Category Archives: Veteran Legislative Update

Senate, House and State Government decisions impacting veterans.

Politics, Veteran Legislative Update

Veterans and Cops and Fireman

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Veterans and Police and Fireman have alot in common. Loyalty, courage, and a huge aptitude and profile for serving and protecting.

After watching the City Council Study session this afternoon and some the heart wrenching testimony about the City budgetary plan to lay off Police and Fire, I am incensed at the lack of creativity and the absence of loyalty and courage to serve and protect the public. This is the best solution at hand? God save us.

One thing you cannot levy against the military is superfluous behavior. We have so many superfluous organizations in this city that are akin to protected classes that it is a crime to even think of cutting Police and Fire.

If a municipality is sinking, do you really need an Economic Development budget? Is not a safe and protected City a form of economic development? Is not the superfluity of some of these near frivolous and unaccountable organizations a travesty in the face of a budgetary crisis?

To what end does the Downtown Tucson Partnership serve at this time? Can they not be disbanded along with the improvement district and allocate those monies to basic services while we recover? Is anything less not a form of financial malfeasance?

I heard the City Manager. for whom I have great respect, indicate that selling off excess land is a long term solution, not short term. I would like to see this elaborated upon with some good journalism in our morning daily. “We need to leverage those properties for future development,” said the city manager Mike Lechter. I heard that mantra 19 years ago when I served on the City Budget Advisory. Leverage for whom, I now ask? Show me the leverage.

Why not renegotiate the sale-leasebacks of our City municipal buildings that are enriching private investors? Anonymous ones, mind you. We have investors making sweet returns while the Titanic slips.

So a veteran might say, “When the hill is being overrun you don’t plan a USO show.” That would be TREO. Why are they not laid off during this crisis as opposed to the police and fireman who are the real Tucson?

Politics, Veteran Legislative Update, Veteran Pals, Veterans' Spouses, Partners & Families

War and More War

10 Comments

Once upon a time….. it was a dark and stormy night…….when we increased the troops and the bombing in Vietnam, right before Christmas too. And we wonder why vets are freaked out over the holidays?

Where do I begin? Five calls tonight asking my take on the Presidents speech.

“Do I have to?” I say.

“Well yes,” my 85 year old World War ll pal says.

“How can you be in the advocacy business and not comment on War?”

One reason, is that the last time I outed my editorial brain, some blogger trolls slammed me for not being an advocate for veterans. Huh? So, advocates are supposed to be mindless puppets?

So, from the advocacy corner, where I have resided since 1972, I would say that the absence of any and all discussion about the impact of war on our family, friends and employers is so conspicuous that one wonders if we have so sanitized the entire affair and desensitized the citizenry that it is as if war has become a third party experience akin to reality TV.

My elderly friend then asked why I thought the President did not “rally” the people behind the war effort. Whew… where is Rosie the Riveter when we need her? I guess that is what he meant.

Well, “this is not your Fathers war I tell him” ( a bit of an anachronism for him, as he could be my father!). Meaning, there is no declared war and I do not see any major sacrifices being made for the war cause. Key word being “sacrifices,” a world of difference from “support.” We support now with bumper stickers and head out to Monday Night Football.

In the past 8 years name me the sacrifices the American people have made for the war effort? Rationing…? well yes, sort of, if you count the number of people out of work as a result of the cost of the war. How many in the neighborhood are packing up Christmas gifts for the troops? Is anyone contacting the families of the deployed to see if they need help? Do you know who the veterans are in your neighborhood? Have you welcomed them home.. personally?

You will not hear a political stance here…so keep calm blog trolls, I am remaining focused on the impact and intense need for advocacy that is on the horizon with the continued rotation and increase in troops.

The obvious effect of multiple tours is going to permeate our entire culture for the next ten years and hopefully abate beyond that. The Outreach programs with both the VA and private non-profits are going to be maxed. The medical facilities are going to be utilized to their tolerable limits, as the increase in Traumatic Brain Injury, which is now at about 240% above the days of the invasion of Iraq. The enemy has figured something out here. Possibly, how to fight the most well financed Army in the world. Ho Chi Minh used booby traps and tunnels that were impervious to bombs, to offset the Goliath. Now it is IED’s. An Iraq vet at one of our retreats said, “head injuries are the enemies memo to take home.” He had two, and will be compromised for life. His comment about a head injuries being an “invasion of our country..sorta,’ is a bit macabre.

