Vandals in Florida Get Less Punishment For Telephones than Veterans Monuments?

Florida Veterans Ask Lawmakers To Increase Penalties For Vet Memorial Vandals
WLRN News 
By SASCHA CORDNER
MAR 14, 2017

“Monuments all over the state have been vandalized in recent years. I have many pictures here of them being vandalized, causing thousands and thousands of dollars worth of damage: World War II monuments…my father’s monuments vandalized, Korea, Vietnam, Gulf War, even the 9-11 Monument was vandalized,” he added. “And, the penalties right now for vandalizing these monuments is just a slap on the wrist.”

Did you know it’s worse to vandalize a public telephone than deface a Veterans’ monument in Florida? As one of the most populous states for veterans, Florida lawmakers are trying to correct that.

“My name is Seber Newsome III,” said the Yulee resident. “I’m a veteran. My father was a veteran. He was in World War II in Omaha Beach, and my great-grandfather was a veteran.”

Newsome is normally outspoken on Confederate Veteran Issues. For example, representing the “Save Southern Heritage Florida” organization, he, last year, spoke against a bill to replace a Florida statue of a Confederate general in Washington D.C.

read more here

Air Force Dad Gets Warm Welcome Home From Baby in Glasses

WATCH: BABY SEES DAD FOR FIRST TIME WITH GLASSES AFTER EMOTIONAL MILITARY HOMECOMING
ABC 7 News
Jennifer Matarese
March 13, 2017

NEW YORK (WABC) -- A baby boy in upstate New York is melting hearts after a video captured him seeing his father for the first time with glasses after a two-month deployment.

9-month-old Reagan had just gotten his new glasses right after his father, Brandon Caldwell, was deployed to Antarctica. Captain Caldwell has served in the Air Force for a decade.

Reagan's mother, Amanda, took the video of the happy reunion and was delighted that she got this emotional moment on camera. In fact, she said that Brandon was worried that Reagan might not remember him. That was certainly not the case!
read more here

Army Captain Chaplain Received Soldier's Medal

‘Warrior’ chaplain honored for taking down machete-wielding suicidal soldier 
Ledger Enquirer 
Chuck Williams 
March 14, 2017

“Here is where the truth comes in,” Christensen said. “Nothing but fear, and I believe the work of of the Holy Spirit, moved me into a position where I could physically control the soldier.”

The black cross patch on the right side of Capt. Matthew C. Christensen’s U.S. Army uniform tells a story.

It’s where Army meets religion.

Two years ago, during his previous assignment in Alaska, the chaplain was forced into a situation where he had to act quickly with the fight-or-die instincts of a soldier. It was another place where Army meets religion.

Christensen, a 43-year-old Montana native, defused a potential deadly situation by unarming a machete-wielding soldier during a suicide attempt that was on the verge of turning into multiple homicides. Tuesday morning at Fort Benning, Christensen, who served as a Lutheran pastor before becoming an active duty chaplain seven years ago, was awarded the Soldier’s Medal, the Army’s highest honor for valor in a non-combat situation.
read more here

Sgt. First Class Brian Mancini Lost His Own Battle

Hundreds pay their respects to founder of Honor House veterans organization
FOX 10 News
Linda Williams
March 14, 2017

Earlier this month, the man who helped so many took his own life. While shocked, veterans say his death has galvanized them to continue the fight SFC Mancini was so dedicated to.

PHOENIX (KSAZ) - An Iraq war veteran who made it his life's mission to help other troops returning from war has died. Brian Mancini co-founded Honor House, a place where wounded veterans could go for therapy and counseling. But sadly, the man who helped so many others heal couldn't find peace himself.

A retired Sgt. First Class, Mancini was just 38 years old and he left the Honor House organization he founded a year ago.

Mancini, who had two Purple Hearts, worked tirelessly to save veterans who were hurting. On Tuesday, the community came to salute, honor and thank him. With the Patriot Guard standing by, hundreds crowded into the Christ Church of the Valley to say goodbye to the Army veteran. Many here call him hero.

