As you read this, I'll be getting on a plane to make my way to Las Vegas for the 5th Annual Netroots Nation convention. Netroots Nation is the largest annual gathering of progressive activists in America. Featured speakers this year include Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi, Ed Schultz, Al Franken and several of the VoteVets.org endorsed candidates.
Among other activities VoteVets will be involved in this weekend, VetVoice front-page contributor Matthew Alexander will be sitting on a panel discussing the closing of the prison at Guantanamo Bay and a return to the rule of law. Matthew's panel will be Saturday from 4:45-6:00 PM EST. We'll be streaming the video from the panel here live on that day.
The VoteVets staff and VetVoice contributor delegation this year includes the already mentioned Matthew Alexander, myself, front-page contributor Kate Hoit, VoteVets.org Vice Chair Peter Granato, and Chairman Jon Soltz. We'll also be joined by Mark Star, Program Coordinator for the Vet Voice Foundation (no relation).
If you're going to be in Vegas for the conference, drop a line in the comments and we'll make sure we include you in any VoteVets meet-up activities.
Underpayments of living stipends to veterans using the Post-9/11 GI Bill will be corrected in August when the Veterans Affairs Department issues one-time catch-up checks to anyone who has received the stipend since Jan. 1.
The checks represent a fix to a problem caused when VA did not update living stipends in January after military housing allowances, on which the stipends are based, increased.
First, the good: Every time there has been a hiccup in the process of administering the post-9/11 G.I. Bill, this Department of Veterans Affairs has been really great about seeing to it that the problem is resolved fairly and in as timely a manner as possible. VA deserves to be commended for that.
Now, the bad: We're coming up on the post-9/11 G.I. Bill's first birthday. Shouldn't the kinks be worked out by now? It's seems to me that we are passed the point where hiccups are acceptable.
Hopefully, VA has it's act together now and we won't see any more problems like this.
We've reported here at length on KBR's complicity in the deaths of American Soldiers as a result of their shotty electrical work on showers. However, KBR isn't just killing troops with electrocution. The company has found other ways to make deployed service members deathly ill:
The day after the 9/11 terrorist attack, Glen Bootay of Pleasant Hills enlisted in the Army. He was fit enough to complete boot camp, advanced combat training and airborne school before he helped coalition troops take control of the Baghdad Airport.
On Tuesday, he needed a walker and assistance to navigate the halls of U.S. District Court, Downtown.
Sitting through a two-hour hearing to determine whether his lawsuit against Houston-based defense contractor KBR Inc. will continue exhausted him, his brother said.
"He's not doing well," Robert Bootay said later.
U.S. District Judge Terrence McVerry didn't immediately rule after listening to lawyers' arguments. Bootay is one of at least 140 veterans who have sued KBR for health problems they link to chemical exposure at a water treatment plant in Iraq. The company is contesting the cases.
Glen Bootay, 31, undergoes chemotherapy weekly and takes up to 35 medications daily to treat medical problems that include constant headaches, chest pain, irregular heartbeat, collapse of the lungs, extreme fatigue, skin rashes, inability to sweat, vomiting, numbness, high blood sugar, kidney stones, loss of consciousness and short-term memory loss, according to his lawsuit.
KBR has repeatedly shown negligence and a lack of regard for the lives and/or quality of life of American troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. Yet somehow, these war profiteers continue to be awarded contracts worth hundreds of millions of dollars. Would we pay millions to the Taliban to kill American troops? Why are paying KBR to do the same?
Conservative military scholar Max Boot articulates what I've been saying for months:
[Afghanistan's rules of engagement have] resulted in a handful of highly publicized cases, recycled many times in news accounts, in which troops complain that they were prevented from calling in badly needed air strikes. It appears likely that McChrystal's broad directives, while well-intentioned, were interpreted too bureaucratically and too narrowly by some units. That is something that General David Petraeus and his operational commander, Lieutenant General David Rodriguez, are now studying to determine whether adjustments are necessary.
I'm not pretending that Max Boot stole this idea for me. These are simply the facts and Boot and I, among others, have come to the same conclusion on them-- that is the rational conclusion.
