$800 million approved for Fort Bliss growth

$800 million approved for Fort Bliss growth




FROM A NEWS RELEASE SENT TO THE KDBC 4 NEWSROOM:

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Early this morning, the U.S. House Armed Services Committee passed the fiscal year 2010 National Defense Authorization Act (H.R. 2647), which authorizes $779.4 million to support Fort Bliss growth. Congressman Silvestre Reyes, a senior Member of the House Armed Services Committee, worked to secure funding for El Paso as the bill moved through the Committee and voted in favor of the bill. The bill is scheduled for debate by the full House of Representatives next week.

The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) sets policies and funding levels for U.S. national defense programs for the upcoming year. The legislation authorizes $550.4 billion for the Department of Defense (DoD) and for national security programs under the Department of Energy (DoE).

"This year's Defense Authorization Bill includes substantial investments for Fort Bliss that will further the installation's status as one of America's finest national defense assets," Congressman Reyes said. "Most importantly, this legislation includes funding that will allow Fort Bliss to break ground for the first phase of the new state-of-art William Beaumont Hospital that will serve thousands of troops, veterans, and dependents in the El Paso community."

"The Armed Services Committee underscored its commitment to the men and women of the Armed Forces and their families with the passage of this critical legislation," Reyes added.

"Under this bill, our troops will receive a 3.9 percent pay raise and it also enhances mental health screening and medical care to more effectively detect and treat cases of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)."

$176 MILLION FOR A NEW STATE-OF-THE-ART WILLIAM BEAUMONT - PHASE I

The legislation provides $176 million for the first phase of the new William Beaumont Army Medical Center (WBAMC). The National Defense Authorization Act includes language authorizing $966 million for the construction of a new WBAMC complex. The inclusion of the full authorization for this facility in the NDAA sends a strong message of support to the Army and the Department of Defense for the new medical facility at Fort Bliss.

$32 MILLION FOR NEW FORT BLISS HELICOPTERS FOR COUNTERNARCOTICS PILOT TRAINING

The bill also includes $32 million to procure four helicopters for use in pilot training for counternarcotics operations at Fort Bliss. The aircraft replace helicopters which were deployed to support the US mission in Pakistan.

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http://www.kdbc.com/Global/story.asp?S=10549915&nav=menu608_2

US Mission in Pakistan?

PTSD:The War Within from NAMI Front Line

You've heard the song All You Need Is Love by the Beatles, and while that is something you really do need when you are living with PTSD in your life, what you really need more is information to begin to heal, start over again with this new kind of normal and live a happier life. I can assure you that if I didn't know what I did, my marriage would have ended years ago, or my reaction to what my husband was going thru would have made it worse. We're going on 25 years married in September. Believe me, if love is there, knowledge added to it, then you can do it too. Otherwise, no amount of love is enough to take you thru the darkest days of PTSD.

A look at the War Within from NAMI Kern County Front Line. If you want to know more about PTSD, this is a great way of hearing about it first hand from the troops and their families.

The Award winning Kurt Rivera Produced video from Bakersfield, CA that will not be shown at our NAMI National Convention in San Francisco due to time constraints.

Kurt Rivera will be part of our Veterans FRONT LINE Presentation at the NAMI California Conference in Torrance, CA on August 21st.

View this outstanding video in it's entirety right here on our NAMI FRONTLINE website thanks to our FRONT LINE Partners at Trilogy:

The War Within: Eyewitness News Investigates PTSD

VFW takes on PTSD and suicide

Helping Veterans Fight A Hidden?Enemy



by Glen Gardner

VFW Commander-in-Chief


(NAPSI)-America's veterans are helping past and present service members fight a subtle enemy that's devastating in the field and at home. That enemy is stress.

Despite the best of programs offered by the Department of Defense and the Veterans Administration, since 9/11, more service members have committed suicide than the total U.S. dead from Iraq and Afghanistan wars. This tragedy is occurring partly because the need has overwhelmed the capacity of government and civilian mental health centers and partly because some people simply refuse to admit they need help.

More needs to be done to overcome the stigma that's unfortunately attached to seeking help, which Army Secretary Pete Geren called a significant challenge to the culture of the Army that places "a premium on strength: physically, mentally, emotionally."

Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Adm. Mike Mullen asked his military leaders to set an example. "You can't expect a private or a specialist to be willing to seek counseling when his or her captain or colonel or general won't do it," he said.

Our government cannot battle this enemy alone, nor should a troubled young veteran. Every combat veteran has one thing in common that's very relevant to a new generation of warriors: We've walked in their shoes.
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http://www.napsnet.com/articles/61658.html

First Responders Face Brutality Of Trauma

First Responders Face Brutality Of Trauma
By FireFightingNews.com

Written by David Hench
Maine - At 6:35 p.m. on Memorial Day, a passer-by reported smoke coming from a third-floor apartment at 463 Cumberland Ave. Firefighters from the Bramhall and Central stations rolled up within minutes and set about their duties, dousing the flames and searching for survivors. As fire calls go, it was not unusual.

Then one of the firefighters inside the apartment came across the remains of 18-year-old Zoe Sarnacki, her body savagely desecrated.

The fire scene became a crime scene, crawling with detectives and evidence technicians, methodically searching for clues and recovering evidence.

Set aside for the moment was the intense psychological impact on the public safety responders of viewing such a disturbing scene. But it's hard for such images not to leave a mark, to come back in dreams or when the fire bell next rings.

Left unresolved, they can lead to substance abuse, domestic conflict and even eating disorders. Sometimes emergency responders cope by becoming emotionally detached, which is itself a high price to pay.

"Because it's their job, they adjust to it. It doesn't mean it doesn't take a toll," says Thomas Marino, a Portland psychologist who has worked extensively with first responders and military personnel on dealing with the stress of particularly disturbing experiences. "Anything that's pretty dehumanizing and horrific, I think there's no way we can't be affected by it."

Public safety supervisors say they keep watch for signs that an employee is having difficulties coping with a particular incident or sequence of incidents.

"You don't look at a crime scene and say, 'I can't believe one person would do this,' because you're working nose to the grindstone," Malloch said. "You shift gears and turn off your emotions so you can do your job effectively.

"It's when you're done working your shift that it starts to bother you," he said.

The diagnostic definition of post-traumatic stress disorder is when a traumatic event, with death or serious injury accompanied by intense fear, helplessness or horror, causes recurrent and distressing recollections of the event, Marino said.

Treating the condition early, in its acute phase, is important so that it does not become chronic or manifest as major depression, he said.click link for more

This is the part that always gets to me. Police officers and firefighters know enough to bring someway for their people to talk about what they just went thru so they don't just stuff it and move on. So why is it the military still has not gotten the message that this is being done all across this country? Is it because they consider the troops all so well trained they stop being human? Is it because they think that police officers and firefighters are less "mentally tough" than the troops?

Stop and think of the so called "programs" the military has been coming out with to strengthen the minds of the troops. As if this would ever, ever work. Battlemind begins with telling the troops they can toughen their minds to prevent PTSD, thus telling them if they do end up with PTSD, it's their fault because they were not tough enough. The detrimental consequences of programs like this have lead to a lot of knocks on the door in the middle of the night to inform families their soldier is not coming home. Not killed by an enemy bullet or roadside bomb blast. But a non-combat fatality. Cause of death, suicide instead of the wound they carried inside of them. Suicides up, attempted suicides increased and most of us are left scratching our heads wondering when the military will get any of this right.

Good Lord! Even regular citizens get more attention from Chaplains and mental health professionals after one traumatic incident than the troops do after countless times. How many times do you have to read about a school incident and then the steps they've taken to bring in people to address the psychological outcomes? Will the military ever, ever get any of this right? The troops are only human with human emotions no matter how well they are trained and no matter how much the military tries to ignore this.

UPDATE
This came out today,,,,need I say more?

Early treatment is beneficial for patients with PTSD
June 17, 2009
Clinical question Is early treatment after a traumatic stress event beneficial?

Bottom line Identification of a traumatic stress event within 3 months and treatment using trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is beneficial for patients who meet DSM-IV criteria for the diagnosis of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). It is uncertain whether individuals would benefit if they are symptomatic but do not meet diagnostic criteria for PTSD.
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Early treatment is beneficial for patients with PTSD

'Charlie Med' Soldiers Take Care of Camp Taji, Look Out for Each Other

'Charlie Med' Soldiers Take Care of Camp Taji, Look Out for Each Other
Multi-National Division Baghdad
Story by Sgt. Doug Roles
Date: 06.15.2009
Posted: 06.15.2009 11:10

TAJI, Iraq – Pennsylvania Army National Guard Soldiers staffing Camp Taji's main medical clinic are prepared to treat the worst of battlefield injuries but hope the bulk of their cases continues to be sprained ankles and upset stomachs. Soldiers of Company C "Charlie Med," 328th Brigade Support Battalion, 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, operate the facility which provides basic healthcare to the thousands of Soldiers and civilians on the post which is located north of Baghdad.