His family is devastated, but also his fellow veterans. He may not have served with them, but they say he saved their lives once they came home mentally and emotionally wounded.

"Brian literally met with me five to seven times a week, gave me a healing, counseled me, he pulled me away from the abyss so many times," said Budd Gilbert, a veteran.
read more here
Sergeant First Class (US Army) Brian Mancini, Veteran Iraqi Freedom, Honor House
Sergeant First Class (US Army) Brian Mancini, Veteran Iraqi Freedom, Honor House from Herbert Hitchon on Vimeo.

VA Lists Disabilities for Camp Lejeune Marines-Families

VA’s rule establishes presumption of service connection for diseases associated with exposure to contaminants in water supply at Camp Lejeune 

VA to provide disability benefits for related diseases

WASHINGTON – The Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) regulations to establish presumptions for the service connection of eight diseases associated with exposure to contaminants in the water supply at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, are effective as of today.

“Establishing these presumptions is a demonstration of our commitment to care for those who have served our nation and have been exposed to harm as a result of that service,” said Secretary of Veterans Affairs, Dr. David J. Shulkin. “The Camp Lejeune presumptions will make it easier for those Veterans to receive the care and benefits they earned.”

The presumption of service connection applies to active-duty, reserve and National Guard members who served at Camp Lejeune for a minimum of 30 days (cumulative) between Aug. 1, 1953, and Dec. 31, 1987, and are diagnosed with any of the following conditions:

Adult leukemia

Aplastic anemia and other myelodysplastic syndromes

Bladder cancer

Kidney cancer

Liver cancer

Multiple myeloma

Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma

Parkinson’s disease

The area included in this presumption is all of Camp Lejeune and Marine Corps Air Station New River, including satellite camps and housing areas.

This presumption complements the health care already provided for 15 illnesses or conditions as part of the Honoring America’s Veterans and Caring for Camp Lejeune Families Act of 2012. The Camp Lejeune Act requires VA to provide health care to Veterans who served at Camp Lejeune, and to reimburse family members or pay providers for medical expenses for those who resided there for not fewer than 30 days between Aug. 1, 1953, and Dec. 31, 1987.

Wounded Times Dog Days

It seems most of Wounded Times Google+ posts over the last couple of days have been about dogs. (Gee, no shocker there)

How a dog named 'Harbaugh' helped a Michigan veteran fight PTSD

Skydiving Dogs

Dropping into action Dogs are also trained to rappel from helicopters. “That is the most effective tool against poaching ever used and it’s low technology, it’s low cost compared to other technologies. And it works,” Holtshyzen says

‘Puppy Love’ Turning Out To Be Great Way To Help Vets With PTSD

March 13, 2017 

On National K9 Veterans Day, Salute Military Working Dogs

Monday, March 13, marks National K9 Veterans Day, a day to honor and commemorate the service and sacrifices of American military and working dogs throughout history. According to American Humane, it was 75 years ago today that the U.S. Army first established the War Dog Program, or “K9 Corps,” to train man’s best friend to become the military’s best canine asset. The dogs of war who have served alongside soldiers throughout history aren’t just good dogs — they’re great dogs.

Veteran who served in Afghanistan gets reunited with service dog after 5 years

Colorado Missing Iraq Veteran Cory Hixon Found Safe

Veteran’s family says his disappearance over weekend caused by poor VA care
FOX 31 News
BY DAVE YOUNG
MARCH 13, 2017

Somehow, the survivalist-trained Marine ended up in a Greeley jail Monday after stealing a sweater and something to eat. He still wasn't wearing shoes.

BROOMFIELD, Colo. -- It was just after 9:20 p.m. Saturday at Cory Hixon's Broomfield apartment when his family says the 33-year-old became distraught and jumped off a balcony wearing no shoes and no coat, disappearing into the night.

