CNN Barbara Starr writes about two soldiers lives she took personally
Behind the Scenes: Triumph and tragedy for two wounded soldiers
Story Highlights
CNN's Barbara Starr celebrated a victory and mourned a loss on July 15An injured Marine was celebrating getting into Harvard Law School On same night, a warrior with a traumatic brain injury was found dead in his car Men's stories are linked -- both pleaded with the government to aid injured soldiers
Lt. Col. Raymond Rivas
Vet's traumatic brain injury 4:28
Family and friends gather for the funeral of a soldier whose invisible wounds became too much for him to bear.
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Shock and awe at human flaw
Shock and awe at human flaw
Lessons in mistakes people make
by
Chaplain Kathie
We've all made mistakes and sometimes brilliant ones! Given the fact that I've made more than my share of them, it has lead me to not trust too much of what I think without knowing I am absolutely right. When it comes to PTSD, I know what I'm talking about but when it comes to the rest of what is required to operate the blog and website as well as taking the next step of trying to get some income from doing it instead of just volunteering, well, let's say I'm totally lost in all of that.
Today I got off the phone with the IRS after over an hour because I was wondering why I had not received the rest of the documentation I should have. After the last time when I assumed the EIN number I was given was for what I asked for, only to find out it was not, I decided to follow up on it. So far the IRS has not received all they needed from the IFOC on the Charter. This I wouldn't have known had I not called and found out what I needed to do. Any donations will still be tax deductible after July 1, 2009 because that is the date of the Charter but the rest still needs to be taken care of all the way through. The other issue was with the insurance I have to have. I was wondering why I hadn't received a bill by now and found out, they had the old PO box instead of the new one. Again, something I wouldn't have known had I not asked.
While I thought everything was taken care of since I am a OCD when it comes to taking care of things, had I not remembered the times when I either totally messed up or almost did, I would have been in a total mess.
When it comes to the military, well, they have their share of problems too. As serious as they are about documenting everything possible they make mistakes too. Imagine that!
Case in point is what they did back during Vietnam. Back then everything was typed, yes with a typewriter, and most of the clerks were not that diligent about what they were doing. After all, can you really blame them? Social security numbers were used on everything. My husband ended up with 6 different social security numbers in the copies of the documents he was given with his discharge. The problem is, one of them was very important. It was for his Bronze Star award.
When he was given the paperwork and spotted the wrong number. He was told they would fix the error. He assumed they would do whatever needed to be done and really didn't want to hear anything more about it. It showed up on his DD214 so he never thought about it again. That is until he had to file a claim with the VA and all hell broke loose.
Fast forward twenty years later and we arrived with denials from the VA we couldn't understand. We thought they meant he had to have a Bronze Star for valor or something higher when they were talking about no awards. His MOS was a clerk but during Vietnam, no one was left out of sweeps or pulling bunker guard duty. They all did it. Six years after we began to fight the VA to have his claim honored, I held all the documentation in my hands wondering how it was possible the VA could be saying what he had was not there. Then I spotted the wrong social security number. I asked my husband about it and he just repeated what the Army told him. It was fixed. The problem was, it was not fixed all the way through the paper chain.
I called the DAV and told them what I had found. A service officer (who sucked at his job) accused my husband of falsifying his award since he was a clerk after all. I told him if he was smart enough to do that he'd be smart enough to use his right social security number. Then I really hit the roof and ended up with another service officer. I was furious! I called the administrator of the hospital to find out what to do and was put in contact with a general's office. He pulled the records with the social security numbers I gave him and bingo, the award was finally fixed all the way through the paperwork chain. My husband received a new Bronze Star certificate with the right social security numbers on it. Needless to say, his claim was approved soon after that. The new one is tucked away but the old one, the one he was given in Vietnam is hanging in a frame.
There have been many cases of Stolen Valor and veterans claiming to be something they are not. I'm glad when they are caught but part of me reserves judgment after what happened to my husband. There are too many veterans telling the truth but because people make mistakes, they end up not only paying the price for those mistakes but are assaulted for telling the truth because someone else messed up. Claims are turned down because of this and the burden of proof is always on the veterans.
