Learn to survive in the ordinary world

The power to heal PTSD is within you!
Combat PTSD Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
January 15, 2018

There are a lot of songs written about love gone wrong that can apply to what suffering is like for other reasons. When someone writes something to express emotions, it comes from their soul. The deeper the love is, the deeper the pain is.

People who join the military are said to have a lot of qualities. Recruitment slogans grab hold of those inner gifts. The Navy has Forged by Sea and the Air Force has "We do the impossible everyday."

For the Army it is "WE TRAIN. WE ADAPT. WE WIN." Another statement is "We're doctors, scientists, engineers, cyber warriors and combat Soldiers with one mission-protect and preserve our nation. We're highly trained, adaptable and ready for anything. We are U.S. Army Soldiers."

This is from the Marine Corps

"Honor, courage and commitment are the core values that drive the actions of every Marine, but it is the fighting spirit within that ensures victory."

Latch onto that fighting spirit to win your own battle back home! 

EACH STEP FORWARD, A BATTLE WON.

Inside every Marine is a relentless fighting spirit. It stands up for others. It overcomes obstacles both physical and mental, and it does not quit until the battle is won.

Yet none of these recruitment words mention love. Why is it that people find that word is only suppose to mean an ordinary love, that everyone seeks and the lucky find?

When you decide to serve, there is the obvious gift of courage within you. You know you'll have to endure all kinds of hardships. In combat, you fear for your own life, but beyond that, you fear for the lives of those you are with. Your military family means as much to you as your own family in the ordinary world, sometimes...even more than they do. That is love too.

When veterans come home, they gave just about everything they had. They are drained physically and mentally. Trapped between relief of setting foot in the homes they left, and loneliness being separated from the others they fought side by side with.

Back in their small world of home and friends, far from bullets, bombs and blood shed, sooner than later, they face the fact that while they survived combat, it seems harder to survive in the world they thought was ordinary.

If you think about the words from the Marine Corps, it should be obvious that some battles go on long after service. "Inside every Marine is a relentless fighting spirit. It stands up for others. It overcomes obstacles both physical and mental, and it does not quit until the battle is won."

The battles fought in combat, are not fought alone, but with others watching your back, as much as you watch theirs. At home, the battles are not won alone and must be fought with someone at your side.

Most of the time, your family wants to be there for you, but they cannot understand what you need if you do not tell them. Holding your suffering in, makes them search for reasons for the changes they see. All too often, that search leads them to blame themselves for your actions. 

If you know nothing about PTSD, then you may be blaming yourself because you do not understand it. If you do not understand it, then how do you expect people in your life to be able to?  If you think you've become evil, how do you expect those who care about you to not agree with you if that is all they see from you?

Learn what PTSD is from the experts and not from social media. Invest the time to train to be a better veteran as much as you trained to be a better service member.

Keep in mind, they were not trained to fight what came home within you. They have no way of knowing unless you share it with them. You don't have to tell them about your deployments or any of the horrible details. All they need to know is that you are hurting. They do not need to know what did it to you, but they need to know what it is doing to you.

The same applies to your friends. Some of your friends, you will sadly discover, were not really your friends. Some will want to help but since they do not understand, they will change the subject or get uncomfortable. All too often, they'll say something stupid. Know that it comes from ignorance and in no way applies to your worth.

Other friends will listen and support you. Most of the time those friends are also veterans. While you may think they came home unchanged, every veteran came home changed in one way or another. No one comes home the way they left just as no human survives any traumatic event unchanged.

Sometimes they are stronger, if they managed to make sense out of what they went through, then make peace with it. Other times, they value life even more than they did before. 

The thing no one has been telling you is that you too can make sense of it and make peace with it no matter how long it has been since you left that world and you can learn to survive! 

Ordinary World

Duran Duran

Came in from a rainy Thursday on the avenue

Thought I heard you talking softly

I turned on the lights, the TV, and the radio

Still I can't escape the ghost of you

What has happened to it all?

Crazy someone say

Where is the life that I recognize?

Gone away

But I won't cry for yesterday

There's an ordinary world

Somehow I have to find

And as I try to make my way

To the ordinary world

I will learn to survive

Passion or coincidence once prompted you to say

"Pride will tear us both apart"

Well now prides gone out the window

Cross the rooftops, run away

Left me in the vacuum of my heart

What is happening to me?