Two days later, as family watched and waited desperately for news, police with tracking dogs searched the area where they believe he might have gone.

“He's trying to leave so that he's no longer a burden to our family, which he's not,” said Cory’s wife, Shala Hixon.

During two combat tours in Iraq, the decorated U.S. Marine lost an eye during a firefight and suffered a traumatic brain injury from a mortar round that left him unconscious.

The injuries left the father of two young children with severe memory loss, anxiety, migraines and post traumatic stress disorder.
read more here

The Rest of the Story on Veteran Suicides

As with most things, numbers are really important but data is king. If the researchers do not tell where numbers came from, it is up to the reviewer to put the pieces together. So far, I'm totally confused.

As the number of veterans living in the US has gone down since 1999, and "efforts" have increased to the point where "awareness" has become a mega money maker, the number of reported suicides should have gone down after all these years. So why are they virtually the same? 

This is such a serious issue and so far I've seen little to do with seeking answers as much as folks run around seeking publicity, including politicians.

Department Veterans Affairs 2016 Suicide Report Start with these charts from the report.

2013 Report from Alaska
Veteran Suicides Twice as High as Civilian Rates
by Jeff Hargarten, Forrest Burnson, Bonnie Campo and Chase Cook | News21

News21 filed a Freedom of Information Act request for the raw data collected by the VA to this point, but it was denied because the “disclosure of raw research data poses a serious threat to the scientific process” and because of fears the information would be misinterpreted without peer review.
Most states provided veteran suicide information gleaned from death certificates. VA research, Kemp said, shows death certificates are about 90 percent accurate and “good enough” to help understand veteran suicides.

Veterans are over-represented among suicides compared to the general population, a trend seen in most states between 2005 and 2011.

For example, in Alaska, veterans were about 14 percent of the population, but represented about 21 percent of all suicides in 2010. The same year in Washington, Census data showed veterans were about 11 percent of the population, but state vital statistics showed they represented about 23 percent of suicides.

Florida
Military, veteran suicides account for nearly one in every four in Florida ... but the numbers don't explain why
Jacksonville Times Union
By Clifford Davis
Posted April 26, 2014

STATE NUMBERS STAGGERING

In Florida, the numbers are staggering.

Although veterans make up only 8 percent of the state’s population, they accounted for more than 25 percent of its suicides, according to the report.

Between 1999 and 2011, 31,885 suicides were reported in the state, according to the Florida Department of Health. That would mean more than 8,000 Florida veterans took their lives during those 13 years, according to the VA.

The numbers put Florida among states with the highest percentage of veteran suicides — but the numbers don't explain why.

Aside from Florida, most states report the veteran suicide rate is double the civilian population rate.

Oklahoma Veterans Commit Suicide at Twice the Rate of Civilians
By Chase Cook August 27, 2013
The veteran suicide rate in Oklahoma is down from a peak of about 46 in 2008, but researchers said that year had increased suicides due to the Great Recession. The rate dropped to about 39 in 2009 and has since climbed back up.

But the puzzling thing is that California does not tract veteran suicides.

Valley Assembly members introduce legislation to track veteran suicide rates
Fresno Bee
BY CHUEYEE YANG
January 20, 2017

Assemblymen Joaquin Arambula, D-Fresno and Jim Patterson, R-Fresno introduced legislation Monday that would require the State of California to track how many veterans die by suicide.

AB 242 would require the California Department of Public Health to send veteran suicide rates and data from the electronic death registration system to the California Department of Veterans Affairs and the Legislature.

And in Illinois, they do not have the ability to list it on their death certificates.

Cullerton advanced Senate Bill 1693 to allow deceased veterans with military service to include their veteran status, branch of military and the period of time served in the military on their death certificate.

