New VA benefits claim form: Just 6 pages
By Kelly Kennedy - Staff writer
Posted : Wednesday Jun 9, 2010 21:07:19 EDT
After years of complaints from veterans about having to fill out a 26-page-long benefits claims form for the Veterans Affairs Department, the Office of Management and Budget has approved VA’s new six-page form.
As the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have progressed, the 26-page application became particularly troublesome for veterans dealing with traumatic brain injuries or post-traumatic stress disorder, both of which can cause short-term memory loss and other cognitive issues.
“It’s a good thing and we’re pleased,” said Paul Sullivan, executive director of Veterans for Common Sense. “In our view, the current form is burdensome. It’s too long.”
VA spokesman Steve Westerfeld confirmed in a voicemail that VA had shortened VA Form 21-526, as well as creating a new “express claim” form, or 21-526EZ, which is six pages long and requires that the veteran provide his own medical and military records, rather than waiting for VA to gather them.
read more here
New VA benefits claim form
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Arlington Cemetery inquiry results come today
Arlington Cemetery inquiry results come today
By William H. McMichael - Staff writer
Posted : Thursday Jun 10, 2010 9:22:00 EDT
The results of an Army investigation into revelations of improperly marked graves, faulty records-keeping and other management failures at the hallowed Arlington National Cemetery will be unveiled this afternoon, officials say. And top officials could be facing disciplinary action as a result.
Army Secretary John McHugh launched the Inspector General inquiry last November after an internal Army finding that cemetery workers in 2003 discovered a casket without a headstone and confirmed a news report that cremated remains contained in an urn were buried two years ago over an unmarked but occupied grave site.
read more here
Arlington Cemetery inquiry results come today
Arlington Cemetery superintendent retiring
By William H. McMichael - Staff writer
Posted : Thursday Jun 10, 2010 9:22:00 EDT
The results of an Army investigation into revelations of improperly marked graves, faulty records-keeping and other management failures at the hallowed Arlington National Cemetery will be unveiled this afternoon, officials say. And top officials could be facing disciplinary action as a result.
Army Secretary John McHugh launched the Inspector General inquiry last November after an internal Army finding that cemetery workers in 2003 discovered a casket without a headstone and confirmed a news report that cremated remains contained in an urn were buried two years ago over an unmarked but occupied grave site.
read more here
Arlington Cemetery inquiry results come today
Arlington Cemetery superintendent retiring
PTSD on Trial: Gulf War decorated veteran 15 years for assaulting a cop
Decorated vet gets 15 years for assaulting cop with car
By JOHN MOLSEED
WATERLOO - A Waterloo man was sentenced to 15 years in prison for driving his car at a Waterloo police officer.
Deon Lemar Mosley, 38, was sentenced Wednesday on a charge of assault on a peace officer. He was ordered to serve the sentence concurrent with a fifteen-year sentence on second-degree theft and a five-year sentence for eluding.
Mosley plead guilty Feb. 25 to the assault charge for driving his car at officer Kevin Boyland June 1, 2009. Boyland was attempting to arrest Mosley for parole violation at the parole office on East Fifth Street. Mosley was attempting to leave in a car as Boyland, who was on foot, motioned for Mosley to stop his car, Mosley accelerated toward the officer, police said.
Jim Katcher, assistant Black Hawk County attorney, asked the sentence be stacked consecutive to the second-degree theft and eluding sentences for a total of 35 years in prison.
Mosley's mother, Theresa Mosley, asked District Court Judge George Stigler to consider her son's military service and his struggles with post-traumatic stress disorder.
read more here
Decorated vet gets 15 years for assaulting cop with car
By JOHN MOLSEED
WATERLOO - A Waterloo man was sentenced to 15 years in prison for driving his car at a Waterloo police officer.
Deon Lemar Mosley, 38, was sentenced Wednesday on a charge of assault on a peace officer. He was ordered to serve the sentence concurrent with a fifteen-year sentence on second-degree theft and a five-year sentence for eluding.
Mosley plead guilty Feb. 25 to the assault charge for driving his car at officer Kevin Boyland June 1, 2009. Boyland was attempting to arrest Mosley for parole violation at the parole office on East Fifth Street. Mosley was attempting to leave in a car as Boyland, who was on foot, motioned for Mosley to stop his car, Mosley accelerated toward the officer, police said.
