Soldiers become first to receive German honor
By Sean O’Sullivan - The (Wilmington, Del.) News Journal
Posted : Friday Apr 30, 2010 18:12:23 EDT
Fourteen members of the Army’s 12th Combat Aviation Brigade on Thursday became the first non-Germans to receive Germany’s Gold Cross, one of that nation’s highest honors for valor.
The soldiers, based at U.S. Army Garrison-Ansbach, Germany, were honored for medevac flights they performed April 2 involving German troops who had been ambushed by some 200 Taliban fighters while on patrol north of the city of Kunduz, Afghanistan.
The firefight was still going on when the Black Hawk evacuation helicopters — two medical transport helicopters and one heavily armed “chase” helicopter — arrived, according to what Army Capt. Robert McDonough, who piloted one of the medical helicopters, told his father, Jack McDonough.
“The two Black Hawks did a combined seven landings into the middle of this battle. My son told me that he could see rounds hitting the blades of his helicopter and there were bullet holes in the Blackhawks,” Jack McDonough wrote in an e-mail message. “He said the incoming fire was so bad that at one point he banked the helicopter real hard to avoid the incoming rounds. He told me he saw the Taliban celebrating, thinking they had downed them.”
According to a letter sent to the McDonough family by Army Maj. Michael S. Hughes, the medevac team “performed heroically in the face of extreme adversity,” and their actions saved at least five German soldiers “and probably countless more.”
read more here
Soldiers become first to receive German honor
Friday, April 30, 2010
11 airmen awarded medals - including 3 silver Stars
When I read stories like this, it's really hard to understand the honor we give to sports players and celebrities. It's hard to understand the glorification of politicians and commentators as if all they say is so important their every word must be covered. It's hard to believe that watching American Idol or reality TV shows are more important, more worthy of spending our time on than paying attention to the men and women risking their lives every day. Real heroes end up putting the lives of others ahead of their own every day but unless they do something really outstanding, we don't seem to pay any real attention to them at all. Even with these eleven receiving such high honors, there will be very few reporters covering any of their stories.
11 airmen awarded medals - including 3 silver Stars
Military: 11 airmen given medals – including 3 Silver Stars – for brave deeds
KRIS SHERMAN; Staff writer
Published: 04/30/1012:05
Machine gun rounds flew all around him from 30 feet away. He sprinted through the fire to a position from which he could attack. He shot a rocket-propelled grenade into a room occupied by Taliban fighters.
And when that didn’t clear them out, Air Force Staff Sgt. Sean Harvell dodged the gunfire again, covering his team as he went.
Then he called in airstrikes that reportedly killed more than 50 insurgents in Central Afghanistan’s Helmand River area.
Those were the local airman’s heroics on just one day, “during a savage eight-hour firefight,” according to his Air Force citation.
It earned Harvell a Silver Star award. He earned another two months earlier.
Read more: You cant call time out in a war zone
First responders and trauma down under
Anguish starts after the sirens stop
May 1, 2010
We call the ambulance in hours of urgent need but the grisly work we pass on takes its toll on the paramedics. Natasha Wallace reports on suicides and official stonewalling.
It is one of the toughest jobs in the country - an adrenalin-charged ride through what is often the worst of human experiences. But the state's ambulance service, after countless suicides and attempted suicides by staff, 11 parliamentary and internal inquiries over a decade and 96 complaints to the corruption watchdog, has yet to acknowledge the impact of years of neglect on its traumatised workforce.
Paul* is haunted by the screams of distressed children. After 32 years in the ambulance service witnessing unspeakable sadness, the sobs of the young ones who lost their siblings in a house fire a few years ago jolt him from his slumber at night. The raw howling still rings in his ears.
''When you hear it, it haunts you forever and you know that everything is futile,'' he says. ''The shriek … that helpless plea, that last expiring of breath.''
read more here
Anguish starts after the sirens stop
May 1, 2010
We call the ambulance in hours of urgent need but the grisly work we pass on takes its toll on the paramedics. Natasha Wallace reports on suicides and official stonewalling.
It is one of the toughest jobs in the country - an adrenalin-charged ride through what is often the worst of human experiences. But the state's ambulance service, after countless suicides and attempted suicides by staff, 11 parliamentary and internal inquiries over a decade and 96 complaints to the corruption watchdog, has yet to acknowledge the impact of years of neglect on its traumatised workforce.
Paul* is haunted by the screams of distressed children. After 32 years in the ambulance service witnessing unspeakable sadness, the sobs of the young ones who lost their siblings in a house fire a few years ago jolt him from his slumber at night. The raw howling still rings in his ears.
''When you hear it, it haunts you forever and you know that everything is futile,'' he says. ''The shriek … that helpless plea, that last expiring of breath.''
read more here
Anguish starts after the sirens stop
82nd Airborne go Gaga in dance video from Afghanistan
Soldiers go Gaga in Afghanistan
A shout out to "MalibuMelcher" and his fellow soldiers in the 82nd Airborne Division for this remake of Lady Gaga's "Telephone," shot from somewhere in Afghanistan. (Portions of the video at :52 and 2:50 are especially funny. You may notice weapons in the background.)
Soldiers go Gaga in Afghanistan
A shout out to "MalibuMelcher" and his fellow soldiers in the 82nd Airborne Division for this remake of Lady Gaga's "Telephone," shot from somewhere in Afghanistan. (Portions of the video at :52 and 2:50 are especially funny. You may notice weapons in the background.)
Soldiers go Gaga in Afghanistan
Local Vietnam veterans honored
Posted: 1:00 AM
Belated recognition
Local Vietnam veterans honored
By Jen Marckini jmarckini@timesleader.com
Staff Writer
HANOVER TWP. – Forty-seven local Vietnam War veterans were recognized Thursday for their service by state Rep. John T. Yudichak.
Veterans in the 119th Legislative District received a commemorative medal and special citation at the event, which was held in the auditorium at Hanover Area Senior High School. Twenty-two were in attendance.
Bernard Levandoski of Plymouth was 21 years old when he enlisted in 1968 and went to war. When he returned home in 1971 there were no honors, ceremonies or parades.
After all these years, the 63-year-old has not been recognized for his service until now.
“It’s been a long time coming,” said Levandoski, who signed up for two tours of duty. “It was a different generation then. People just didn’t appreciate what we were doing for them.”