I went through the suicide report from the VA and they say they used the VA, DOD and CDC for reports, but with these two states not even tracking the numbers, how good is this report? The next question is, when do reporters actually start to ask for answers? When do folks running around the country actually get held accountable for "raising" awareness cash while the problem veterans face has gotten worse and when the hell do they start to raise awareness about the rest of the story?

WWII Veteran Hoped Things Would Be Different for Military Women Today

Marine scandal hits home for Ohio women veterans
The Columbus Dispatch
Rita Price
March 10, 2017

"You raised your head a little higher, you clicked your heels a little harder and you walked on," Gilliam told an audience at the Ohio History Center. "Today, I'm hoping, it is different."

At 94, World War II veteran Ruby Gilliam would like to be able to say she outlived the problem. But she knows that the fight against discrimination and harassment are far from over for America's military women.

"I used to think, 'Someday, this will change,''' Gilliam said. "There we were, serving our country. It was all very disturbing. It still is."

A panel of female veterans — some more than a half-century younger than Gilliam — joined her Friday to celebrate Women's History Month and to share their stories of struggle and accomplishment, of hope and honor.

Gilliam was a young widow who had lost her husband to the war when she shocked her family and joined the military herself. She still considers the moment she donned her WAVES uniform the proudest of her life, more so, she said to laughter, than giving birth.

That certainty made the slurs hurt and bewilder all the more. With few avenues for complaint, she and others tried to respond with determination.
read more here

Ditched Troubled Veterans Thrown Out, Thrown Lifeline

A Lifeline for Troubled Veterans
New York Times
By THE EDITORIAL BOARD
MARCH 11, 2017

There are roughly 500,000 veterans with less than honorable discharges, including more than 100,000 who left the service during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The government does not know what percentage of these veterans have acute mental health problems, but it became apparent after the Iraq drawdown that many were struggling.

Credit Caroline Gamon

After the United States withdrew troops from Iraq in 2011, thousands of combat troops were expelled from the force with less than honorable discharges as the military came under pressure to downsize quickly. This left a large number of veterans — including many kicked out for minor infractions — without access to health care and other benefits that are granted to service members who leave the armed forces with honorable discharges.

After being cut off from care and benefits, many turned to drugs and painkillers, often to relieve physical pain and mental distress that resulted from combat. Some wound up homeless. Others killed themselves.

Last week, the Department of Veterans Affairs took an important, belated step to protect tens of thousands of former service members who risked their lives in war zones. Starting this summer, the agency decided, it will provide emergency mental health care to some veterans who received less than honorable discharges.

“Our goal is simple: to save lives,” David Shulkin, the secretary of veterans affairs, said on Tuesday as he announced the change in policy during testimony before the House Veterans Affairs Committee. “Veterans who are in crisis should receive help immediately.”
read more here

California Does Not Track Veteran Suicides?

How many veterans are we talking about? Consider that California has the largest percentage of veterans, then reconsider the fact that none of these veterans were part of the suicide reports.

California has the largest number of veterans of any state in the nation with nearly 2.1 million vets calling the Golden State home. That’s about 9% of the nation’s entire veteran population. The state also has the highest number of homeless veterans in the country with a staggering estimated 50,000 living on the streets. It follows that veterans make up 26% of the state’s homeless population. Furthermore, the state estimates that 62% of homeless veterans have been diagnosed with both substance abuse issues and mental health problems. Additional benefits and services include tuition waivers for college, job placement services, vocational training, assistance with applying for aid from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, burial in a state veterans cemetery and special outreach programs for veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

VETERANS GATHERED TO SUPPORT BILL THAT WILL TRACK VETERAN SUICIDE IN CALIFORNIA
ABC 30 News
By Cory James
Friday, March 10, 2017

Currently data on veteran suicide is collected by county coroners, but that information is not being used by the state to help come up with ways to improve suicide prevention outreach and other programs.

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Military Police Veteran Norbie Lara knows the danger that comes with protecting our country and serving overseas. In 2004, while in Iraq, he was injured when the vehicle he was in was struck by a rocket-propelled grenade.