Jim Katcher, assistant Black Hawk County attorney, asked the sentence be stacked consecutive to the second-degree theft and eluding sentences for a total of 35 years in prison.
Mosley's mother, Theresa Mosley, asked District Court Judge George Stigler to consider her son's military service and his struggles with post-traumatic stress disorder.
read more here
Decorated vet gets 15 years for assaulting cop with car
Combat's Hidden Toll, Medicated Military
Take a pill and get back to duty is basically what this approach leads to and it will do no good at all. One of the coping avenues many PTSD veterans take is the use of alcohol and drugs while attempting to calm their nerves and kill off the ability to feel anything. Giving them medications without adding any kind of therapy is accomplishing the same outcome, numbing instead of healing.
What will it take for the military to be able to understand that while these men and women are highly trained to face any situation in combat they can never be trained to stop being human?
The civilian world has evolved enough to acknowledge the need to address psychological changes in the workings of the mind and spirit after traumatic events yet the most traumatic environment with multiple exposures is being ignored. We can respond to traumatic events caused by nature or other humans, mobilize teams of responders, hit the aftermath of traumatic events head on, yet the military's answer seems to always be quickest solution to get them back on duty. How do they ever expect this to work?
What will it take for them to finally fully understand that numbing them is driving them over the edge? Will they ever understand that the recovery rate is much higher if they address it soon after the events? Do they really want a medicated military?
What will it take for the military to be able to understand that while these men and women are highly trained to face any situation in combat they can never be trained to stop being human?
The civilian world has evolved enough to acknowledge the need to address psychological changes in the workings of the mind and spirit after traumatic events yet the most traumatic environment with multiple exposures is being ignored. We can respond to traumatic events caused by nature or other humans, mobilize teams of responders, hit the aftermath of traumatic events head on, yet the military's answer seems to always be quickest solution to get them back on duty. How do they ever expect this to work?
What will it take for them to finally fully understand that numbing them is driving them over the edge? Will they ever understand that the recovery rate is much higher if they address it soon after the events? Do they really want a medicated military?
Combat's Hidden Toll: 1 in 10 Soldiers Report Mental Health Problems
Soldiers Report PTSD Symptoms and Other Mental Health Problems
By KIM CAROLLO
ABCNews Medical Unit
June 9, 2010
Even though he's retired from active military duty, CSM Samuel Rhodes still suffers from deep emotional wounds.
"I had to take this afternoon off from work today because of anxiety," he said. "And sometimes, if I'm going through a really tough time, I think about suicide."
He spent nearly 30 years in the Army and recently spent 30 straight months deployed in Iraq where he, like many soldiers, witnessed some of the horrors of war.
"In April 2005, it started to eat me up because I started losing one soldier after another," Rhodes said. "We lost 37 soldiers that were in my unit."
He was command sergeant major of his brigade, and over the 30 months he was there, he lost 37 of his soldiers. As time wore on, the loss of life wore him down.
go here for more
Combats Hidden Toll
Michael Fay reporting with art from war
Drawing Fire
By MICHAEL D. FAY
In 2005, then Chief Warrant Officer Michael D. Fay traveled to Iraq in his capacity as official Marine Corps artist. There he fought with Marines engaged in Operation Steel Curtain against insurgents along the Euphrates River, and documented the events in sketches, photographs and audio recordings.
Michael D. Fay held the the position of combat artist for the United States Marine Corps from 2000 through January 2010. He was deployed several times to Iraq and Afghanistan. He is currently in the Kandahar region of Afghanistan working as a war correspondent embedded with Marine units. His blog is Fire and Ice.
Mr. Fay describes that experience here in “Drawing Fire,” to be published in five consecutive parts this week in Home Fires. It is based on material from his memoir, “The War Artist,” (earlier drafts appeared on his blog in January), and includes artwork and photographs from his time with Marine units in Operation Steel Curtain.
In 2006, Mr. Fay was a contributor to The Times’s Frontlines series, in which he described the orders he followed as Marine Corps artist: “Go to War, Do Art.” He is now retired from the Marine Corps, but is currently in Afghanistan working as a correspondent embedded with Marine units in Afghanistan.
go here for more
Drawing Fire
Drawing Fire: Last Day
Drawing Fire: Stay With Us
Drawing Fire: Reckoning
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
VA finds problems but cannot fix them
Filner: VA finds problems but cannot fix them
By Rick Maze - Staff writer
Posted : Wednesday Jun 9, 2010 12:15:41 EDT
The Veterans Affairs Department is good at finding waste and inefficiency, but it could be faster to take action to fix these problems, according to testimony at a Wednesday congressional oversight hearing.