The feeling was the same for many veterans, including Joseph Kasper, a 59-year-old disabled vet who was wounded after a year in combat.
“I’ve never been honored before,” said Kasper, of Dallas.
read more here
http://www.timesleader.com/news/Belated_recognition_04-29-2010.html
Belated recognition
Local Vietnam veterans honored
By Jen Marckini jmarckini@timesleader.com
Staff Writer
HANOVER TWP. – Forty-seven local Vietnam War veterans were recognized Thursday for their service by state Rep. John T. Yudichak.
Veterans in the 119th Legislative District received a commemorative medal and special citation at the event, which was held in the auditorium at Hanover Area Senior High School. Twenty-two were in attendance.
Bernard Levandoski of Plymouth was 21 years old when he enlisted in 1968 and went to war. When he returned home in 1971 there were no honors, ceremonies or parades.
After all these years, the 63-year-old has not been recognized for his service until now.
“It’s been a long time coming,” said Levandoski, who signed up for two tours of duty. “It was a different generation then. People just didn’t appreciate what we were doing for them.”
The feeling was the same for many veterans, including Joseph Kasper, a 59-year-old disabled vet who was wounded after a year in combat.
“I’ve never been honored before,” said Kasper, of Dallas.
read more here
http://www.timesleader.com/news/Belated_recognition_04-29-2010.html
New Scholarship for the Children of Fallen Service Members
New Scholarship for the Children of Fallen Service Members
Benefit Honors Gunnery Sergeant John David Fry
WASHINGTON (April 30, 2010) - The children of military personnel who
died in the line of duty since Sept. 11, 2001 can apply for an
educational scholarship similar to the new Post-9/11 GI Bill. Benefits
are retroactive to Aug. 1, 2009.
The scholarship, which is administered by the Department of Veterans
Affairs, are named after Marine Gunnery Sergeant John David Fry, 28, a
Texas native who died in Iraq in 2006 while disarming an explosive. He
was survived by three young children.
"The Fry scholarship represents this nation's solemn commitment to care
for children whose mothers and fathers paid the ultimate price for our
country," said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki.
VA begins accepting applications for the Fry scholarship on May 1, 2010.
For more information or assistance applying, call toll-free
1-888-GIBILL-1 (1-888-442-4551), or visit the VA GI Bill Website at
www.gibill.va.gov
VA estimates nearly 1,500 children will receive benefits under the Fry
scholarship program in 2010. Recipients generally have 15 years to use
their benefits, beginning on their 18th birthdays.
Eligible children attending institutions of higher learning may receive
payments to cover their tuition and fees up to the highest amounts
charged to public, in-state students at undergraduate institutions in
each state. A monthly housing allowance and stipend for books and
supplies are also paid under this program.
VA will begin paying benefits under the Fry scholarships on Aug. 1,
2010. Eligible participants may receive benefits retroactively to
August 1, 2009, the same day the Post-9/11 GI Bill took effect.
Eligible children may be married. Recipients are entitled to 36 months
of benefits at the 100 percent level.
When dependents also serve in the military, the reserves or are Veterans
in their own right, eligible for education benefits under the Montgomery
GI Bill for Active Duty, the Montgomery GI Bill for Selected Reserves or
the Reserve Educational Assistance Program (REAP), then they would
relinquish their eligibility under those programs to receive benefits
under a Fry scholarship.
Benefit Honors Gunnery Sergeant John David Fry
WASHINGTON (April 30, 2010) - The children of military personnel who
died in the line of duty since Sept. 11, 2001 can apply for an
educational scholarship similar to the new Post-9/11 GI Bill. Benefits
are retroactive to Aug. 1, 2009.
The scholarship, which is administered by the Department of Veterans
Affairs, are named after Marine Gunnery Sergeant John David Fry, 28, a
Texas native who died in Iraq in 2006 while disarming an explosive. He
was survived by three young children.
"The Fry scholarship represents this nation's solemn commitment to care
for children whose mothers and fathers paid the ultimate price for our
country," said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki.
VA begins accepting applications for the Fry scholarship on May 1, 2010.
For more information or assistance applying, call toll-free
1-888-GIBILL-1 (1-888-442-4551), or visit the VA GI Bill Website at
www.gibill.va.gov
VA estimates nearly 1,500 children will receive benefits under the Fry
scholarship program in 2010. Recipients generally have 15 years to use
their benefits, beginning on their 18th birthdays.
Eligible children attending institutions of higher learning may receive
payments to cover their tuition and fees up to the highest amounts
charged to public, in-state students at undergraduate institutions in
each state. A monthly housing allowance and stipend for books and
supplies are also paid under this program.
VA will begin paying benefits under the Fry scholarships on Aug. 1,
2010. Eligible participants may receive benefits retroactively to
August 1, 2009, the same day the Post-9/11 GI Bill took effect.
Eligible children may be married. Recipients are entitled to 36 months
of benefits at the 100 percent level.
When dependents also serve in the military, the reserves or are Veterans
in their own right, eligible for education benefits under the Montgomery
GI Bill for Active Duty, the Montgomery GI Bill for Selected Reserves or
the Reserve Educational Assistance Program (REAP), then they would
relinquish their eligibility under those programs to receive benefits
under a Fry scholarship.
NY Police Mistakenly Tell Parents Their Son Is Dead
NY Police Mistakenly Tell Parents Their Son Is Dead
MASTIC BEACH, N.Y. (April 29) -- It was a 90-minute nightmare.
Alfred and Geri Esposito of Mastic Beach were told Saturday morning that their son Freddy and another passenger had been killed in a collision with a tractor-trailer on a Pennsylvania highway.
It turns out Freddy wasn't dead. He was asleep on a couch in an apartment he rents with his brother. The dead man was one of his former fraternity brothers -- a revelation that both relieved and upset the Espositos.
"Ninety minutes of my life I'll never get back," Geri Esposito said Thursday. "My husband, who is a very strong man, was reduced to a puddle."
The mix-up began when Pennsylvania troopers found Freddy Esposito's driver's license in the hands of one of the men killed in the wreck -- 18-year-old Paul Richards of Santa Cruz, Calif.
MASTIC BEACH, N.Y. (April 29) -- It was a 90-minute nightmare.