"Which took my arm, my lieutenant's left arm-- she was sitting right behind me."

But Lara says the risk of returning home is often just as bad as being out on the battlefield, because for some it is a homecoming that ends in suicide.

"I lost a buddy, Tim, to suicide and I attempted to take my life a couple times."

Because of that, Lara is a supporter of this new bill-- AB 242. The bill will require the State Department of Public Health to collect data on veteran suicides and report it to the legislature and the Department of Veteran Affairs each year.
read more here

Newspaper Helps Army Veteran with Their Heart

Newspaper with a Heart came to the aid of a veteran
The Ledger
By Eric Pera
March 11, 2017

The Heart program exists through the generosity of Ledger readers who recognize the need for a fund of last resort for families — neighbors — in crisis, usually because of severe illness, injury or loss of job. The program also assists seniors living on limited incomes.

Janet Williams, at her apartment in Winter Haven, is an Army Veteran with medical issues and loss of job. Pierre DuCharme

WINTER HAVEN — South Korea seemed a million miles away from Janet Williams' world in New York.

It was 1996. She was 25. She'd just received her first deployment as a new Army recruit. Korea was considered a "hardship tour," a place with substandard living conditions compared to the United States. It came with extra pay, but such tours are lengthy.

Her's lasted a year. Turns out Korea wasn't so bad. It was her fellow soldiers she had to fear.

Williams says she was sexually assaulted six months after arriving in Korea. Aside from the humiliation, she received a head injury severe enough to cause migraines. Stress, combined with her injuries, led to PTSD, or post-traumatic stress disorder, and multiple sclerosis.

As a result, Williams qualified for medical retirement and disability pay. She said she left the Army after serving approximately 3½ years.
read more here

Orlando Nam Knights Bike Week Party

Could not have asked for a better day out at the Orlando Nam Knights for the annual Bike Week Party. Blue sky, over head, lots of "family" gathered together and oh, yes, the Harley's!

UCF Restores Gets Funding for PTSD...We Get Left Out On Our Own

PROPOSED NATIONAL DEFENSE BUDGET INCLUDES $3M FOR CENTRAL FLORIDA PTSD CLINIC
WMFE News
by Renata Sago
March 9, 2017

More than 250 service members, veterans, and first responders have been treated since the clinic opened.

The $577.9 billion national defense bill passed by the U.S. House of Representatives earlier this week includes a provision for money that would go to a University of Central Florida clinic that treats veterans and first responders for post-traumatic stress disorder.

UCF RESTORES uses virtual reality as a key part of treatment. The funding for the clinic would come from a defense budget devoted to advanced concepts and simulation.

Dan Holsenbeck, Senior Vice President for University Relations for UCF, is hopeful the provision will get Senate approval and eventually a nod from the president. He knows the funding will not help the clinic run long-term.
read more here 

And yet again, this program is just for OEF and OIF veterans...not our generation!

UCF Restores

PTSD Treatment
Troop deployment to Iraq and Afghanistan has been extensive and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is common among our returning veterans. PTSD is associated with poor quality of life, guilt, anger, and unemployment, among other life challenges.

The Trauma Management Therapy program, a division of UCF RESTORES, is offering a treatment program that uses the most effective treatments for combat-related PTSD.

This is a clinical research program, funded by a grant to UCF from the Department of Defense Military Operations Medical Operations Program.

Individuals who have served in Iraq or Afghanistan, who believe that they might be suffering from PTSD, and who are interested in getting more information about our Trauma Management Therapy program are encouraged to call the TMT Project Manager, Dr. Sandra Neer, at 407-823-1668.

Do they give a shit about the fact that the majority of the reported suicides by the VA are over the age of 50? Do they give a crap that age group is also among the largest percentage of veterans fighting PTSD on a daily basis with little help or attention? Do we matter at all to any of these new "efforts" following the decades of efforts we created in the first place?