Since October, the VA inspector general has issued 120 reports containing 232 recommendations for saving $673 million, said Rep. Bob Filner, D-Calif., the House Veterans Affairs Committee chairman. That is good news, he said, showing the VA IG is doing “high-quality” and “essential” work.
However, VA has 124 open reports with a combined 756 recommendations, including 16 reports with 45 recommendations that are more than one year old, said Richard Griffin, the VA’s deputy inspector general. The oldest open report dates back to Sept. 30, 2005, he said.
read more here
VA finds problems but cannot fix them
By Rick Maze - Staff writer
Posted : Wednesday Jun 9, 2010 12:15:41 EDT
The Veterans Affairs Department is good at finding waste and inefficiency, but it could be faster to take action to fix these problems, according to testimony at a Wednesday congressional oversight hearing.
Since October, the VA inspector general has issued 120 reports containing 232 recommendations for saving $673 million, said Rep. Bob Filner, D-Calif., the House Veterans Affairs Committee chairman. That is good news, he said, showing the VA IG is doing “high-quality” and “essential” work.
However, VA has 124 open reports with a combined 756 recommendations, including 16 reports with 45 recommendations that are more than one year old, said Richard Griffin, the VA’s deputy inspector general. The oldest open report dates back to Sept. 30, 2005, he said.
read more here
VA finds problems but cannot fix them
2nd LT Mike McGahan will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery
2nd Lt. Mike McGahan: Olympia High grad dies in Afghanistan
Mike McGahan will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery.
By Sarah Lundy, Orlando Sentinel
4:59 p.m. EDT, June 8, 2010
Mike McGahan's loved ones describe him as a born leader and an exceptional young man.
The Orlando man's desire to serve his country led him to join the U.S. Army after graduating from the University of Florida two years ago. He became second lieutenant and led a platoon of soldiers in Afghanistan.
McGahan, 23, was with those soldiers when he died Sunday.
On Tuesday, his family attended a ceremony at the Dover Air Force Base in Delaware, where his body arrived with those of four other service members killed in recent days.
"He loved the Army," said his father, Tim McGahan. "He felt young people today should serve their country."
read more here
Olympia High grad dies in Afghanistan
Mike McGahan will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery.
By Sarah Lundy, Orlando Sentinel
4:59 p.m. EDT, June 8, 2010
Mike McGahan's loved ones describe him as a born leader and an exceptional young man.
The Orlando man's desire to serve his country led him to join the U.S. Army after graduating from the University of Florida two years ago. He became second lieutenant and led a platoon of soldiers in Afghanistan.
McGahan, 23, was with those soldiers when he died Sunday.
On Tuesday, his family attended a ceremony at the Dover Air Force Base in Delaware, where his body arrived with those of four other service members killed in recent days.
"He loved the Army," said his father, Tim McGahan. "He felt young people today should serve their country."
read more here
Olympia High grad dies in Afghanistan
Publix shoppers witness murder of cashier and suicide of husband
Orlando Publix shooting: Records reveal deeply troubled lives
Orlando police release evidence from investigation into murder-suicide at Publix on Michigan Avenue in March. Estranged husband Andreau Yankton shot and killed wife Anicia Yankton before turning the gun on himself.
By Bianca Prieto, Orlando Sentinel
5:59 p.m. EDT, June 9, 2010
Andreau Yankton was drunk and on anxiety medication when he walked into Publix on March 2, got in the checkout line with a liter of soda and shot his wife to death.
His spouse, Anicia Yankton, was having an affair with a co-worker, a man to whom she lied about her husband and about being pregnant.
The Orlando police investigation of the public murder-suicide — Andreau Yankton left the store and fatally shot himself in the parking lot — concluded that the husband acted out because his wife was no longer coming home after work.
Although the investigation is not closed, police on Wednesday released hundreds of pages of documents from the deadly shooting, including photos and transcripts of interviews with witnesses. The records were released after the Orlando Sentinel filed a public records request.
Orlando police release evidence from investigation into murder-suicide at Publix on Michigan Avenue in March. Estranged husband Andreau Yankton shot and killed wife Anicia Yankton before turning the gun on himself.