Crazy someone say

Where is my friend when I need you most?

Gone away

But I won't cry for yesterday

There's an ordinary world

Somehow I have to find

And as I try to make my way

To the ordinary world

I will learn to survive

Papers in the roadside tell of suffering and greed

Fear today, forgot tomorrow

Besides the news of holy war and holy need

Ours is just a little sorrowed talk

And I don't cry for yesterday

There's an ordinary world

Somehow I have to find

And as I try to make my way

To the ordinary world

I will learn to survive

Every world is my world

(I will learn to survive)

Any world is my world

(I will learn to survive)

Any world is my world

Songwriters: John Taylor / Nick Rhodes / Simon Le Bon / Warren Cuccurullo

Ordinary World lyrics © EMI Music Publishing, Songs Music Publishing

This is an ordinary world your extra-ordinary love is much needed in!

For these veterans, giving to others is what they live for!

Disabled Omaha veteran restores TVs for vets in need
OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) - A disabled Air Force veteran from Omaha is using his hobby of fixing electronics to help other veterans in need. 

Todd Hering served in the Air Force for nine years and then spent the rest of his career working for an airline. Three years ago, he injured his toe so badly it later infected his leg, resulting in several surgeries and ultimately, had to have his right leg amputated.

read his story here 

Local Vietnam vets giving back to those in need with free wheelchairs, walkers, and more

LAS VEGAS (KSNV) — Members of the Vietnam Veterans of America, Chapter 17 have been collecting donated wheelchairs, walkers, and scooters for years. Now, the group has a surplus of the assistance items and they’re hoping to give them to local vets in need. 

"We don't give to just Vietnam veterans. We give to any veteran in need,” said Vietnam War veteran J.W., who oversees the chapter’s wheelchair program. "I thought, 'Wow. These guys worked all their lives and they don't even have a car to get to the grocery store? The wheelchair provides that mobility.’”

read their story here 

13,000 Brit PTSD homeless veterans sleep in doorways and beg for help?

At least 13,000 hero soldiers left HOMELESS after leaving the military - and almost all have PTSD
The Mirror UK
Patrick Hill, Sean Rayment and Amy Sharpe
Januray 13, 2018

A Sunday People probe reveals how hundreds of Brit veterans are reduced to sleeping in doorways and begging from passers-by

The 56-year-old says during his time on the streets and since, he has met hundreds of veterans, from the Falklands campaign through to more recent conflicts, including those in Iraq and Afghanistan. Many are reduced to sleeping in doorways, bus stops and parks, ­begging from passers-by.

 

Hero Craig Mealing was left homeless for two months after turning to alcohol to cope with his PTSD

At least 13,000 of our war heroes are homeless after leaving the military, a Sunday People probe reveals.

Military charities said the shameful figure is a record high and the Government is failing those who risk their lives for Queen and country.

They also issued a stark warning that the crisis deepens every month.

Les Standish, who won the Military Medal in the Falklands War, said: “The Government has let these people down. These men and women were willing to fight and lay down their lives for this country and the only help available to them is from charities.

“The Government needs to do more for them. It’s a disgrace.”
read more here

Coast Guard Veteran Lost Wife After Irma, Gained Community Wide Family Afterwards

Community helps Naples veteran repair home
WXVN ABC 7 News
January 13, 2017

NAPLES, Fla. -

More than four months after Hurricane Irma, neighbors in Naples are banding together to help a veteran at risk of losing his home.

US Coast Guard vet Walter Landrum, who served for 28 years, was already down on his luck when the hurricane ravaged his property, and he wasn't able to clean it up.

"It's been a nightmare," he said. "But not as bad as some of the nightmares I've seen in the Coast Guard."

He knows things could always be worse, but it got pretty bad after Irma.

"A coconut hit the window, sounded like an explosion."

He wasn't able to clean up because he was caring for his wife, who suffered from congestive heart failure.

"I was with her every day for the last three years. So I'd start cleaning the lanai, and she'd be wracked with pain and terror, and I'd come back to her," he said.

She passed away right before Christmas, by which time his neighbors realized he needed help. 

read more here

Invictus Games and Dog Named Jester

Pooch SAVED war veteran and helped him compete in Invictus Games
The Daily Star UK
Ed Gleave
January 14, 2018

Jon, who took home a bronze medal last year, said: "I'm trying to push myself and see what I can achieve and that all seems a little bit easier when I've got Jester with me.