"All walks of life come in here, said Sgt. 1st Class Jeremy Strathmeyer of Lititz, Pa., the clinic's non-commissioned officer in charge. "We treat anything from a Hesco barrier getting dropped on someone's foot to gunshot wounds. We've got the only Guard [facility] and we're the highest level of care on the FOB [forward operating base]."

The clinic's lab workers can do urine analysis and blood counts. Tests that can't be performed at the clinic are sent to a combat support hospital in Baghdad. The medical clinic supports about 10,000 Soldiers and up to another 12,000 civilians at Taji.

Strathmeyer, a medic who has been with Co. C for 10 years, said there are "a lot of different working pieces" to the facility. He explained that the level-two care clinic operates out of three buildings and provides dental care, radiology, pharmacy and physical therapy. Level one care is medical attention provided in the field and at battalion aid stations. The level two clinic here can be thought of as the step between field care and the Combat Support Hospital.

"We run a full pharmacy. We've written over 9,000 prescriptions since February," Strathmeyer said.

Strathmeyer, a York, Pa. police officer who deployed to Ramadi, Iraq in 2004 with the Pennsylvania Guard's 2nd Brigade, 28th Infantry Division, said this tour marks the first time Co. C has deployed as an entire unit.
go here for more
http://www.dvidshub.net/?script=news/news_show.php&id=35078

Navy funded study can't find link between Lejeune and disease? That's a shocker!

Study: No clear link between Lejeune water, disease
Monday, June 15, 2009


JACKSONVILLE, NC — A new National Research Council report has concluded that although evidence exists that people who lived or worked at Camp Lejeune Marine Base in North Carolina between the 1950s and 1985 were exposed to industrial solvents in their water supply, “strong scientific evidence is not available to determine whether health problems among those exposed are due to the contaminants.”



A National Research Council committee, headed by David A. Savitz of the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York City, wrote the 341-page report, Contaminated Water Supplies at Camp Lejeune — Assessing Potential Health Effects. The report, sponsored by the US Department of the Navy, was presented during a June 13 briefing at the USO of North Carolina in Jacksonville. The National Research Council operates under the auspices of The National Academies.



The report also states that further research is unlikely to provide “definitive information on whether exposure resulted in adverse health effects in most cases.” As a result, the committee recommended the Navy and Marine Corps pursue policy changes or administrative actions to address and resolve the concerns associated with the exposures.
go here for more
http://www.watertechonline.com/news.asp?N_ID=72074

Veteran rated 70% for PTSD, can't get money?

Veteran Says He Can't Get Benefits

Posted: June 15, 2009 06:36 PM EDT

Soldier Struggling Without Benefits
1:41

By Stephanie Wurtz
s.wurtz@krdo.com

COLORADO SPRINGS - A six-year Army veteran says he's missing out on thousands of dollars in benefits and says now he's at risk of losing his home. Sgt. Clayton Wingfield completed three tours of duty and applied for his disability benefits at the end of 2008.

He's been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and traumatic brain injury (TBI) and is still waiting on his benefits. "No answers on anything," Wingfield says, "just a big run around."

For about eight months, Wingfield has been trying to track down his $1,300 a month in disability benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs. "I'm just waiting to get my money," Wingfield says, "they've already rated me 70% disabled, but there's a competency issue and they say I'm not competent enough to control my own funds."
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http://www.krdo.com/Global/story.asp?S=10536987

Don't even get me started on this one! What good will it do him to have his claim approved if he ends up homeless? Do they think of this kind of stress on a veteran with PTSD when he's already proven his claim?

5 more burn-pit lawsuits filed against KBR

5 more burn-pit lawsuits filed against KBR

By Kelly Kennedy - Staff writer
Posted : Tuesday Jun 16, 2009 17:12:49 EDT

Lawyers for veterans who believe they became sick after exposure to the smoke from open-air burn pits in Iraq and Afghanistan have filed five more class-action lawsuits against KBR, the contractor that operated many of the burn-pit sites for the military.

The new lawsuits — filed in Florida, Kansas, Ohio, South Carolina and Utah federal courts — accuse KBR of exposing troops to toxins from giant burn pits used to dispose of garbage on bases. At Joint Base Balad, Iraq, 250 tons of garbage were burned every day at one point, including 90,000 plastic bottles each day. Troops have also documented the burning of petroleum products, amputated limbs of Iraqis, benzene and Styrofoam, as well as other materials known to produce cancer-causing toxins when burned.

The lawsuit in Florida includes the family of Air Force Maj. Kevin Wilkins, who died of brain cancer five days after a tumor was discovered. He had served at Balad, and when his doctor asked if he had been exposed to any toxins, Wilkins immediately suggested the burn pit.
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http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/06/military_burnpit_lawsuits_061609w/

Deployed military couples find time together finally

Army couple's rarest asset in Iraq: time together
By HAMZA HENDAWI – 6 hours ago

BAGHDAD (AP) — They still feel like newlyweds, five years into their marriage. A lucky couple?

No, Nathan and Jennifer Williams just haven't seen much of each other.

The two young Americans, both Army captains, have each been deployed twice to Iraq on 12-month tours — but in different locations. Back home, they spent at least another year apart because of training commitments.

All told, they've been together for two of their five years of marriage.

The Williamses are among thousands of military couples whose lives have been disrupted by multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. Starting a family has been put on hold. And time alone together, when it comes, is precious.

Every night since November, Nathan, 28, and Jennifer, 30, would get on the phone to pour out their thoughts about the day, decompress and chat about the kind of stuff married couples chat about.

Stationed at different outposts in Baghdad just six miles apart, they rarely had the chance to see each other in person — just once or twice a month — so the phone calls were crucial.

"I have been here long enough now that I understand his job so that he can kind of talk about his day and I understand everything he is saying," Jennifer said.

Still, the Williamses are luckier than many military couples, particularly those who have lost loved ones in battle. In both of their tours, they've served in the same brigade.

And starting this month, it's a relative honeymoon — or a reunion, perhaps. Nathan commands an infantry company that moved May 30 from an outpost in north Baghdad to Camp Victory, where his wife is stationed. So now, they will be able to see each other each day for the rest of their 12-month tour, which will end in late September or early October.
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Army couple's rarest asset in Iraq: time together The Associated Press

Getting Mental Health Care in a Combat Zone

Guest Post by
Meredith Walker

Getting Mental Health Care in a Combat Zone
With the suicide rate of active duty soldiers at an all-time high, the issues of mental health care for those in the military has never been more pertinent or more pressing. One of the major issues in mental health care in the field, however, is the stigma associated with needing psychiatric care, in a work culture that values strength, both physical and mental. Many feel that this stigma makes soldiers shy away from getting the health care they desperately need.

New figures from the conflict in Iraq suggest that as much as twenty percent of active duty soldiers and those who have recently returned home from Iraq may be suffering from some form of depression, anxiety, PTSD or emotional disturbance. This translates to nearly 340,000 individuals who could be wrestling with mental problems on their own, unable or embarrassed to ask for help.

This issue has been brought dramatically to the forefront by the May 2009 shooting of five soldiers at a counseling center by another solider, Sgt. John M. Russell, an individual whom officials had mandated get treatment from the counseling center. For this man, treatment was too late. Encouraging soldiers to get mental health help and to talk to someone about their feelings of stress or grief over lost comrades is essential to preventing future tragedies of this nature.

Even more pressing is the current realities of serving in the military. Today, many soldiers go out on three or four tours of duty, as opposed to the one or two served by most fighting in Vietnam, a conflict notorious for the war-induced trauma many soldiers who fought in it returned home with. Studies suggest that those going out for their third or fourth rotation are twice as likely to suffer mental health problems as those just coming into active duty.

Changes are being made to help soldiers get help, however. More soldiers are actively speaking to about their combat stress and the military is offering more combat stress clinics where soldiers can rest and recover. The biggest obstacle to overcome in helping soldiers get mental health care help, however, is the soldiers themselves who often feel weak or incapable of doing their duty if they seek out help. Many do not want to be regarded negatively by peers or commanders, and simply deal with the pain silently.

Today, many in the armed forces as well as veterans at home are advocating new awareness of stress-counseling programs and are encouraging commanding officers to set an example by seeking out treatments and showing all soldiers that it’s ok to need a shoulder to lean on, hopefully preventing future tragedies and ensuring better lives for all enlisted.

This post was contributed by Meredith Walker, who writes about the masters in public health. She welcomes your feedback at MeredithWalker1983@gmail.com

Anyone that wants to write a guest post is welcome to do so at anytime as long as it is helpful. email me at namguardianangel@aol.com with the post you want to ad in the body of the email. Due to constant crashes of my PC, I no longer open attachments.

Act Now to Prevent the Incarceration of People with Mental Illness

Trust me on this. If Fred Frese is involved with this, it is a big issue. We've read about Veterans Courts because they take into account the unique issues veterans have coming back from combat. They are not just doing this for the newer generation of veterans, but for all veterans. Mental illness is not a crime and should never be treated like one.

Act Now to Prevent the Incarceration of People with Mental Illness

June 12, 2009

The criminalization of people with mental illness is a growing problem that devastates many members of our community. A study released this month in the journal Psychiatric Services shows that the prevalence of people with serious mental illness in jails is increasing.