In a day and age where everything is done with computers, we need to wonder if files were not transferred correctly into the data bases everyone assumes are the gospel truth. If humans made errors with typing think of the kinds of mistakes they can make with a keyboard! Would you trust any of them?
We all need to step back and think that some of the reports we read about "fake veterans" and "stolen valor" cases until all the facts are in. I applaud the efforts of the groups tracking these cases down because there are just too many people claiming to be what they are not. We just need to wait until everything has been investigated before we judge them.
Gary Amster could very well be one of these it happened to only in reverse.
What if an award was supposed to be in someone else's file but had the wrong social security number on it? "What if" is something we should always be asking because people make mistakes but they also lie. We won't know which is which unless we are willing to understand it always could be something else.
Lessons in mistakes people make
by
Chaplain Kathie
We've all made mistakes and sometimes brilliant ones! Given the fact that I've made more than my share of them, it has lead me to not trust too much of what I think without knowing I am absolutely right. When it comes to PTSD, I know what I'm talking about but when it comes to the rest of what is required to operate the blog and website as well as taking the next step of trying to get some income from doing it instead of just volunteering, well, let's say I'm totally lost in all of that.
Today I got off the phone with the IRS after over an hour because I was wondering why I had not received the rest of the documentation I should have. After the last time when I assumed the EIN number I was given was for what I asked for, only to find out it was not, I decided to follow up on it. So far the IRS has not received all they needed from the IFOC on the Charter. This I wouldn't have known had I not called and found out what I needed to do. Any donations will still be tax deductible after July 1, 2009 because that is the date of the Charter but the rest still needs to be taken care of all the way through. The other issue was with the insurance I have to have. I was wondering why I hadn't received a bill by now and found out, they had the old PO box instead of the new one. Again, something I wouldn't have known had I not asked.
While I thought everything was taken care of since I am a OCD when it comes to taking care of things, had I not remembered the times when I either totally messed up or almost did, I would have been in a total mess.
When it comes to the military, well, they have their share of problems too. As serious as they are about documenting everything possible they make mistakes too. Imagine that!
Case in point is what they did back during Vietnam. Back then everything was typed, yes with a typewriter, and most of the clerks were not that diligent about what they were doing. After all, can you really blame them? Social security numbers were used on everything. My husband ended up with 6 different social security numbers in the copies of the documents he was given with his discharge. The problem is, one of them was very important. It was for his Bronze Star award.
When he was given the paperwork and spotted the wrong number. He was told they would fix the error. He assumed they would do whatever needed to be done and really didn't want to hear anything more about it. It showed up on his DD214 so he never thought about it again. That is until he had to file a claim with the VA and all hell broke loose.
Fast forward twenty years later and we arrived with denials from the VA we couldn't understand. We thought they meant he had to have a Bronze Star for valor or something higher when they were talking about no awards. His MOS was a clerk but during Vietnam, no one was left out of sweeps or pulling bunker guard duty. They all did it. Six years after we began to fight the VA to have his claim honored, I held all the documentation in my hands wondering how it was possible the VA could be saying what he had was not there. Then I spotted the wrong social security number. I asked my husband about it and he just repeated what the Army told him. It was fixed. The problem was, it was not fixed all the way through the paper chain.
I called the DAV and told them what I had found. A service officer (who sucked at his job) accused my husband of falsifying his award since he was a clerk after all. I told him if he was smart enough to do that he'd be smart enough to use his right social security number. Then I really hit the roof and ended up with another service officer. I was furious! I called the administrator of the hospital to find out what to do and was put in contact with a general's office. He pulled the records with the social security numbers I gave him and bingo, the award was finally fixed all the way through the paperwork chain. My husband received a new Bronze Star certificate with the right social security numbers on it. Needless to say, his claim was approved soon after that. The new one is tucked away but the old one, the one he was given in Vietnam is hanging in a frame.
There have been many cases of Stolen Valor and veterans claiming to be something they are not. I'm glad when they are caught but part of me reserves judgment after what happened to my husband. There are too many veterans telling the truth but because people make mistakes, they end up not only paying the price for those mistakes but are assaulted for telling the truth because someone else messed up. Claims are turned down because of this and the burden of proof is always on the veterans.