The expected increase in the incidence of Post Traumatic Stress, in both the NCO and Officer ranks, now that it is okay for them to admit it, will take a toll that is a complete unknown. The fabric of the home-front will be altered in ways America has never experienced, as America has never experienced multiple tours in a war zone. Even the seasoned and highly skilled Psychologists are pondering the symptomatic cluster they will be confronted with in men and women who have served up to 5 tours of duty.

One Psychologist I met at a workshop in California said, “I have no idea, what kind of hybrid humans we are creating with so much exposure to a war.” “We were not trained for this, no one is, really,” he said.

As a trained combat Marine, I know full well what it is like to deal with a thinking and highly devious enemy who is hell bent for leather to wear down our morale. I frankly never thought I would experience another waking hell like this in my lifetime. But here we are. And the Soldiers,Sailors, Airman and Marines need us more now then ever.

As the saying goes, “the soldier is always subsidiary to the politician.”

The mission never changes. We need to Clear-Hold- Build,(the locals that is). That mission needs a ton of allies this time around. Our abacus does not have that many beads.

I say Semper Fi. But this time, the old war torn Marine says, “Semper Fi” to my brothers and sisters comin’ home. I am indeed my brothers keeper. And, as St Paul admonished us, we should “pray unceasingly,” that the decisions announced tonight will work out for the good of the order.
The symmetrical escalation and second guessing polemics that will hit the radio waves tomorrow, is not called supporting the troops.

Politics, Veteran Legislative Update, Veterans Benefits, Veterans' Spouses, Partners & Families

New Veterans Administration Web Site

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The following is for your information and distribution to your members.

John A Miterko
Veterans Advocate

New VA Website

Same name; new face! On Veterans Day, VA rolled out the first phase of a large-scale Web renovation to better serve America’s Veterans. This is the first and most visible step of changing VA’s Web domain to better serve Veterans and their families by making it easier for them to find the information they need about benefits and programs. Long term, VA goals for its Web presence are to make it easier and more inviting for Veterans by focusing on topics and tasks rather than office functions, improving the navigational structure to ensure consistency, and making it more visually appealing. The new Web site design will cover more than 500 VA Web sites and about 80,000 pages. Major changes include improvements in the navigational structure that provide consistency among all sites and consolidate major topics; a slide show section that showcases current VA events or hot topics; and bottom columns that feature news items, highlights and a “Quick List” with links directly to important applications such as Veterans On Line Applications (VONAPP) and MyHealtheVet. Check out VA’s new Web face by clicking here.

Same name; new face! On Veterans Day, VA rolled out the first phase of a large-scale Web renovation to better serve America’s Veterans. This is the first and most visible step of changing VA’s Web domain to better serve Veterans and their families by making it easier for them to find the information they need about benefits and programs. Long term, VA goals for its Web presence are to make it easier and more inviting for Veterans by focusing on topics and tasks rather than office functions, improving the navigational structure to ensure consistency, and making it more visually appealing. The new Web site design will cover more than 500 VA Web sites and about 80,000 pages. Major changes include improvements in the navigational structure that provide consistency among all sites and consolidate major topics; a slide show section that showcases current VA events or hot topics; and bottom columns that feature news items, highlights and a “Quick List” with links directly to important applications such as Veterans On Line Applications (VONAPP) and MyHealtheVet. Check out VA’s new Web face by clicking here.

God Bless
Jose M. Garcia
National Executive Director
Catholic War Veterans,USA
josegarcia4@sbcglobal.net
Better to understand a little than to misunderstand a lot.
In God We Trust

Politics, Veteran Legislative Update, Veteran Pals

A Belated Congratulations To Councilman-Elect Steve Kozachik

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I have to apologize to Steve for not posting this right after the election count. I was out of town on Election Day, and then it just slipped by me.