Alfred and Geri Esposito of Mastic Beach were told Saturday morning that their son Freddy and another passenger had been killed in a collision with a tractor-trailer on a Pennsylvania highway.
It turns out Freddy wasn't dead. He was asleep on a couch in an apartment he rents with his brother. The dead man was one of his former fraternity brothers -- a revelation that both relieved and upset the Espositos.
"Ninety minutes of my life I'll never get back," Geri Esposito said Thursday. "My husband, who is a very strong man, was reduced to a puddle."
The mix-up began when Pennsylvania troopers found Freddy Esposito's driver's license in the hands of one of the men killed in the wreck -- 18-year-old Paul Richards of Santa Cruz, Calif.
Older brother Chris Esposito was just starting his shift in Brooklyn as a New York Police Department officer when he got the call that his brother was dead. He left work and raced to the Bay Shore home he shared with his brother.
"He goes downstairs into his brother's apartment and he saw something on the couch," Geri Esposito recalled. After poking the lump a couple of times, his brother awoke from under the blanket.
"He screamed, 'You're dead, you're dead!'" Geri Esposito said of Chris.
And Freddy counters: "I'm sleeping."
New PTSD research could change treatment
This shows how real PTSD is for any doubters never having lived with it. If this research ends up not being that beneficial for PTSD, survivors of traumatic events, then at least this research will begin a whole new way of looking for ways to treat it. This study is money well spent. As for the most of the other research done over the last ten years, they have been more repeats of what was already studied. This is in a hopeful direction and a change in the way they look at PTSD. It is a sign of changing that I've waited over 28 years for!
In a paper published in 2009, he proposed a mechanism, based on solid experimental data, that trauma leads to an increase in nerve growth factor. "That leads to sprouting of the sympathetic nerves, which leads to increased production of norepinphrine - adrenaline - and that makes people anxious," he says. A block placed next to the stellate ganglion leads to a decrease in nerve growth factor and a reversal of PTSD symptoms.
Walter Reed Report Confirms Validity of Fast-Acting, Non-Drug PTSD Treatment
Newswise - Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Bethesda, MD, has published case reports detailing the successful treatment of combat-related post-traumatic stress disorder with a stellate ganglion block.
SGB is a 10-minute procedure during which local anesthesia is injected next to the stellate ganglion, a collection of nerves in the neck. SGB has been used safely to treat chronic pain and other ailments since 1925, but Dr. Eugene Lipov, a Chicago-area anesthesiologist and researcher, has pioneered this approach for the treatment of PTSD.Dr. Lipov has published papers in several medical journals, providing a theoretical model of the biological brain changes that reverse PTSD following the procedure. "Using functional MRIs to show the part of the brain that is active during fear and other traumatic emotions, we can see and measure the physiologic changes that occur during trauma," he explains. "These MRIs are telling us that the cause of PTSD is physical in nature, and not simply a 'psychological condition.'"
In a paper published in 2009, he proposed a mechanism, based on solid experimental data, that trauma leads to an increase in nerve growth factor. "That leads to sprouting of the sympathetic nerves, which leads to increased production of norepinphrine - adrenaline - and that makes people anxious," he says. A block placed next to the stellate ganglion leads to a decrease in nerve growth factor and a reversal of PTSD symptoms.
The coming tsunami of PTSD cases. The Department of Veterans Affairs is seeing an increasing number of soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan with a mental disorder such as major depression or PTSD. As deployments lengthen, those numbers are expected to grow.read more here
http://newsblaze.com/story/2010042922350300001.wi/topstory.html
PTSD dying to take you away on mystery trip back
They came home alone. They came home abandoned. They came home and were expected to forget about the year they were gone. One series of days turning into months as they piled up together until the magical number 12 was reached. They knew if they survived one more day, they were closer to going home, of not having to watch their buddies die and not having to kill strangers trying to kill them. They knew they would be able to walk down a path back home without having to worry about a bomb blowing them up just as they knew they could go into a house back home without having someone in there ready to shoot them. They knew if they survived they'd be able to eat what they wanted, when they wanted and wouldn't go hungry because supplies couldn't get to them. They knew they could take a shower without having to worry about getting killed or glowing in the dark because of all the talk about what they were spraying in the jungles, Agent Orange the equal opportunity killer. The year passed, they came home and for more, all they wanted to do was go back.
Imagine that!
Considering all they had been through, through enlistment or draft, they were changed. They spent their 12 months trying to stay alive, keep their friends alive as well and waited to be able to go back home. They figured that wouldn't have changed much in a year but when they discovered just how much the war had changed them, they didn't feel as if they fit in back home anymore. How could they? How could any combat veteran ever feel the same again?
The truth is, they couldn't just as all the generations before them were not the same after combat.
Their survival skills were fed but so was the enemy digging into their soul. PTSD was taking charge and for most of them, they figured they would just have to get over it. After all, their Dads did, at least that was what they wanted to believe.
Now their kids are coming home after Iraq, after Afghanistan and the survivors want to go back. It's tugging at them the same way home tugged at them when they were deployed. The difference is, their Vietnam veteran fathers battled this fierce enemy ahead of time. All the treatments and compensation were already fought for by them and they still battle the government, challenge the scientists and researchers to come up with better treatments, challenge the clergy to take care of their souls and heal them even if science can't cure them.
PTSD only comes after trauma. We know average people living in "polite society" can end up with being haunted just as we know firefighters and emergency responders can. We know police officers can carry this inside of them and we know the more times they are exposed to traumatic events the likelihood of PTSD digging in increases, just as the Army predicted it would with the troops being redeployed. Their finding was that redeployments increased the risk by 50%. This was not just about the number of years they were exposed but also the number of events within the year would also increase. There is much we know now. Still what we fail to do is honor the Vietnam veterans forgotten about in all of this.
They wait in line behind the newer veterans even though they have waited all these years to find out what was wrong with them has a name and there is a reason for it. PTSD had taken hold. The blessing is that it is not too late for them to heal and get off this ride of highs and lows so deep they don't want to get up in the morning.
also
Vietnam marks 35th anniversary of end of war
Magical Mystery Tour
A mystery trip.
The magical mystery tour.
Roll up, roll up for the mystery tour.
Roll up, roll up for the mystery tour.
Roll up (AND) THAT'S AN INVITATION, roll up for the mystery tour.
