Vietnam vet dies abroad, deported from the country he served
Hector Barrios: “I think it’s unjust to deport someone who fought for her… the United States.”
UPI News
By JC Sevcik
April 25, 2014
TIJUANA, Mexico, April 25 (UPI) -- Hector Barrios died this week.
It’s okay if you’ve never heard of him. You have no reason to know who he is.
The short version: Hector was a decorated U.S. veteran who died abroad, impoverished and estranged from the country he loved and served, with none of the benefits entitled to him as a veteran.
Barrios was born in Tijuana, Mexico. In 1961, at the age of 18, he moved to the United States. In 1967, at the age of 24, he was drafted into the U.S. military to do his part for the war effort. He did not go back to Mexico or hide out in Canada. He did not dodge the draft or evade the call to duty. Hector spent a year in Vietnam, fighting for his adopted country.
“Every day incoming fire, everything, fighting -- you didn’t know if you were going to come back home,” he says in an interview taken before his death.
read more here
Saturday, April 26, 2014
Six year old honored for lifetime in Air Force
Dog who served in Iraq, Afghanistan honored at Wright-Patt
Dayton Daily News
By Chris Stewart
Staff Writer
April 25, 2014
WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE — Speaking next to an empty dog crate, Air Force Staff Sgt. Christopher Pritchett fought through tears Friday while remembering his one-time partner, Arko.
“Those who have called themselves dog handlers are the only people who can truly understand the bond between handlers and dogs. A bond that can’t be broken even in death,” Pritchett told those attending a memorial service for the military working dog.
Members of the 88th Security Forces Squadron at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base remembered the German shepherd as one of their own during a service Friday morning at the Base Club. About 60 people attended the memorial along with eight other military and area police dogs and their handlers.
Arko served nearly five years as a patrol and explosive detector dog at the base. Arko and Pritchett, now the squadron’s kennel master, served two overseas tours together in Iraq and Afghanistan, always side-by-side. Arko was laid to rest Feb. 16, 2014, at the base kennel after dying suddenly of a twist in his intestines. He was six.
read more here
Dayton Daily News
By Chris Stewart
Staff Writer
April 25, 2014
WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE — Speaking next to an empty dog crate, Air Force Staff Sgt. Christopher Pritchett fought through tears Friday while remembering his one-time partner, Arko.
“Those who have called themselves dog handlers are the only people who can truly understand the bond between handlers and dogs. A bond that can’t be broken even in death,” Pritchett told those attending a memorial service for the military working dog.
Members of the 88th Security Forces Squadron at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base remembered the German shepherd as one of their own during a service Friday morning at the Base Club. About 60 people attended the memorial along with eight other military and area police dogs and their handlers.
Arko served nearly five years as a patrol and explosive detector dog at the base. Arko and Pritchett, now the squadron’s kennel master, served two overseas tours together in Iraq and Afghanistan, always side-by-side. Arko was laid to rest Feb. 16, 2014, at the base kennel after dying suddenly of a twist in his intestines. He was six.
read more here
Vietnam Veteran Wounded Twice
Fla. man gets equivalent of 2 Purple Hearts in 44 years
The (Fort Myers, Fla.) News-Press
Chris Umpierre
April 25, 2014
Richard Crawford was injured in a war twice in his life, 40 years apart.
The Fort Myers, Fla., resident, now 67, was honored Friday at Camp Lejeune, N.C., with the civilian equivalent of the Purple Heart.
Crawford's acceptance of the 2014 Defense of Freedom Medal, given annually to civilians killed or wounded while serving with the U.S. military, adds a capstone to his military career. Crawford received a 1970 Purple Heart for his service in Vietnam.
"It's special because this makes it over 40 years between Purple Hearts," Crawford said. "There's an old adage: 'Once a Marine, always a Marine.' I think I raised the bar on that one."
