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Vote Vets Come Down On McCain Iraq Policy
The ad features Brandon Woods, an Iraq War veteran from New York .
In the ad, Brandon says, "What did we fight for in Iraq ? I have some idea. I fought in Operation Iraqi Freedom. And "freedom" means when the Iraqi people and their Prime Minister ask us to make a plan to leave, we do. But, Senator McCain would occupy Iraq indefinitely, against their wishes. That's not what freedom means. That's not what we fought for. Senator, I thought you would know better." The ad features Brandon Woods, an Iraq War veteran from New York . ... more -
Iraqi Vets Against the War - PDF on Recruting
Anyone who is even considering joining the armed forces needs to read this! This was posted yesterday and buried, even though it was at the top of upcoming. It picked up another 70 diggs after being buried. Anyone who is even considering joining the armed forces needs to read this! This was posted yesterday and buried, even though it was a... more
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American Legion Post 911
American Legion Post 911 is giving a successful go at transforming the Legion into something that neither your dad or grandpa would recognize. Gone are the connotations of stuffy smoke-filled rooms. These vets hold meetings at 15,000 feet before jumping out of planes; they recruit vets through Facebook, Myspace, and Xbox; and they share in the common experience of having fought in the war on terror.
The Legion principles remain the same, it's the methods of recruiting and retaining their men and women that are all about today. American Legion Post 911 is giving a successful go at transforming the Legion into something that neither your dad or grandpa would re... more -
One Soldier's Suicide: James Jenkins
Suicides among veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan are reaching epidemic proportions.
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Celebrated soldier fell victim to 'demons'
PINEHURST, North Carolina (AP) -- Officers had been to the white ranch house many times before over the past year to respond to a "barricade situation." Each had ended uneventfully, with Joseph Dwyer coming out or telling police in a calm voice through the window that he was OK.
The Iraq war veteran had called a taxi service to take him to the emergency room. But when the driver arrived, Dwyer shouted that he was too weak to get up and open the door.
The officers asked Dwyer for permission to kick it in.
"Go ahead!" he yelled.
They found Dwyer lying on his back, his clothes soiled with urine and feces. Scattered on the floor were dozens of spent cans of Dust-Off, a refrigerant-based aerosol normally used to clean electrical equipment.
Dwyer told police Lt. Mike Wilson he'd been "huffing" the aerosol.
"Help me, please!" the former Army medic begged Wilson. "I'm dying. Help me. I can't breathe."
A half-hour later, he was dead.
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Returning to the U.S. in June 2003, after 91 days in Iraq, Dwyer seemed a shell to friends.
The 6-foot-1 soldier had dropped to about 165 pounds, causing the other Musketeers to immediately think of post-traumatic stress disorder. Dwyer attributed his skeletal appearance to long days and a diet of MREs (Meals Ready to Eat), and his friends accepted the explanation.
But they soon noticed changes that were more than cosmetic.
At restaurants, Dwyer insisted on sitting with his back to the wall so no one could sneak up on him. He turned down invitations to the movies, saying the theaters were too crowded. The arid landscape around El Paso, and the dark-skinned Hispanic population, reminded him of Iraq.
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In spring 2004, Dwyer was prescribed antidepressants and referred for counseling. But his behavior went from merely odd to dangerous.
One day, he swerved to avoid what he thought was a roadside bomb and crashed into a convenience store sign. He began answering his apartment door with a pistol in his hand and would call friends, babbling and disoriented from huffing.
In summer 2005, he was removed to the barracks for 72 hours after trashing the apartment looking for an enemy infiltrator. He was admitted to Bliss' William Beaumont Army Medical Center for treatment of his inhalant addiction.
But things continued to worsen. That October, the Musketeers decided it was time for an intervention.
Dwyer refused to surrender his guns but agreed to let Matina lock them up. Less than a week later, his paranoia reached a crescendo.
On October 6, 2005, Dwyer barricaded himself in his apartment. Imagining Iraqis swarming up the sides and across the roof, he fired his pistol through the door, windows and ceiling. After a three-hour police standoff, Dwyer was admitted for psychiatric treatment.
In a telephone interview later that month from what he called the "nut hut" at Beaumont, Dwyer told Newsday that he'd lied on a post-deployment questionnaire that asked whether he'd been disturbed by what he'd seen and done in Iraq. The reason: A PTSD diagnosis could interfere with his plans to seek a police job. Besides, he said, "I'm a soldier," he said. "I suck it up. That's our job."