Roll up TO MAKE A RESERVATION, roll up for the mystery tour.
The magical mystery tour is coming to take you away,
Coming to take you away.
The magical mystery tour is dying to take you away,
Dying to take you away, take you today.
Imagine that!
Considering all they had been through, through enlistment or draft, they were changed. They spent their 12 months trying to stay alive, keep their friends alive as well and waited to be able to go back home. They figured that wouldn't have changed much in a year but when they discovered just how much the war had changed them, they didn't feel as if they fit in back home anymore. How could they? How could any combat veteran ever feel the same again?
The truth is, they couldn't just as all the generations before them were not the same after combat.
Their survival skills were fed but so was the enemy digging into their soul. PTSD was taking charge and for most of them, they figured they would just have to get over it. After all, their Dads did, at least that was what they wanted to believe.
Now their kids are coming home after Iraq, after Afghanistan and the survivors want to go back. It's tugging at them the same way home tugged at them when they were deployed. The difference is, their Vietnam veteran fathers battled this fierce enemy ahead of time. All the treatments and compensation were already fought for by them and they still battle the government, challenge the scientists and researchers to come up with better treatments, challenge the clergy to take care of their souls and heal them even if science can't cure them.
PTSD only comes after trauma. We know average people living in "polite society" can end up with being haunted just as we know firefighters and emergency responders can. We know police officers can carry this inside of them and we know the more times they are exposed to traumatic events the likelihood of PTSD digging in increases, just as the Army predicted it would with the troops being redeployed. Their finding was that redeployments increased the risk by 50%. This was not just about the number of years they were exposed but also the number of events within the year would also increase. There is much we know now. Still what we fail to do is honor the Vietnam veterans forgotten about in all of this.
They wait in line behind the newer veterans even though they have waited all these years to find out what was wrong with them has a name and there is a reason for it. PTSD had taken hold. The blessing is that it is not too late for them to heal and get off this ride of highs and lows so deep they don't want to get up in the morning.
35 Years After the Vietnam War Is Not Too Late
Don JonesProject Manager, LZ Lambeau
A Vietnam veteran once said to a fellow veteran I know: Yes it is way, way late. Maybe too late to be welcomed home...but it is never too late to say to a veteran, thank you for your service.
Friday April 30th will mark the 35th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War.
I served in the United States Army from 1955 to 1969, with service in the Intelligence Corps in Danang Vietnam.
It's been 35 years and every year since I've returned I've met veterans who had returned home but have never really "come home."
Just over ten years ago, the Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs, Wisconsin Public Television and the Wisconsin Historical Society started interviewing hundreds of Wisconsin veterans of WWII and Korea. The interviews have been collected in a series of books and television shows, Wisconsin WWII War Stories and Wisconsin Korean War Stories.
Now, over last two years, they've done the same for Vietnam in Wisconsin Vietnam War Stories.
There's a remarkable contrast in the stories. During the interviews with Vietnam veterans, the television producers saw and heard a distinctly different message and tone from the WWII veterans and, to a degree, from the Korean War veterans. It was the fact that few had ever been thanked and none had experienced the welcome home parades for the WWII veterans, nor even the few "thank you's" heard by the Korean veterans.
cllick link for more
also
Vietnam marks 35th anniversary of end of war
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Major opens up about his own battle with PTSD so others will seek help too
Battling PTSD: Major hopes sharing his story prompts others to seek help
By Melissa Bower Staff Writer
Published: Thursday, April 29, 2010 2:25 PM CDT
E-mail this story Print this page
Maj. Ryan Kranc is recovering from post-traumatic stress disorder and competes in triathlons to benefit the Wounded Warrior Project. Lamp photo by Prudence Siebert.
Ryan Kranc was traveling with the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment near Ramadi, Iraq, on July 23, 2003, when his convoy was hit with an improvised explosive device.
Kranc, now an Army major, survived. His commander, his friend, Capt. Josh T. Byers, did not.
Six years and two full combat tours later, Kranc committed himself to recovering from the emotional wounds sustained on that day in 2003.
While serving in Saudi Arabia in 2009, he notified his command that he had a problem. Although he had sought counseling before, Kranc decided he needed more intervention. He entered treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany for six weeks. Kranc said the traumatic events of the war have forever changed his life, but because of his treatment he can now move forward.
read more here
Major hopes sharing his story prompts others to seek help
By Melissa Bower Staff Writer
Published: Thursday, April 29, 2010 2:25 PM CDT
E-mail this story Print this page
Maj. Ryan Kranc is recovering from post-traumatic stress disorder and competes in triathlons to benefit the Wounded Warrior Project. Lamp photo by Prudence Siebert.
Ryan Kranc was traveling with the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment near Ramadi, Iraq, on July 23, 2003, when his convoy was hit with an improvised explosive device.
Kranc, now an Army major, survived. His commander, his friend, Capt. Josh T. Byers, did not.
Six years and two full combat tours later, Kranc committed himself to recovering from the emotional wounds sustained on that day in 2003.
While serving in Saudi Arabia in 2009, he notified his command that he had a problem. Although he had sought counseling before, Kranc decided he needed more intervention. He entered treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany for six weeks. Kranc said the traumatic events of the war have forever changed his life, but because of his treatment he can now move forward.
read more here
Major hopes sharing his story prompts others to seek help
Vietnam Vet, Shot Was Protecting Family
Son: Man Shot Was Protecting Family
Deputies: 2 Orange Park Men Shot Each Other During Spat
POSTED: Thursday, April 29, 2010
UPDATED: 5:09 pm EDT April 29, 2010
Family Photo
Robert Webster
ORANGE PARK, Fla. -- The son of an Orange Park man shot and killed Wednesday afternoon said his dad was just protecting his family.
Robert Webster, 63, a Vietnam veteran, died from a gunshot wound to his chest after deputies said he and Charles Ingram, 57, shot each other. Ingram, who was shot in the head, remains hospitalized in critical condition.
Detectives said the two men had a verbal argument and shot at each other several times in the street on Aurora Boulevard. Neighbors said Ingram was already armed when he approached Webster in his driveway, and when they began to argue, Webster went for his gun and the two began shooting.