Ex-Royal Marine Jon Flint fell 30ft while abseiling during a training exercise in 1996.

It left him with a fracture in his lower spine, but because he was so fit it went undiagnosed until he left the services.

After quitting the Marines his condition got worse until he was unable to walk unaided.

That's when threeyear-old labrador Jester stepped into offer him a lifeline. Jon, a former lance corporal who served in Afghanistan and Iraq, said: "It's difficult to put into words how much difference he's made to my life and the life of my family.

"When I was in the Royal Marines I knew the guys with me always had my back. And now I know Jester has always got my back."

For three years, assistance dog Jester - featured on ITV's Britain's Favourite Dogs on Tuesday - has helped with taking out laundry, opening doors, answering the phone and picking up Jon's stick.

Jon added: "He's always with me wherever I go and he enjoys what he does for a living because he's a working dog.

"He's trained to enjoy it. He makes the things that I struggle with a lot easier."

Thanks to vital help from Jester, Jon was able to join Britain's archery squad for the Invictus Games. And while competing he became pals with its founder Prince Harry.
read more here

Suicide of Veteran may have changed future of UK PTSD veterans

It is said that things only change when something hits a politician personally. Looks like that just happened when one of the soldiers Price Harry served with committing suicide. Now the Daily Mail is trying to do something about changing the story from tragedy to offering hope of healing.

Tragedy of Harry's band of brothers: How battlefield trauma affected the soldiers the prince served with in Afghanistan - including one who killed himself
Daily Mail
Mark Nicol and Nick Craven
January 13, 2018

Warrant Officer Nathan Hunt is believed to have tragically died last week. It is said he struggled to cope with the effects of battlefield trauma. Since then two more members of Harry's desert reconnaissance unit have revealed they also suffered with serious mental health issues. The Mail on Sunday have launched a campaign to support them.

This is the elite band of brothers, including Prince Harry, that were sent on a top secret mission to take on the Taliban in one of the most dangerous areas of Afghanistan.

This is the elite band of brothers, including Prince Harry, that were sent on a top secret mission to take on the Taliban in one of the most dangerous areas of Afghanistan

Last week, The Mail on Sunday revealed how one of the courageous soldiers pictured here, Warrant Officer Nathan Hunt, is believed to have tragically killed himself after struggling to cope with the effects of battlefield trauma.

Since then two more members of Harry’s desert reconnaissance unit have come forward to say they too have suffered serious mental health issues as a direct result of their harrowing experiences in the war zone.

This shocking revelation comes as The Mail on Sunday joins forces with Lord Dannatt, a former head of the British Army, in a campaign to dramatically improve the provision of mental healthcare for serving soldiers, a service which medical experts say is ‘on its knees’ due to spending cuts. read more here

The Holiday Bar won in court but did right thing anyway

When the news came out this bar turned away a PTSD service dog, they were actually within the law. They won in court. But then, something stunning happened. They did the right thing and held training for other business owners to learn the law and what these fabulous service dogs do!

The Holiday Bar holds service dog training session for local businesses
WZZM ABC 13 News
Noah Fromson
January 13, 2018

GRAND RAPIDS, MICH. - The Holiday Bar in Grand Rapids hosted a service dog training session for local business owners Saturday.

"We thought they might be interested in hosting us because of what happened, and they were," said Jenn Gavin, owner and head trainer at A Pleasant Dog in Grand Rapids.

The Holiday Bar in Grand Rapids hosted a service dog training session Saturday for local business owners. (Photo: WZZM)

The bar and restaurant refused to serve veteran Jerome Smith, and his service dog, JoJo, on Friday, Nov. 10. The Holiday Bar manager said they were kicked out to keep JoJo safe, but apologized for "disrespectful and unprofessional" actions. The business then donated more than $2,000 to the Grand Rapids Home for Veterans.

Gavin, along with local attorney Nicholas Vander Veen, spoke to a small crowd about what business owners can and cannot do when people come into their establishments with service dogs.

"You can ask two questions: is that a service dog trained to mitigate your disability?" Gavin said. "What is it trained to do? You can't ask for certification. You can't ask why it's not wearing a vest."

On Jan. 4, a Kent County prosecutor said The Holiday Bar manager would not be charged because JoJo was not wearing a leash when the incident occurred.