The study, which was presented June 1st at a Senate briefing featuring NAMI National board member Fred Frese, found that overall, 16% of jail inmates have a serious mental illness.

Even more alarming, 31% of female jail inmates have a serious mental illness. These numbers suggest that up to 2 million jail bookings every year involve an individual with serious mental illness. In light of this study, it is more important now than ever before to support programs that help people stay out of jail.

This week, the House Appropriations committee approved the FY 2010 budget for Commerce, Justice and Science programs, which includes $12 million for the Mentally Ill Offender Treatment and Crime Reduction Act (MIOTCRA). MIOTCRA grants support communities working on crisis intervention teams (CIT), mental health courts, and similar programs that are proven to help break the cycle of incarceration.

The bill also includes $100 million in funding for the Second Chance Act, which supports re-entry programs to help people get the services and support they need to successfully reintegrate into society. The full House is expected to vote on the bill the week of June 15.

Act Now!Let your Representatives in the House know that people with mental illness should not be in jail.

Write a letter today telling them to support funding for MIOTCRA and the Second Chance Act as part of the 2010 Commerce, Justice and Science Appropriations Bill.

Learn MoreVisit the Criminal Justice/Mental Health Consensus Project Web site to learn more about the study.

Visit the House Appropriations Committee Web site to read a summary of the Commerce, Justice and Science Appropriations Bill.

Read more about the briefing on the prevalence study hosted by the Senate Judiciary Committee.

PTSD:NY ex-cop suffered after 9-11 and had unloaded gun

9/11 stress cited in ex-cop's NY school melee case


By JIM FITZGERALD
The Associated Press
Tuesday, June 16, 2009; 2:02 PM

NEW CITY, N.Y. -- The former New York City policeman who stormed into a suburban middle school with a gun had to sort through body parts after 9/11 and suffers from post-traumatic stress, his attorney said Tuesday.

Defense lawyer Gerard Damiani spoke after the former officer, Peter Cocker, pleaded not guilty at his arraignment in Rockland County Court. Cocker, 37, of Tappan, is charged with kidnapping, burglary, coercion and gun crimes.

Police say Cocker stormed past a security guard at South Orangetown Middle School in Blauvelt last Tuesday, locked himself in an office with district Superintendent Ken Mitchell and threatened to shoot him in the heart. Police learned later that Cocker's revolver was unloaded.

As police were called and the school went into lockdown, Mitchell tried to talk Cocker into giving up the gun, then tackled and disarmed him, police said.
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9/11 stress cited in ex-cop's NY school melee case

OMG! Will the Army ever get it right?

I was very hopeful when I started to read this article, but then I got down to where a Chaplain, of all people, discussed that new soldiers needed to build "resiliency" and I screamed "Oh My God! " because they still don't get it. They still don't understand it and worse, they won't even open their eyes to see what is right in front of their face!

A recent Army study shows that 60 percent of suicides are carried out by first-time deployers.

Who did this "recent study" and why didn't they include all the veterans that committed suicide after multiple deployments? There is the key right there. They didn't because when they come home, they are no longer part of the military. Easy to skew numbers when they omit so many from their figures. You've read a lot of their stories right here over the last couple of years.

Apparently Col. Stice and the rest of the Army has been kept out of the loop when it comes to what is real and what they really think.

The Army will begin suicide prevention chain-teaching March 15 through June 15. The new briefing includes an interactive video, suicide prevention tip card and an "ACE" of hearts guideline on how to help a buddy who might be considering suicide. Photo credit J.D. Leipold

Army Takes New Approach to Suicide Prevention
June 2009
By Sgt. Lindsey Bradford, Multi-National Corps-Iraq Public Affairs Office




BAGHDAD, Iraq (Army News Service) - As the number of Soldiers committing suicide continues to rise, the Army's suicide prevention campaign shifts its focus to junior leaders in an effort to arm them with the tools they need to help their Soldiers before a problem reaches a tragic end.

A recent Army study shows that 60 percent of suicides are carried out by first-time deployers. That percentage may be hard to believe as news agencies continue to report on how the Army is stretched thin and Soldiers are on their second, third or fourth tours here.
"Soldiers who have deployed before have been able to build resiliency, and they are able to adapt to situations because they have been placed in similar ones before," said Chaplain (Col.) Kenneth Stice, Multi-National Corps-Iraq command chaplain. "First time deployers need to build that same resiliency, and that is hard to do."

The MNC-I Suicide Prevention Action Plan, December 2008, puts chaplains in theater at the forefront of unit-level suicide prevention training. Stice and his religious support team are ready to take the lead, providing an outlet for Soldiers to come to if they need help, as well as provide additional suicide prevention training to units.

The first step is to educate Soldiers on suicide prevention in three phases.

Phase I is the Army's "Stand Down" video, and is usually shown at a Soldier's home station prior to deploying.

Phase II, which is currently being conducted in theater, is the "Shoulder-to-Shoulder: No Soldier Stands Alone" video, followed by a discussion where Soldiers are able to share their personal experiences, discuss the causes of suicide and ways they can help their fellow Soldiers.

"The video is very transparent, very candid and the goal of it is to reduce the stigma of seeking help, because the cost of suicide hurts families and units alike," Stice said.

Phase III is annual training that reiterates lessons from the previous two phases.

go here for more
http://www.army.com/news/item/5334

Putting Chaplains in theater is a good idea as long as they are there for the soldiers to talk to and not there to proselytize. A Chaplain can be able to get them to open up and should be trained to spot the signs of a soldier in need of psychological help. The concern for me right here is that after Col. Stice said new soldiers were more at risk, are they assuming this is true, focusing on the new soldiers at the expense of soldiers on multiple tours? Is this part of the problem we've been seeing when they become veterans and commit suicide? Considering PTSD is best treated early, what kind of a difference would this have made if they were treated before discharge adequately.

The Army still does not get it. They are a lot closer to where they need to be but they are far from really helping the soldiers and preventing them from taking their own lives. If what they've been doing had been right, the numbers of suicides and attempted suicides would have gone down, not historically high. I'll try to check out these videos and will post about them after I see them.

Recovery unit set up plan for wounded soldier care at Fort Bragg

Recovery unit set up plan for wounded soldier care
Rocky Mount Telegram - Rocky Mount,NC,USA
The Associated Press

Monday, June 15, 2009

FORT BRAGG, North Carolina — The first thing Lt. Col. Terry McDowell did when he took command of a recovery unit for wounded troops at Fort Bragg was establish a transition plan for each wounded soldier to work toward leaving the unit as soon as he or she arrives.

"This isn't a permanent Army unit. It is a transition unit," McDowell said in his first interview since taking command. "We've got the structure in place, medical wise, to get a WT (warrior in transition) to what their end state goal is as rapidly as possible."

At the same time, he's making sure that staff member are better trained to distinguish medical problems from disciplinary ones.

McDowell, 42, from Bonaire, Ga., took command in April of Fort Bragg's Warrior Transition Battalion, where soldiers had complained to top officials about their treatment.

McDowell said soldiers coming to the unit now have a timeline and a set of goals. It keeps the wounded soldiers motivated and allows doctors to set a target date to transition them out of the unit. In the past, wounded soldiers have languished in the unit for months with little or no idea how they are progressing. Army-wide, the average soldier spends 366 days in a Warrior Transition unit. The average at Fort Bragg is 350.

click link above for more

Group Raises Money For Veterans Despite Recession

Group Raises Money For Veterans Despite Recession
KOAT.com - Albuquerque,NM,USA
Bernalillo Will Create Position To Oversee Mesa Development
POSTED: 10:00 pm MDT June 13, 2009





ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- Despite the slow economy a grassroots effort is speeding forward.

Veterans Integration Center, a place fueled by donations, helps former service members get back on their feet.

Ron Edwards, an advocate for homeless veterans, said, "I felt totally and completely disfranchised and invisible."

After Edwards' time as a Marine, he found himself out of money and on the streets.

"They didn't see me. They saw the clothes that I had, they saw the dirt on my face, they saw the fear in my eyes," he said.

Edwards said help was hard to find.

Mass. Guard unit mobilizes for Iraq

Mass. Guard unit mobilizes for Iraq
Boston Globe - United States
Friends, family say goodbye to 101st Engineer Battalion

By Nandini Jayakrishna
Globe Correspondent / June 14, 2009

Waving flags and holding red and blue balloons, proud friends and family members bade farewell yesterday to a Massachusetts National Guard unit preparing for deployment to Iraq.

"It's exciting to be part of history," Captain Paul A. Barnett, 38, a chaplain in the 101st Engineer Battalion, said before the unit's send-off ceremony on a dock at the Charlestown Navy Yard.

"We are doing something not only for our generation but for the generations to come, and not only for our country but for the world."

With the USS Constitution, the Navy's storied frigate, as a backdrop, Major General Joseph C. Carter, the Guard's adjutant general, told the 180 soldiers to continue their battalion's legacy of devotion and sacrifice.

"Always place the mission first," he said. "Never accept defeat. Never surrender. And never, never, never leave an American serviceman behind."

