and uncle to the war-injured LeCompte. “He’s different. He came back damaged.”
LeCompte, who was an Army scout with the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment in Fort Carson, Colo., served two tours in Iraq before coming home physically and mentally wounded after participating in more than 160 combat missions.
He is now among the thousands of military men and women suffering from traumatic brain injuries and post traumatic stress disorder after performing their military duties of war.
Since returning to their home units, soldiers like LeCompte have faced new dangers — dishonorable discharges and the loss of all military benefits. Mistreatment of Fort Carson soldiers, in particular, has been the subject of several federal investigations.
Sen. Kit Bond, R-Mo., is among a group of Congressmen and their staffs working to help soldiers suffering from post traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injuries. They have met with Tammie LeCompte, Ryan’s wife.
They’ve since been “pushing on the bureaucracy and the leadership at Fort Carson and the Pentagon to help the family,” said Shana Marchio, Bond’s communications director.
After LeCompte’s military commanders failed to acknowledge his war injuries, Tammie LeCompte picked up her own weapons — faith and perseverance.
“Tammie was the most instrumental person in making sure Ryan got the care he needed,” said Marchio.
“She’s really a fighter. She refused to give in and accept the poor treatment her husband was getting.”
go here for more
http://www.helenair.com/articles/2008/08/22/top/70st_080822_privateryan.txt
In a perfect world, we wouldn't have to fight for the men and women who come home from combat wounded, but this is far from a perfect world or nation. People tend to just assume the government is doing the right thing when it comes to taking care of our obligations to our veterans. The truth is far from that.
The DOD will end up giving a dishonorable discharge under personality disorders instead of PTSD because the soldier was caught drinking or doing drugs to mask the problems of PTSD, which is called "self medicating" often misdiagnosed as addiction. They will say the soldier is a discipline problem and not take a look at what the history of that soldier has been before PTSD began to change them.
When people working for the VA feel they need to defend the VA and say that the claims are up to the veteran to prove, they are usually under the impression the veteran has to be trying to get something for nothing if the claim is denied. This happens all time. What they fail to see is that legitimate claims are often turned down for reasons that have nothing to do with what doctors say, what the veteran went through or what the wound is. Often it's a mistake on the claim itself or in the way the claims processors reads it.
The people turning down claims or doing the misdiagnosing are not evil and they do not do this on purpose, but they do it because of what they think. Some have no clue what PTSD is or does to a person. Believe it or not, there are still some psychologist and social workers who know nothing about PTSD. Most of the time it's limited knowledge and in this case, it's dangerous. Not only do the veterans suffer but their families and communities as well. With a clear, physical wound and a claim denied, the veteran and the family suffer financially and under stress they should not have to go through. When it's PTSD, it's financial because they cannot work, stressful because they have the extra burden of lost income piled onto the emotional stress topped off with untreated wounds and lost time. This effects the entire community.
There is the self medicating problem causing drunk driving. Drug use. Domestic violence. This involves the police departments. The stress involves health care and emergency room visits. Some try to go into rehab to stop drinking or doing drugs, by choice or by court order, often without the insurance to pay for it and the VA won't cover anything for a "non-service connected" condition. Until a claim is approved it's considered "non-service connected" and is regarded as no fault of the government. The veteran and their families are on their own.
The problem with rehabs is that they do not work if they are treating an "addiction" and the veteran is self medicating. It can't work if the problem causing the drinking or drug use is left untreated.
There was a report posted here yesterday that claims are taking 185 days to process. Last year it was 177 days and 657 days for an appeal to be processed. During that time, it's not just a matter of no income but no treatment as well. It's hard enough to get them into treatment in the first place but when the government is telling them what's wrong with them is not the obligation of the government to take care of, it's just one more insult on top of injury.
The spouse ends up having to fight for the one who went to war. Fight to hold their family together and find the strength and the hope to keep going. None of this should happen. It happened to us with a six year battle. It happened to other families with longer battles. It's still happening with some going through all of this even longer.
Senior Chaplain Kathie Costos
Namguardianangel@aol.com
www.Namguardianangel.org
www.Woundedtimes.blogspot.com"The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional to how they perceive veterans of early wars were treated and appreciated by our nation." - George Washington
Monday, August 27, 2007
Fort Carson still does not get it
Jodi Rave: Saving Private Ryan LeCompte, Lakota
Monday, August 27, 2007
Filed Under: Opinion
"It's been hell trying to save Private Ryan.
Pfc. Ryan LeCompte, an Army scout, has been diagnosed by military and private doctors with post-traumatic stress disorder and a traumatic brain injury after serving two tours in Iraq with the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment.
He came home with a wounded mind and a broken body.
Now senior officers want to get rid of him.
The 27-year-old Lakota warrior from Lower Brule, S.D., was a standout soldier, earning accolades for working “tirelessly, without complaint, despite the long hours and harsh conditions he faced,” according to a December 2003 award recommendation.
He participated in more than 160 combat missions.
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Fort Carson still does not get what PTSD is. For starters, decision making is another injured part of the warrior. Short term memory loss is another. Mood swings with outbursts of anger along with sadness is another. Most get symptoms of obsessive compulsive actions where they will latch hold of something and are unable to let it go. Usually this is extreme worry. While treatment and medication will help, a great number of them will still seek their own self medicating by drinking and doing drugs. If they drink while in therapy, or do drugs, they are making a bad situation worse. They also have to deal with the fact that as each individual comes with a different chemistry, some medications can make their PTSD worse. It takes a long time to find the right medication along with the right dose to discover the right one for that individual.
If they are a problem in this process and want to stay in the military, then the military has to figure out a way to keep them in the military without placing them into greater jeopardy along with their comrades. Once they are in recovery, therapy and medication working, most of the side effects of PTSD calm down. They can still be an effective soldier, just not in the same way. The military is made up of a lot of different duties and not all of them involve combat roles. Discharging or "getting rid" of them, does not make sense and it also sends a message to the rest of the military that the wounded are no longer welcome among their ranks.
It takes a rare person to find it within them to enter into the military. It is an even rarer person who goes into combat. Ryan LeCompte had a history of being a rare breed. He didn't suddenly change into something less because he was wounded. He just needs help to return to wellness. The military can spend money and time to train them to go into combat. They need to remember that they also have to spend time to heal them when they come back. If they are willing to stay in the military, then the military has an obligation to provide them with the tools to do it.
Kathie Costos
www.Namguardianangel.blogspot.com
"The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional to how they perceive veterans of early wars were treated and appreciated by our nation." - George Washington
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