At 61, the former Fort Myers Drug Enforcement Administration chief was talked out of retirement to serve as an embedded law- enforcement professional in Iraq. After a tour advising the Marines on investigating roadside bombs, Crawford was recruited again in 2010. This time, the military shipped the 64-year-old to Afghanistan.
read more here
The (Fort Myers, Fla.) News-Press
Chris Umpierre
April 25, 2014
 |
| (Photo: Courtesy of Richard Crawford) |
Richard Crawford was injured in a war twice in his life, 40 years apart.
The Fort Myers, Fla., resident, now 67, was honored Friday at Camp Lejeune, N.C., with the civilian equivalent of the Purple Heart.
Crawford's acceptance of the 2014 Defense of Freedom Medal, given annually to civilians killed or wounded while serving with the U.S. military, adds a capstone to his military career. Crawford received a 1970 Purple Heart for his service in Vietnam.
"It's special because this makes it over 40 years between Purple Hearts," Crawford said. "There's an old adage: 'Once a Marine, always a Marine.' I think I raised the bar on that one."
At 61, the former Fort Myers Drug Enforcement Administration chief was talked out of retirement to serve as an embedded law- enforcement professional in Iraq. After a tour advising the Marines on investigating roadside bombs, Crawford was recruited again in 2010. This time, the military shipped the 64-year-old to Afghanistan.
read more here
Heroes Project ends climb out of respect for dead
Marine Returns to US, Abandons Mount Everest Summit Attempt
The Heroes Project said it will return in 2015 to complete the group's first Everest summit
NBC 7 San Diego
By Vanessa Herrera and R. Stickney
Friday, Apr 25, 2014
A U.S. Marine is returning home after abandoning his attempt to scale Mount Everest.
Up until Thursday, SSgt Charles Linnville was waiting at base camp to scale the world's highest peak despite losing a leg in Afghanistan three years ago.
However, before his group could attempt a summit, there was a widespread walkout of Sherpas in response to the deadliest disaster on the mountain.
An avalanche killed 13 people April 18. Three Sherpas were still missing in the ice and snow, and are presumed dead.
Linville's group “The Heroes Project” announced Friday that they, like other groups prepping for the climb, have decided to abandon their attempt to summit Everest.
In a written release, the project said the group's founder Tim Medvetz, will leave Nepal with the rest of the team including Linville, and members of a film crew.
"They are members of our team and out of respect to our Sherpas, we are not continuing," he wrote.
"We fully support their decision to leave the mountain and we will leave the mountain together the same way we came up, as a team.”
read more here
Afghanistan Veteran Marine Amputee Taking on Mt. Everest
The Heroes Project said it will return in 2015 to complete the group's first Everest summit
NBC 7 San Diego
By Vanessa Herrera and R. Stickney
Friday, Apr 25, 2014
A U.S. Marine is returning home after abandoning his attempt to scale Mount Everest.
Up until Thursday, SSgt Charles Linnville was waiting at base camp to scale the world's highest peak despite losing a leg in Afghanistan three years ago.
However, before his group could attempt a summit, there was a widespread walkout of Sherpas in response to the deadliest disaster on the mountain.
An avalanche killed 13 people April 18. Three Sherpas were still missing in the ice and snow, and are presumed dead.
Linville's group “The Heroes Project” announced Friday that they, like other groups prepping for the climb, have decided to abandon their attempt to summit Everest.
In a written release, the project said the group's founder Tim Medvetz, will leave Nepal with the rest of the team including Linville, and members of a film crew.
"They are members of our team and out of respect to our Sherpas, we are not continuing," he wrote.
"We fully support their decision to leave the mountain and we will leave the mountain together the same way we came up, as a team.”
read more here
Afghanistan Veteran Marine Amputee Taking on Mt. Everest
Man claims Call of Duty Caused PTSD
Don't even get me started on this one!
Man Suffers PTSD After Playing Call Of Duty: Ghosts, VA Denies Treatment
National Report
Posted about 8 hours ago
In a whirlwind of being denied treatment, fraught with crippling anxiety attacks, a 43 year old San Diego man says he has developed Post Traumatic Stress Disorder after months of playing the popular game, Call of Duty: Ghosts and complains of being neglected by the one group who could help — his government.