One of the oldest units in the Army, the 101st has fought in six major conflicts, from the Revolution to the current war on terrorism. Eight of its soldiers have received the Medal of Honor, the country's highest military decoration.click link for more

Elmira soldier in Iraq died from interaction of medications

First question I have is why was a soldier deployed into Iraq taking over the counter medications instead of prescriptions? Where did he get them from? From Iraqi stores not monitored by the FDA or from the USA sent in care packages? When they are not feeling well, aren't they still supposed to show up at sick call to see a doctor? Was he too far away to see one? Did he consult a medic if that was the case?

Elmira soldier in Iraq died from interaction of medications
Elmira Star-Gazette - Elmira,NY,USA
June 15, 2009


The U.S. Army has released a cause of death of Army Pvt. Justin P. Hartford, 21, who died in Iraq May 8 at Joint Base Balad.

SFC Kedon M. Lamphere, the casualty assistance officer for the family, said today the death was the result of an interaction of medications the young soldier was taking.


Lamphere read a statement prepared with the family to the media this afternoon after receiving the information from the Army last week. The statement reads:


“The family of Pvt. Justin P. Hartford releases the following received from the Office of Casualty Assistance:


“Pvt. Hartford’s death in Iraq has been determined to be the accidental result of chemical toxicity from the unfortunate interaction of more than one over the counter medication in his system.” click link above for more

First Midwest 'Soldier Ride' helps veterans

First Midwest 'Soldier Ride' helps veterans
Monday, June 15, 2009 6:32 AM
By Evelyn Holmes

June 14, 2009 (CHICAGO) (WLS) -- Sunday was the first ever Midwest "Soldier Ride." The big cycling event was designed by the Wounded Warrior Project to challenge injured veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and to help heal both the physical and mental wounds of war.

The ride came to an end Sunday, which was Flag Day.

The cyclists covered two states over four days, raising money and awareness.

It was the first of what war veterans and ride organizers say will be many rides in support of those who defend their country and freedom.

For many, Sunday's Wounded Warrior Soldier Ride marked the beginning of their celebration of life. Participants rode as a part of their mission to help those broken by war to heal.
go here for more and for video
First Midwest 'Soldier Ride' helps veterans ESPN - USA

VA patients hope for real answers on contamination at hospitals

If you are not a veteran, do you ever wonder how they don't get totally fed up with all they have to go thru after their service in the military is over? None of this is fair and it certainly isn't something any of us would ever want to put up with if we were them. The last few years, every time I hear a politician talk about how important our veterans are, I get a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach because of reports like this.

VA patients hope for real answers
Congress to address contamination at hospitals
By Clay Carey THE TENNESSEAN • and Bill Theobald TENNESSEAN WASHINGTON BUREAU • June 15, 2009
Walter McRae wants to hear the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs tell him it is sorry.

He wants its highest-ranking officials to say they're doing something to make sure veterans who turn to the government for medical treatment aren't being exposed to dirty equipment, the way he may have been six years ago.

And he wants to know that those problems aren't going to make him sick someday.

McRae and other veterans may begin getting some answers Tuesday, when a congressional committee finds out what VA investigators have learned since the chilling discovery of problems with endoscopic exams at Murfreesboro's Alvin C. York Medical Center and other agency hospitals.
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VA patients hope for real answers

Cherokee County veterans make Washington pilgrimage

Cherokee County veterans make Washington pilgrimage
Chronicle Times - Cherokee,IA,USA
Monday, June 15, 2009

What does the number 180,100 mean to the World War II veterans from Cherokee County?
It means that the veterans were part of that number of World War II veterans who have gone on the Honor Flights from across America since the program began in 2005. They were on the Honor Flight that flew out of Sioux City on June 2 , 2009, to go to the World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C.. On the flight were 108 veterans and 60 guardians, many from the Cherokee County area.

click link for more

Eyewitness News wins Emmy for PTSD series

Eyewitness News wins Emmy for PTSD series
Bakersfield,CA,USA


By Bakersfield Now.com Staff
Eyewitness News was the only local winner Saturday during the 35th Annual Pacific Southwest Emmy Awards in San Diego.The Emmy was brought home for a five-part series in November about post-traumatic stress disorder affecting local military veterans.

Anchor Kurt Rivera, photographers Tamara Christian and Steve Mills, graphic artist Melissa Pirtle, and production manager Jeremy Rowell were honored for their contributions to the series.Click the following links to read and watch each Emmy-winning part of The War Within: Eyewitness News investigates PTSD.

The War Within: Eyewitness News investigates PTSD, Part I
The War Within: Eyewitness News investigates PTSD, Part 2
The War Within: Eyewitness News investigates PTSD, Part 3
The War Within: Eyewitness News investigates PTSD, Part 4
The War Within: Eyewitness News investigates PTSD, Part 5

Drug Problems Among Iraq, Afghan Vets Could Dwarf Vietnam

If you go here there is an extensive post I did on the practice of medicating our troops.

PTSD On Trail:Sgt. Nicholas Horner and the wound he spread

The Hartford Courant sounded the alarm bell years ago, but no one heard it. I guess the broadcast media was just too busy reporting on events at the time, like movie stars in trouble or other salacious pieces of gossip. What was being done to our troops above and beyond the hazards of combat was deplorable and apparently it still is. Read this and then know full well, that there is one more lesson we never learned from Vietnam. We didn't take care of them when they were deployed and we certainly didn't take care of them willingly either. We made them fight for everything we ended up doing for them. How long do you think it will take the Iraq and Afghanistan veterans to be treated right?

Drug Problems Among Iraq, Afghan Vets Could Dwarf Vietnam
Drug Addiction Rates in Afghan/Iraq Vets Could Surpass Vietnam’s Rates

Atlanta, GA 6/15/2009 10:07 PM GMT (TransWorldNews)
Rather than the heroin addictions many Vietnam veterans brought back with them from Southeast Asia, today's returning soldiers are more likely to be addicted to prescription medications -- the very opiates prescribed to them by the military to ease stress or pain -- or stimulants used by soldiers to remain alert in combat situations.

As a result, the U.S. could face a wave of drug addiction and mental-health problems among returning veterans of the Iraq and Afghan wars greater than that resulting from the Vietnam War, according to experts at the recent Wounds of War conference sponsored by the National Center for Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA*) at Columbia University (Join Together is a project of CASA).

Historically, substance abuse has "not only been present but fostered by the military," said keynote speaker Jim McDonough, a retired U.S. Army officer and former strategy director at the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. "At Agincourt, the Somme and Waterloo, soldiers got liquored up before combat ... There's been almost no break in that [tradition] today."

"I think there's a lot more [soldiers addicted to] pharmacological opiates than the data show," said John A. Renner Jr., M.D., associate professor of psychiatry at the Boston University School of Medicine and associate chief of psychiatry at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Boston Healthcare System. "A lot of them were using opiates before they went, and a lot are reporting that opiates are freely available in combat areas."

Nora Volkow, M.D., director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), noted that while many soldiers receive prescription opiates for traumatic injuries and pain, the drugs also are effective in relieving stress. "So, even if you don't take it for that, it will work," she said.
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http://www.transworldnews.com/NewsStory.aspx?id=94142&cat=10

Family waits for answers on death of Sgt. Franklin D. "J.R." Barnett Jr.

Belleville soldier's death under investigation
BY MARIA BARAN - News-Democrat

A soldier from Belleville died Sunday at Fort Sam Houston, Texas.

The Army is investigating the cause of death for Sgt. Franklin D. "J.R." Barnett Jr., 29, of Belleville.

During Barnett's recent tour of Afghanistan, Barnett survived a suicide bombing attack and pulled his lieutenant to safety, despite his own injuries to his lungs.

"We don't believe he died from his war injuries, but the Army is investigating," Brooke Army Medical Center spokesman Dewey Mitchell said.

The father of three sons was found unresponsive in his Fort Sam Houston barracks room Sunday afternoon. He had been assigned to C Company of the Warrior Transition Battalion since Oct. 15 after being injured in Afghanistan, according to a news release.

"I don't exactly know what happened," said his wife, Diane Barnett.

She was not able to contact him late Saturday and into Sunday, so she called and had someone check on him. He was found in his chair with his television and video game on.
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http://www.bnd.com/179/story/806453.html

At war with PTSD Mental affliction in soldiers tied to area homicide, robbery

I'm sure you've heard the expression "strength in numbers" and maybe just maybe that is the answer to all of this. What if every Iraq and Afghanistan veteran joined with every Gulf War veteran, Vietnam veteran, Korean veteran and remaining WWII veterans to file a claim with the VA? There is a backlog of over 900,000 right now and shows no sign of easing. What would this do? Would it mess up the entire system so much that they would be forced to really do something with some sense of urgency? Would it make it worse for the veterans already filing claims and needing help to be joined by other veterans trying to make a point temporarily?

We had Memorial Day when veterans from around the country mobilized to remember the fallen in tremendous numbers. Yesterday they did it again for Flag day to remember all the men and women serving under this one flag. Do you think they could repeat these efforts for the sake of all veterans? What if the well, economically able, joined the rest of the veterans not so blessed and really helped them out by marching in the streets, demanding the veterans of this nation actually received the promised care they already earned because they served? Could you imagine what over 24 million veterans would look like marching in brotherhood for each other?