By Bianca Prieto, Orlando Sentinel
5:59 p.m. EDT, June 9, 2010
Andreau Yankton was drunk and on anxiety medication when he walked into Publix on March 2, got in the checkout line with a liter of soda and shot his wife to death.
His spouse, Anicia Yankton, was having an affair with a co-worker, a man to whom she lied about her husband and about being pregnant.
The Orlando police investigation of the public murder-suicide — Andreau Yankton left the store and fatally shot himself in the parking lot — concluded that the husband acted out because his wife was no longer coming home after work.
Although the investigation is not closed, police on Wednesday released hundreds of pages of documents from the deadly shooting, including photos and transcripts of interviews with witnesses. The records were released after the Orlando Sentinel filed a public records request.
Andreau Yankton walked to the back of the store and returned to her checkout line with a liter of soda, waiting while she assisted two people in line ahead of him. She still didn't appear to notice he was there, according to an investigative summary.
"When Anicia began assisting the customer directly in front of the suspect, she then appeared to notice the suspect standing in her line," the report said. "The suspect immediately produced a handgun and fired a single shot into Anicia's face."
Andreau Yankton calmly walked out of the store and toward his car. When a police officer confronted him in the parking lot, he pulled the .38 caliber revolver from his pocket and shot himself in the chest, the report said.read more here
Records reveal deeply troubled lives
also more Orlando news
Volusia Beach Patrol vehicle hits woman sitting in chair
Woman doused with lighter fluid; boyfriend arrested
Woman commits suicide on the beach in South Daytona
Celebrate Independence Day with Disabled Veterans
Celebrate Independence Day with Disabled Veterans
Heroes Who Sacrificed for America's Freedom
WASHINGTON (June 9, 2010) - The Fourth of July celebration in Denver
takes on special importance this year when more than 500 wheelchair
athletes who are all military Veterans begin competition at the 30th
National Veterans Wheelchair Games. The event, presented each year by
the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and Paralyzed Veterans of
America, runs July 4 through July 9.
"Honoring those who have given so much to this Nation is appropriate on
the day we celebrate America's independence," said Secretary of Veterans
Affairs Eric K. Shinseki. "The National Veterans Wheelchair Games
exemplify America's commitment to its disabled Veterans and the
continuing heroism of these men and women."
The games provide an annual multi-event sports rehabilitation program
that is open to Veterans who use wheelchairs for sports competition due
to spinal cord injuries, amputations or certain neurological problems
and who receive care at any VA medical facility. Athletes attending can
be first-time wheelchair athletes or experienced Paralympians. Six of
this year's participants have previously competed at the world-class
Paralympic level.
"Independence Day is the perfect day to kick off this year's National
Veterans Wheelchair Games," said Gene A. Crayton, national president of
Paralyzed Veterans of America. "For 30 years, the Wheelchair Games have
helped to empower thousands of paralyzed Veterans to get back into life
after serious injury, and to eventually lead full and independent
lives."
At the National Veterans Wheelchair Games, Veterans will compete in 17
different sports, including air guns, archery, basketball, bowling,
field events, handcycling, nine-ball, a motorized wheelchair relay,
power soccer, quad rugby, softball, swimming, table tennis, track,
trapshooting, weightlifting and wheelchair slalom. This year, an
exhibition event will also be held in kayaking.
The 30th National Veterans Wheelchair Games begin on Sunday, July 4,
with a quad rugby demonstration in Civic Center Park in downtown Denver.
Kids Day at the games takes place Thursday, July 8, at City Park, where
local children with disabilities will meet the athletes and learn about
wheelchair sports. Other events will be held at Brunswick Zone, Invesco
Field at Mile High Stadium, Family Shooting Center, Fishback Park, the
Colorado Convention Center and other area venues. Admission is free to
the public and local attendance is encouraged.
The VA Eastern Colorado Health Care System in Denver and the Mountain
States Chapter of Paralyzed Veterans of America are hosting the 2010
Games. For many injured Veterans, the Wheelchair Games provide their
first exposure to wheelchair athletics.
For more information about the National Veterans Wheelchair Games or to
volunteer during the week, visit the Games Web site at
www.wheelchairgames.va.gov.
VA is a recognized leader in rehabilitative and recreational therapies,
and operates more than 1,400 sites of care, including 153 medical
centers (www.va.gov). Paralyzed Veterans of America was founded 63
years ago. For more than six decades, Paralyzed Veterans of America and
its 34 chapters have been working to create an America where all
Veterans and people with disabilities and their families have everything
they need to thrive (www.pva.org ).
