VETSPEAK.org

Veterans Day Musings: Something to think about as you watch the parades and fly-overs to honor Veterans......

2009-11-10T18:51:00.027-05:00

*FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE*

Harvard Healthcare Study Results
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Nov. 10, 2009

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Contact:
Mark Almberg, Physicians for a National Health Program, (312) 782-6006, cell: (312) 622-0996, mark@pnhp.org

The Study

*Over 2,200 veterans died in 2008 due to lack of health insurance*

*Harvard researchers say 1.46 million working-age vets lacked health coverage last year, increasing their death rate*

A research team at Harvard Medical School estimates 2,266 U.S. military veterans under the age of 65 died last year because they lacked health insurance and thus had reduced access to care. That figure is more than 14 times the number of deaths (155) suffered by U.S. troops in Afghanistan in 2008, and more than twice as many as have died (911 as of Oct. 31) since the war began in 2001.

The researchers, who released their analysis today, pointedly say the health reform legislation pending in the House and Senate will not significantly affect this grim picture.

The Harvard group analyzed data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s March 2000 Current Population Survey, which surveyed Americans about their insurance coverage and veteran status, and found that 1,461,615 veterans between the ages of 18 and 64 were uninsured in 2008. Veterans were only classified as uninsured if they neither had health insurance nor received ongoing care at Veterans Health Administration (VA) hospitals or clinics.

Using their recently published findings in the American Journal of Public Health (tinyurl.com/l7cy8u) that show being uninsured raises an individual’s odds of dying by 40 percent (causing 44,798 deaths in the United States annually among those aged 17 to 64), they arrived at their estimate of 2,266 preventable deaths of non-elderly veterans in 2008.
(See table below.)

“Like other uninsured Americans, most uninsured vets are working people – too poor to afford private coverage but not poor enough to qualify for Medicaid or means-tested VA care,” said Dr. Steffie Woolhandler, a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School who testified before Congress about uninsured veterans in 2007 (tinyurl.com/yej6rnq) and carried out the analysis released today. “As a result, veterans go without the care they need every day in the U.S., and thousands die each year. It’s a disgrace.”

Dr. David Himmelstein, the co-author of the analysis and associate professor of medicine at Harvard, commented, “On this Veterans Day we should not only honor the nearly 500 soldiers who have died this year in Iraq and Afghanistan, but also the more than 2,200 veterans who were killed by our broken health insurance system. That’s six preventable deaths a day.”
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He continued: “These unnecessary deaths will continue under the legislation now before the House and Senate. Those bills would do virtually nothing for the uninsured until 2013, and leave at least 17 million uninsured over the long run. We need a solution that works for all veterans – and for all Americans – single-payer national health insurance.”

While many Americans believe that all veterans can get care from the VA, even combat veterans may not be able to obtain VA care, Woolhandler said. As a rule, VA facilities provide care for any veteran who is
disabled by a condition connected to his or her military service and care for specific medical conditions acquired during military service.

Woolhandler said veterans who pass a means test are eligible for care in VA facilities, but have lower priority status (Priority 5 or 7, depending upon income level). Veterans with higher incomes are classified in the lowest priority group and are not eligible for VA enrollment.

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The table showing the excess deaths of veterans due to lack of insurance can be found by scrolling down to the bottom of this document:
http://www.pnhp.org/news/2009/november/over_2200_veterans_.php

A December 2007 paper in the American Journal of Public Health estimating the number of uninsured veterans from 1987 through 2004 can be found here:
tinyurl.com/yk8ous5

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Note: If you are an uninsured veteran having difficulty getting health care and would like to tell your story to the media, write a short note to Mark Almberg at mark@pnhp.org.

Physicians for a National Health Program (www.pnhp.org) is an organization of 17,000 doctors who support single-payer national health insurance, often called an improved Medicare for All. To speak with a physician/spokesperson in your area, visit www.pnhp.org/stateactions or call (312) 782-6006.

Physicians for a National Health Program
29 E. Madison St., Suite 602
Chicago IL 60602
(312) 782-6006
info@pnhp.org
www.pnhp.org
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www.VetSpeak.org

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VA, Agent Orange, Vietnam, and Veterans' activism...

2009-10-24T15:08:00.009-05:00

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Ed Note: I am posting this article from Thanh Nien News in it's entirety. Our own Chuck Palazzo is quoted extensively, as is another Vietnam Veteran activist, named Paul Sutton. Chuck has been in the forefront of the debate surrounding the inclusion of Parkinson's as presumptive, here on our pages. He is our Interim Agent Orange Editor, and a member of VVAW, an organization that has been in the Agent Orange fight, from th very beginning. You can follow his work here at VetSpeak.org.

It is work that is having an impact, as demonstrated by this incredible Veitnamese news article, quoting two former enemy combatants, announcing the VA's inclusion of these three additional presumptives, regarding US Veterans compensation. In this article, neither Chuck, nor Marine Vietnam Veteran, Paul Sutton, let our government off the hook for the original war-crime of chemical warfare, or for it's failing to properly compensate Vietnamese people for the devastation that Agent Orange has caused to them, and the ecosystem of their country.