So why congratulate Steve at a Veterans site? It is because he is the first elected local official that has shown an active, and I do mean active interest in the welfare of our returning veterans.

He hosted many events for these men and women and expressed interest in keeping their needs at the forefront of his governing. It is this zeitgeist that he creates around him, that got him elected. And I would speculate that nearly 1000 of our veterans for whom I helped him garner support, were responsible for much of the cross-over vote, as I know many of them to be Democrats, and Independents. ( I am a 30 year Independent)

The outgoing Councilwoman and staff promised on numerous occasions to host, Welcome Home Forums for our veterans transitioning to civilian life. There was no follow through on this and many other declarations made to constituents.

The first of these forums was just held at Himmel Park Library. Now that Steve K will be domiciling at Ward 6 Office, I am certain we will be welcome as we launch a nationwide program for understanding the unique needs of the combat veteran. Congratulations Steve. We got your back!

Politics, Veteran Legislative Update, Veteran Pals, Veterans Benefits, Veterans' Spouses, Partners & Families

Head Injuries From War Mounting

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The following story was televised on ABC News Channel 7 in Arlington, Va. The technology that has been developed to objectify the unseen and frequently undiagnosed injuries of war; head injuries and post traumatic stress are going to tax the disability system to the maximum. Is this not the irony of 21st Century war? The cost of the aftermath of war may soon become so onerous that we can no longer afford to wage it!

And to think of how frequently the syndrome and symptoms of head injuries have occurred in the veteran population since the Civil War, which would have been the advent of huge blast injuries. So for 150 years we have had vets out there compromised in executive functioning and both they and the health professionals never knew what was up.

When grampa was on the front porch acting a little dink dauy and maybe drinking too much whiskey. The chances are real high that he was just clocked in the trenches of France in WWl.

Head Injuries have now become the signature wound of the War on Terrorism. Oddly this was the prevalent injury in WWll and Korea. In Vietnam it was small weapons fire and booby traps.

Is it not spooky that primitive warriors always find a way to enter combat with stronger Armies, both in weaponry and financing? Is there ever going to be an end to this insanity? Notice this is not a political question. It is the same one that the Generals have to deal with, because they have to replace these soldiers in the bush. So we got a bloody numbers game going on—-exactly like the days of William Westmoreland. Except this time the soldier survives to live a war of homeland disability. Isn’t this like a terrorist memo sent home?

One thing I have never understood is why we now state that PTSD was once defined as, “shell shock.” That is not really very accurate, because shell shock is its own baby as is PTSD. I know, I have experienced both.

The good news is that VA knows this and we now have some of best care in the world for our returning combatants. Tucson VA has is ranked as one of the best in the nation and its poly-trauma unit personnel are the unsung heroes of the day.

ABC NEWS STORY

Washington – Powerful scans are letting doctors watch just how the brain changes in veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder and concussion-like brain injuries – signature damage of the Iraq (web | news) and Afghanistan wars. It’s work that one day may allow far easier diagnosis for patients – civilian or military – who today struggle to get help for these largely invisible disorders. For now it brings a powerful message: Problems too often shrugged off as “just in your head” in fact do have physical signs, now that scientists are learning where and how to look for them.

“There’s something different in your brain,” explains Dr. Jasmeet Pannu Hayes of Boston University, who is helping to lead that research at the Veterans Affairs’ National Center for PTSD. “Just putting a real physical marker there, saying that this is a real thing,” encourages more people to seek care.

Up to one in five U.S. veterans from the long-running combat in Iraq and Afghanistan is thought to have symptoms of PTSD. An equal number are believed to have suffered traumatic brain injuries, or TBIs – most that don’t involve open wounds but hidden damage caused by explosion’s pressure wave.
ABC 7 Talkback:
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Many of those TBIs are considered similar to a concussion, but because symptoms may not be apparent immediately, many soldiers are exposed multiple times, despite evidence from the sports world that damage can add up, especially if there’s little time between assaults.

“My brain has been rattled,” is how a recently retired Marine whom Hayes identifies only as Sgt. N described the 50 to 60 explosions he estimates he felt while part of an ordnance disposal unit.