The problem, however, still needs to be fixed. A culture needs to be developed within the ranks where leaders insure that the RoE is understood, with all its nuance, from the regional commander all the way down to the lowest E-1 in a rifle squad. We can't keep dumbing things down to a card that fits in the wallet or breast pocket and expect Soldiers and leaders to then make the most tactically sound decisions. Our Soldiers are intelligent. We have the most professional fighting force in the history of the world. To expect any less of them is an insult to their professionalism and threatens their safety on the battlefield.
Back in May, Fox News, a company owned by Rupert Murdoch and a bunch of foreign oil barons, refused to carry one of our clean energy ads, stating it was "too confusing". As Politico reported yesterday afternoon, Fox News is again rejecting an ad which points out that our dependence on foreign oil is to the detriment of our national security and puts our troops in harms way. This time, however, Fox News did not offer any rationale for rejecting our ad, which features Brigadier General Steven Anderson, Chief of Logistics in Iraq under General Petraeus, pointing out the obvious-- that the clean energy bill currently held up in the Senate will reduce our dependence on countries that aide terrorism.
I wish I could say I was surprised, but Fox News gave up any hint of objectivity over a decade ago.
Moving fuel in a warzone. It's probably the most dangerous job in the world, costing over 1000 American lives. I should know. I was the Chief Logistics Officer under General David Petraeus in Iraq. During my 15 months over there, I became convinced our young men and women are getting killed moving fuel we wouldn't need if our military was more efficient. That's why I chose to be in this new clean energy ad for VoteVets.org
There are many ways that energy reform will help save lives. For example, simply insulating our inefficient structures in theater will not only save Billions of dollars (Yes, with a "B"), but will get thousands of fuel trucks and escorts off the most dangerous roads in the world. It's through my experiences of overseeing the fuel resupply effort in Iraq that I learned the importance of energy efficiency, reducing risks to our troops, getting us off of foreign oil, and developing new, renewable fuel technologies.
A clean energy plan seems common sense to me, but passage of the plan isn't a sure thing. I see this plan as a way to save American lives, protect America, and create thousands of new jobs. Some industries sees it as a threat to their bottom line but fail to see a great opportunity for not only their bottom line, but our national security, financial independence, and economic prosperity.
Right now, the Senate is considering a clean energy climate plan, that will cut our dependence on foreign oil in half, drive our nation to embrace energy efficiency, and bring about a revolution in new clean, renewable fuel technologies that won't just help us here at home, but will save American lives abroad. Our Senators have to make a choice - keep spending billions of dollars a day on foreign oil, or let America keep paying the price.
We don't have a moment to waste, and I'm committed to doing everything I can to see that Congress passes a clean energy plan this year. Can I count on you to stand with me? Can we stand together to fight for our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan supporting fuel missions in which every bend in the road could be their last? Please click the link above, and join me in this important fight.
Thanks for all of your support.
Sincerely,
Brigadier General Steven M. Anderson, US Army (Retired)
Former Chief of Logistics (MNF-I C4) in Iraq (August 2006-November 2007)
In a case brought by the Republican Party's LGBT caucus, Major Michael Almy testified Friday to one of the many reasons DADT does not work:
After his tour, he returned to his base in Germany, where he was called to his commander's office and questioned about a dozen personal e-mails he said the Air Force discovered after a service member searched through his computer in Iraq.
Almy said his commander tried to force him to admit he had violated "don't ask, don't tell."
"We went round and round for approximately 20 minutes," Almy testified.
Almy said he never admitted to the military he was gay and was careful to keep his personal life separate from his professional one. Still, after the meeting, Almy was told he was relieved of his duties.
"I was completely devastated," Almy said. "I drove myself home. I took my uniform off and I curled up in the fetal position on my bathroom floor like a baby and bawled for several hours."
Even if you are gay and abide by DoD's ridiculous policy which harms combat readiness and unit cohesion, you can still be fired for being gay, despite what ever needed competency and leadership ability you may possess. The notion proposed by some that gays are free to serve as long as they do not admit to their conduct, irrespective of the fact that such a policy is incompatible with the military value of integrity, is simply a fallacy.