According to the Americans with Disabilities Act, service animals must be "harnessed, leashed or tethered, unless these devices interfere with the service animal's work or the individual's disability prevents using these devices."
read more here

Homeless Vietnam Veteran Beaten and Robbed of $25?

Homeless veteran severely beaten, robbed but getting help soon from metro nonprofit

FOX 4KC News

Robert Townsend

January 12, 2018

“We may not be his family, but we’re his military family, and we are here to help him," Stout said.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- James Dodge survived the battlegrounds of the Vietnam War, but all week he's been at a KC hospital in a lot of pain after he was attacked out of nowhere.

“My head hurts, my tailbone hurts, and my eyes still hurt," the 71-year-old Army veteran said. "I have a laceration in my left eye that’s just now starting to heal to the point where it doesn’t feel like rocks are in my eye."

Dodge has been homeless since Christmas. He knows by living on the streets, his life could be in danger at any moment.

Late Sunday night, that fear became all too real.

“I seem to recall I was walking to a store and a guy just came up behind me and hit me in the back of my head and on top of my head with what felt to be a metal pipe or a hammer, and he was punching me in my face," Dodge said. "I fell to the ground, and he kept kicking me. It still hurts to walk right now because he kicked me in my spine."

Paramedics rushed the injured veteran to the hospital. The attacker ran off with $25 he stole from Dodge's pockets.

“I would have given him the money," Dodge told Fox 4's Robert Townsend from his hospital bed. "He put me through a lot and could have killed me over $25. People are so crazy today, and there’s just no compassion. They don’t care."

read more here

Firefighter counts herself blessed to be able to help during one more

A veteran of tragedies from 9/11 to Katrina, one firefighter counts herself blessed to be able to help during one more

Los Angeles Times

Louie Sahagun

January 12, 2018

In the 27 years since joining the Los Angeles Fire Department, Hollyn Bullock has reported for search-and-rescue duty for tragedies like the World Trade Center terrorist attack in New York, Hurricane Katrina and the deadly train derailment in Chatsworth that claimed 25 lives.

Los Angeles firefighter Hollyn Bullock. (Louis Sahagun / Los Angeles Times)

On Friday, the veteran firefighter joined a team scouring through the wreckage of the latest disaster. Seventeen people were dead after mudslides tore through the Santa Barbara County community of Montecito. At least five remained missing.

And so, along a sodden, debris-tangled corner just east of the 101 Freeway, Bullock and others searched on.

“Honestly, I feel fulfilled, even blessed to have been given the opportunity to get in there and help people in times of crisis,” she said as fellow firefighters hosed contaminated mud off her boots and pant legs.

She was part of a team of 26 men and one woman: herself. 

read more here

PTSD Expert Responds to Firefighters in Palm Beach

Palm Beach Fire Rescue hosts national firefighter PTSD expert for training course

WPTV 5 News

Amy Lipman

January 12, 2018

"Silence often surrounds the emotions that come with constantly witnessing tragedy."

PALM BEACH COUNTY, Fla. - More firefighters committed suicide in the U.S. than died in the line of duty in 2015 and 2016, according to the Firefighter Behavioral Health Alliance. That group’s founder is part of a movement to try to change those statistics.

“Saying that we’re supposed to be strong and brave and handle it ourselves, it’s impossible to do," said Jeff Dill, founder and CEO of FBHA.

Palm Beach Fire Rescue firefighters along with members of other departments around the area sat in on training sessions with Dill. 

Years of research has gone into the course he around the country, but Indian River County Battalion Chief David Dangerfield is the reason he came to South Florida to talk about it. Dangerfield suffered from PTSD and committed suicide in October 2016. Dangerfield’s wife, Leslie, set up the training.

read more here 

Suicide Awareness Missing in Action

Liberty to lie should never be acceptable or profitable
Combat PTSD Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
January 13, 2018

People have not just taken the liberty to lie, they have made it seem acceptable. That is what is going on all over the country when someone uses veterans committing suicide as a cause for them to become a celebrity.

Sometimes they just don't know what the truth is. If they don't, then we need to be asking how they expect to change anything if they do not know what the facts are. How much time did they spend on researching the topic verses gaining publicity? What is it they hope to accomplish by "raising awareness" when they didn't even think to become aware of what works to change the ending they claim is so important to them? Veterans already know they are killing themselves. They don't know how to heal!

