'Stories of Courage' with Robin Meade focus on our wounded troops

Robin Meade has done some fantastic work sharing stories of our veterans for a long time. She is one of the few motivated by caring about them first and getting their stories second. Last night I watched this show. If you want a feel good story of just how wonderful our troops are, make sure you watch the next time it is on or go to the links below and watch online.

Saturday on HLN: 'Stories of Courage'
By HLNtv.com Staff
July 04, 2012
Robin Meade hosts hour-long special
Encore presentations Saturday & Sunday, July 7 & 8 at 2pm

This weekend on HLN, a special that's been over a year in the making: "Stories of Courage," hosted by Morning Express' Robin Meade. They're incredible, powerful stories that show a real side of military life.

Here is a preview of just some of the stories you'll see:

Burned Vet Inspired by his Son's Love After getting burned in an IED attack, Air Force Tech Sgt. Israel Del Toro was terrified his son wouldn't recognize him. But when the little boy saw his dad, it was nothing but smiles.

The Walk Back Home: A solider's toughest mission When he lost his legs to a roadside bomb, U.S. Army Sg. First Class Aaron Causey promised he would make it home. Even more, he promised he would walk through his parent's door, no matter what. It is an unforgettable reunion.

Former Marine wins an archery medal with one arm An RPG took out Marine Cpl. Mark O'Brien's Humvee in 2004, he thought he was going to die. Today, he has learned to reclaim his life, including his childhood passion of archery.
read more here

Wounded vets share inspiring stories with HLN By Dianna Hill
June 28, 2012

Robin Meade sat down with the injured troops at the Warrior Games

Editor's Note: More than 200 wounded servicemen and women descended on Colorado Springs in May to participate in the third annual Warrior Games. Each branch of the military sent a team of inspiring athletes to vie for gold and bragging rights. But every athlete also has an incredible story of perseverance. HLN's Robin Meade sat down with five of them.

Army Corporal Brian Miller, Air Force Tech Sergeant Israel Del Toro (DT), Marine Corporal Kionte Storey, Marine Sergeant Than Naing and Navy Mineman 2nd Class Linda Simpson.
read their stories here

Florida lifeguard fired for saving life, coworkers fired for defending him

When I was much younger, I was a lifeguard at a YMCA and taught swimming. I can tell you that the first thing on Lopez's mind was someone needed his help. This is all wrong beyond belief! He got fired and his friends got fired for defending him. What kind of a message does this send? What's next? Will Florida cops get fired if they save a life because the person is an inch outside of their area?

Fired Florida Lifeguard's Coworkers Out After Admitting They'd Save Man Outside Zone
By ALEXIS SHAW, MATT GUTMAN CANDACE SMITH and KATIE MOISSE
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla.
ABC News
July 4, 2012

Six Florida lifeguards have lost their jobs for backing a coworker's decision to save a man struggling in the surf but outside their jurisdiction.

Tomas Lopez , 21, was fired Monday for vacating his lifeguarding zone to save a man drowning in unprotected waters 1,500 feet south of his post on Hallandale Beach, Fla.

"I knew I broke the rules," said Lopez, who ran past the buoy marking the boundary of his patrol zone to help the man. "I told the manager, I'm fired aren't I?"

Lopez said he jumped into the water and "I double underhooked him…I was worried about the guy and his health. He was blue."

Six of Lopez's coworkers said they would have done the same thing. And now, they've been fired too.
read more here

Vietnam Veterans want the record straight on Born on the Fourth of July

Vietnam War veteran's 'Born on the Fourth of July' account disputed by comrades' memories
By JEFF JARDINE
McClatchy Newspapers
Published: July 4, 2012

MODESTO, Calif. — Whenever someone gives an account of just about anything, you can bet someone else will contradict it — especially when the claim involves heroism.

Vietnam War veteran Ron Kovic detailed his exploits as a Marine staff sergeant in his autobiography, "Born on the Fourth of July." Tom Cruise portrayed Kovic on the big screen in the 1989 film directed by another Vietnam vet, Oliver Stone.

Rudy Molina Jr. says some of Kovic's story is just plain wrong and wants to set the record straight.

Why trust Molina? His story matches that of Florida's Dennis Kleppen, another survivor of the firefight Jan. 20, 1968, at Cua Viet, south of the Demilitarized Zone. Kovic was shot twice, the second bullet hitting him in the shoulder, lodging in his spine and paralyzing him for life. read more here

VA Doctor says there's a treatment for Combat PTSD that works in 5 years?