Peter Turk, who has reached the highest of ranks in the game, made the following statement on Myspace, last Friday evening: I leveled up to 10th Prestige, which is about equal to a Sergeant Major in the non-electric Army. I can barely function in my day-to-day life.
Speaking to the National Report, last Wednesday, Turk remarked, “I can’t focus on anything. If I hear a car backfire, I jump outta my skin.”
During a phone conversation with his cousin, Major Jim French, a double amputee, recipient of the Silver Star and inspiration for the Lifetime Movie, “I Wish I Had More Arms to Give to My Country,” Turk was shocked to learn he had been exhibiting many of the same traits as his comrade in the non-electric Army. “Jim also suffers from PTSD. He and I had the same experience, fought just as many belligerents, we’re both injured and were decorated by our respective leaders. Just because his leader is Barack Obama, and mine is Xbox Live, shouldn’t matter. We’re both heroes, yet he gets disability and I don’t.”
The game, which brings the horrors of war to average people in vibrant, nail-biting reality, matches up players in teams to fight against each other. Teammates and opponents can communicate through headsets, giving way to a myriad of shit talking and clowning. “There I was, hunkered down behind a tree in Prison Break, waiting for my relief and what happens? I get the shit blown out of me from a guy running around with a Kastet. He was on my team. He laughed and told me he tag-teamed my mom with Obama.” Turk believes friendly fire from shit talking teammates is the worst aspect and the hardest to overcome. “You know, these guys are there in the shiggy with you and they’ll blow you up for fun.”
read more here
Wrong reports screw military and veterans
Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
April 26, 2014
When reporters don't care about the subject they report on, military folks and veterans are screwed. After all, our family members are only 8% of the population. 1% serve today, actually less than 1%, and veterans are only 7% of the population. No one bothered to ever calculate the percentage of families. All of us have been dealing with reality while reporters remain oblivious.
Yesterday on Wounded Times there was the report out of Fort Bliss investigating the suspected suicides of three soldiers last weekend. In that report trouble in the Air Force screamed for attention.
Wounded Times covered what Gregg Zoroya reported on USA Today how the military calculated suicide numbers when this popped up.
In THE WARRIOR SAW, SUICIDES AFTER WAR the data collected from over 22,000 articles uncovered the disgraceful lack of investigations by the press. This is our lives. These are our family members. They matter to us but evidently too many reporters don't care enough so the general public only knows what they are told by reporters they trust.
How can the press be so wrong on the same report? It happens all the time. Reporters either make up their minds ahead of time or their minds simply can't understand the complexity of what they are reading.
It just happened again.
Times San Diego had this headline by Ken Stone on April 25, 2014
It began with this.
Why would it have been reported that way? Because that is what a Lt. General told him.
On the same day, Lolita C. Baldor of Associated Press had this headline and Indiana Gazette put it up on their site.
It was a total inability to factor in the other parts of what is going on such as the reduction of members in the military to count in the first place. Every branch made cuts the regular way but they also added in thousands of "bad conduct discharges" like the Army with 11,000 in 2013.
KRMG posted this headline on the same subject on the same day by Don BIshop.
The problem with that report is the tiny bit of copy they provided that made no sense at all.
Another site The Wire led with "Suicide Is Now Killing More Army Reservists Than Active Duty Soldiers" from the same report out of AP.
The problem is these reports are wrong. When they report that there are less suicides they need in include the simple fact that there are less enlisted to count.
The DOD Live site had this trivial tidbit on the same day.
It is pretty bad when a whole article on this serious subject can fit on a jpg.
Kathie Costos
April 26, 2014
When reporters don't care about the subject they report on, military folks and veterans are screwed. After all, our family members are only 8% of the population. 1% serve today, actually less than 1%, and veterans are only 7% of the population. No one bothered to ever calculate the percentage of families. All of us have been dealing with reality while reporters remain oblivious.
Yesterday on Wounded Times there was the report out of Fort Bliss investigating the suspected suicides of three soldiers last weekend. In that report trouble in the Air Force screamed for attention.