It's not a far fetched idea. I've seen these men and women in action and I've seen what they can do when they want to unite with their military families at memorials, parades, reunions and events like Veteran's Day, Memorial Day and Flag Day. If anyone can do it, they can. They care deeply for each other, except for a rare few who deny the problem exists. That's ok because they never understood the concept of "never leave anyone behind" or what it's like to be a member of this kind of family. If they all acted together, let their voices be heard by the very people claiming to "honor their service" then don't you think the VA and the DOD would be forced to take immediate action that actually works? How many more veterans should we allow them to make excuses for? How many more veterans need to end up in the backlog and forced to wait for care? How many more will face financial hardships waiting? How many more will end up committing crimes instead of getting help? What is the limit to the sacrifices these men and women are supposed to make before they need sacrifice no more?

At war with PTSD Mental affliction in soldiers tied to area homicide, robberyThe Tribune-Democrat - Johnstown,PA,USA


The Department of Defense has taken major steps to help military personnel returning from deployment.

The Veterans Administration offers counseling and treatment for soldiers suffering from the effects of combat, including post-traumatic stress disorder.

So why are we publishing stories about military veterans who say they have PTSD and who are being charged with violent crimes?

The condition has recently been linked to a double homicide in the Altoona area and an armed robbery in Cambria County. In both cases, the alleged assailants said they were suffering from PTSD.

PTSD is a complicated problem that is growing in scope and intensity nationally and here in our region, where a disproportionately high number of residents has served in Iraq and Afghanistan due to our region’s strong commitment to military service.

“People come in when they have a crisis,” said John Grove, chief of social work with the James E. Van Zandt VA Medical Center in Altoona. “Of course, we’re seeing more (PTSD) related to Iraq and Afghanistan because they’re coming back.”

Some level of PTSD is an inevitable reality during times of war. And the incidence is elevated now because of the high rate of re-deployment – multiple tours of duty.

Identifying military personnel who are in need of help, and getting them that help, is a two-sided coin:

The Department of Defense must continue to do more for these veterans, moving toward a system where soldiers are not penalized for undergoing psychological evaluations. In the past, officials could lose their rank and soldiers could lose their careers if questions existed about possible psychological concerns.

On the other side, military personnel and their families must be willing to seek evaluation and treatment – before a “crisis” has occurred. There are many places for veterans to get help, even anonymously. Soldiers must recognize in themselves the signs of PTSD and then act. click link for more

Veterans: Show Some Respect For Flag Day

Veterans say to honor the flag is to pay respect to soldiers serving right now, those who have served and those who gave the ultimate sacrifice.

Veterans: Show Some Respect For Flag Day
Central Florida News 13 - Orlando,FL,USA
Sunday, June 14, 2009 9:02:07 PM
Reported By Saul Saenz

PORT ORANGE -- It was a small, but hugely important celebration outside the American Veterans 911 post in Port Orange.

The gathering was in honor of the stars and stripes.

"I have the deepest respect for old glory, the one that I fought for," said Vietnam veteran Rick Bernardani.

The 89-year-old Air Force veteran's step is a little slower than in the days he fought in World War II. But his respect for the American flag is steadfast.

Bernardani says others have lost that respect and that fewer Americans fly it on the day set aside to honor the flag.

"The younger people are not respecting it. They don't realize they wouldn't have the life they've got if it wasn't for us," said World War II veteran John Rugglas.

Those veterans say that it’s because of the respect that they hold for the American flag that they take issue with governmental agencies that do not fly it on Flag Day; like a Port Orange post office, or this Daytona Beach post office or even the Daytona Beach City Hall.

click link for video and pictures

Flag day turns into thank veterans day in Tennessee

"Proud to be an American" festival parades patriotism
WBIR-TV - Knoxville,TN,USA
Jim Matheny
Updated: 6/15/2009 12:28:09 AM
Posted: 6/14/2009 11:53:59 PM

More than 2,000 people attended the first "Proud to be an American Parade and Festival" Sunday afternoon in Maryville. The Flag Day celebration's success has organizers considering making it an annual event.

"When I first came up with this, I thought it would be a one-time thing," said founder Carol Russell. "But so many veterans have been coming up to me assuming there will be a 'next year' and wanting to help. I like the sound of that, so we might just go for it."

Russell said she chose Flag Day since it falls neatly between Memorial Day and the Fourth of July.

"It just happened to be on a Sunday this year, which was perfect," said Russell.

Organizers said the event was all about thanking veterans for their service in the armed forces. The simple thank you was something some veterans never expected.

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"Proud to be an American" festival parades patriotism

But it is also something that happened in other places of the country and it's a wonderful thing!

Vets honored at Flag Day ceremony
By: MANASEE WAGH
Bucks County Courier Times
phillyBurbs.com - Philadelphia,PA,USA


The past and present merged this weekend when volunteers stuck 58,000 flags in the ground to honor fallen soldiers.

About 200 people, including war veterans, community leaders and state representatives, gathered before a field of red, white and blue on Sunday for the 24th Flag Day ceremony in Falls Community Park. The memorial is an annual tradition of the Delaware Valley Vietnam Veterans.

A schoolteacher is thought to have started the first Flag Day tradition in 1885. It was a way to celebrate the official adoption of The Stars and Stripes as our nation’s flag, according to the National Flag Day Foundation.

Today, the holiday has deepened into an observance honoring all veterans and currently serving soldiers.

“It’s a special group of people that step up and say ‘I will fight the fight.’ Their sacrifice demands our respect, our admiration and our veneration. We gather to draw special recognition to the symbol of our nation, and it is incumbent on us to recognize the sacrifices of all those people,” said Bucks County Commissioner James Cawley on Sunday, where he joined a long list of speakers during the event.

Members of the Delaware Valley group and community volunteers stuck thousands of flags in the muddy park grounds on Friday, each representing a fallen soldier in the shape of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. An array of nearly 2,000 black flags interrupted the patriotic colors, a sober reminder of soldiers who are still missing in action.

Roaring motorcycles heralded the start of ceremonies as a biker brigade rolled into the park. Veterans show their support each year by riding to Falls from the Bristol Township
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Vets honored at Flag Day ceremony

and here,,,,,

Thousands pay tribute to Vietnam vets at State Capitol
Saturday, 13 June 2009
by T.W. Budig
ECM Capitol reporter
Coon Rapids ECM Publishers - Coon Rapids,MN,USA

Thousands gathered on the State Capitol mall today (Saturday, June 13) to celebrate and remember Vietnam War veterans, the soldiers, airmen and sailors who did what their country asked and in some cases waited decades to be thanked.

VIEW SLIDESHOW OF DAY'S EVENTS (click link below)

Minnesota has some 147,000 Vietnam veterans, and more than 1,000 Minnesotans were killed during the long struggle in Southeast Asia.

Gov. Tim Pawlenty and other officials thanked and praised the assembled veterans.

“We did our mission,” Minnesota Department of Veterans Affairs Commissioner Clark Dyrud, a Vietnam veteran.

“We did it well,” he said.

Pawlenty called the veterans American heroes, lamenting the “shameful” treatment some veterans received the public they sacrifice to serve.

The celebration featured fly-overs, a replica of the famous Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial in Washington, big reunion tents and Vietnam War-era military equipment.
Thousands pay tribute to Vietnam vets at State Capitol

Veteran Opens Memorial Museum for Flag Day


Posted: 9:44 AM Jun 15, 2009
Last Updated: 9:44 AM Jun 15, 2009
Reporter: Ben Zblewski
Email Address: news@wsaw.com
WSAW - Wausau,WI,USA


An area Vietnam veteran honored Flag day by cutting the ribbon on a brand new veteran's museum Sunday. Charles Hamilton Jr. of Irma, who served two years overseas, says he couldn't think of any better way to honor the stars and strips than to open a museum dedicated to the people who fought to protect it. Hamilton has been working for more than a year to remodel an old church into the museum, and says he did all of the work by himself

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Veteran Opens Memorial Museum for Flag Day

Widowed veteran guides outreach to wounded soldiers

Widowed veteran guides outreach to wounded soldiers
BY MARTHA QUILLIN - STAFF WRITER
Published: Sun, Jun. 14, 2009
FAYETTEVILLE -- Soldiers often say they serve in the military to make a difference in other people's lives.

Wesley Bauguess makes a difference in soldiers' lives.

Her focus is on the soldiers of the 82nd Airborne Division who get sent back from a deployment injured or sick. Though many organizations are dedicated to helping those soldiers, the Wounded Warrior Committee that Bauguess oversees concentrates on making them more comfortable during their recovery at Army hospitals with useful items emblazoned with the logo of the storied 82nd.

"In the Army, your unit members are your family members," said Bauguess, who served five years in the Army before getting out to have the first of two daughters. "We want to keep these soldiers in contact, even though they're far away. We're saying, 'You are 82nd, and we are with you. You are still part of this team.'"