Soldiers killed themselves at the rate of one per day in June, making it the worst month on record for Army suicides, the service said Thursday.
There were 32 confirmed or suspected suicides among soldiers in June, including 21 among active-duty troops and 11 among National Guard or Reserve forces, according to Army statistics.
Seven soldiers killed themselves while in combat in Iraq or Afghanistan in June, according to the statistics. Of the total suicides, 22 soldiers had been in combat, including 10 who had deployed two to four times.
Suicides have been a problem in the Army in recent years, not surprisingly. Optempo is not slowing down and the Army culture isn't going to change over night. Unfortunately, as much as I hope it does, I don't see this getting better any time soon.
Three years ago, I had never met anyone from VoteVets.org. I was just a paratrooper and noncommissioned officer in Afghanistan frustrated at playing whac-a-mole in the deserts of Helmand Province while resources were being thrown at an unnecessary conflict two countries to the West. I started writing about my experiences and posting them on different progressive blogs, where I "met" (virtually, that is) a Vet writer, Brandon Friedman, who was working for a progressive organization for Veterans and was in the process of establishing a community blog.
A few months later, still in Afghanistan, I e-mailed friends that I was establishing my own blog, rather than continue to post on other sites and invited them to come visit. Brandon responded that if I wanted a place to write, the front page of VetVoice was an available option. Not long after, I along with ThisDudesArmy and LT Nixon became front page contributors at the relatively new VetVoice blog.
"ThisDudesArmy" was the pseudonym of Alex Horton, who had already been writing his own blog, Army of Dude for several months through the surge in Iraq where he served with the 2nd Infantry Division. In my opinion, Alex's writing talent dwarfed anything I had been capable of by epic proportions and it was an honor to have my by-line appear next to his. I've tried not to change VetVoice much from the original feel of the community back then. There are new faces here to be sure, but the mission is still the same.
After I left the Army, I focused more on my work with VoteVets and eventually came on staff. LT Nixon, who had been blogging from Iraq as a Naval officer, got out and took a job out of the country, but still pops up around the milblogosphere every now and then. When Alex ETS'd, he refocused on Army of Dude and did the lord's work exposing the Quixotic task of obtaining post-9/11 GI Bill benefits in the early days of the program.
For all the manhole covers Alex dropped on VA in those days, it's a welcome surprise to hear that Alex is joining VA as part of their new media team. Alex has the experience and the credibility to help VA move further into the 21st Century and use web 2.0 tools to more effectively help Veterans. Alex is one of us, and it's always a good thing when a guy who has experienced the problems of a system first hand gets the opportunity to fix it.
Karl Rove has an op-ed in today's Murdoch-owned Wall Street Journal (the print edition of Murdoch-owned Fox News) arguing that when he didn't defend the Bush Administration from charges that they lied us into war with Iraq, he hurt America:
The damage extended beyond Mr. Bush's presidency. The attacks on Mr. Bush poisoned America's political discourse. Saying the commander-in-chief intentionally lied America into war is about the most serious accusation that can be leveled at a president. The charge was false-and it opened the way for politicians in both parties to move the debate from differences over issues into ad hominem attacks.
There are, at least, two problems with Rove's line of argument in the piece.
First, to accept that his failure to defend the Administration from accusations of dishonestly hurt the country, you have to also accept an alternate reality in which that Administration didn't lie us into war. In that reality, documentation of collaboratorsacknowledging that dishonesty could not exist. Of course, that isn't the reality in which we live.
Second, you'd have to live in an alternate reality where the Bush Administration didn't hit back at those who correctly accused them of lying us into war by outing a covert CIA agent who had discovered that the Administration was lying. Of course, the Administration did that.
In addition to these alternate realities, Rove offers no defense to the charge. His only argument is that "Democrats bought our lies and parroted them". To be sure, Democrats did do that and should be held accountable. But just because your opposition bought it and gave you cover doesn't mean you weren't lying.