According to Air Force figures, 55 airmen died by suicide last year, a rate of 14 per 100,000 personnel. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh told a Senate panel in April that 32 airmen have died by suicide so far in 2014, a rate of more than 18 per 100,000 personnel.
Wounded Times covered what Gregg Zoroya reported on USA Today how the military calculated suicide numbers when this popped up.
The Army National Guard rate for 2012 reached 30.8 deaths per 100,000 with 110 suicides. The suicide rate for men in the Army National Guard was 34.2-per-100,000,Pentagon data shows. For full-time troops across the U.S. military, the suicide rate peaked at 22.7-per-100,000 in 2012 and fell to 19.1-per-100,000 last year, according to the Pentagon.
In THE WARRIOR SAW, SUICIDES AFTER WAR the data collected from over 22,000 articles uncovered the disgraceful lack of investigations by the press. This is our lives. These are our family members. They matter to us but evidently too many reporters don't care enough so the general public only knows what they are told by reporters they trust.
How can the press be so wrong on the same report? It happens all the time. Reporters either make up their minds ahead of time or their minds simply can't understand the complexity of what they are reading.
It just happened again.
Times San Diego had this headline by Ken Stone on April 25, 2014
Pentagon Reports 474 Military Suicides in 2013 — 18% Drop from 2012 Toll
It began with this.
The suicide rate for active-duty military fell 18 percent in 2013, but the toll is still daunting — 474 troops killed themselves, according to a Pentagon report released Friday. The preliminary 2013 total deaths by suicide were 261 among active duty service members and 213 deaths in the reserve component, compared with a total 522 a year earlier.
Why would it have been reported that way? Because that is what a Lt. General told him.
“With an 18 percent drop in 2013, something is going right,” said Army Lt. Gen. Michael Linnington, military deputy at the Office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness.
On the same day, Lolita C. Baldor of Associated Press had this headline and Indiana Gazette put it up on their site.
Military suicides fell last year, report findsThat report began with the "good news" followed by the bad on the suicides of National Guards and Reservists.
Suicides across the military dropped by more than 15 percent last year, but new detailed data reveal an increase in the number of Army National Guard and Reserve soldiers who took their own lives.
The overall totals provided by the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps give some hope that prevention programs and increased efforts to identify troops at risk may be taking hold after several years of escalating suicides.
But the increase among Army National Guard and Reserve members raises questions about whether those programs are getting to the citizen soldiers who may not have the same access to support networks and help that their active duty comrades receive.
It was a total inability to factor in the other parts of what is going on such as the reduction of members in the military to count in the first place. Every branch made cuts the regular way but they also added in thousands of "bad conduct discharges" like the Army with 11,000 in 2013.
KRMG posted this headline on the same subject on the same day by Don BIshop.
Military suicide rate increasing Increase among Army National Guard, Reserve members
The problem with that report is the tiny bit of copy they provided that made no sense at all.
Another site The Wire led with "Suicide Is Now Killing More Army Reservists Than Active Duty Soldiers" from the same report out of AP.
The problem is these reports are wrong. When they report that there are less suicides they need in include the simple fact that there are less enlisted to count.
The DOD Live site had this trivial tidbit on the same day.
It is pretty bad when a whole article on this serious subject can fit on a jpg.
Friday, April 25, 2014
Emergency leave granted to soldier with husband in coma
Soldier's emergency leave ends while husband remains in coma
KXTV
Gabriel Roxas
April 23, 2014
SACRAMENTO - When a head injury on the football field left Sacramento Wildcats player D'Ondre Ransom in a coma earlier this month, the toll on his family was overwhelming. His wife, who is on active duty in the Army, brought some relief when she returned to the family on emergency leave.
But Tuesday the family faced a painful goodbye.
Army Specialist Jessica Ransom said going back to her base in Georgia with so much left uncertain is one of the many sacrifices she has to make as a soldier.
"You would think he would be safe. You'd think he'd be fine back home," Jessica Ransom said as she prepared to board her plane at Sacramento International Airport.