There is proof that Suicide Awareness has not worked in the last decade but no one has had to explain why they not only keep doing it, but deserve donations to continue to be so lax they do not even understand the solution. Any wonder why it has gotten worse for veterans to survive being back home?

These groups do not even mention the number of suicides while still in the military either.

Veterans over the age of 50 are 65% of the suicides, yet none of these groups paid attention to that fact. Why are they being left out of all this "awareness" all these new groups keep getting publicity for?

We have to start calling them out for a reason. Suicide only happens because people lose hope. If they keep pushing the number they grabbed from a headline, without bothering to read the damn reports, then all they are doing is showing veterans they really don't matter while putting the spotlight on too many veterans giving up.

This is an extremely complicated topic. There is far too much casual care folks are not aware of. Top that off with the simple fact that "raising awareness" has not done any good over the last decade.

Here are some headlines;

Illinois:
A unique way to raise awareness for veteran suicides

At a busy intersection in Georgetown is Patriot Park. Layton Warstler said "I can sit here and kind of reflect and remember all the veterans who have lost their lives in this town".But he didn't want to stay for a moment, he wanted to camp for 22 days raising awareness for veterans who commit suicide.He said he was "representing the 22 veterans on average that kill themselves and then voluntarily making myself homeless to bring awareness to homeless veterans".

Idaho:
Marine fighting against veteran suicides through non profit

BOISE, Idaho — According to the Department of Veterans Affairs, twenty-two veterans a day commit suicide. A Boise man is trying to help bring awareness to this disturbing trend. Last year after losing a friend he started Ride for 22 to further his cause. December 28th he ended up taking his own life,” Steven Exceen said.

Veteran suicide rate in spotlight as Easthampton Savings Bank execs join local police in no-shave 'Manuary'

What are they doing?

Murphy is one of dozens of Easthampton and Holyoke police officers growing beards during the month of January to raise funds for Twenty Two Until None, a non-profit devoted to ending veteran suicide.

That is the claim but when you go onto the site, you need to read it for yourself. How can any group be "devoted" without doing any basic research as to what has already been done over the last 40 years so they know what works and then do it? How can they claim to regard this topic as worthy of their time if they do not invest that time in even reading the reports? How do they expect to change the outcome when resources they list are to other places?

*******UPDATE*******

GRAND TRAVERSE COUNTY, Mich., (WPBN/WGTU) -- Students from two Traverse City high schools presented a $13,000 check to a veteran suicide prevention group.

During halftime at Friday night's Traverse City Central vs. Traverse City West basketball game students gave the check to 22 2 None.

*******

A few things seem like really good steps when their site lists helping the homeless and giving veterans emergency funds.

Police Officers are participating without knowing the truth. They are not doing it for police officers committing suicide, but supposedly for veterans without even reading the reports that the groups name derived from.

This was reported by Associated Press on Law Enforcement suicides.

Studies show there are about 125 to 150 officer suicides a year and more than 200,000 officers are suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder or some other form of emotional stress 

 They need to stop and actually gain some knowledge if they really intend to change the outcome. Do they know the "22 a day" VA report came from just 21 states limited data? Do they know why it was "limited data" at all?

For starters, California and Illinois did not have military service on their death certificates. Over 2 million in California and over 700,000 in Illinois were not included in on any of the research. 

The CDC did not count them on the following report if they were not honorably discharged because no state will allow them to have military service checked off on their death certificate. In some states, military service has to be connected to a "War" or they are not allowed to indicated it.

There are over 400,000 charities all over the country geared toward veterans. Over and over again, we read about them, what they claim and then read the reports showing the actual results of those claims.

Is the general public actually that disconnected from reality? Are members of the veterans community actually that disconnected from their own brothers and sisters? Are families actually that deluded they join the groups pushing a number that does not exist when one of their own was missing from that number as well as their lives?

Are we serious about any of this or not?

UPDATE Continued,
Really sorry that when awareness began, it was actually needed in the hopes that the people with the power to do something about it...would do it.  Some did, but mostly, people just did what they wanted to.

Aware: having or showing realization, perception, or knowledge

Beware: to be wary of

we must … beware the exceedingly tenuous generalization

 

 —Matthew Lipman

This is when veterans needed the public to be aware of what was happening to them when they were supposed to be safety back home from war. This is from The Suicide Wall

One Vietnam Veteran, who had been suicidal and wishes to remain anonymous, said, "After reading Suicide Wall, I am determined never to have my name on such a memorial."

