Alabama teen arrested for destroying Vietnam Monument

Teen arrested for vandalism
by Phil Johnson
July 25th, 2012

A Uriah teen was arrested for the July 17 destruction of a Vietnam veterans monument in Uriah. The monument was part of the memorial to all veterans who had served their country.

Dakota Bailey, age 18, surrendered to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office July 19. He has been charged with criminal mischief first degree, and is being held on a $100,000 bond in the Monroe County Correctional Facility.

The destruction to the monument was discovered early Wednesday morning by Albert Hollinger, the man who gave the land and headed up the drive to have it built. He was making his usual 6 a.m. trip to a local café for coffee, which took him right past the memorial park.

The park consists of a large central monument surrounded by individual monuments dedicated to the service people from the Uriah area who served in each war. When Hollinger passed by Tuesday morning, he saw that a granite sheet that contained the names of those who died in Vietnam had been pushed over and shattered.

“There are a lot of mad people in this community,” Hollinger said. “I don’t know why anyone would do this.”
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Chino man charged in theft from veteran's daughter during funeral

Chino man charged in theft from veteran's daughter during funeral
By San Gabriel Valle
July 24, 2012

GLENDORA -- The District Attorney's Office filed charges Monday against a man accused of stealing from a Vietnam veteran's daughter during her father's funeral.

Jane Robison, spokeswoman for the DA's Office, said Jose Abrajan, 31, of Chino, was charged with grand theft of personal property, identity theft and second degree commercial burglary.

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Man allegedly steals purse at Vietnman vet's funeral, caught in picture

Senate GOP vote against 99% on tax cuts

This just goes to show all of us that when it comes to the class warfare in this country, the majority usually don't matter because with this congress, money talks.

Senate passes Democratic tax plan, rejects GOP version
By Ted Barrett and Alan Silverleib
CNN
updated 6:47 PM EDT, Wed July 25, 2012

The Senate passed a Democratic plan to extend Bush era tax cuts and rejected a Republican proposal Wednesday.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS
NEW: Obama praises Senate vote while top Republicans blast it
Senate passes a Democratic tax plan while rejecting the GOP alternative
GOP wants to extend Bush-era tax cuts for all; Democrats want $250,000 income ceiling
Neither plan is expected to win full congressional approval

Washington (CNN) -- The U.S. Senate on Wednesday passed a Democratic plan to extend the Bush-era tax cuts for middle income Americans while rejecting a Republican alternative to continue all of the cuts -- twin votes that help to crystallize the position of the two parties on a critical issue heading into the fall campaign.

The Democratic proposal passed in a sharply polarized 51-48 vote, while the Republican plan was defeated 45-54.

Vice President Joe Biden, the constitutional presiding officer of the Senate, was on hand to cast a tie-breaking vote if necessary.

Strategists on both sides of the aisle acknowledge that neither plan has a chance of passing both the Democratic-controlled Senate and the Republican-controlled House of Representatives. GOP leaders in the House have indicated they have no intention of bringing the Democrats' plan to a vote.
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26,456 cases awaiting a decision today in VA-DOD IDES

VA, DoD short on results, lawmakers say
By Rick Maze
Staff writer
Air Force Times
Posted : Wednesday Jul 25, 2012 11:32:24 EDT
A joint congressional committee focused Wednesday on missed deadlines and delayed improvements that prevent the Veterans Affairs and Defense departments from providing a promised smooth transition to civilian life for separating service members.

While not questioning the objectives of the two agencies, lawmakers from the House armed services and veterans’ affairs committees focused on results of many initiatives that have yet to pan out.

A prime example is the joint VA-DoD Integrated Disability Evaluation Systems, or IDES, that was supposed to streamline the medical and bureaucratic process for those with service-connected disabilities who are preparing to leave the military.

There are 26,456 cases awaiting a decision today — 17,719 in the Army alone — for a process that is taking an average of 427 days in the Army, 406 days in the Marine Corps, 373 days in the Navy and 349 days in the Air Force.
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New website will aim to deter military fakers

President: New website will aim to deter fakers
By Andrew Tilghman - Staff writer
Army Times
Posted : Tuesday Jul 24, 2012

The Defense Department plans to unveil a new website listing high-level military honors in an effort to deter military fakers, President Obama said Monday.

The president, speaking to the annual convention of the Veterans of Foreign Wars in Reno, Nev., said the site, which will be posted this week, is an effort to honor those who serve.

Obama’s announcement comes just weeks after the Supreme Court struck down a 2006 law making it a crime to lie about receiving some military honors, ruling that the law violated the First Amendment right to freedom of speech. “It may no longer be a crime for con artists to pass themselves off as heroes, but one thing is certain — it is contemptible,” Obama said.
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