D'Ondre Ransom was injured during a game with the semi-pro Wildcats April 5 in Santa Rosa. His mother said he fell down after he was hit. He got back up, fell again and then stopped breathing.
Families fear that phone call about their loved ones away at war, but soldiers know that same dread all too well.
read more here
KXTV
Gabriel Roxas
April 23, 2014
SACRAMENTO - When a head injury on the football field left Sacramento Wildcats player D'Ondre Ransom in a coma earlier this month, the toll on his family was overwhelming. His wife, who is on active duty in the Army, brought some relief when she returned to the family on emergency leave.
But Tuesday the family faced a painful goodbye.
Army Specialist Jessica Ransom said going back to her base in Georgia with so much left uncertain is one of the many sacrifices she has to make as a soldier.
"You would think he would be safe. You'd think he'd be fine back home," Jessica Ransom said as she prepared to board her plane at Sacramento International Airport.
D'Ondre Ransom was injured during a game with the semi-pro Wildcats April 5 in Santa Rosa. His mother said he fell down after he was hit. He got back up, fell again and then stopped breathing.
Families fear that phone call about their loved ones away at war, but soldiers know that same dread all too well.
read more here
Military suicides percentages went up
We read their stories every week. We read how they sought help. Did everything experts said they needed to do. We read how their families tried to help them but just didn't know what to do. Then we read some General claim the military is not the problem. They claim it is the fault of the war fighters or that they didn't have the right kind of supportive family. It has always been the fault of someone else including what Major General Dana Pittard of Fort Bliss said a few years ago. “I have now come to the conclusion that suicide is an absolutely selfish act,” he wrote on his website.
We have heard so much pure BS over the years but there is no way they can get around the facts. As they talked about the drop in suicides they failed to mention the number of enlisted also went down. Iraq was over and troops were withdrawing from Afghanistan, but as the claims of what they were doing finally working came out, the truth was much different for the troops and their families.
Read this on USA Today along with the other news reports that came out today.
What good does it do to be wrong but defend it instead of admitting and learning? It does about as much good to be right and no one listened.
"Some of it is just personal make-up. Intestinal fortitude. Mental toughness that ensures that people are able to deal with stressful situations."According to another General. But this one went on to blame the family as well.
"But it also has to do with where you come from. I came from a loving family, one who gave lots of positive reinforcement, who built up psychologically who I was, who I am, what I might want to do."General Raymond Odierno said that last year in an interview with Huffington Post.
We have heard so much pure BS over the years but there is no way they can get around the facts. As they talked about the drop in suicides they failed to mention the number of enlisted also went down. Iraq was over and troops were withdrawing from Afghanistan, but as the claims of what they were doing finally working came out, the truth was much different for the troops and their families.
Read this on USA Today along with the other news reports that came out today.
War-years military suicide rate higher than believed
USA TODAY
MILITARY INTELLIGENCE
Gregg Zoroya
April 25, 2014
Rates of suicide in the military were slightly worse during the war years than what the Pentagon previously reported, according to new calculations released by Defense Department officials Friday.
The new arithmetic shows that from 2006 forward — during the fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan — the true suicide rate across the U.S. military was actually several tenths of a percent to 1% or more higher than what was being reported.
"It took us time and effort to sit down and really just kind of figure out a better way to do the math," says Jacqueline Garrick, director of the Defense Suicide Prevention Office. She said the delay was a need to standardize how suicides are counted across the military.
The problem with the old, now-abandoned calculation, is that it relied partly on an estimated figure in determining a suicide rate rather than precise numbers, says Army Lt. Gen. Michael Linnington, the military deputy to the under secretary of Defense for personnel and readiness.
The old rates were calculated by the Office of the Armed Forces Medical Examiner, according to the Pentagon,
"It's jaw-dropping that the Pentagon would use this kind of crass calculation to measure the impact of the suicide epidemic within their ranks," says Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., a senior member of the Veterans Affairs Committee. "If that recalculation in any way indicates a need for additional funding or new services, the Pentagon and Congress must respond to address a problem which is clearly worse than we had been led to believe."
read more here
What good does it do to be wrong but defend it instead of admitting and learning? It does about as much good to be right and no one listened.