Dwyer told the newspaper he was committed to embracing his treatment this time.
In January 2006, Joseph and Matina Dwyer moved back to North Carolina. But his shadow enemy followed him there. PINEHURST, North Carolina (AP) -- Officers had been to the white ranch house many times before over the past year to respond to a "bar... more -
GRAPHIC IRAQ WAR: Soldier Confessions
"THESE are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands by it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph."
Democracy Now and Iraq Veterans Against War held a conference called "Winter Soldier" allowing veterans of the Iraq War to publicly tell the stories of their time in Iraq. If you will not believe the news shows, the pundits, the papers, then listen to the words from the soldiers who were actually on the ground.
For full clips of the soldiers interviews follow the link below:
http://ivaw.org/wintersoldier
For information about the Iraq War follow the link below:
http://www.informationclearinghouse.i... "THESE are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service o... more -
Soldiers Into Students
This short documentary examines four young Iraq War veterans in the and their experiences adjusting to academic life. They discuss social life, classes, health benefits, and the daunting prospect of paying for their education without adequate support.
Produced in association with Tufts University ExCollege, the Tufts Communications and Media Studies Program, and the Tisch College for Citizenship and Public Service. This short documentary examines four young Iraq War veterans in the and their experiences adjusting to academic life. They discuss soc... more -
War Torn
Veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan who have committed killings, or been charged with them, after coming home.
Most nights when Anthony Klecker, a former marine, finally slept, he found himself back on the battlefields of Iraq. He would awake in a panic, and struggle futilely to return to sleep.
Days were scarcely better. Car alarms shattered his nerves. Flashbacks came unexpectedly, at the whiff of certain cleaning chemicals. Bar fights seemed unavoidable; he nearly attacked a man for not washing his hands in the bathroom.
Desperate for sleep and relief, Mr. Klecker, 30, drank heavily. One morning, his parents found him in the driveway slumped over the wheel of his car, the door wide open, wipers scraping back and forth. Another time, they found him curled in a fetal position in his closet.
Yet only after his drunken driving caused the death of a 16-year-old cheerleader did Mr. Klecker acknowledge the depth of his problem: His eight months at war had profoundly damaged his psyche.
“I was trying to be the tough marine I was trained to be — not to talk about problems, not to cry,” said Mr. Klecker, who has since been diagnosed with severe post-traumatic stress disorder. “I imprisoned myself in my own mind.”
Mr. Klecker’s case is part of a growing body of evidence that alcohol abuse is rising among veterans of combat in Afghanistan and Iraq, many of them trying to deaden the repercussions of war and disorientation of home. While the numbers remain relatively small, experts say and studies indicate that the problem is particularly prevalent among those suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, as it was after Vietnam. Studies indicate that illegal drug use, much less common than heavy drinking in the military, is up slightly, too. Veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan who have committed killings, or been charged with them, after coming home. ... more -
Riveting new show about returning U.S. soldiers premeires online, TONIGHT.
From Brave New Foundation:
Over the past several months, as we gathered our staff and began to meet the men and women who have served, we knew that it would be a privilege to be able to share the stories of these servicemembers and their families so that the other 99% of the US population can better understand what is happening to our troops when they return from war.
We wanted to do something different than our usual short videos with this project, so we developed an idea for a LIVE internet-based show and decided to call it In Their Boots to let the audience know they would be hearing the information from the servicemembers' points of view.
The show premieres today, Wednesday July 2nd, at 4pm Pacific/5 Mountain/6 Central/7 Eastern at www.intheirboots.com. The stories are riveting and the show will be broadcast LIVE. You will have the opportunity to hear the stories from these servicemembers, learn about organizations that are helping, and find out how you can help as well.
The show will be broadcast from our brand new studio (it was a beauty parlor just 2 months ago), not quite finished since we are still doing some fundraising, but looking pretty good. Since it is LIVE, we invite you all to join the discussion and become part of webcast history by asking our interview guest a question, live, "on the air." From Brave New Foundation: ... more -
Wounded Iraqi forces say they've been abandoned
BAGHDAD: Dawoud Ameen, a former Iraqi soldier, lay in bed, his shattered legs splayed before him, worrying about the rent for his family of five.
Ameen's legs were shredded by shrapnel from a roadside bomb in September 2006 and now, like many wounded members of the Iraqi security forces, he is deeply in debt and struggling to survive. For now, he gets by on $125 a month brought to him by members of his old army unit, charity and whatever his wife, Jinan, can beg from her relatives. But he worries that he could lose even that meager monthly stipend.