In a day and age where everything is done with computers, we need to wonder if files were not transferred correctly into the data bases everyone assumes are the gospel truth. If humans made errors with typing think of the kinds of mistakes they can make with a keyboard! Would you trust any of them?
We all need to step back and think that some of the reports we read about "fake veterans" and "stolen valor" cases until all the facts are in. I applaud the efforts of the groups tracking these cases down because there are just too many people claiming to be what they are not. We just need to wait until everything has been investigated before we judge them.
Gary Amster could very well be one of these it happened to only in reverse.
Another Medal of Honor Stolen Valor Case? Maybe not
Amster says he never knew what was on his discharge papers until he wanted to get a loan and needed it. This could be just a mistake, considering during the Vietnam War, there were many errors on records. Wrong social security numbers were typed all the time and while corrections were attempted to be made, most of them never ended up being fixed all the way through on every record in every file. The question here is, did Amster ever claim having the Medal of Honor to anyone for his own advantage? Seems really odd that it would take him until 2005 to come up with a story like this.
What if an award was supposed to be in someone else's file but had the wrong social security number on it? "What if" is something we should always be asking because people make mistakes but they also lie. We won't know which is which unless we are willing to understand it always could be something else.
Fort Hood finally takes on mind-body-spirit with new program
Hood center offers spiritual help
By Angela K. Brown - The Associated Press
Posted : Wednesday Jul 29, 2009 6:58:39 EDT
FORT HOOD, Texas — In a converted chapel, a television plays footage of soldiers talking about successes in Iraq and Afghanistan, classrooms offer battlefield ethics or marriage enrichment courses and a chaplain is available 24 hours a day.
It isn’t a church any longer but the Spiritual Fitness Center, one part of Fort Hood’s new Resiliency Campus. It is the Army’s first such facility designed to help soldiers and their families prepare better for the stress and uncertainty of being deployed — often for the second or third time.
“We want to do more going into deployments and build inner strength in soldiers and their families rather than just fix them when they return,” said Col. Bill Rabena, who oversees the Resiliency Campus. “It’s about the mind, body and spirit.”
read more here
Hood center offers spiritual help
85 year old Veteran survived 3 wars, died in home invasion in Dayton OH
3-war vet from Ohio killed in home invasion
The Associated Press
Posted : Wednesday Jul 29, 2009 8:53:39 EDT
DAYTON, Ohio — Police say an 85-year-old decorated veteran of three wars has died from injuries suffered in an invasion of his home.
A neighbor found retired Army Sgt. Maj. North Woodall unconscious and bloody late Monday. Police say he was pronounced dead at the scene.
read more here
3-war vet from Ohio killed in home invasion
The Associated Press
Posted : Wednesday Jul 29, 2009 8:53:39 EDT
DAYTON, Ohio — Police say an 85-year-old decorated veteran of three wars has died from injuries suffered in an invasion of his home.
A neighbor found retired Army Sgt. Maj. North Woodall unconscious and bloody late Monday. Police say he was pronounced dead at the scene.
read more here
3-war vet from Ohio killed in home invasion
National Convention of Vietnam Veterans begin meeting in Louisville
Vietnam Veterans begin meeting in Louisville
The Associated Press
Posted : Wednesday Jul 29, 2009 10:09:19 EDT
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The Vietnam Veterans of America organization is holding its national convention this week in Louisville.
The organization says that more than 650 delegates from chapters across the nation will join hundreds of other Vietnam veterans and guests for the events.
read more here
Vietnam Veterans begin meeting in Louisville
The Associated Press
Posted : Wednesday Jul 29, 2009 10:09:19 EDT
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The Vietnam Veterans of America organization is holding its national convention this week in Louisville.
The organization says that more than 650 delegates from chapters across the nation will join hundreds of other Vietnam veterans and guests for the events.
read more here
Vietnam Veterans begin meeting in Louisville
I love God but not the church II: Wounded, but not broken
Reading this article brought to mind of why I do what I do the way I do it. Over the last couple of years, I've been trying to get the local churches involved with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder to help people heal, especially our veterans. The biggest part of PTSD is the loss of faith. The problem is, no matter how hard I try, no matter how many churches I visit or talk to on the phone, they just don't want to get involved and that's a shame.