Tim Webster, Robert Webster's son, said he blames the Clay County Sheriff's Office for not looking into complaints raised against Ingram, who deputies said has shot an unleashed dog in the neighborhood.
read more here
http://www.news4jax.com/news/23306285/detail.html
Deputies: 2 Orange Park Men Shot Each Other During Spat
POSTED: Thursday, April 29, 2010
UPDATED: 5:09 pm EDT April 29, 2010
Family Photo
Robert Webster
ORANGE PARK, Fla. -- The son of an Orange Park man shot and killed Wednesday afternoon said his dad was just protecting his family.
Robert Webster, 63, a Vietnam veteran, died from a gunshot wound to his chest after deputies said he and Charles Ingram, 57, shot each other. Ingram, who was shot in the head, remains hospitalized in critical condition.
Detectives said the two men had a verbal argument and shot at each other several times in the street on Aurora Boulevard. Neighbors said Ingram was already armed when he approached Webster in his driveway, and when they began to argue, Webster went for his gun and the two began shooting.
Tim Webster, Robert Webster's son, said he blames the Clay County Sheriff's Office for not looking into complaints raised against Ingram, who deputies said has shot an unleashed dog in the neighborhood.
read more here
http://www.news4jax.com/news/23306285/detail.html
Shinseki Announces VA Cutting Insurance Premiums for Families
Shinseki Announces VA Cutting Insurance Premiums for Families
WASHINGTON (April 29, 2010) - Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K.
Shinseki announced today that military personnel insuring their families
under the Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance (SGLI) program, which is
administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs, will have reduced
out-of-pocket expenses beginning July 1.
"VA hopes these reductions will allow more military personnel to obtain
affordable life insurance coverage for their spouses, particularly in
these difficult economic times," said Shinseki. "Without insurance
protection, life after the loss of a spouse can be not only challenging
emotionally, but can place a severe financial strain on a family."
Family SGLI (FSGLI) monthly premium rates will be reduced for all age
groups by an average of 8 percent. The new rates are based on revised
estimates for the cost of the program. This is the third time that
premiums have been reduced since the FSGLI program began in November
2001. Spousal premiums were previously reduced for all age groups in
2003 and 2006.
FSGLI coverage provides life insurance protection to military personnel
for their spouses and children. Children are automatically insured for
$10,000, with no premiums charged.
Based on the coverage of service members, spouses may be insured for up
to $100,000. Military personnel pay age-based premiums for spousal
coverage -- the older the spouse, the higher the premium rate.
The premium reduction ensures FSGLI remains highly competitive compared
to commercial insurers.
FSGLI coverage is available in increments of $10,000. The current and
revised monthly premium rates per $10,000 of insurance, along with other
information, are available on the Internet at www.insurance.va.gov
WASHINGTON (April 29, 2010) - Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K.
Shinseki announced today that military personnel insuring their families
under the Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance (SGLI) program, which is
administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs, will have reduced
out-of-pocket expenses beginning July 1.
"VA hopes these reductions will allow more military personnel to obtain
affordable life insurance coverage for their spouses, particularly in
these difficult economic times," said Shinseki. "Without insurance
protection, life after the loss of a spouse can be not only challenging
emotionally, but can place a severe financial strain on a family."
Family SGLI (FSGLI) monthly premium rates will be reduced for all age
groups by an average of 8 percent. The new rates are based on revised
estimates for the cost of the program. This is the third time that
premiums have been reduced since the FSGLI program began in November
2001. Spousal premiums were previously reduced for all age groups in
2003 and 2006.
FSGLI coverage provides life insurance protection to military personnel
for their spouses and children. Children are automatically insured for
$10,000, with no premiums charged.
Based on the coverage of service members, spouses may be insured for up
to $100,000. Military personnel pay age-based premiums for spousal
coverage -- the older the spouse, the higher the premium rate.
The premium reduction ensures FSGLI remains highly competitive compared
to commercial insurers.
FSGLI coverage is available in increments of $10,000. The current and
revised monthly premium rates per $10,000 of insurance, along with other
information, are available on the Internet at www.insurance.va.gov
Vets salute Obama on funding
Vets salute Obama on funding
Legion cites administration 'accessibility'
By Kara Rowland
President Obama is struggling to fulfill campaign promises to pass energy and immigration measures, but he's poised to notch another victory for a stump-speech vow: to make sure veterans' funding isn't held hostage to the government's bad finances.
While watchdogs caution there's still a long list of problems for veterans, all sides agree the President Obama has made big strides on promises he made in 2008 when competing for military votes against Republican nominee and Vietnam veteran Sen. John McCain - to fully fund the Veterans Administration, expand access to care in rural areas and improve treatment for mental health conditions, such as post-traumatic stress disorder.
"The accessibility with this administration has been outstanding. They listen, they reach out to the veterans' service organizations, they see the value in communicating," Peter Gaytan, executive director of the American Legion, the nation's largest veterans' organization, with 2.5 million members.
Even amid competing priorities and a deepening recession, Mr. Obama last year managed to secure the biggest increase in funding for the Department of Veterans Affairs in 30 years. And as Congress begins writing spending bills for 2011, despite a spending freeze on some other domestic spending, he's looking for more aid for veterans.
Mr. Obama's proposed VA budget for fiscal 2011 asks for $125 billion - a 10 percent jump from what Congress enacted for 2010, which was itself more than 16 percent more than 2009. The discretionary portion of next year's budget request - the part the administration and Congress have the most direct control over - is up nearly 20 percent since 2009, to total $60.3 billion.
read more here
Vets salute Obama on funding
Legion cites administration 'accessibility'
By Kara Rowland
President Obama is struggling to fulfill campaign promises to pass energy and immigration measures, but he's poised to notch another victory for a stump-speech vow: to make sure veterans' funding isn't held hostage to the government's bad finances.
While watchdogs caution there's still a long list of problems for veterans, all sides agree the President Obama has made big strides on promises he made in 2008 when competing for military votes against Republican nominee and Vietnam veteran Sen. John McCain - to fully fund the Veterans Administration, expand access to care in rural areas and improve treatment for mental health conditions, such as post-traumatic stress disorder.
"The accessibility with this administration has been outstanding. They listen, they reach out to the veterans' service organizations, they see the value in communicating," Peter Gaytan, executive director of the American Legion, the nation's largest veterans' organization, with 2.5 million members.