In the United States, the issue of war injuries has revolved almost entirely around the care received by the 30,000 wounded American veterans. But Iraqi soldiers and police officers have been wounded in greater numbers, health workers say, and have been treated far worse by their government.
A number of the half-dozen badly wounded Iraqis interviewed for this article said they had been effectively drummed out of the Iraqi security forces without pensions, or were receiving partial pay and in danger of losing even that. Coping with severe injuries, and often amputations, they have been forced to pay for private doctors or turn to Iraq's failing public hospitals, which as recently as a year ago were controlled by militias that kidnapped and killed patients — particularly security personnel from rival units.
BAGHDAD: Dawoud Ameen, a former Iraqi soldier, lay in bed, his shattered legs splayed before him, worrying about the rent for his fami... more -
"Disposable Heroes": VA Testing Dangerous Drugs on War Veterans
The government is testing drugs with severe side effects like psychosis and suicidal behavior on hundreds of military veterans, using small cash payments to attract patients into medical experiments that often target distressed soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, a Washington Times/ABC News investigation has found.
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I think that this is going to be a big story in the coming months. There was an interesting interview / Q&A with the Executive Editor of The Washington Times on C-SPAN this morning, too. The government is testing drugs with severe side effects like psychosis and suicidal behavior on hundreds of military veterans, using ... more -
Veterans from 1960s chemical tests press for help
WASHINGTON -- Lawmakers and veterans of secret Cold War-era chemical and germ tests on military personnel demanded help from the Bush administration Thursday, but they got no satisfaction.
Officials from the Pentagon and Veterans Affairs Department said there was no need for legislation to guarantee health care and benefits to the veterans. Thousands of servicemembers were exposed, often without their knowledge, to real and simulated chemical and biological agents, including sarin and VX.
The tests were conducted at sea and above a half-dozen U.S. states from 1962-1973 to see how U.S. ships would withstand chemical and germ assaults and how such weapons would disperse. WASHINGTON -- Lawmakers and veterans of secret Cold War-era chemical and germ tests on military personnel demanded help from the Bush ... more -
US is holding hostage some $50 billion of Iraq's money so they can stay in the cou...
US issues threat to Iraq's $50 billion foreign reserves in military deal
By Patrick Cockburn
Jun. 6- The US is holding hostage some $50 billion of Iraq's money in the Federal Reserve Bank of New York to pressure the Iraqi government into signing an agreement seen by many Iraqis as prolonging the US occupation indefinitely, according to information leaked to British newspaper The Independent.
US negotiators are using the existence of $20 billion in outstanding court judgments against Iraq in the US, to pressure their Iraqi counterparts into accepting the terms of the military deal, details of which were reported for the first time in the newspaper on June 5.
Iraq's foreign reserves are currently protected by a presidential order giving them immunity from judicial attachment but the US side in the talks has suggested that if the UN mandate, under which the money is held, lapses and is not replaced by the new agreement, then Iraq's funds would lose this immunity. The cost to Iraq of this happening would be the immediate loss of $20 billion. The US is able to threaten Iraq with the loss of 40 percent of its foreign exchange reserves because Iraq's independence is still limited by the legacy of UN sanctions and restrictions imposed on Iraq since Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait in the 1990s. This means that Iraq is still considered a threat to international security and stability under Chapter Seven of the UN charter. The US negotiators say the price of Iraq escaping Chapter Seven is to sign up to a new "strategic alliance" with the United States.
The threat by the US side underlines the personal commitment of President Bush to pushing the new pact through by July 31. Although it is in reality a treaty between Iraq and the US, Bush is describing it as an alliance so he does not have to submit it for approval to the US Senate.
Iraqi critics of the agreement say that it means Iraq will be a client state in which the US will keep more than 50 military bases. US forces will be able to carry out arrests of Iraqi citizens and conduct military campaigns without consultation with the Iraqi government. US soldiers and contractors will enjoy legal immunity.
Read More Here: http://theglobalreport.org/?section=news&news_secti...
US issues threat to Iraq's $50 billion foreign reserves in military deal By Patrick Cockburn ... more -
VA conceals vet suicide figures from CBS to downplay ‘epidemic in suicide’
Yesterday marked the opening day of a class action lawsuit brought by Iraq and Afghanistan veterans against the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), arguing “that failure to provide care is manifesting itself in an epidemic of suicides” among veterans. The VA denies the charges, pointing to increased resources devoted to mental health.