A couple of years ago, after her soldier-husband, Larry,(Maj. Larry J. Bauguess Jr) was killed in action, Bauguess wasn't sure what her place was on the team.

"I believe God was getting me ready for this," she said. "Those experiences were all building blocks that add up to this."

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http://www.newsobserver.com/news/story/1568324.html

WWII Tuskegee Airmen Roger Bill Terry dies at 87

Roger 'Bill' Terry dies at 87; member of WWII Tuskegee Airmen
Liz O. Baylen, Los Angeles Times
Roger Terry holds a picture of his younger self.
Terry was the only member of the unit convicted in the Freeman Field Mutiny, in which black officers plotted to integrate an all-white officer's club in Indiana in 1945. He was pardoned in 1995.
By Molly Hennessy-Fiske
June 14, 2009
Roger "Bill" Terry, the only member of the all-black group of World War II pilots known as the Tuskegee Airmen convicted in what became known as the Freeman Field Mutiny, died of heart failure Thursday at Kaiser Permanente West Los Angeles Medical Center. He was 87.

Terry, born in Los Angeles on Aug. 13, 1921, earned an athletic scholarship to UCLA, where he played basketball and roomed with Jackie Robinson.

Terry did not shy away from discussing his discharge.

"It was a badge of honor for him," Jeff Terry said of his father's discharge. "He was never bitter about it. He was in fact quite proud of it."

On Aug. 2, 1995, the Army pardoned him, restored his rank and refunded his $150 fine. Two years ago, Terry and several other airmen collectively received a Congressional Gold Medal from President George W. Bush in Washington.
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WWII Tuskegee Airmen Roger Bill Terry dies at 87

PTSD sleep research thinks new way

Wish Fulfillment? No. But Dreams (and Sleep) Have Meaning
By Tiffany Sharples Sunday, Jun. 14, 2009
Dreams may not be the secret window into the frustrated desires of the unconscious that Sigmund Freud first posited in 1899, but growing evidence suggests that dreams —and, more so, sleep — are powerfully connected to the processing of human emotion.



According to new research presented last week at the annual meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies in Seattle, adequate sleep may underpin our ability to understand complex emotions properly in waking life.

Past studies have also established a link between chronic sleep disruption and suicide. Sleep complaints, which include nightmares, insomnia and other sleep disturbances, are listed in the current Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's inventory of suicide prevention warning signs. Yet, what distinguishes Bernert's research is that when nightmares and insomnia were evaluated separately, nightmares were still independently predictive of suicidal behavior. "It may be that nightmares present a unique risk for suicidal symptoms, which may have to do with the way we process emotion within dreams," Bernert says.

If that's the case, it may help explain the recurring nightmares that characterize psychiatric conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), Walker says.

"The brain has not stripped away the emotional rind from that experience memory," he says, so "the next night the brain offers this up, and it fails again, and it starts to sound like a broken record...What you hear [PTSD] patients describing is, 'I can't get over the event.'"

At the biological level, Walker explains, the "emotional rind" translates to sympathetic nervous system activity during sleep — faster heart rate and the release of stress chemicals. Understanding why nightmares recur and how REM sleep facilitates emotional processing, or hinders it when nightmares take place and perpetuate the physical stress symptoms, may eventually provide clues for effective treatments of painful mental disorders. Perhaps, even, by simply addressing sleeping habits, doctors could potentially interrupt the emotional cycle that can lead to suicide. "There is an opportunity for prevention," Bernert says.

The new findings highlight what researchers are increasingly recognizing as a two-way relationship between psychiatric disorders and disrupted sleep. "Modern medicine and psychiatry have consistently thought that psychological disorders seem to have co-occuring sleep problems, and that it's the disorder perpetuating the sleep problems," says Walker. "Is it possible that, in fact, it's the sleep disruption contributing to the psychiatric disorder?"

go here for the rest

http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1904561,00.html

PTSD Canadian Military: Wife talks of different husband coming home

Warrant Officer Roger Perreault and his wife Fran are open and honest about what sometimes comes home instead of how they were before they left. If you are a wife, try to focus on what she says about all of this and then maybe you'll understand your husband did not come home as a "wife beater" but a dream leaper totally unaware of where he is or what he's doing to you. Then maybe our own PTSD veterans will stop being sent to jail instead of treatment. It's not their fault and it's not your fault but if you understand what is going on, then you learn to deal with it differently. Mine? We have not spent an entire night together in bed in 25 years unless we were traveling and it was a king size bed leaving plenty of room in between us.

Home is new Afghan war front
Combat vets continue battle at home
(June 12, 2009)


More than 26,000 Canadians have served in Afghanistan. In the first of a three-part series, we tell the story of one soldier's troubled return


David Bruser
Staff Reporter


Warrant Officer Roger Perreault trained 20 years for his chance at a combat tour.

The army engineer knew how to blow up walls and bulldoze new roads – important work in a war zone where doors are booby-trapped and old roads are lined with hidden bombs.

Perreault took those critical skills and a good-luck charm aboard a bus full of soldiers departing CFB Petawawa on Aug. 1, 2006. His mission: to build a route for the Canadian infantry in Panjwai district, Afghanistan.

"My great-grandfather was an engineer in World War I," Perreault says. "I had his cap badge. I brought it over there for good luck."

Perreault's wife, Fran, remembers his departure day very clearly, because her family would never be the same again.

"On Aug. 1, I put one man on that bus. Nov. 3, a different man came home. He looked like my husband. He talked like my husband. But it wasn't my husband. Part of him is still over there somewhere and I don't know if I'll ever get it back."

Warrant Officer Roger Perreault hits his wife.

"He doesn't even realize he's done it, even though I wake him up at that point. He gets off me, rolls back over. The next morning he asks me why I have bruises on my neck, why I have black eyes."

On occasion Fran has had to rely on makeup and scarves so she can leave the house for the base, where she manages a cleaning company.

"I'm a pretty small woman. He's a pretty big guy. He would cry. He would be ashamed. I would say, `Don't worry about it. It's not your fault.' He really took it hard."

It's after 8 p.m. on a Tuesday in Petawawa. The Perreaults live a couple of blocks off base. She sits at the dining room table, the family collie, Sapper, panting nearby and the four kids padding about the small, two-storey house. In a few days, Fran and Roger will mark their 16th wedding anniversary.

"I did get strangled one night." Fran says. "I woke up, I couldn't breathe. I kneed him in the stomach. I had marks on my neck. I covered it up with turtlenecks and makeup. My closest friends understood. They've dealt with the same things.

"He wasn't doing it to be vindictive or mean. He was someone else in his sleep. He'd been dreaming he was under attack."
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Home is new Afghan war front

Veteran's best friends are watchdogs.

Veteran's best friends are watchdogs. Three of them are on one post over at the Daily Kos. If you are like me, you read titles of Bills and hear how wonderful the creators of these Bills think they are. I tend to get too busy to really read them and honestly, most of the language used confuses the hell out of me. That's why it's important for us to trust the experts on these Bills to make sure they are not worse than nothing. I understand PTSD and what comes with it but I also understand how harmful well sounding Bills can end up being and we fall for them all the time. We end up supporting Bills, contacting Congress to vote for them, only to discover that the Bill was akin to selling back Manhattan to the Indians because it had the title like Land Restoration Act never noticing to what point in history they planned on going back to. They do it to us all the time.

Here from the Daily Kos we have such a shady deal going on.

Senator Richard Burr received this from the IAVA Report Card

Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC)
1st term Republican from North Carolina.

IAVA Action Grade


C

(6 out of 9 votes with IAVA Action, not a Post-9/11 GI Bill cosponsor)



Current Elected Office Committees:

Armed Services
Energy and Natural Resources
Health, Education, Labor and Pensions
Select Committee on Intelligence
Veterans' Affairs , Rnk. Mem.
http://iava.www.capwiz.com/bio/id/444&lvl=C&chamber=S

Burr is ranking member on the Veteran's Affairs committee yet he's trying to pull this off? And they are letting him try why? Last time I checked is a "C" is just average and the problems our veterans have right now should require at least someone with a "B" or above to tackle any part of it. But this is all part of the tricks they like to play on us. It's easy to fool us because all we care about is the veterans and what they need and it's really hard for us to ever think anyone in Congress would ever try to screw them. But they do it all the time. Thanks to Scharrison over at Daily Kos, and USDR, along with people like Larry Scott, the rest of us are not going to get hoodwinked into supporting something that will do more harm to the veterans than good.

Richard Burr: No Friend To Veterans
by scharrison
Richard Burr: No Friend To Veterans Sun Jun 14, 2009 at 11:54:21 AM PDT

As a veteran, my eyes and ears tend to perk up whenever the military is mentioned, whether in the media or even just in casual conversation. I can't help it. And if a politician claims to be "looking out for" or "representing" veterans' interests, I pay even closer attention, because that's one of those things that voters love to hear, but seldom follow up on. Richard Burr has developed a reputation as being "big" on veterans' issues, and I think it's about time we followed up on that.

scharrison's diary :: ::
Before I begin, I want to make sure that everybody understands that our senior Senator from North Carolina has been well-informed on these issues. He's been privy to countless briefings exposing the needs of veterans over the years, so any mistakes he's made can't be attributed to a lack of knowledge. Also, although I usually refrain from linking to (other) blogs because I don't want readers to have to struggle to find primary sources, I'm going to post a few here, because they are concerned voices that deserve to be heard.

