Hasan's beard more famous that Blackjack's

I do appreciate reporters, most of the time. Because of reporters all over the country covering the stories you read here (plus a couple of hundred more a day I don't post) we manage to have a better idea what is going on in this country with our veterans.

I get annoyed when I get emails and phone calls from them asking me questions because I know after hours of helping them with a story, I'll be lucky to get a link to what they write without one single mention of the fact the research came from me, but I live with all that. What I can't live with and shut up about is a day like this.

With all the stories going on across the country, how it is that so many reporters managed to focus on Hasan's beard?

Fort Hood suspect may be 'forcibly shaved' before trial CNN (blog)

Fort Hood suspect may lose beard Philadelphia Inquirer

Accused Ft. Hood gunman to face blade Wilkes Barre Times-Leader

Fort Hood suspect forced to shave The Australian

Judge May Order Fort Hood Shooter to Shave WTAW

Judge: Fort Hood suspect could be forcibly shaved Atlanta Journal Constitution

Shave or be shaved: Military judge gives ultimatum to suspected Fort Hood ... Daily Mail

Judge: Fort Hood May Be Forcibly Shaved Newser

Fort Hood Shooter May Be Forced To Shave Beard Despite Religious Observance The Inquisitr

Texas: Rampage Suspect Told to Shave New York Times

Military judge holds contempt hearing, rules on other pending matters in Hasan ... DVIDS

Rep. Broun Blames Fort Hood Massacre On Political Correctness Talk Radio News Service

There are a lot more but this was all I could stand.

Obama's struggle to mend veterans' safety net

Obama's struggle to mend veterans' safety net
By Phil Stewart
updated 2 hours 16 minutes ago


WASHINGTON — On a blistering June afternoon, President Barack Obama slipped into Walter Reed National Military Medical Center to spend time with soldiers wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan. It was the most recent of his nearly weekly gestures intended to reinforce his commitment to America's troops and veterans.

Across town that day, hundreds of unemployed veterans shuffled through a wing of the Washington Nationals baseball stadium, many hoping that at this job fair they would catch a break. Among them was Nick Tivas, a 23-year-old Iraq war veteran with a buzz cut and a grievance against the Department of Veterans Affairs.
read more here

This article is really long but well worth reading. Pretty much sums up what I have on these two posts.

AP VA fact check missing facts July 24, 2012

Political Shenanigans Target Veterans July 23, 2012

Meditation, fellow veteran help Colo reservist heal from PTSD

Meditation, fellow veteran help Colo reservist heal from PTSD
Jul 26, 2012
Written by
Daniel P. Finney

Luke Jensen was in bad shape when Jerry Yellin reached out to him last year.

Jensen, a 32-year-old U.S. Army Reserve veteran of the Afghanistan war, was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.

He yelled at his wife and two daughters. He stormed about his Colo home. He rarely slept. He drank until he passed out. He overdosed on his anti-anxiety medication. One dark night, in front of his youngest daughter and wife, he held a loaded gun up to his head.

“I thought about suicide on a daily basis,” Jensen said. “It was that bad.”

Also an Army veteran, Yellin contacted Jensen after reading a profile in The Des Moines Register last year detailing Jensen’s struggles.
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Two Central Florida soldiers killed in Afghanistan

Two Central Florida soldiers killed in Afghanistan
9:46 p.m. EST, July 25, 2012
By Susan Jacobson
Orlando Sentinel

Two soldiers from Central Florida were killed this week in Afghanistan, theU.S. Department of Defense announced Wednesday night.

The men were killed by an improvised explosive device, authorities said.

Pfc. Brenden Salazar, 20, of Chuluota, and Spc. Justin Horsley, 21, of Palm Bay, were both assigned to the 1st Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team.
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VA "accidentally killed off hundreds of veterans"

GOV'T HEALTHCARE: VA ADMITS CLERICAL ERRORS 'KILLED OFF' LIVING VETERANS
by TONY LEE
24 Jul 2012

In revelations that should scare anyone who wants more government involvement in health care, an investigation by Sacramento, California’s CBS affiliate (CBS13) found that the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs “has accidentally killed off hundreds of veterans, cutting off benefits and health care service at veteran hospitals.”

According to CBS13, numerous clerical errors have “killed off” living veterans, which then triggered notification letters to their families.

Kate Owens, according to CBS13, discovered her VA account had been deleted when a letter addressed to her husband announced she had died. Now, Owens has to submit documents proving she is not dead in order to continue receiving her benefits by the end of the month.
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