In Chuck Deans' book, Nam Vet., printed in 1990 by Multnomah Press, Portland, Oregon, 97226, the author states that "Fifty-eight thousand plus died in the Vietnam War. Over 150,000 have committed suicide since the war ended". According to this book, Chuck Dean is a Vietnam Veteran who served in the 173rd Airborne, arriving in Vietnam in 1965. At the time the book was written, Mr. Dean was the executive director of Point Man International, a Seattle based, non-profit support organization dedicated to healing the war wounds of Vietnam Veterans.While doing research for his novel, Suicide Wall, Alexander Paul contacted Point Man International and was given the name of a retired VA doctor, and conducted a phone interview with him. In that interview, the doctor related that his estimate of the number of Vietnam Veteran suicides was 200,000 men, and that the reason the official suicide statistics were so much lower was that in many cases the suicides were documented as accidents, primarily single-car drunk driving accidents and self inflicted gunshot wounds that were not accompanied by a suicide note or statement. According to the doctor, the under reporting of suicides was primarily an act of kindness to the surviving relatives. 

April 05, 2007

Non-combat deaths-Non caring media and was followed up with this. 
April 16, 2007  Cause of death, because they served

Gee silly me, I thought that we were supposed to be helping veterans want to stay here instead of telling them how many we think decided to leave this earth!

Good news tied to not so good news

Just when you think you've read some good news for a change, turns out to be tied to not so good news.

Headline

Trump expands mental health benefits to decrease suicide rates among new veterans

Just like in his speech when he signed Executive Orders.

The problem is that when they leave military service, OEF and OIF veterans already received 5 years of free medical care...including mental health.

5 Years Cost Free Health Care

 OEF/OIF/OND combat Veterans can receive cost free medical care for any condition related to their service in the Iraq/Afghanistan theater for five years after the date of their discharge or release.

And that isn't something new.

Recent veterans are entitled to free health care, but many don't sign up (Which came out in September 2009)

The federal VA provides medical care and benefits to all enrolled veterans, with a range of preventive outpatient and inpatient services offered within its health care system. OEF/OIF veterans receive an additional benefit — five years of free health care in the VA system for any issue related to their deployment. As with other veterans, once enrolled in the system, they’re always in, but for issues not related to deployment or after those five free years, they may face co-payments. 

Plus this order does not include older veterans, who also served this country, risked their lives, came home with the same wounds, but waited longer for help.

No one seems to know how they plan on paying for the "Executive order" other than they will be taking money out of other places.

Military Pay Raise sounds good,

Headline

2018 military pay raise is the biggest in eight years, but how generous is it?

Included in the massive budget bill, finalized by the Senate Nov. 16 and expected to be signed into law by President Donald Trump in coming days, is a 2.4 percent pay raise for service members starting Jan. 1.

But at the same time we also had this headline,

Housing allowance for Fort Hood soldiers going down this year

For example, a sergeant stationed at Fort Hood with dependents received $1,134 for a housing allowance in 2017. That number has dropped by about 4 percent to $1,086 this year. A private with dependents who received $1,128 in 2017 will see a decrease to $1,083 this year, also about a 4 percent drop. A staff sergeant with dependents will see a drop from $1,200 to $1,107, a decrease of 7.75 percent.

And this one too, but it comes from Military.com and they got it all together.

2.1% Pay Raise, BAH Cuts, Tricare Fee Hikes Approved by Senate

As with all the talk about Veterans Choice, but as we know, it isn't something they have not been doing all along when a veteran cannot get to a VA hospital for emergency care. 

We had a reminder of that,

Headline

VA to begin paying up to 800,000 non-VA emergency claims

The revised rule says it won’t allow retroactive reimbursements for non-VA emergency care claim decisions that became final before April 8, 2016, the day VA lost a landmark federal court fight with Air Force veteran Richard W. Staab.Staab faced roughly $48,000 in unpaid private hospital bills after emergency heart surgery in December 2010. At the time VA had told Staab, and any other veteran forced to use outside emergency care, that the department would have covered the cost of such care if they had had no other health insurance.

As with everything else, they say always read the fine print, but when it comes to the way reporters have been doing their jobs, read everything and then figure out if it does sound too good to be true...it usually is.