Sorry, Karl. But you and your cohorts lied America into a quagmire that has needlessly killed thousands of American troops, an action that allowed the real war on terror in Afghanistan to deteriorate to a point that it may now be unsalvageable, while also publicly revealing covert intelligence networks in an act of personal retribution. These actions are what you should feel ashamed of, rather than lying about not lying when we found out you were a liar.
As Spencer notes, calling them a militia isn't accurate, as they are government uniformed and government payed, and likening them to the Anbar Awakening is wrong as well since they are not former insurgents. However, General Petraeus is seeking to install the closest replication of his similar strategy from Iraq that we have yet seen in Afghanistan:
In a welcome step forward for the Obama administration's beleaguered war strategy, Afghan President Hamid Karzai has approved a U.S.-backed plan to create local defense forces across the country in an attempt to build grass-roots opposition to the Taliban, U.S. and Afghan officials said Wednesday.
The program calls for hiring as many as 10,000 "community police" officers, who would be vetted and paid by the Afghan Interior Ministry, according to a senior Afghan government official. Karzai had objected to plans that did not place all elements of such a force under direct government control.
This is going to be interesting to watch unfold. This could either end up being exponentially productive for Afghan governance, or go horribly wrong.
The Afghan National Police are widely seen as corrupt. Dissertation rates have plagued the ANP, and even if those problems didn't exist they are marked as being an arm of Hamid Karzai's Afghan National Government, an entity that is not seen as legitimate by the overwhelming majority of Afghans. These local defense forces will be able to provide security to local populations without being seen as ambassadors for Karzai. It also has the potential to bring security to areas of Afghanistan that might not have any sort of security force anytime soon, as a result of the lack of availability of trainers for national police.
On the other hand, Afghanistan has a long history of fierce tribalism and rule by warlords. Administrators will have to walk a fine line between providing support for local security and facilitating warlordism (did I just make that word up?).
It's been 18 months since we elected a President who has promised to repeal DADT. Clearly, that letter was correct:
The Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps all met or exceeded their June accession goals. The services also are at or above their fiscal year-to-date retention goals for the first nine months of fiscal 2010.
The active-duty recruiting numbers for June are as follows:
-- Army: 102 percent of its goal; 7,438 accessions with a goal of 7,328.
-- Navy: 100 percent of its goal; 3,209 accessions with a goal of 3,209.
-- Marine Corps: 100 percent of its goal; 4,048 accessions with a goal of 4,046.
-- Air Force: 100 percent of its goal; 1,935 accessions with a goal of 1,931.
Four of the six reserve components also exceeded their June accession goals, officials said. The Army and Air National Guard intentionally slowed June accessions because they are exceeding their fiscal year-to-date recruiting goals, officials said.
What will our military ever due if our recruiting/retention rates continue to decline at this rate?
BAGHDAD - Gen. Ray Odierno, the commander of United States forces in Iraq, said Tuesday that Iranian-backed Shiite militias might increase attacks on American military bases this summer as thousands of American soldiers begin leaving Iraq.
"There has been some intelligence of Iranian surrogates attempting to attack U.S. bases," General Odierno said at a Baghdad news briefing. "For years, these groups have been talking about that they are forcing the U.S. to leave. It's not necessarily what's reality; it's what they're able to use propaganda-wise, and I feel they think this would be a huge propaganda tool for them in the future."
Remember this:
As long as we are reliant on foreign oil, we are funding both sides of the fight.
The trial over a court challenge to DADT beings today. The challenge was brought by the Log Cabin Republicans which essentially functions as the GOP's LGBT caucus:
"We're trying to get this changed right away. After all, there are people today fighting, dying for our country, while their constitutional rights are being violated," said attorney Dan Woods, representing the national organization whose 19,000 members include current and former military members.
Some legal experts say the trial that opens Tuesday in Riverside, Calif., could not come at a worse time for Obama, who derided the policy but has failed to get it off the books since taking office last year. Not only are midterm elections approaching, but the group suing the U.S. government is Republican.
The Log Cabin Republicans know what is right on this issue. You can't support the troops and oppose repeal. There are gay troops in the ranks now who are forced to lie about themselves, in violation of their own integrity. If anything, that is incompatible with military service, not open homosexuality.