Even amid competing priorities and a deepening recession, Mr. Obama last year managed to secure the biggest increase in funding for the Department of Veterans Affairs in 30 years. And as Congress begins writing spending bills for 2011, despite a spending freeze on some other domestic spending, he's looking for more aid for veterans.
Mr. Obama's proposed VA budget for fiscal 2011 asks for $125 billion - a 10 percent jump from what Congress enacted for 2010, which was itself more than 16 percent more than 2009. The discretionary portion of next year's budget request - the part the administration and Congress have the most direct control over - is up nearly 20 percent since 2009, to total $60.3 billion.
read more here
Vets salute Obama on funding
Chaplain accused of falsely claiming to be Army Ranger
A Chaplain did this?
Man accused of falsely claiming to be Ranger
The Associated Press
Posted : Wednesday Apr 28, 2010 21:48:51 EDT
PHOENIX — A federal grand jury in Phoenix has indicted a former chaplain for making false claims about his military honors and training.
Prosecutors say 42-year-old Kurt Alan Bishop, of Queen Creek, falsely claimed to have received advanced combat training, achieving the elite status of an Army Ranger.
The 34-count indictment alleges that Bishop began making false claims about his military decorations and training in 1991, shortly after he ended his first tour of active duty. Authorities say the claims helped him become an officer in the Arizona National Guard and to enter the Chaplain Corps in 2006, both resulting in increases in his military salary and benefits.
Bishop served as a chaplain until his discharge earlier this year.Prosecutors said Wednesday that a summons has been issued for Bishop to appear in federal court on the charges. It was not immediately known whether Bishop had legal representation for his case.
Man accused of falsely claiming to be Ranger
Be as resolute to heal as you were to survive
If you think you have been wounded by PTSD because you are weak, you have already determined your destiny. On Criminal Minds last night Agent Rossi (Joe Mantegna) said "Scars are a reminder of where we've been but they are not dictator of where we are going." PTSD is not a sign of weakness. It is a sign that you are a survivor. You have survived traumatic events that would bring even the most strongest person you know to their knees. PTSD does not have to destroy you if you understand it and be resolute to heal.
The sooner you seek help to heal the sooner PTSD stops getting worse. PTSD is much like an infection. It feeds of itself. It gets stronger while everything you knew about yourself becomes infected. We all know infections get worse and spread without the intervention of medical help so that your body's own built in defenses can have help to overcome the infection. PTSD works the same way. Medical intervention aids your minds ability to overcome the horrors trapped inside your memory. The sooner you begin getting help, the less PTSD is allowed to claim of the person you were before the trauma happened.
Don't let the scar you carry dictate how you spend the rest of your life.
Main Entry: 1res·o·lute
Pronunciation: \ˈre-zə-ˌlüt, -lət\
Function: adjective
Etymology: Latin resolutus, past participle of resolvere
Date: 1533
1 : marked by firm determination : resolved
2 : bold, steady
synonyms see faithful
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/resolute
The sooner you seek help to heal the sooner PTSD stops getting worse. PTSD is much like an infection. It feeds of itself. It gets stronger while everything you knew about yourself becomes infected. We all know infections get worse and spread without the intervention of medical help so that your body's own built in defenses can have help to overcome the infection. PTSD works the same way. Medical intervention aids your minds ability to overcome the horrors trapped inside your memory. The sooner you begin getting help, the less PTSD is allowed to claim of the person you were before the trauma happened.
Don't let the scar you carry dictate how you spend the rest of your life.
Vietnam Recognition Day speaker under investigation
Officials investigate guest speaker at Vietnam veteran recognition ceremony
April 27, 2010 5:00 PM
HOPE HODGE
Marine officials are investigating the guest speaker at a Vietnam veterans’ recognition day who critics said never went to Vietnam.
Michael Hamilton, who says he’s a former Marine colonel, gave an emotional keynote speech at Saturday’s Vietnam Recognition Day, held at Jacksonville’s Vietnam Memorial. Each event attendee received a copy of Hamilton’s impressive biography, showing a rapid rise from the rank of private first class to colonel between 1961 and 1969 while also accumulating 80 medals and ribbons, including two Navy Crosses, four Silver Stars and eight Purple Hearts.
But, local Vietnam veterans say, none of it is true.
John Cooney, the adjutant of the Beirut Memorial Chapter of the Military Order of the Purple Heart, said veterans attending the ceremony had their doubts even before Hamilton began to speak.
“Nobody is decorated that much,” Cooney said. “We’re positive that everything is bogus that is in that bio.”
Hamilton’s name appears in the Phonies Index at the website www.pownetwork.org. According to the listing, “Claims that his records were redacted and that he has been trying for 24 years to prove that he was in the incident … Military records so far show NO OVERSEAS DUTY, NO COVERT OR TACTICAL COMBAT TRAINING.”
Where his name doesn’t appear is in the Hall of Valor database, maintained by www.militarytimes.com. That site contains the names of all recipients of distinguished awards, including the Distinguished Service Cross, Navy Cross and Silver Star.
read more here
http://www.enctoday.com/news/vietnam-77705-jdn-officials-guest.html
April 27, 2010 5:00 PM
HOPE HODGE
Marine officials are investigating the guest speaker at a Vietnam veterans’ recognition day who critics said never went to Vietnam.
Michael Hamilton, who says he’s a former Marine colonel, gave an emotional keynote speech at Saturday’s Vietnam Recognition Day, held at Jacksonville’s Vietnam Memorial. Each event attendee received a copy of Hamilton’s impressive biography, showing a rapid rise from the rank of private first class to colonel between 1961 and 1969 while also accumulating 80 medals and ribbons, including two Navy Crosses, four Silver Stars and eight Purple Hearts.
But, local Vietnam veterans say, none of it is true.
John Cooney, the adjutant of the Beirut Memorial Chapter of the Military Order of the Purple Heart, said veterans attending the ceremony had their doubts even before Hamilton began to speak.
“Nobody is decorated that much,” Cooney said. “We’re positive that everything is bogus that is in that bio.”
Hamilton’s name appears in the Phonies Index at the website www.pownetwork.org. According to the listing, “Claims that his records were redacted and that he has been trying for 24 years to prove that he was in the incident … Military records so far show NO OVERSEAS DUTY, NO COVERT OR TACTICAL COMBAT TRAINING.”