Concerned About America's Wounded Warrior Act (11Mar2008)
As a disabled veteran with my fellow California Comrades are most concerned with the provisions of Senator Burr's America's Wounded Warrior Act (S 2674) and Representative Buyer's Nobel Warrior Act (HR 5509). I’m asking veterans to review the proposed drastically changes for disability compensation system for America's veterans. Then ask your Senators and Congress Representative to oppose this legislation.

Let me explain these bills are loosely based on the recommendations of the President's Commission on Care for America's Wounded Warriors (Dole/Shalala Commission), but the specifics of these bills would do great harm to most veterans in the following ways:

go here and read the rest
Richard Burr: No Friend To Veterans

And the USDR (Uniformed Services Disabled Retirees) Abel Quinones does exactly that.

For these reasons, among others, I strongly urge you to oppose S2674/HR5509 and any other legislation which is detrimental to and/or discriminatory against this nation's veterans.
go here for more
Concerned About America's Wounded Warrior Act

These are the Bills

Noble Warrior Act
To amend titles 10 and 38, United States Code, to improve and enhance procedures for the retirement of members of the Armed Forces for disability and to improve and enhance authorities for the rating and compensation of service-connected disabilities in veterans, and for other purposes.
previous 110th session of congress
Other Bill Titles (2 more)
Hide Other Bill Titles
Short: Noble Warrior Act as introduced.
Official: To amend titles 10 and 38, United States Code, to improve and enhance procedures for the retirement of members of the Armed Forces for disability and to improve and enhance authorities for the rating and compensation of service-connected disabilities in veterans, and for other purposes. as introduced.
2/28/2008--Introduced.
Noble Warrior Act - Amends federal armed forces provisions to add new provisions concerning the retirement for disability of members of the Armed Forces (members) following the implementation of an enhanced Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) disability compensation system (implemented under this Act). Authorizes the Secretary of Defense to continue after discharge or separation from active duty respite care and aid and other extended care benefits for members who incur a serious injury or illness while serving on such duty. Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (Secretary) to conduct a study to determine the appropriate:
(1) amount of compensation for service-connected disability payable to veterans for each assigned rating of disability; and
(2) amounts and duration of transition payments and rehabilitation transition allowances payable to veterans participating in a rehabilitation program. Requires the Secretary to conduct a study on measures to assist and encourage veterans in the completion of their vocational rehabilitation plans. Directs the Secretary to submit to Congress a proposal on the purposes and amounts of veterans' disability compensation and veterans' transition benefits. Provides for congressional consideration (by way of a joint resolution) of such proposal. Makes the effective date of implementation of the enhanced VA disability compensation system the date on which the authority of Congress to disapprove the Secretary's proposal expires, as long as Congress does not disapprove the proposal before such date. Revises the current VA schedule of disability ratings to take into account losses of earning capacity and quality of life as a result of the disability. Provides revised compensation and transition payments in connection with service-connected disabilities. Allows a retired veteran entitled to compensation for a service-connected disability to elect to provide a monthly supplemental survivor benefit to the veteran's surviving spouse and/or children. Authorizes such election by veterans:
(1) at the time of award of the disability compensation;
(2) not married at the time of award of the compensation who later marry; and
(3) married at the time of award of the compensation who later remarry. Allows a veteran to revoke the election of a benefit to a surviving spouse. Provides for the receipt of such benefit on the first day of the first month after the veteran dies. Requires the:
(1) reduction of disability compensation due to the election of the supplemental survivor benefit; and
(2) offset of the supplemental survivor benefit by the amount of dependency and indemnity compensation received.
http://www.opencongress.org/bill/110-h5509/show

America's Wounded Warriors Act
A bill to amend titles 10 and 38, United States Code, to improve and enhance procedures for the retirement of members of the Armed Forces for disability and to improve and enhance authorities for the rating and compensation of service-connected disabilities in veterans, and for other purposes.
previous 110th session of congress
Other Bill Titles (2 more)
Hide Other Bill Titles
Short: America's Wounded Warriors Act as introduced.
Official: A bill to amend titles 10 and 38, United States Code, to improve and enhance procedures for the retirement of members of the Armed Forces for disability and to improve and enhance authorities for the rating and compensation of service-connected disabilities in veterans, and for other purposes. as introduced.
2/28/2008--Introduced.
America's Wounded Warriors Act - Amends federal armed forces provisions to add new provisions concerning the retirement for disability of members of the Armed Forces (members) following the implementation of an enhanced Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) disability compensation system (implemented under this Act). Authorizes the Secretary of Defense to continue after discharge or separation from active duty respite care and aid and other extended care benefits for members who incur a serious injury or illness while serving on such duty. Directs the Secretary of Defense to conduct a study to determine the number of retired members who will be eligible for medical and dental care following implementation of the enhanced VA disability compensation system. Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (Secretary) to conduct a study to determine the appropriate:
(1) amount of compensation for service-connected disability payable to veterans for each assigned rating of disability; and
(2) amounts and duration of transition payments and rehabilitation transition allowances payable to veterans participating in a rehabilitation program. Requires the Secretary to conduct a study on measures to assist and encourage veterans in the completion of their vocational rehabilitation plans. Directs the Secretary to submit to Congress a proposal on the purposes and amounts of veterans' disability compensation and veterans' transition benefits. Provides for congressional consideration (by way of a joint resolution) of such proposal. Makes the effective date of implementation of the enhanced VA disability compensation system the date on which the authority of Congress to disapprove the Secretary's proposal expires, as long as Congress does not disapprove the proposal before such date. Revises the current VA schedule of disability ratings to take into account losses of earning capacity and quality of life as a result of the disability. Provides revised compensation and transition payments in connection with service-connected disabilities. Allows a retired veteran entitled to compensation for a service-connected disability to elect to provide a monthly supplemental survivor benefit to the veteran's surviving spouse and/or children. Authorizes such election by veterans:
(1) at the time of award of the disability compensation;
(2) not married at the time of award of the compensation who later marry; and
(3) married at the time of award of the compensation who later remarry. Allows a veteran to revoke the election of a benefit to a surviving spouse. Provides for the receipt of such benefit on the first day of the first month after the veteran dies. Requires the:
(1) reduction of disability compensation due to the election of the supplemental survivor benefit; and
(2) offset of the supplemental survivor benefit by the amount of dependency and indemnity compensation received.
http://www.opencongress.org/bill/110-s2674/show

Larry Scott over at VA Watchdog was mentioned on this piece because he took aim at anything attached to Dr. Sally Satel. She is also a favorite target of mine. Satel is one of the PTSD deniers that likes to blame the veteran, call them slackers and accuse them of sucking off the system. Yep, that type.

Ret. Brigadier General finds GTO and peace in Vietnam

The vietnam vet and his long-lost friend
The Marines called him GTO. Mike Neil thought of him as a son. Now, 40 years later, Neil returns to battle his demons – and find the boy.
By John Wilkens, Union-Tribune Staff Writer
2:00 a.m. June 14, 2009


People sometimes ask Mike Neil if he ever thinks about the Vietnam War.
“Every day,” says Neil, a retired Marine brigadier general.
It's not just the combat, the night ambushes and hours-long firefights in the jungles and rice paddies near Da Nang. It's not the Navy Cross he earned for taking out an enemy machine-gun nest.
Mostly what he remembers from his 13-month tour are the people left behind – the dead and the living.
Earlier this year, the ghosts called him back, as ghosts have been doing to military veterans for hundreds of years.
“Something felt unfinished,” Neil said.
He wanted to see some of the battlefields, leave laminated photos of two friends at the places where they were killed. And he wanted to find GTO.
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The vietnam vet and his long-lost friend

States should never target veterans for cut backs

The State American Legion was forced to make layoffs.

by Heather Sawaski
Saturday, June 13, 2009 at 7:33 p.m.


UPPER PENINSULA -- Changes could soon coming to the way U.P. veterans apply and receive their VA benefits. Last month, Governor Jennifer Granholm signed an Executive Order, slashing $300 million from the current state budget--including a 5% cut from the Department of Military and Veteran's Affairs. That's around $2 million.

That works out to be about a 25% cut from the State Veterans Affairs Grant, which funds American Legion programs across Michigan.

"We've been bringing in a lot of money into the state, taking care of a lot of veterans in the state," explained State Legion Adjutant Patrick Lafferty. "And now that the state, in their financial difficulties, reduced our budget and reduced our grant by 25% which has caused us to lay off service officers and cut services."

The most damaging cut, Lafferty says, is the loss of the only U.P. Mobile Services Officer--the person who made home visits to assist elderly veterans in filling out paperwork to receive their VA benefits.

"Without that," said Legion Director of Veteran's Affairs John Nelson. "we have great fears that the older veterans will actually be ignored and his claims will be lost."
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http://www.connectmidmichigan.com/news/news_story.aspx?id=312378

Aside from the fact veterans in every state are a minority among the vast population, equal to one percent of the nation's population, some may think Veteran's Services is an easy target to hit in budget cut backs. What the hell are they thinking? Are they thinking at all?