Those same brave service members fight just as hard and sacrifice just as much as their straight comrades do not have access to military support channels for their loved ones, such as Family Readiness Groups and casualty notification.
VoteVets.org and the Log Cabin Republicans are on the same page on this issue: you can't support the troops and support "Don't Ask, Don't Tell".
The Army put out a message to soldiers who will receive new MultiCam uniforms for Afghanistan - don't plan on wearing your fancy new duds to the bank at lunch time.
The strict new rules that will govern the fielding and wear of the new Operation Enduring Freedom Camouflage Pattern uniforms are laid out in a June 10 All Army Activities message.
"OCP is authorized for wear in Afghanistan only," the message states. "Only U.S. Army soldiers and members of other services assigned to U.S. Army units operating in Afghanistan are authorized" to wear the new pattern.
I remember when the ACU was fielded, one of the reasons was that it would save taxpayer money on combat only uniforms (the DCU). I guess after burning tons of money facing out the BDU, we're going the other way on that.
U.S. Gen. David Petraeus lauded Pakistan's efforts at battling Islamist militants Monday during his first visit here since taking over as top NATO commander in neighboring Afghanistan this month.
A top American military commander headed for Afghanistan on Tuesday said he would not be surprised by links between Pakistan's spy agency ISI and Islamist extremist organisations, who have established a safe haven in Pakistan's restive tribal region.
Yeah, I get that Petraeus can't get in front of cameras in Islamabad, stand next to the chief of the Pakistani Army, and call the country out for supporting the Taliban if we hope to have a cooperative relationship with that country, or if we ever hope to convince them to stop aiding the Taliban. I just hope that after the cameras were turned off and the journalists left, Petraeus relayed some stern language regarding the ISI to Pakistani officials.
Retired O-6 Chaplain Arnold E. Resnicoff, who has a pretty amazing bio, has a great op-ed in today's edition of USA Today on the ridiculous controversy over the response of Chaplains to DADT repeal:
Today, despite two centuries of such heroic, selfless service by military chaplains, some religious groups threaten to withdraw their chaplains from America's armed forces if "don't ask, don't tell" - the policy allowing lesbians and gay men to serve only if they hide the fact that they are gay - is changed.
The current policy dishonors gays. The threat dishonors chaplains.
A chaplain's mission
Despite some outlandish claims (including one charge that the Bible will be banned), chaplains should not be affected by a new policy. "Don't tell" never did apply to conversations with a chaplain, which are "privileged communication." And good chaplains can preach and teach, true to their beliefs - respecting rights while challenging what they believe is wrong. They also teach commandments - loving neighbors, judging not, not casting stones, the golden rule - that help the troops serve together.
Free exercise of religion is the basic reason chaplains serve. But their mission is threefold: ministry to those of their own faith; helping those of other faiths fulfill their religious needs; and providing care for all. Christian chaplains ensure that Muslims have prayer rugs and Jews have matza, and military rabbis and imams find rosaries and New Testaments for personnel they serve. For those in pain - religious, atheist, straight or gay - chaplains offer comfort and a helping hand.
I'd add to Resnicoff's words that the United States Military is not exactly a sin free environment. Excessive alcohol consumption and pre/extra-martial sex (h/t Kayla) are frequent topics of conversation. That doesn't make those things right, but I never heard of any particular religious sect threatening to withdrawal its Chaplains because there are drunks and fornicators within the ranks.
The difference? Hate. Pure and simple. The Bible says that all sins are equal in the eyes of God. The only thing that could make any religious institution, that looks to that book for guidance, value what they consider to be one sin over another is bigotry (Yes, there are many other religions besides Christianity with chaplains in the ranks. However, Christian denominations are the only groups I've heard of that have threatened to recall their personnel).
Personally, if any particular religious denomination wants to remove their chaplains as a result of this errant policy being corrected, let them go. Good riddance. There should not be any place for bigots in our uniformed service.
