2-star: SEAL shooter knew he’d lose benefits
By Tony Lombardo
Staff writer
Posted : Thursday Feb 14, 2013
The “man who killed Osama bin Laden,” featured in the March issue of Esquire, knew full-well he was leaving the service short of a retirement and without benefits, the commander of Naval Special Warfare Command has said.
The so-called bin Laden “shooter” made world headlines this week after the story posted online and asserted that the former SEAL was “screwed” by losing his military health insurance benefits when he left service in September 2012.
But, in a newly issued statement, Rear Adm. Sean Pybus said the SEAL in the article knew what he was giving up in leaving service with 16 years, shy of the 20-year retirement mark.
“Concerning recent writing and reporting on ‘The Shooter’ and his alleged situation, this former SEAL made a deliberate and informed decision to leave the Navy several years short of retirement status,” Pybus said. “Months ahead of his separation, he was counseled on status and benefits, and provided with options to continue his career until retirement eligible. Claims to the contrary in these matters are false.”
Even so, Pybus adds, “Naval Special Warfare and the Navy are prepared to help this former service member address health or transition issues, as we would with other former members.”
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Friday, February 15, 2013
Soldier’s mom gets apology on ‘deceased’ mix-up
Soldier’s mom gets apology on ‘deceased’ mix-up
The Associated Press Posted : Friday Feb 15, 2013
DULUTH, Minn. — A Duluth mother who received a returned letter mailed to her soldier son mistakenly stamped “deceased” finally has the apology she sought for more than six years.
Joan Najbar received the returned letter she sent to her son in Iraq in 2006. Najbar said the letter made her angry because she knew her son wasn’t dead. She had just talked to him.
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The Associated Press Posted : Friday Feb 15, 2013
DULUTH, Minn. — A Duluth mother who received a returned letter mailed to her soldier son mistakenly stamped “deceased” finally has the apology she sought for more than six years.
Joan Najbar received the returned letter she sent to her son in Iraq in 2006. Najbar said the letter made her angry because she knew her son wasn’t dead. She had just talked to him.
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Sgt. William Stacey posthumously awarded Bronze Star
Fallen Camp Pendleton Marine Who Wrote Goodbye Letter To Be Awarded Bronze Star On Friday
Thursday, February 14, 2013
By Beth Ford Roth
The military will posthumously award fallen Marine Sgt. William Stacey the Bronze Star at a Camp Pendleton ceremony Friday, according to 1st Marine Public Affairs.
The award citation mentions Stacey's multiple acts of exemplary bravery between September 1, 2011 and January 31, 2012 as the reason for his commendation.
Stacey was killed by an improvised explosive device on January 31, 2012.
1st Marine Division Commanding General Maj. Gen. Ronald Bailey will present the Bronze Star Medal with combat distinguishing device to Stacey's family at the ceremony.
As Home Post previously reported, Stacey wrote a letter to his family to be read if he died while deployed to Afghanistan. On Memorial Day 2012, Marine General John Allen paid tribute to all fallen troops by reading that letter during a Memorial Day service in Kabul.
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Fallen Marine Sgt. William Stacey's last letter, "it was all worth it"
Thursday, February 14, 2013
By Beth Ford Roth
The military will posthumously award fallen Marine Sgt. William Stacey the Bronze Star at a Camp Pendleton ceremony Friday, according to 1st Marine Public Affairs.
The award citation mentions Stacey's multiple acts of exemplary bravery between September 1, 2011 and January 31, 2012 as the reason for his commendation.
Stacey was killed by an improvised explosive device on January 31, 2012.
1st Marine Division Commanding General Maj. Gen. Ronald Bailey will present the Bronze Star Medal with combat distinguishing device to Stacey's family at the ceremony.
As Home Post previously reported, Stacey wrote a letter to his family to be read if he died while deployed to Afghanistan. On Memorial Day 2012, Marine General John Allen paid tribute to all fallen troops by reading that letter during a Memorial Day service in Kabul.
read more here
Fallen Marine Sgt. William Stacey's last letter, "it was all worth it"
PTSD victims aren't ticking time bombs, or victims
I don't want to slam this article because it is very good and makes very important points. The issue I have with it is in the title. They are not "victims" but they are survivors. If you take nothing else away from this please just remember this part.
The VA says, “The majority of individuals with PTSD have no history of aggression, violence, or criminal behavior, although irritability and anger are symptoms. Among individuals who do, minor aggression is more common than severe violence, and episodes of extreme violence are rare.”
PTSD victims aren't ticking time bombs
Express-News Editorial Board
February 14, 2013
Back during and just after the Vietnam War, there came into being a common image.
Every incident involving a Vietnam vet seemed to drive a perception that those who served in combat were “ticking time bombs.”
Post-traumatic stress disorder is not new. The pain and grief it inflicts on combat veterans is real. But here's what isn't — then or now. Not every combat vet, nor every person who suffers from PTSD, is a bomb sure to explode.
Recently, a veteran of the Iraq War was arrested on suspicion of shooting and killing two men, one of them, Chris Kyle, a former Navy SEAL and author of the book, “American Sniper: The Autobiography of the Most Lethal Sniper in U.S. Military History.”
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Ex-Westboro Baptist Church member apologizes
Ex-Westboro Baptist Church member apologizes to Missouri soldier's parents
BY LISA GUTIERREZ
THE KANSAS CITY STAR
On an episode of Anderson Cooper's daytime talk show Wednesday, Libby Phelps Alvarez, a former member of the Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, tearfully apologized to the family of a slain Army soldier from Columbia, Mo.
Libby Phelps Alvarez apologized to Sherry and Randy Wyatt for picketing the funerals of soldiers like their son, Sterling, who was killed in Afghanistan last summer.
Alvarez is the granddaughter of Fred Phelps, the church's founder.
Sherry Wyatt had her say, too. She showed the cloth held by supporters on the day of the funeral to shield the family from the Westboro protesters.
"Our son died to ensure freedom of assembly, to ensure freedom of speech, to ensure freedoms for those that are white, black, gay, straight, rich, poor ... All that we get from your actions is just a show of absolute hate," the mother of the dead soldier said on the show.
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BY LISA GUTIERREZ
THE KANSAS CITY STAR
On an episode of Anderson Cooper's daytime talk show Wednesday, Libby Phelps Alvarez, a former member of the Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, tearfully apologized to the family of a slain Army soldier from Columbia, Mo.
Libby Phelps Alvarez apologized to Sherry and Randy Wyatt for picketing the funerals of soldiers like their son, Sterling, who was killed in Afghanistan last summer.
Alvarez is the granddaughter of Fred Phelps, the church's founder.
Sherry Wyatt had her say, too. She showed the cloth held by supporters on the day of the funeral to shield the family from the Westboro protesters.
"Our son died to ensure freedom of assembly, to ensure freedom of speech, to ensure freedoms for those that are white, black, gay, straight, rich, poor ... All that we get from your actions is just a show of absolute hate," the mother of the dead soldier said on the show.
read more here
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