Hayes studied the man in a new way, tracking how water flows through tiny, celery stalk-like nerve fibers in his brain – and found otherwise undetectable evidence that those fibers were damaged in a brain region that explained his memory problems and confusion.

It’s a noninvasive technique called “diffusion tensor imaging” that merely adds a little time to a standard MRI scan. Water molecules constantly move, bumping into each other and then bouncing away. Measuring the direction and speed of that diffusion in nerve fibers can tell if the fibers are intact or damaged. Those fibers are sort of a highway along which the brain’s cells communicate. The bigger the gaps, the more interrupted the brain’s work becomes.

“Sgt. N’s brain is very different,” Hayes told a military medical meeting last week. “His connective tissue has been largely compromised.”

There’s a remarkable overlap of symptoms between those brain injuries and PTSD, says Dr. James Kelly, a University of Colorado neurologist tapped to lead the military’s new National Intrepid Center of Excellence. It will open next year in Bethesda, Md., to treat both conditions.

Yes, headaches are a hallmark of TBI while the classic PTSD symptoms are flashbacks and nightmares. But both tend to cause memory and attention problems, anxiety, irritability, depression and insomnia. That means the two disorders share brain regions.

And Hayes can measure how some of those regions go awry in the vicious cycle that is PTSD, where patients feel like they’re reliving a trauma instead of understanding that it’s just a memory.

What happens? A brain processing system that includes the amygdala – the fear hot spot – becomes overactive. Other regions important for attention and memory, regions that usually moderate our response to fear, are tamped down.

“The good news is this neural signal is not permanent. It can change with treatment,” Hayes says.

Her lab performed MRI scans while patients either tried to suppress their negative memories, or followed PTSD therapy and changed how they thought about their trauma. That fear-processing region quickly cooled down when people followed the PTSD therapy.

It’s work that has implications far beyond the military: About a quarter of a million Americans will develop PTSD at some point in their lives. Anyone can develop it after a terrifying experience, from a car accident or hurricane to rape or child abuse.

More research is needed for the scans to be used in diagnosing either PTSD or a TBI. But some are getting close – like another MRI-based test that can spot lingering traces of iron left over from bleeding, thus signaling a healed TBI. If the brain was hit hard enough to bleed, then more delicate nerve pathways surely were damaged, too, Kelly notes.

—

EDITOR’S NOTE – Lauran Neergaard covers health and medical issues for The Associated Press in Washington.

Alternative Care, Politics, Uncategorized, Veteran Legislative Update, Veteran Pals, Veterans Benefits, Veterans Global, Veterans' Spouses, Partners & Families

The Other Insurance Issue; The Sad Hypocritical One

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Following is a letter forwarded to me by a local combat veteran of the Marine Corps. His name has been deleted, but he has given permission to publish his petition for explanations for the declination of life insurance as a result of having a PTSD diagnosis. ( Note. Since this was posted the author has elected to share his name. It is Pete Bourret. He is a combat veteran of the Marine Corps who served in Vietnam.)

I am familiar with this very sad fact of life. I am equally conversant with its prevalence and the gross lack of justice involved. The impunity embedded in our nations Insurance industry is soon to become a national disgrace. The irony of the fact that a warrior can defend his/her nation and its system of capitalism and in turn not be qualified for life insurance, is beyond comprehension.

Someone, somewhere, has created some bogus science that states that Post Traumatic Stress shortens ones life span. This veteran is asking to see proof of this assertion. I am asking to see studies, from either the National Institute of Health or the VA, that indicate this confabulation.

Can you imagine the impact on a young soldier with a family when they learn that the mental health care they received on the heels of war is preventing them from protecting their very own family’s finances. I see rage on the horizon. I see class action law suits. And worse, I see the myriad of caring outreach programs at Vet Centers and VA clinics backfiring when the word travels that you are sealing off your future financial options. Who do these folks think they are? Maybe we should just draft all executives in the insurance industry first.

So the citizen soldier who is wounded in war is rendered incapable of being a full citizen in the country they just upheld. Is there a more poignant hypocrisy to be found?