Post-traumatic stress disorder is the signature injury of the post-9/11 combat veteran. For years, as Veterans returned home with the invisible wound, VA red-tape has made it difficult to obtain a disability rating for the condition. Strange rules make it nearly impossible to prove the affliction. For example, Veterans have had to prove the existence of a "stresser" in order to qualify for a rating.
Most service members weren't whipping out their iPhones in the middle of firefights to get a video of them being shot at while holding up a copy of that day's edition of the New York Times, or obtaining certificates of having seen a child blown up by a suicide bomber.
To make matters worse, many women find their claims rejected with the VA assuming that they could not have been in combat when females on the front lines are theoretically prohibited. While women might not be carrying an M-249 in an infantry squad, female medics certainly are at the spearhead, female logistics Soldiers drive supply convoys on treacherous, IED laced roads, and female linguists, such as VetVoice's own Kayla Williams, have become an invaluable part of the force.
Even if a Soldier never encounters an IED, firefight or other defined "stresser", certainly walking patrols, running convoys or door-gunning a Chinook helicopter requires a state of long term hyper-vigilance that undoubtably effects the mind.
After already increasing VA funding and signing a bill to insure advanced funding for the Department, President Obama's Department of Veterans Affairs plans to announce next week that it is removing the speed-bumps that hindered PTSD afflicted Vets from obtaining a disability rating:
The government is making it easier for combat veterans diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder to receive disability benefits.
The Veterans Affairs Department plans to announce Monday it will no longer require veterans to prove what might have triggered their illness. Instead, they would have to show that they served in combat in a job that could have contributed to post-traumatic stress disorder.
The nearly 20 percent of Veterans who return with signs of PTSD will now find it easier to obtain what they earned when they bravely defended their country. Making the process for obtaining benefits as smooth as possible is the least we owe these heroes. This decision to streamline the process for PTSD claims illustrates a commitment to our Veterans from this Administration that was absent for eight years under previous leadership.
For example, even with all the previously mentioned hurdles, Vets wishing to obtain a PTSD rating had even more impediments under the President's predecessor. As VoteVets uncovered in 2008, the VA of those days deliberately misdiagnosed Veterans to reduce the cost of treatment and disability payments:
On March 20, 2008 a VA hospital's PTSD program coordinator sent an e-mail to a number of VA employees, including psychologists, social workers, and a psychiatrist stating that due to an increased number of "compensation seeking veterans," the staff should "refrain from giving a diagnosis of PTSD straight out" and they should "R/O [rule out] PTSD" and consider a diagnosis of "Adjustment Disorder" instead.
This doesn't even address the Bush Administration's under funding of VA and general lack of concern for Veterans and caring for them. The treatment received by Vets from George W. Bush was shameful, but President Obama has raised the bar and set a new standard for the way we care for Vets.
"The welcome mat for memoirs by veterans of operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom might never wear out so long as they write with the savvy of Brandon Friedman . . . Friedman's take is vivid, frank, precise and dramatic."--Military Times
"Add Brandon Friedman's The War I Always Wanted to the ranks of outstanding non-fiction produced by officers from elite combat units in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. Always truthful, often excruciatingly so, The War I Always Wanted rises at numerous points to the level of literature."--Steven Pressfield, author of Gates of Fire
"A Time To Lead confirms the rewarding benefits of military service at a time when such service is experiencing considerable strain. It also includes a comprehensive description of America's current national imperatives, which deserve serious consideration."--General Alexander M. Haig, Jr., former Secretary of State
"This is a primer on leadership forged in battle and by decades of experience. . .This isn't just a book; it's a manual for leading people and living a good life."--Barry McCaffrey, General, USA (ret.)
"Whip smart, sassy, with a mouth as foul as a sailor's, 28-year-old Sergeant Kayla Williams. . .tells what it's like to be a female soldier in Iraq."--Booklist
". . .echoes military memoirists from Julius Caesar to Ernie Pyle."--Publishers Weekly
". . .a shocking, on-the-ground view of one military woman's experience in Iraq."--Bookmarks Magazine
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"ThisDudesArmy" was the pseudonym of Alex Horton, who had already been writing his own blog, 