Where his name doesn’t appear is in the Hall of Valor database, maintained by www.militarytimes.com. That site contains the names of all recipients of distinguished awards, including the Distinguished Service Cross, Navy Cross and Silver Star.
read more here
http://www.enctoday.com/news/vietnam-77705-jdn-officials-guest.html
PTSD Affects Soldiers Adjusting to Life after War
As the wife of a Vietnam veteran, I can personally testify that knowing what PTSD was and why it was haunting my husband, not only held this family together, it helped him to heal. Even with all the passing years between Vietnam and receiving help from the VA, he is living a life again instead of dying a very slow death. I've seen too many veterans abandoned by their families simply because no one told them what PTSD was or what they could do about it. Therapists avoided including the family in the healing process and no one was offering them support, excluding them when they needed to be included. They ended up making PTSD worse simply because they didn't understand.
It became my mission to correct this. While I work with veterans so that they move past the stigma and seek help, it is equally important for the families to be informed so they do not make the same mistakes unknowingly making PTSD worse. I've been married for over 25 years, so I know first hand families do not need to fall apart and veterans can heal even if they cannot be cured.
Here's a link to my book, For the Love of Jack . It's about 18 years of living with PTSD. It's for free but please consider making a donation so that I can continue this work.
Here's one of the first videos I made so that everyone can understand what it took me years to learn. Wounded Minds. Over on the sidebar, there are even more videos on PTSD. Please use them and pass them on to anyone you think may be helped by them. These are also for free but again, please consider making a donation to support my ministry of helping them heal.
It became my mission to correct this. While I work with veterans so that they move past the stigma and seek help, it is equally important for the families to be informed so they do not make the same mistakes unknowingly making PTSD worse. I've been married for over 25 years, so I know first hand families do not need to fall apart and veterans can heal even if they cannot be cured.
Here's a link to my book, For the Love of Jack . It's about 18 years of living with PTSD. It's for free but please consider making a donation so that I can continue this work.
Here's one of the first videos I made so that everyone can understand what it took me years to learn. Wounded Minds. Over on the sidebar, there are even more videos on PTSD. Please use them and pass them on to anyone you think may be helped by them. These are also for free but again, please consider making a donation to support my ministry of helping them heal.
Posted to Great Americans by NamGuardianAngel on September 19, 2009
Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome Affects Soldiers Adjusting to Life after War
Corinne Hautala
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Although police have accused Spc. Kip Lynch in the slayings of his wife and baby daughter, they have not explained what led up to the horrific deaths Monday.
But psychologists say many soldiers face challenges when they return from a combat zone. It is not uncommon to see soldiers suffering from post traumatic stress syndrome when they return home from a deployment, said Cindy Alderson, the director of Military and Veteran Programs and Services at University of North Florida.
Alderson, a Navy veteran, knows personally the struggles of returning home after a long deployment.
She said loved ones can help service members by spotting the signs of PTSD and then encouraging them to seek help.
read more here
Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome Affects Soldiers
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Vietnam veteran donates so Mount Olive Memorial Day parade can go on
Vietnam veteran donates $3,000 so Mount Olive Memorial Day parade can go on
By MEGHAN VAN DYK • STAFF WRITER • April 28, 2010
MOUNT OLIVE — The Mount Olive Memorial Day parade is back on, thanks to a donation from a Flanders business owner.
John Post, president of Lamtec Corp., plans to donate $3,000 to cover the cost of the parade, which has been running in the township for 25 years. The parade was canceled in light of planned staff cuts to keep a lid on Mount Olive's municipal budget.
"It struck a nerve when I heard it was being canceled," said Post, of Tranquility Township. "Memorial Day is an important day to honor veterans, particularly those that never made it back."
While Post has never even attended the parade in Mount Olive, the Vietnam War Army veteran said Flanders is still his community. His manufacturing company, which produces facings for insulation, has operated at its Bartley Chester Road location since 1982, he said.
read more here
Vietnam veteran donates so Mount Olive Memorial Day parade can go on
By MEGHAN VAN DYK • STAFF WRITER • April 28, 2010
MOUNT OLIVE — The Mount Olive Memorial Day parade is back on, thanks to a donation from a Flanders business owner.
John Post, president of Lamtec Corp., plans to donate $3,000 to cover the cost of the parade, which has been running in the township for 25 years. The parade was canceled in light of planned staff cuts to keep a lid on Mount Olive's municipal budget.
"It struck a nerve when I heard it was being canceled," said Post, of Tranquility Township. "Memorial Day is an important day to honor veterans, particularly those that never made it back."
While Post has never even attended the parade in Mount Olive, the Vietnam War Army veteran said Flanders is still his community. His manufacturing company, which produces facings for insulation, has operated at its Bartley Chester Road location since 1982, he said.
read more here
Vietnam veteran donates so Mount Olive Memorial Day parade can go on
Does CNN care about PTSD at all?
If you watched any of the news reports from Iraq, you would have seen the changes in Ware along with seeing the kind of courage it took to stay there and then go back so many times. If he needs to heal then CNN should give him all the time he needs to do it along with all the support it takes. Above that, CNN should take it personally that one of their own is suffering because he was dedicated to his job in a combat zone. Ware reported on the conditions in Iraq but he also reported on the troops. He cared. CNN could have gone a long way in helping the soldiers heal as well if they bothered to report on it as much as they do report on celebrities and gossip.
Michael Ware On Leave From CNN
Huffington Post
Danny Shea
Foreign correspondent Michael Ware, the face of CNN's coverage of Iraq, is on leave from the network.
The network says that Ware, who has been conspicuously absent from CNN, is on leave to write a book.
"Michael is currently on a leave of absence writing a book," a CNN spokesperson told the Huffington Post. "We don't discuss individual contracts."
AllThingsCNN, a blog covering the network, speculates that Ware will not be returning to CNN ever after the network denied his request for more time off to write his book and deal with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.