Today, CBS News reports that the VA apparently concealed veteran suicide statistics, and fed the news organization faulty data for a story on the issue. The VA told CBS that there were 790 attempted suicides in all of 2007. Yet shortly after, the VA’s head of Mental Health, Dr. Ira Katz, wrote in an e-mail to the VA’s top media adviser that there were “about 1,000 suicide attempts per month among veterans we see in our medical facilities.”
The e-mail exchange shows that the VA hoped to keep the statistics out of CBS’s hands:
From: Katz, Ira R.
Sent: Wednesday, February 13, 2008 11:27 AM
To: Chasen, Ev
Subject: FW: Not for the CBS News Interview Request
Shh!
Our suicide prevention coordinators are identifying about 1000 suicide attempts per month among the veterans we see at our medical facilities. Is this something we should (carefully) address ourselves in some sort of release before someone stumbles on it?
Read More Here: http://thinkprogress.org/2008/04/22/va-hides-suicide-da... Yesterday marked the opening day of a class action lawsuit brought by Iraq and Afghanistan veterans against the Department of Veterans... more -
Bill O'Reilly gets his ass kicked by Phil Donahue!
Bill O'Reilly gets owned again.
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Homeless Vets vs. Bill O'Reilly, part 2
Bill O'Reilly: "The only thing sleeping under a bridge is that guy's brain."
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Homeless Vets vs. Bill O'Reilly, part 1
Bill O'Reilly: "Veterans are homeless mostly because of addiction, and mental illness."
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"Pixie dust" may help injured vets regenerate lost limbs
" Air Force Tech. Sgt. Israel Del Toro is one of the wounded vets who might one day benefit from this research. He was injured by a bomb in Afghanistan. Both his hands were badly burned. On his left hand, what was left of his fingers fused together.
"You know, in the beginning, when I first got hurt, I told them, just cut it off. So I can get some function," Del Toro said. His doctors did not cut off his injured left arm. And since that injury, advancements in burn and amputation treatment mean he may one day be able to use his fingers again.
A key to the research dedicated to regrowing fingers and other body parts is a powder, nicknamed "pixie dust" by some of the people at Brooke. It's made from tissue extracted from pigs.
The pixie dust powder itself doesn't regrow the missing tissue; it tricks the patient's body into doing that itself.
All bodies have stem cells. As we are developing in our mothers' wombs, those stem cells grow our fingers, toes, organs -- essentially, our whole body. The stem cells stop doing that around birth, but they don't go away. The researchers believe that the "pixie dust" can put those stem cells back to work growing new body parts." " Air Force Tech. Sgt. Israel Del Toro is one of the wounded vets who might one day benefit from this research. He was injured by a bo... more -
American thoughts on healthcare for Iraq
A survey was conducted to find out how Americans felt about medical care that Iraq veterans receive and the medical care that soldiers in the front lines receive. Many think that those in the front lines receive better care than those who have come home to U.S.A.
Are veterans being neglected just because they're not fighting anymore and they might not be as important as those in the middle of the action? Those who fought and those who fight deserve the same treatment. A survey was conducted to find out how Americans felt about medical care that Iraq veterans receive and the medical care that soldiers... more -
Leslie Marmon Silko's CEREMONY Describes American Indian Rituals to Heal Returning...
Leslie Marmon Silko got the MacArthur Genius Award in 1981. Her brilliant novel CEREMONY (1977) weaves stories of Pueblo life, uranium mining,her own Laguna Pueblo, American Indian World War II and Viet Nam War veterans and Pueblo and Navajo ceremony, into a novel that is easily one of the 5 best of all time.
More at - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leslie_Marmon_Silko
CEREMONY has vivid descriptions of American Indian rituals that reintergrate returning soldiers back into the community. Silko illuminates the central position of respect American Indian veterans and soldiers hold in tribal communities across the Americas.
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from TouchArt.net and OneEarthBlog.blogspot.com
for Memorial Day 2008 in honor of all the American Indian veterans and soldiers across Indian Country with gratitude for their bravery, service and dedication to protecting our people and land for tens of thousands of years since way before 1492. Leslie Marmon Silko got the MacArthur Genius Award in 1981. Her brilliant novel CEREMONY (1977) weaves stories of Pueblo life, uranium... more
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