The news of the shooting down of a Chinook with 30 U.S. troops, mostly Special Forces, dead is chilling.
With the 10th anniversary of 9/11/2001 fast approaching, it heightens the sacrifices of the military, as President Obama recently remarked.
I often think that we—we being both the military and the nation—have not really …
Once again, the Congressional Research Service has badgered a federal agency – in this case the Department of Veterans Affairs – and come up with snapshots about how U.S. vets seeking VA services are faring (CRS reports are not officially released to the public – dammit, you paid for them, and Congress works for us, so why does …
The President today announced a series of initiatives to help American service members better assimilate into the civilian world after leaving service. Several of these programs require Congressional approval, and there are already competing bills circulating inside the Dome of Shame. So it’s not clear exactly how these will play out. …
Our friends over at the Vantage Point blog have posted a primer explaining changes to VA’s Post 9/11 education benefits that took effect Monday. Rather than summarize what they’ve already nicely summarized, I’ll just point out that the changes are pretty wide ranging and veterans who are using Chapter 33 benefits should read and …
Just an update as promised to my quest for benefits from the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) related to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. On July 21, I had my Compensation and Pension(C&P) examination at my local VA medical center. That was exactly 366 days after I had first filed for benefits.
Let me explain what has happened to …
Some reports are surfacing about worsening employment numbers for veterans. This report claims that among all veterans the unemployment rate is 13% but it’s nearly double that, 24%, for younger veterans. No wonder the military is having no problem meeting its retention goals.
There are several programs run by the federal government …
Last week was pretty hectic for me, so I’m just catching up on some housekeeping. I wanted to comment on my colleague Mark Thompson’s post about the suicide of Marine Sergeant Ian McConnell. Mark commented that that “Ian’s blood is on our hands,” and that “home, for many of our veterans, is a theater of war.”
These are …
When Army General John Shalikashvili’s became chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in 1993, even his staff didn’t know how to say his name. “I’m saying it the way the other people on my staff are saying it: shah-lee-KASH-villy, with the emphasis on the KASH,” said Maj. Nino Fabiano, a spokesman for the Joint Chiefs. “But let me …
Just because you haven’t read something like this in awhile doesn’t mean it’s no longer happening:
It’s common that when a person dies with most of his or her life seemingly ahead of them, friends and family create online memorials. Ian is no different. His sister, Meg, posted one on Facebook over the weekend, and it has
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Well, it’s been 365 days. A year ago I filed for benefits with the Department of Veterans Affairs for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. I filled out the application on line, collected up all of my documentation – orders, efficiency reports and awards, medical records – authorized all of my doctors and counselors to release information …
Should it really take 179 pages [check the update below] to tell the men and women in our Air Force how to dress and groom? Well, according to this week’s release of Air Force Instruction 36-2903 — Dress and Personal Appearance of Air Force Personnel, it does. “The changes are a result of Airmen in the field requesting …
We referred Monday to a New York Times story over the weekend that predicted benefits for same-sex military partners might face some tough sledding once “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” is relegated to the history books. Tuesday’s Norfolk Virginian-Pilot details just how such benefits can be abused:
Two men pleaded guilty Monday to arranging
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