We will be re-visiting this open wound in the veteran community over the next several months. Possibly, the parent company of the Citizen, Gannett, can help us out with a feature article in USA Today, which is known for its veteran and military coverage. Or are they too owned by the Insurance Industry?

November 11, 2009

Pruco Life
PO Box 8660
Philadelphia, PA 19176-8660

Denise Holmgren
Vice President, Underwriting:

This letter is in response to your companies response to my request for specific information, which I have requested on multiple occasions yet have failed to receive; a copy of your original letter will not suffice.

Please advise me if I should conclude that your determination of my uninsurability was based on my Post Traumatic Stress Disorder diagnosis in general. I ask this because I have repeatedly requested the specific information (three times) that you utilized in your determination; however, I only received several hundred pages of my VA mental health records without any specific details. Let me be as clear as I can be: I expect you to submit to me the specific language that caused your organization to draw the conclusion that I am not an appropriate candidate for life insurance.

This is my last request for this information that you have an obligation to provide to me in a timely manner. I find it ironic that I am writing this letter to your organization on Veterans’ Day, yet it seems that your company fails to honor veterans who served and became casualties of war. The fact that your organization believes that a veteran with a PTSD diagnosis is a poor candidate for a life insurance policy shows that there is great ignorance about this diagnosis within your organization. Had you bothered to check with my psychiatrist because of a concern, you would have discovered that I am much more than the basic notes that he wrote. You were too busy to do that because we know that the business of American business is the bottom line. For veterans like myself, when I volunteered to serve as a combat Marine in Vietnam in 1967 and 1968, my bottom line was to defend your freedom and to protect my fellow Marines. I guess our values do not coincide.

In closing, I ask you to re-evaluated your process for determining insurability in the area of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Regardless, it only makes sense that potential recruits to the Armed Forces should be made aware through full disclosure that serving is also hazardous to their insurability should they be traumatized by of combat. As a retired English teacher with too much time on his hands, I will gladly set the educational process in motion. I think it is time that people learn how your organization actually “supports” the troops.

Happy Veterans’ Day,

Peter Bourret/USMC

Politics, Veteran Legislative Update, Veterans Global

Veterans Support Clean Energy/National Security at Stake

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— On Wed, 11/11/09, Beth Pramme wrote:

From: Beth Pramme
Subject: RELEASE: Veterans, National Security Leaders Stand Up For Clean Energy In New Repower America TV Ad
To: “Beth Pramme”
Date: Wednesday, November 11, 2009, 10:15 AM

For immediate release: November 11, 2009

Press inquiries:

Beth Pramme, 480-326-8876, Beth.Pramme@climateprotect.org

Alice McKeon, 202-567-6800, press@climateprotect.org

Veterans, National Security Leaders Stand Up For Clean Energy In New Repower America TV Ad

Generals Brent Scowcroft and Wesley Clark join young veterans in call for bold action on clean energy and climate change to end America’s dependence on foreign oil and strengthen our national security

PHOENIX – As the nation prepares to celebrate Veterans Day and honor the brave men and women who serve in our Armed Forces, the Alliance for Climate Protection’s Repower America campaign today released a new television ad featuring veterans and national security leaders calling for bold action now on clean energy and climate change to strengthen America’s national security. The ad, called “Voices – Veterans,” will run on national cable starting on Veterans Day.

“Voices – Veterans” features young Iraq War veterans alongside respected military and national security leaders such as General Brent Scowcroft and General Wesley Clark making the urgent call for action now on clean energy and climate change so that we can end America’s dependence on foreign oil and strengthen our national security. General Scowcroft, U.S. National Security Advisor under Presidents Gerald Ford and George H. W. Bush and a retired Lieutenant General in the U.S. Air Force, states in the ad that “climate change threatens our national security,” while Terron Sims, Jr., a U.S. Marine Corps veteran who served in Iraq says, “Stop sending our dollars overseas to be used against us.” General Wesley Clark, a 34-year U.S. Army veteran who served as NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, concludes the ad stating, “We need to repower and there is no better time to do it than right now.”