They are not serving the Children of God the way they claim they are when they turn their backs on the wounded in spirit, especially when they happen to be among the few willing to lay down their lives for the sake of others.
This quote is the headline of my website at Nam Guardian Angel. It's there for this reason alone. They never really see it this way. If Christ said this, then what is the problem with the churches when they want to ignore the price paid by so many doing exactly what Christ said was the greatest love of all?
I just did a post about Des Moines police officers, firefighters and emergency responders setting up peer support groups to help recover from what they have to do as part of their jobs. They are willing to lay down their lives for the sake of others, but the churches seem to want nothing to do with being part of their healing. National Guards and Reservist serve side by side as citizen soldiers with the military but return home to families and jobs left alone to cope with what was asked of them but again, the churches fail them. Veterans left alone years after war suffered in silence when they could have been healing but again even though we knew about PTSD after Vietnam, the churches have turned their backs on these walking wounded. Why?
Would Christ have ignored them? Would Christ have said He didn't have time for them or the staff to take care of them? Or would Christ weep again as He did for the sister of Lazarus before He raised him from the dead? I'm sure Christ would have taken all the time they needed to help them heal and restore their faith in His Loving Father.
This is one of the biggest reasons I became a Chaplain. Too many churches are not doing what they are supposed to be doing. I've talked to enough pastors and church elders witnessing their eyes glaze over as they politely send me on my way and ignore what they need to be doing for the sake of those wounded and doubting they are loved by God. How can they believe God loves them if the churches turn their backs on them?
They are not serving the Children of God the way they claim they are when they turn their backs on the wounded in spirit, especially when they happen to be among the few willing to lay down their lives for the sake of others.
Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.
John 15:13
This quote is the headline of my website at Nam Guardian Angel. It's there for this reason alone. They never really see it this way. If Christ said this, then what is the problem with the churches when they want to ignore the price paid by so many doing exactly what Christ said was the greatest love of all?
I just did a post about Des Moines police officers, firefighters and emergency responders setting up peer support groups to help recover from what they have to do as part of their jobs. They are willing to lay down their lives for the sake of others, but the churches seem to want nothing to do with being part of their healing. National Guards and Reservist serve side by side as citizen soldiers with the military but return home to families and jobs left alone to cope with what was asked of them but again, the churches fail them. Veterans left alone years after war suffered in silence when they could have been healing but again even though we knew about PTSD after Vietnam, the churches have turned their backs on these walking wounded. Why?
Would Christ have ignored them? Would Christ have said He didn't have time for them or the staff to take care of them? Or would Christ weep again as He did for the sister of Lazarus before He raised him from the dead? I'm sure Christ would have taken all the time they needed to help them heal and restore their faith in His Loving Father.
This is one of the biggest reasons I became a Chaplain. Too many churches are not doing what they are supposed to be doing. I've talked to enough pastors and church elders witnessing their eyes glaze over as they politely send me on my way and ignore what they need to be doing for the sake of those wounded and doubting they are loved by God. How can they believe God loves them if the churches turn their backs on them?
I love God but not the church II: Wounded, but not broken
Carla Roberson
Newark Spirituality Examiner
July 28, 11:35 PM
Emotional hurt; we have all experienced it in our lives at one time or another. Anguish, feelings of betrayal and spiritual bruises; these words can only skim the surface of what agitates deep inside as the wounded, attempt to gather the pieces of their wilted spirits. They go on in their lives, many times bearing a significant weight of insecurity and distrust on their shoulders. They are the emotionally wounded; but they are not broken. Fret not; for we serve a God of redemption, healing and restoration. Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you {1 Peter 5:7}.
The first segment of this article was written roughly a week ago, resulting from my own experiences that I encountered in visiting various churches. I have been in attendance of my own church for close to 7 years now and a member for about 2 years. Although my church is relatively large, consisting of approximately 10,000 in multitude; I have esteemed my church honorable. I am getting spiritually fed and I am always graciously enamored by members of the congregation, making me feel welcome and giving me a sense of joy. But approximately 3-4 months ago, I started feeling restless in church. I could not understand why I was feeling this way but I knew that God was up to something.