Heroes Who Sacrificed for America's Freedom
WASHINGTON (June 9, 2010) - The Fourth of July celebration in Denver
takes on special importance this year when more than 500 wheelchair
athletes who are all military Veterans begin competition at the 30th
National Veterans Wheelchair Games. The event, presented each year by
the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and Paralyzed Veterans of
America, runs July 4 through July 9.
"Honoring those who have given so much to this Nation is appropriate on
the day we celebrate America's independence," said Secretary of Veterans
Affairs Eric K. Shinseki. "The National Veterans Wheelchair Games
exemplify America's commitment to its disabled Veterans and the
continuing heroism of these men and women."
The games provide an annual multi-event sports rehabilitation program
that is open to Veterans who use wheelchairs for sports competition due
to spinal cord injuries, amputations or certain neurological problems
and who receive care at any VA medical facility. Athletes attending can
be first-time wheelchair athletes or experienced Paralympians. Six of
this year's participants have previously competed at the world-class
Paralympic level.
"Independence Day is the perfect day to kick off this year's National
Veterans Wheelchair Games," said Gene A. Crayton, national president of
Paralyzed Veterans of America. "For 30 years, the Wheelchair Games have
helped to empower thousands of paralyzed Veterans to get back into life
after serious injury, and to eventually lead full and independent
lives."
At the National Veterans Wheelchair Games, Veterans will compete in 17
different sports, including air guns, archery, basketball, bowling,
field events, handcycling, nine-ball, a motorized wheelchair relay,
power soccer, quad rugby, softball, swimming, table tennis, track,
trapshooting, weightlifting and wheelchair slalom. This year, an
exhibition event will also be held in kayaking.
The 30th National Veterans Wheelchair Games begin on Sunday, July 4,
with a quad rugby demonstration in Civic Center Park in downtown Denver.
Kids Day at the games takes place Thursday, July 8, at City Park, where
local children with disabilities will meet the athletes and learn about
wheelchair sports. Other events will be held at Brunswick Zone, Invesco
Field at Mile High Stadium, Family Shooting Center, Fishback Park, the
Colorado Convention Center and other area venues. Admission is free to
the public and local attendance is encouraged.
The VA Eastern Colorado Health Care System in Denver and the Mountain
States Chapter of Paralyzed Veterans of America are hosting the 2010
Games. For many injured Veterans, the Wheelchair Games provide their
first exposure to wheelchair athletics.
For more information about the National Veterans Wheelchair Games or to
volunteer during the week, visit the Games Web site at
www.wheelchairgames.va.gov.
VA is a recognized leader in rehabilitative and recreational therapies,
and operates more than 1,400 sites of care, including 153 medical
centers (www.va.gov). Paralyzed Veterans of America was founded 63
years ago. For more than six decades, Paralyzed Veterans of America and
its 34 chapters have been working to create an America where all
Veterans and people with disabilities and their families have everything
they need to thrive (www.pva.org ).
Soldier stable after suspected overdose
Saved because friends cared. So why didn't the soldier on his third tour feel as if he could talk to these same friends who cared enough to save his life? Was it an overdose/suicide attempt, or was it a case of forgotten medication? This report says that he saved the life of someone else before. This also shows that what they are going thru does not know national boundaries. This solider is from Australia.
Soldier stable after suspected overdose
Posted Mon Jun 7, 2010 7:00am AEST
An Australian soldier who was found unconscious by fellow soldiers after a suspected drug overdose in Afghanistan remains in a serious but stable condition in a German hospital.
The Defence Force is making arrangements to return the soldier, who served in the Special Operations Taskforce Unit in Tarin Kowt, to Australia.
Defence Force Chief Angus Houston is appointing a commission of inquiry to investigate the apparent overdose 10 days ago.
Air Chief Marshal Houston confirmed last week that a bottle of pills and some powder, thought to be an opiate, were found in the man's room.
Emergency treatment was given at the time and a medical procedure was performed on the soldier in Afghanistan before he was taken to Bagram, where a medical procedure was performed.
The soldier, known as Private D, was described last week by Air Chief Marshal Houston as a courageous and "very professional" soldier whose actions had once saved the life of a mate.
Private D joined the ADF in 2004, has served in East Timor, and was on his third deployment to Afghanistan.
Soldier stable after suspected overdose
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