“By taking control of our energy future, we can prevent future conflict overseas and keep our men and women in uniform out of harm’s way,” said Repower Arizona Communications Director Beth Pramme. “Even top-ranking retired admirals and generals have said that a first priority for our leaders should be fully integrating climate change and energy security into national security. By repowering America with clean energy, we can stop sending our hard-earned money overseas for foreign oil, invest it here to get our economy moving again, and help solve the climate crisis.”

This new TV ad is a continuation of the groundbreaking multimedia campaign launched by Repower America last week to demonstrate broad national consensus – from veterans, faith leaders, the business community, conservationists and more – for bold action on clean energy and climate. The new Repower effort, supported by an integrated online, field and advertising campaign, centers around a virtual Repower Wall, where thousands of people have already uploaded messages of strong support for action to create clean energy jobs, safeguard America’s economic and national security future, and solve the climate crisis. The Repower Wall may be accessed at www.repoweramerica.org/wall.

Veterans from Arizona have already posted to the Repower Wall, including:

John Adams, Retired U.S. Army Brigadier General: “I think it’s important for us to move to a clean energy economy. So much of our energy now comes from hostile regimes who are essentially holding us hostage. We’ve got the resources here at home to provide our own energy. We’ve got the resources here at home to protect our environment and pass it on to our children. It’s important for our leaders and our people to come together now to really make a difference and convert to a clean energy economy.”

· Watch John’s full Repower Wall post:

http://www.repoweramerica.org/wall/#/view/12141

John Young, Veteran: “Clean energy is a great first step to a brighter future.”

· Watch John’s full Repower Wall post:

http://www.repoweramerica.org/wall/#/view/8938

Alan MacFarlane, Veteran: “The human race needs clean power to survive. If you don’t know it, know it now. If you don’t believe it, believe it before it becomes too late. ”

· Watch Alan’s full Repower Wall post:

http://www.repoweramerica.org/wall/#/view/12381

John Chiazza, Veteran: “Veterans are looking for jobs, and these clean energy jobs are going to be ideal for them. These clean energy initiatives are going to bring jobs where we need them.”

· Watch John’s full Repower Wall post:

http://www.repoweramerica.org/wall/#/view/13112

Already, more than 22,000 individuals have added their faces and voices to the Repower Wall, and more than 40 leading corporations and non-governmental organizations have contributed their logos to the effort – including companies like Nike, PepsiCo, Starbucks, Staples, eBay and Exelon, as well as organizations such as the United Steel Workers, National Farmers Union, Trout Unlimited, Republicans for Environmental Protection and the American Nurses Association.

According to the Center for American Progress, transitioning to a clean energy economy will create more than 29,000 jobs here in Arizona while revitalizing our economy, strengthening our national security and breaking our dependence on foreign oil.

Script: “Voices – Veterans” (TV-:30)

Ken Nagel, U.S. Navy Veteran: Why join the fight to repower America with clean energy?

General Brent Scowcroft: Because climate change threatens our national security.

Ambassador Wendy R. Sherman: It’s crucial that America become energy independent.

Jackie Rodgers, Jr., U.S. Navy Veteran: I saw first-hand how America’s dependence on foreign oil threatens our national security.

Terron Sims, Jr., U.S. Marine Corps Veteran: Stop sending our dollars overseas to be used against us.

Jonathan Powers, U.S. Army Veteran: America must reestablish itself as a country that leads by example.

General Wesley Clark: We need to repower and there is no better time to do it than right now.

About the Alliance for Climate Protection’s Repower America campaign:

The Alliance for Climate Protection launched the Repower America campaign to galvanize the American public around a bold new clean energy plan and a revitalized national energy infrastructure that will jumpstart our economy and create millions of jobs; help end our dependence on foreign oil; reward innovation and job creation, not polluters; and reduce greenhouse gas emissions and slow the threat of climate change. For more information, visit www.repoweramerica.org.