Dr. Matthew Friedman of the VA said "But studies have shown that 80 percent of those, given proper treatment, are without symptoms after five years." Oh really? I have over 15,000 posts on this blog alone and have never seen any evidence of this topped off with never having heard it from a single veteran. No symptoms? Gee then the veterans I know must be suffering from something else or the "proper treatment" has been kept from hundreds of thousands of them.

Most of what else is in this is correct but we really should be wondering why he made such a claim. Is this an attempt to stop paying claims after 5 years? What studies is he talking about?

VA's message: PTSD is 'very treatable'
By MARY MEEHAN
Lexington Herald-Leader, Ky.
Published: July 4, 2012

The most common misconception about post-traumatic stress disorder is that there is no effective treatment.

Dr. Matthew Friedman, executive director of the Department of Veterans Affairs' National Center for PTSD, is working to get the word out that it's "very treatable."

PTSD is more prevalent among service members today, with 17 percent to 20 percent of the troops returning from Iraq and Afghanistan suffering from it, he said. But studies have shown that 80 percent of those, given proper treatment, are without symptoms after five years.

The disease itself is far from new.

"Homer was a vet," he said. "Achilles showed signs of PTSD."

For centuries, he said, it was "the turf of poets and novelists." Shakespeare wrote about it, as did Charles Dickens. It was during the Civil War that doctors coined the term, "soldier's heart." The idea was that a soldier's heart rate, blood pressure and pulse rate were altered by war, and that led to personality changes.

Over the years, the disorder has had several names — shell shock, combat fatigue, combat exhaustion — but it has evolved to be understood as having psychological and physiological roots.

The increase in PTSD patients is tied to the large number of military reservists serving in combat, Friedman said. Having social support — as full-time military personnel do — is one of the things that can prevent a traumatic event from escalating into PTSD, he explained.

For those on active duty, the military is their life and their job. "Citizen soldiers don't have that same kind of support," he said.
read more here

Here's a _ _ _ _ing clue for you. Stop Resiliency Training!

Here's a _ _ _ _ing clue for you. Stop Resiliency Training! Undo the damage this program did and then maybe, just maybe they'll save some lives! Not interested in playing nice on this at all anymore. I am sure Christ will forgive me for saying WTF since I've been thinking that for the last four years! To my readers, please excuse me but I just popped my cork and can't take it anymore.

Sunday I was on my way home from church when my cell phone rang. It was a "wrong number" from someone looking for a shelter. He hung up but called right back and asked me if I was a Chaplain. I told him I was and then he asked me if I could help him.

He told me that he had done three tours, in and out of different programs here in Florida and about to become homeless again. He's 100% PTSD and physically disabled but still has not gotten what he needs to heal from where he was sent! And we're not supposed to have an issue with this? We're supposed to just keep taking in the you know what and pretending they're doing everything possible? They aren't! The refusal to end this massive failure called "Battlemind" turned into yet again another label of "resiliency" KEEPS THEM FROM GETTING HELP AND ENDS UP MAKING THEM BLAME THEMSELVES! When will the DOD and VA understand this?

US service members' suicide rates unacceptable, call for special approach
Dr. Dana Matthews
TCPalm
Posted July 3, 2012

PORT ST. LUCIE — American service members' suicides have increased to nearly one a day this year –- the fastest pace in the nation's decade of war.

The 154 suicides for troops in the first 155 days of the year far outdistance the U.S. forces killed in action in Afghanistan by 50 percent according to Pentagon statistics.

These numbers reflect a military burdened with wartime demands from Iraq and Afghanistan that have taken a much greater toll than foreseen a decade ago. The military also is struggling with increased sexual assaults, alcohol abuse, domestic violence and other misbehavior.

Suicides seemed to have leveled off the preceding two years; consequently, this year's upswing has caught many officials off guard.

The reasons for the increase are not fully understood. Studies suggested combat exposure, post-traumatic stress, misuse of prescription medications and personal financial problems. Army data suggest soldiers with multiple combat tours are at greater risk of committing suicide.

Suicide totals have exceeded U.S. combat deaths in Afghanistan in earlier periods, including for the full years 2008 and 2009.

The numbers are rising among the 1.4 million active-duty military personnel despite years of effort to encourage troops to seek help with mental health problems. Many in the military believe that going for help is seen as a sign of weakness and thus a potential threat to advancement.
read more here