There was an event in American history called the Revolutionary War. The Patriots were a minority in the original colonies. Aside from the fact this nation became a nation because of them, the survivors of it became, you guess it, veterans. Throughout the history of this nation a minority group of men and women stepped up and said they would serve the nation in a time of need. After the establishment of Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force and National Guards, they again stepped up and said they would fulfill any need the nation had at anytime and any place. Volunteers from every state in this nation filled manpower in times of peace. In times of war, again, more stepped up to serve and some were forced to under the military draft. They all served side by side, just as heroically and just as this nation expected of them.

Budget cuts were not a factor in their deciding to go where they were needed and the nation deemed worthy of them risking their lives. They were not worried about budget cuts when they fought in the nation's wars. They believe in the promise we gave them believing we appreciated the fact most of them were just teenagers out of high school but would live out the rest of their lives as veterans.

While the leaders of the states contributing these men and women had representation voting to authorizing sending them, what were leaders doing in the states these men and women came from? Did they ever think of the responsibility they would have to them after? Were they planing on any services these veterans would need for the rest of their lives as veterans? Were they paying attention at all?

Police officers and firefighters, another target of budget cut backs, at least have the security of disability when they are wounded in service to the cities, towns and states and they at least get pensions that were planned for all along. After all it's only right to take care of the people that take care of the rest of the people screaming loudly they are tax payers. They face the same difficulties in the budget process, but at least someone planned for them.

As bad as the rest of us have it when our services are cut, we whine about having to pay higher taxes forgetting they are paying higher taxes as well, have children in the same schools, drive the same roads and on the same bridges, have the same bills to pay and gas to pump. The difference is, they are the ones also doing the jobs we rely on. While we can vote out the people in charge, we cannot vote out a veteran. Nothing will ever change the fact they risked their lives.

Did anyone ever plan on the veterans coming home from Afghanistan and Iraq? Was funding increased in all the states they came from? Was staffing increased to levels the veterans would increase by? Did anyone paying the taxes ever wonder where the money to take care of them would come from when they were so busy waving their flags sending them to go? Why is it that the aftermath of war we are all so "patriotic" about never seems to enter into anyone's mind?

Adm. Mike Mullen:PTSD "pretty normal and pretty human,"

Help for soldiers fighting the war within
The first salvo in the battle against record soldier suicides ought to be aimed at stamping out shame and other stigmas associated with mental-health challenges. Next under fire: the military's appallingly sparse mental-health-workers corps.

THE New England Journal of Medicine found in 2004 that 15 percent of Iraq war vets had major depression, anxiety or post-traumatic stress disorder.

Two wars and multiple deployments later, the alarming rise in soldier suicides should not be surprising.

Suicides among Iraq and Afghanistan veterans have more than doubled, going from 52 in 2004 to 110 in 2006, according to the latest statistics available from the Department of Veterans Affairs. The Army reported 115 suicides in its ranks last year. If that trend continues, the suicide rate for that branch of the military will outpace the civilian suicide rate of 19.5 people per 100,000.

During a Senate Defense Appropriations Subcommittee hearing last week on the Department of Defense's 2010 budget, Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., challenged military leaders. Their response was encouraging. Spending for mental-health services is increasing by 75 percent, from $428 million this year to $750 million in 2010. Mandatory mental-health screening for all enlisted personnel is the long-term goal.

Adm. Mike Mullen, chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, called soldier anxieties "pretty normal and pretty human," necessary words to emphasize that mental-health problems aren't career enders.
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Help for soldiers fighting the war within

Adm. Mike Mullen needs to repeat this over and over again until if finally sinks in. If you have PTSD, you are normal! You are human! You are not weak, a coward, a slacker and you are not anything there is to be ashamed of. Yes, it's as simple as that.

How can you think that this wound (reminder Trauma is Greek for Wound) has anything to do with any kind of sudden deficiency in you? As a matter of fact it's because of something so strong in you that you were able to endure it, tough enough to get thru it until the battle was over. Did you just suddenly say, "I've had enough Sarge." then drop your weapon and walk away? Did you think only of yourself and walk away? That's the point you miss constantly.

The same strength within you allowing you to do what you do when you risk you life for the sake of others, is also the same reason you ended up carrying it all away with you. It's your ability to feel. They cannot stop you from feeling no matter how much they train you or tell you that you can suddenly stop being what you were from birth. Look back at your life. Were you the type of person always caring about others? Were you the type of person always ready to help? Did you feel things deeply? Did you set your own comfort or safety aside for the sake of someone else? If you answered yes, then how can you forget what you've always been?

Aside from being married to one of you, I've talked to your brothers and sisters for 27 years. The vast majority of you show this common characteristic. Call it sympathetic or empathetic, it's in most of you. While you tend to confuse this with being soft, you need to understand this characteristic is what rests behind your bravery.

You are the type of person that will risk their life to rush out into traffic to save a child. You are the type of person to rush into a burning building, putting lives in danger ahead of your life. You just didn't enter into the fire department, you went into the military instead. You are the type of person that will face off with criminals with a guns ready to use any means to stop them from hurting anyone else. You just didn't enter into the police department but went into the military instead. You are the type of person that will respond to horrific accidents to rescue people risking your life to get there, preparing to face whatever there is to save a life. Instead of becoming an EMT, you became a soldier in the National Guard. Aside from the courage it takes for you to do what you do, it was your ability to care that set you off on the road few others have traveled. Caring required the courage to act for the sake of someone else. Caring is not weakness. It is the core of your courage.

Medal of Honor recipients, no matter the wounds they had already received, no matter the odds against them, they put others ahead of themselves. Did that take caring about others more than themselves? Did that require courage? So why is it that you think caring is weakness? If you didn't care wouldn't you have walked away without feeling the kind of pain you feel? No matter how much pain you felt inside, you still did what you had to do until your tour of duty was over, or when the mission itself was over and your friends were safe again. You pushed on with the pain inside of you because you put others first. That is what heroes are made of. That same characteristic is inside of you.

Now, with that sunk in, allow me to continue to the second part of the journey of your life. The most important factor in how that part of the journey begins is when you begin to get treated for this wound you are carrying. If treated early enough, most of what your going thru, what your mind is trying to cope with, can be reversed. Still even if it's been years, it's not too late to heal. Time is not your friend but there is no time limit on healing.

Vietnam veterans, Korean War veterans and even WWII veterans are being treated for PTSD even though they carried this within them for all of these years and they are finding a better quality of life than they dreamed was ever possible to live again. With treatment and medication, spiritual reconnection and understanding the responses you have, you can come out on the other side a better person. All of this goes into supporting the caring part of you that has been trapped behind the wall your mind trapped it behind to protect it. It's all still there. The person you thought you lost along the way is still there. The anger no longer has to act to protect your heart.

When veterans begin to heal, they feel a rush of emotions as the wall begins to crumble. Tears usually flow after. This is not a bad thing. It's a good thing because your sensitivity is being awakened. It's the part of humans allowing us to feel love, joy and hope. It is what allows us to look up at the sky when day light is ending and actually feel the sunset as it appears painted by the Master artist. It allows us to feel the beauty in this world, the goodness of our fellowman instead of only the mistrust we have for them. Still the miracles within you are only beginning.

What comes later is what you do for others even as you are healing. You begin to help other veterans wounded by the same " silver bullet" that wounded you. You help them to heal because you are in the perfect position to stand by their side. In the process, you save not only the veteran but their families as well. What is required to do this is already there. It's the same kind of compassion and courage it took to get you where you were before you were deployed into combat. The same kind of courage and compassion that allowed you to endure it and act for the sake of someone else.

Helping others also allows you to help yourself because you can see yourself in their eyes and know, you are not alone with what makes you "you" and as you see others, you see the qualities within them that is familiar. You see that what you went thru was not normal but you are because you see them as just normal humans after anything but normal was part of their life too.

PTSD:Female police officers focus of study by Smith College

Smith College Grécourt Gate - Northampton,MA,USA
June 12, 2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE



Study: Female Police Officers May Hold the Key To Understanding Gender Differences in PTSD

NORTHAMPTON, Mass. – Gender differences in the intensity and frequency of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) may not relate to biology as much as psychology, according to a new study of nearly 300 females – civilians and police officers.

Previous studies have indicated that, in the civilian population, females suffer from the disorder more frequently and more intensely than males, yet studies on military and police officers have not found a difference between the genders.

This study focused just on women – comparing police officers and civilians on several variables including trauma exposure and cumulative PTSD symptoms – and found significantly different patterns of emotion expression within the same gender.

“The good news is that these emotional proclivities probably are not biologically predetermined but rather open to psychosocial influence,” said Nnamdi Pole, Smith College associate professor of psychology and the study’s lead researcher. “As we better understand the causes and consequences of these influences, we may someday be able to eliminate – or reduce – PTSD symptoms in civilian women.”
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http://www.smith.edu/newsoffice/releases/NewsOffice09-031.html