I began to visit other churches and I quickly realized that many churches were not operating the way that God would intend for them to. God instructed me to write about the churches and their erroneous ways. It was then, that I recognized that being a part of my own church was a blessing. I knew that I was extremely fortunate to be a member of an organization intricately designed and operated by the Lord. My own church, an imperative element in God’s purpose has proved to be a significant component as a result of my observation; by which God desires to pour out His spirit.
read more hereI love God but not the church II
Des Moines Police take on traumatic stress head on
We're reading only parts of the stories when police officers are involved in shooting people or responding to murders, domestic violence especially when they involve children. We read about how they responded, read about the civilians involved but we hardly ever think about the police officers after any of it unless they have to go on trail for what they did. That's a shame because in a time when we are finally talking about PTSD in soldiers, Marines and veterans, we leave police officers, firefighters and emergency responders totally out of the reporting on PTSD.
The problem is that police officers, drug agents and FBI agents have a lot in common with the troops in the military and the National Guards. They are not just exposed to traumatic events, they are also participants in them. Many times they have to make life or death decisions in a second and then have to live with those decisions for the rest of their lives. Sometimes, it is not a clear cut conclusion. Those are the times when what they thought they had to do will eat away at them.
We can read about a the shooting of a man they thought had a gun but it turns out, he was unarmed. The outcome is the same and the man is dead but the officer then must overcome the guilt they feel for making the wrong decision. We blame the officer then forget all about it, never knowing what the officer went through after. We dismiss any aftermath as being part of a group of problem officers the media loves to take on because we don't want to look at good cops making one bad decision and heaven forbid we ever look at a cop having to make these decisions every day.
We depend on them for our safety and that makes it hard to remember they are still human just like us. Unlike us, they are willing to put their lives on the line for someone else. It's time they were helped to heal as humans exposed to abnormal events just as we help the troops and veterans of combat heal.
The problem is that police officers, drug agents and FBI agents have a lot in common with the troops in the military and the National Guards. They are not just exposed to traumatic events, they are also participants in them. Many times they have to make life or death decisions in a second and then have to live with those decisions for the rest of their lives. Sometimes, it is not a clear cut conclusion. Those are the times when what they thought they had to do will eat away at them.
We can read about a the shooting of a man they thought had a gun but it turns out, he was unarmed. The outcome is the same and the man is dead but the officer then must overcome the guilt they feel for making the wrong decision. We blame the officer then forget all about it, never knowing what the officer went through after. We dismiss any aftermath as being part of a group of problem officers the media loves to take on because we don't want to look at good cops making one bad decision and heaven forbid we ever look at a cop having to make these decisions every day.
We depend on them for our safety and that makes it hard to remember they are still human just like us. Unlike us, they are willing to put their lives on the line for someone else. It's time they were helped to heal as humans exposed to abnormal events just as we help the troops and veterans of combat heal.
New Des Moines police unit helps officers fight job stress
By DANIEL P. FINNEY • dafinney@dmreg.com • July 29, 2009
Jeremy Sprague needed to get his head right.
In July 2004, Sprague, then a Dallas County sheriff's deputy, was one of four law enforcement officers who shot and killed a suicidal man who allegedly pointed a gun at authorities in rural Van Meter.
A grand jury later ruled the officers acted properly, but Sprague struggled with taking a life. He lost sleep. He tried to reconcile killing a man, even in the line of duty, with his Christian faith. He wanted to talk to somebody, but cop culture leaves little room for emotions.
"In law enforcement, you can't really expose your feelings, and I didn't feel like there was anywhere for me to turn," Sprague said. "So, I ended up bottling up all the stress. It wore me down."
With time, counseling and a job change, Sprague healed. In 2006, he became a Des Moines police officer. Now he and 14 other members of the Des Moines police and fire departments are working to make sure their peers never have to suffer in silence as Sprague did.
A handful of Des Moines police officers, firefighters and an emergency dispatcher launched a peer support group with an eye to helping colleagues avoid post-traumatic stress disorder and other crisis-related struggles. The committee began work on the project in spring 2008.
read more here
New Des Moines police unit helps officers fight job stress
Marine from Florida gets Baptized in Afghanistan
Marine Finds Solace in Combat Baptism
MIANPOSHTEH, Afghanistan -- The bravado of Marines fighting Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan's southern Helmand Province is punctuated by quiet moments of questioning and introspection.