Fort Bliss had 3 deaths Easter weekend thought to be suicides
3 possible suicides at Fort Bliss last weekend
Army Times
By Patricia Kime
Staff writer
April 24, 2014
Fort Bliss, Texas, is reeling from three deaths on Easter weekend that, while still under investigation, are thought to be suicides.
A source told Military Times that two enlisted soldiers and a captain have died by suicide since April 17, a blow to a post that has built a new center for mental health and suicide prevention and where President Obama in 2012 announced an executive order expanding military and veterans mental health services.
Exactly how many suicides the Army has had this year is unknown; the service, which once published the data monthly, stopped issuing them in December. The service also has not released its total figures for 2013, although preliminary figures given to Military Times in February showed 150 suicides among Army active-duty and activated Reserve or National Guard troops.
read more here
Army Times
By Patricia Kime
Staff writer
April 24, 2014
According to Air Force figures, 55 airmen died by suicide last year, a rate of 14 per 100,000 personnel. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh told a Senate panel in April that 32 airmen have died by suicide so far in 2014, a rate of more than 18 per 100,000 personnel.
Fort Bliss, Texas, is reeling from three deaths on Easter weekend that, while still under investigation, are thought to be suicides.
A source told Military Times that two enlisted soldiers and a captain have died by suicide since April 17, a blow to a post that has built a new center for mental health and suicide prevention and where President Obama in 2012 announced an executive order expanding military and veterans mental health services.
Exactly how many suicides the Army has had this year is unknown; the service, which once published the data monthly, stopped issuing them in December. The service also has not released its total figures for 2013, although preliminary figures given to Military Times in February showed 150 suicides among Army active-duty and activated Reserve or National Guard troops.
read more here
National Guards and Reservist Suicides Increased
In the Army alone, they say that the numbers dropped from 185 in 2012 to 152 in 2013 but the Army had also released a report stating that 11,000 had been discharged in 2013 for bad conduct alone. This report did not count the number of soldiers cut to trim down the size of the Army. The Marines, Navy and Air Force also saw reduction in force size, but when they talk about the number of suicides going down, they seem to forget that simple fact.
The National Guards and Reservist numbers going up have been ignored as if they don't matter. The DOD is still trying to minimize the connection between deployment and suicides.
"According to the Army data, more than half of the reservists who committed suicide in 2012 and 2013 had served in Iraq and Afghanistan. Officials, however, have not been able to establish a strong link between military service on the warfront and suicide."They can't establish a strong link to much at all.
Number of military suicides dropped last year
Associated Press
By Lolita C. Baldor
Published: April 25, 2014
WASHINGTON (AP) — Suicides across the military dropped by more than 15 percent last year, but new detailed data reveals an increase in the number of Army National Guard and Reserve soldiers who took their own lives.
The overall totals provided by the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps give some hope that prevention programs and increased efforts to identify troops at risk may be taking hold after several years of escalating suicides. But the increase among Army National Guard and Reserve members raises questions about whether those programs are getting to the citizen soldiers who may not have the same access to support networks and help that their active duty comrades receive.
Not only did the Army National Guard and Reserve suicides increase from 140 in 2012 to 152 last year, but the 2013 total exceeded the number of active duty soldiers who took their own lives, according to the Army. There were 151 active duty soldier suicides last year, compared with 185 in 2012, Army officials said.
The Pentagon plans to release a report Friday on military suicides. But those numbers differ a bit from the totals provided by the services because of complicated accounting changes in how the department counts suicides by reservists. Some of the Pentagon numbers were finalized a year ago, while the services have more recently updated totals that reflect the results of some death investigations.
According to the four military services, there were 289 suicides among active duty troops in 2013, down from 343 in 2012. The vast majority were in the Army, the nation's largest military service. The Navy saw a 25 percent decline, from 59 in 2012 to 44 in 2013. The Marines went from 48 to 45, while the Air Force went from 51 to 49.
read more here
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