Ware was the subject of a haunting, must-read Men's Journal profile in December 2008 that brought readers into his tortured world. Titled "CNN's Prisoner of War," the story by Greg Veis quoted Ware as saying of his return from Iraq, "I am not the same fucking person. I am not the same person. I don't know how to come home." click link above for more
"Crazy Nam Vets" vindicated by today's wars
"Crazy Nam Vets" vindicated by today's wars
If you ever judged Vietnam veterans, protested against them, called them names or regarded them as "crazy Nam Vet" here's your chance to apologize to them. When they came home, no one cared. No one was talking about treating the traumatized veterans differently than the general population that never once did anything like they did, went where they went, risked their lives facing what they faced, but now we know better. We see the men and women we send into combat as different from the rest of us for a reason. We know that justice demands their tours of duty be taken into consideration in deciding prison time or therapy. This is good but the fact remains in a perfect nation, they would never come home without the help they need waiting for them.
We locked them up, let them end up homeless, let them be brought to the point where after surviving combat they didn't want to live longer back here in the states and then we topped that off with not wanting to give them jobs. History is repeating itself but at least more people in this country know about what is going on.
But we also let them end up homeless too.
PTSD is finally becoming a common term. When you think of how far we've come when it comes to OEF and OIF veterans, we have to acknowledge that we owe the debt to the Vietnam veterans who came home and fought for all there is today for PTSD. We still have a very long way to go. Now there are Veterans Courts but they are not all over the country. This is one more example of what the need is.
If you ever judged Vietnam veterans, protested against them, called them names or regarded them as "crazy Nam Vet" here's your chance to apologize to them. When they came home, no one cared. No one was talking about treating the traumatized veterans differently than the general population that never once did anything like they did, went where they went, risked their lives facing what they faced, but now we know better. We see the men and women we send into combat as different from the rest of us for a reason. We know that justice demands their tours of duty be taken into consideration in deciding prison time or therapy. This is good but the fact remains in a perfect nation, they would never come home without the help they need waiting for them.
Incarcerated Veterans
In January 2000, the Bureau of Justice Statistics released a special report on incarcerated veterans. The following are highlights of the report, "Veterans in Prison or Jail":
Over 225,000 veterans were held in U.S. prisons or jails in 1998.
Among adult males in 1998, there were 937 incarcerated veterans per 100,000 veteran residents.
1 in every 6 incarcerated veterans was not honorably discharged from the military.
About 20% of veterans in prison reported seeing combat duty during their military service.
In 1998, an estimated 56,500 Vietnam War-era veterans and 18,500 Persian Gulf War veterans were held in state and federal prisons.
Nearly 60% of incarcerated veterans had served in the Army.
Among state prisoners, over half (53%) of veterans were white non-hispanics, compared to nearly a third (31%) of non-veterans; among federal prisoners, the percentage of veterans who were white (50%) was nearly double that of non-veterans (26%).
Among state prisoners, the median age of veterans was 10 years older than that of other prison and jail inmates.
Among state prisoners, veterans (32%) were about 3 times more likely than non-veterans (11%) to have attended college.
Veterans are more likely than others to be in prison for a violent offense but less likely to be serving a sentence for drugs.
About 35% of veterans in state prison, compared to 20% of non-veterans, were convicted of homicide or sexual assault.
Veterans (30%) were more likely than other state prisoners (23%) to be first-time offenders.
Among violent state prisoners, the average sentence of veterans was 50 months longer than the average of non-veterans.
At year-end in 1997, sex offenders accounted for 1 in 3 prisoners held in military correctional facilities.
Combat veterans were no more likely to be violent offenders than other veterans.
Veterans in state prison reported higher levels of alcohol abuse and lower levels of drug abuse than other prisoners.
Veterans in state prison were less likely (26%) than other state prisoners (34%) to report having used drugs at the time of their offense.
Nearly 60% of veterans in state prison had driven drunk in the past, compared to 45% of other inmates.
About 70% of veterans, compared to 54% of other state prisoners, had been working full-time before arrest.
Incarcerated veterans were as likely as non-veterans to have been homeless when arrested.
http://www.nchv.org/background.cfm#incarcerated
We locked them up, let them end up homeless, let them be brought to the point where after surviving combat they didn't want to live longer back here in the states and then we topped that off with not wanting to give them jobs. History is repeating itself but at least more people in this country know about what is going on.
But we also let them end up homeless too.
Veteran-specific highlights from the USICH report include:
23% of the homeless population are veterans
33% of the male homeless population are veterans
47% served Vietnam-era
17% served post-Vietnam
15% served pre-Vietnam
67% served three or more years
33% were stationed in war zone
25% have used VA homeless services
85% completed high school/GED, compared to 56% of non-veterans
89% received an honorable discharge
79% reside in central cities
16% reside in suburban areas
5% reside in rural areas
76% experience alcohol, drug or mental health problems
46% are white males, compared to 34% of non-veterans
46% are age 45 or older, compared to 20% non-veterans
Service needs cited include:
45% need help finding a job
37% need help finding housing
How many homeless veterans are there?
Accurate numbers community-by-community are not available. Some communities do annual counts; others do an estimate based on a variety of factors. Contact the closest VA medical center's homeless coordinator, the office of your mayor, or another presiding official to get local information.
PTSD is finally becoming a common term. When you think of how far we've come when it comes to OEF and OIF veterans, we have to acknowledge that we owe the debt to the Vietnam veterans who came home and fought for all there is today for PTSD. We still have a very long way to go. Now there are Veterans Courts but they are not all over the country. This is one more example of what the need is.
From War to Prison: Veterans Caught in the Criminal Justice System
Tim King Salem-News.com
Documentary highlights conflicts between returning PTSD Combat Vets and a criminal justice system that often fails to consider their unique situation.
(LOS ANGELES) - Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and the impact this complex and misunderstood problem had on a young American's life is the subject of a hard driving documentary debuting online today called From War to Prison: Veterans Caught in the Criminal Justice System.
Nathan Keyes served two tours in Iraq during his 8 years in the U.S. Army. But when he came home from the war suffering from PTSD, everything went terribly wrong, and now this soldier is serving three years in prison.
His mom Jamie Keyes, says in his military service, her son followed in the footsteps of his grandfather and uncle; they both served in the military.
When Nathan came home from the war suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Jamie says didn’t know what to do for him.
"These boys don’t come home with an instruction booklet – how to deal with them, how to respond to them, and I knew almost nothing about Post Traumatic Stress Disorder," Keyes said in a report published by C. Peterson with Barrow County News in Georgia.
read more here
http://www.salem-news.com/articles/april282010/in-their-boots.php
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