A few Marines ask why they survived when their best friends did not. Others question how they will deal with the stress of combat. Many wonder what people back home know about their actions here.
Spirituality is a source of solace. Lance Cpl. Zachary Ludwig, 20, of Marco Island, Florida, wanted to be baptized before he and thousands of other Marines pushed deep into Taliban-held territory beginning early this month.
But it was not until this week that Chaplain Navy Lt. Terry A. Roberts arrived at Ludwig's tiny outpost in the southern village of Mianposhteh to perform the ceremony.
read more here
Marine Finds Solace in Combat Baptism
MIANPOSHTEH, Afghanistan -- The bravado of Marines fighting Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan's southern Helmand Province is punctuated by quiet moments of questioning and introspection.
A few Marines ask why they survived when their best friends did not. Others question how they will deal with the stress of combat. Many wonder what people back home know about their actions here.
Spirituality is a source of solace. Lance Cpl. Zachary Ludwig, 20, of Marco Island, Florida, wanted to be baptized before he and thousands of other Marines pushed deep into Taliban-held territory beginning early this month.
But it was not until this week that Chaplain Navy Lt. Terry A. Roberts arrived at Ludwig's tiny outpost in the southern village of Mianposhteh to perform the ceremony.
read more here
Marine Finds Solace in Combat Baptism
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Child Sickened By Oxycontin In Bag Of Skittles
Child Sickened By Oxycontin In Bag Of Skittles
Tainted Candy Sends Child To Hospital
POSTED: 8:52 am EDT July 28, 2009
TAMPA, Fla. -- Tampa authorities said a 4-year-old girl was treated in a hospital after eating candy that was tainted with Oxycontin.
The girl was with her grandparents, driving home Monday from Tampa International Airport, when she became lethargic. They took her to a hospital where she was treated and later released.
read more here
http://www.wesh.com/news/20200201/detail.html
Tainted Candy Sends Child To Hospital
POSTED: 8:52 am EDT July 28, 2009
TAMPA, Fla. -- Tampa authorities said a 4-year-old girl was treated in a hospital after eating candy that was tainted with Oxycontin.
The girl was with her grandparents, driving home Monday from Tampa International Airport, when she became lethargic. They took her to a hospital where she was treated and later released.
read more here
http://www.wesh.com/news/20200201/detail.html
Military planning for possible H1N1 outbreak
Military planning for possible H1N1 outbreak
Story Highlights
Military wants to establish regional teams to help civilian authorities respond
Proposal awaiting final approval from Defense Secretary Robert Gates
Military could provide support such as air transport, large-scale testing
From Barbara Starr
CNN Pentagon Correspondent
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. military wants to establish regional teams of military personnel to assist civilian authorities in the event of a significant outbreak of the H1N1 virus this fall, according to Defense Department officials.
The proposal is awaiting final approval from Defense Secretary Robert Gates.
The officials would not be identified because the proposal from U.S. Northern Command's Gen. Victor Renuart has not been approved by the secretary.
The plan calls for military task forces to work in conjunction with the Federal Emergency Management Agency. There is no final decision on how the military effort would be manned, but one source said it would likely include personnel from all branches of the military.
It has yet to be determined how many troops would be needed and whether they would come from the active duty or the National Guard and Reserve forces.
click link for more
Story Highlights
Military wants to establish regional teams to help civilian authorities respond
Proposal awaiting final approval from Defense Secretary Robert Gates
Military could provide support such as air transport, large-scale testing
From Barbara Starr
CNN Pentagon Correspondent
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. military wants to establish regional teams of military personnel to assist civilian authorities in the event of a significant outbreak of the H1N1 virus this fall, according to Defense Department officials.
The proposal is awaiting final approval from Defense Secretary Robert Gates.
The officials would not be identified because the proposal from U.S. Northern Command's Gen. Victor Renuart has not been approved by the secretary.
The plan calls for military task forces to work in conjunction with the Federal Emergency Management Agency. There is no final decision on how the military effort would be manned, but one source said it would likely include personnel from all branches of the military.
It has yet to be determined how many troops would be needed and whether they would come from the active duty or the National Guard and Reserve forces.
click link for more
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