– 30 –

Beth Pramme
Communications Director
Repower Arizona
Beth.Pramme@climateprotect.org
(602) 252-2044 Office
(480) 326-8876 Cell
Facebook: Repower Arizona
Twitter: RepowerArizona
P Please consider the environment before printing this email

Veteran Legislative Update, Veterans Benefits, Veterans' Spouses, Partners & Families

OBAMA LAUNCHES MAJOR EMPLOYMENT INITIATIVE

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The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release

November 09, 2009

President Obama Launches Major Veterans Employment Initiative
Initiative Would Transform Federal Government into Model of Veterans Employment

Washington, DC – Today, the White House announced the launch of an initiative that is designed to transform the federal government into the model employer of America’s veterans. This evening, President Obama will be joined by Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric Shinseki, Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis, Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano and Office of Personnel Management Director John Berry to sign an Executive Order on the Employment of Veterans in the federal government, which establishes the Veterans Employment Initiative for the Executive Branch. The Initiative underscores to federal agencies the importance of recruiting and training veterans, aims to increase the employment of veterans within the Executive Branch, and helps recently hired veterans adjust to service in a civilian capacity.

“Honoring our sacred trust with America’s veterans means doing all we can to help them find work when they come home so they never feel as if the American Dream they fought to defend is out of reach for them and their families,” said President Obama. “But this initiative is about more than repaying our debt for their courageous service and selfless sacrifice. It’s also about continuing to fill the ranks of federal employees with men and women who possess the skills, dedication, and sense of duty that Americans deserve from their public servants. And few embody those qualities like our nation’s veterans.”

The Executive Order creates an interagency Council on Veterans Employment that will advise the President and the Director of the Office of Personnel Management on the veterans’ employment initiative. The Council will be chaired by Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis and Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric Shinseki. OPM Director John Berry will serve as the Vice Chair and Chief Operating Officer of the Council.

“Veterans have shown unmatched dedication to public service,” said Secretary Shinseki. “They offer leadership and technical skills that are in high demand, whether in the public or private workforce. Not only does this initiative present an opportunity for Veterans to serve their Nation once again, the Nation will benefit from the education and training Veterans received in the Armed Forces. I am looking forward to working with Secretary Solis and Director Berry to achieve the objectives of this initiative across the federal government.”

“Veterans are an important part of our nation’s past, present and future. They deserve our full support as they reintegrate into the civilian workforce,” said Secretary Solis, “In signing this Executive Order, President Obama underscores his Administration’s commitment to our military men and women, and keeps us squarely on the path to achieving the goal of good jobs for everyone.”

“President Obama strongly believes in honoring the service of our veterans and he sees this initiative as an opportunity to put some real muscle behind that promise,” said Director Berry. “The strong sense of patriotism and public service held by members of our armed forces doesn’t leave them when they exit from active duty. It benefits our government to seize this opportunity to utilize their skills and dedication to service. The Veterans Employment Initiative will help our federal agencies identify qualified veterans, clarify the hiring process for veterans seeking employment with the federal government, and help our veterans adjust to civilian life once they are hired.”

The Order also establishes a Veterans Employment Program office within most federal agencies. These offices will be responsible for helping veterans identify employment opportunities within those federal agencies, providing feedback to veterans about their employment application status, and helping veterans recently employed by these agencies adjust to civilian life and a workplace culture often different than military service.

In addition, the Office of Personnel Management will issue a government-wide strategic plan that will focus on creating leadership commitment and an infrastructure in each agency to promote continued skills development and employment success for veterans. The strategic plan will also include marketing strategies aimed at agency hiring managers as well as veterans and transitioning service members.

“This Executive Order reflects the shared commitment across the Obama administration to hiring American veterans,” said Secretary Napolitano. “Veterans play a vital role in the Department of Homeland Security’s mission to protect the nation, which is why we have pledged to grow our veteran workforce to more than 50,000 Department-wide by 2012.”

At the end of Fiscal Year 2008, there were approximately 480,000 veterans working within the federal government.

For more information, visit: www.fedshirevets.gov

Veteran Legislative Update, Veterans Benefits, Veterans' Spouses, Partners & Families

Veterans Legal Service

1 Comment

I read at least 20 veteran publications combing for material that I deem helpful to the largest population of veterans. Many of the press releases I get are from the Catholic War Veterans, and they are quite good and chock full of practical help. While my Blog has never been retail, it does appear that this lawyer and his promotional narrative may well be of assistance to our readers and family members. It is a shame that we do not have more Attorneys in Arizona trained in Veteran Law. It seems a bit odd to have such a dearth, as are veteran population per capita is quite high. The lawyers whose resume follows, appears to know his game.

I am writing to introduce myself and to provide you with information on my background and Veteran’s law practice. I represent Veteran’s who have been denied benefits by the Board of Veterans’ appeals. Additionally, I assist Veteran’s who are victims of medical malpractice and serious personal injury. Our VA appellate representation is done on a pro bono basis, at no charge to the Veteran or spouse. Please feel free to call me with any questions.

The Veterans Law Firm

Peter J. Meadows, P.A.

Graduate of Florida State University

Graduate of Washington and Lee University School of Law

Member of the Florida Bar

Member of the Bar of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit

Member of the Bar U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims

Member of the National Organization of Veterans Advocates

Member of the Veterans Law Section of the Federal Bar Association

Mission Statement

Our Mission is to provide high quality legal representation to veterans and their families, where the Board of Veterans’ Appeals has denied a veteran’s claim within the previous 120 days or who have been the victim of medical malpractice or grievous personal injury.

The Veterans Law Firm

1314 E. Las Olas Blvd. Suite1088 Fort Lauderdale , FL 33301

Ph: (800) 868-2813 Fax: (800) 868-2815

Veterans Appeals
Before the U.S. Court of Appeals
for Veterans Claims

At Peter J. Meadows, P.A. we work with Veterans who have appeals before the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims. We will pursue Veterans’ claims vigorously in order for our Veterans to receive the benefits, which they have earned and to which they are entitled.

We are able to represent Veterans from every state in the country. No matter where a Veteran lives, we can represent him or her before the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims in Washington D.C.

Our representation of Veterans is provided without charge. Instead, our firm seeks compensation from the government under the Equal Access to Justice Act. We use our inside knowledge of the Veterans appeals process to aggressively manage an appeal. We promise to keep our clients informed of the progress of the appeal. The Veteran can be fully confident that we take the best interests of our clients very seriously.

We are also happy to assist in matters relating to:

· Medical Malpractice

Experience Matters

The veteran’s appeals process can be intimidating. Mr. Meadows served as a law clerk intern to Chief Judge Kenneth B. Kramer of the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims and as an appellate attorney with the Appellate Litigation Group of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of the General Counsel. His Veteran’s appeals experience and knowledge can help bring positive results following years of frustrating denials. We want veterans to enjoy the benefits, which they have earned and to which they are entitled. Mr. Meadows’ ten years of VA and Veterans law experience is yours to help win your claim.

Veteran Legislative Update, Veteran Pals, Veterans Global, Veterans' Spouses, Partners & Families

Veterans Make Great Teachers

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A recent study of a 15 year-old Defense Department Program that has the intent of training and placing veterans in teaching positions showed some very encouraging results. A Florida schools study showed that students who completed the Troops to Teachers program, scored higher in reading and math, compared to teachers of the same subject, in the same school and with the same experience.

Troops to Teachers, has placed some 11.500 teachers since 1994. About 82% of the veterans turned teachers are men compared to about 25% of teachers nationwide. Some 40% of these teachers are minorities.

Several States have seen a doubling in the enrollment in the Troops To Teachers program.

The graduates of this program receive a $5000 stipend to pay for their education, and those who elect to teach in ‘High Need” Schools can get another $10,000.00 bonus.

For more information,access www.proudtoserveagain.com

I cannot imagine a more creative way to allure young men and women to the teaching profession. Kudos, to the creator of this program.

My former English teacher at Rincon High School 64′ , was a retired Army Col. named Leo Croteau. He was the most inspiring teacher I had ever encountered. His son Dave Croteau and I speak of him often to this day.

Many of our nations notable writers were both teachers and novelists and veterans of war. Kurt Vonnegut, Norman Mailer, William Manchester, William Buckley, William Styron, Ernest Hemingway for a few. All were warriors first. It clearly broadens your perspective on humanity and affords a depth for students that may not get such richness elsewhere.