Most importantly though; I am posting it in recognition how important each of our efforts are in the struggle for peace and justice, in this case, the resolving the social injustices of chemical warfare, on not only the enemy, but of our own troops, as well. No matter how discouraged you might become; never give up, never surrender! Chuck and Paul...both have a history of struggle that has helped to bring about this small, but important, victory, recognized as far away as in the land of our former enemy. Never forget what got us all here. WH
Thanh Nien News/ Health/ US government recognizes more illnesses linked to Agent Orange

US government recognizes more illnesses linked to Agent Orange

The US Veterans Affairs Department said Tuesday it plans add three more conditions to the list of ailments linked to Agent Orange exposure for which Vietnam veterans can receive medical benefits.

(Two airplanes spray herbicide in Southern Vietnam in a file photo taken during the Vietnam War.)

Relying on an independent study by the Institute of Medicine (IOM), Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) Eric K. Shinseki decided to establish a service-connection for Vietnam Veterans with the three specific illnesses based on the latest evidence of an association with the herbicides referred to as Agent Orange.

The illnesses affected by the recent decision are B cell leukemias, such as hairy cell leukemia; Parkinson's disease; and ischemic heart disease.

Paul Sutton, Staff Sergeant of Marines in Vietnam 1964-1965 and 1967-1968 welcomed the decision, but said it didn’t simply wipe away years of suffering.

“This determination by General Shinseki is right for the times. As someone who's been in this fight since October 1977, I've watched the VA and the system allow our brothers and sister suffer and die needlessly for too long.”

Chuck Palazzo, a former US Marine and combat veteran in Vietnam (1970-1971) who now lives in Da Nang, told Thanh Nien Weekly the decision was a step in the right direction that would have “a positive effect on many thousands of veterans who would otherwise not have received medical assistance from the government.”

But the day was not one for full celebration for people suffering from Agent Orange related maladies, or for the families of those who have already passed on.

“The additional illnesses, sadly, have already taken many lives,” said Palazzo. “Had the VA acted quicker, they could have prevented many unnecessary deaths.”

He said the 15 presumptive illnesses now recognized by the VA were “still way short of the possible hundreds of afflictions caused by exposure to Agent Orange or being an offspring of someone exposed.”

He also pointed out that not only US veterans had been suffering.

“The US Government has not done enough for its own Veterans and families. They have done less for the Vietnamese citizens and their families who were exposed to Agent Orange... what we have given to the Vietnamese in terms of assistance is pennies compared to what is truly needed.”

The decision had been a long – and not easy – time coming, according to Sutton.

“Because of my support for the Vietnamese efforts to get the US government to put their money where their mouth is vis-a-vis cleaning up the toxic mess below the 17th parallel, I have taken a lot of crap from brother veterans over the tears, but, fair is fair. Help one, help everyone.”

Used in Vietnam to defoliate trees and remove concealment for the enemy, Agent Orange left a legacy of suffering and disability that continues to the present. Between January 1965 and April 1970, an estimated 2.6 million military personnel who served in Vietnam were potentially exposed to sprayed Agent Orange.

In practical terms, Veterans who served in Vietnam during the war and who have a "presumed" illness don't have to prove an association between their illnesses and their military service. This "presumption" simplifies and speeds up the application process for benefits.

The Secretary's decision brings to 15 the number of presumed illnesses recognized by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).

Other illnesses previously recognized under VA's "presumption" rule as being caused by exposure to herbicides during the Vietnam War are Acute and Subacute Transient Peripheral Neuropathy

AL Amyloidosis
Chloracne
Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia
Diabetes Mellitus (Type 2)
Hodgkin's Disease
Multiple Myeloma
Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma
Porphyria Cutanea Tarda
Prostate Cancer
Respiratory Cancers, and
Soft Tissue Sarcoma (other than Osteosarcoma, Chondrosarcoma, Kaposi's sarcoma, or Mesothelioma)

Source: Agencies-Thanh Nien Weekly
Story from Thanh Nien News
Published: 19 October, 2009, 12:34:05 (GMT+7)
Copyright Thanh Nien News

http://www.vetspeak.org/

VETERANS DEPORTATION - ACTION ALERT: Seeking Personal Testimony re Military Recruiting and US Citizenship

2009-10-23T11:25:00.005-05:00

*ACTION ALERT*

Please give this top priority and distribute ASAP to all members and any and all veterans groups and or individuals.

Fellow Vets & Supporters,

The email request below is an "URGENT REQUEST" from a Pro Bono Attorney here in San Diego that is assisting us with the Deportation of U.S. Military Veterans Issue. Specifically for a Vietnam Veteran who has been deported. Please review her short request for assistance for background information based on your personal knowledge and experience and email her directly. Please Cc me as well at jan.ruhman@vetspeak.org. Her email address is at the end of her email request below. Thank you.

Jan A. Ruhman
VVAW & VFP
San Diego
Cell # 858-361-6273

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Request for support

I am a pro bono attorney representing a Vietnam War vet who was recently deported back to Mexico. We are filing some legal paperwork to have a prior conviction vacated in county court but the judge wants additional evidence to support my client's assertion that he was promised automatic citizenship when he enlisted in the army back in 1973. Is there anyone who, either from personal experience or through others, knows whether or not this was common practice by Military Recruiters (e.g. making promises of US citizenship) to induce immigrants to enlist into the military? Or even after enlistment, did superior officers or NCO's tell immigrant soldiers that they would be given citizenship because of their military service?

I acknowledge that this was not the official policy of the United States military but even a few anecdotes to demonstrate that this did in fact happen on a few occasions would be exceedingly helpful. Please feel free to contact me via email at van.nguyen@lw.com, if you have further questions, comments, or suggestions.

Many thanks in advance.

Van T. Nguyen, Attorney at Law
LATHAM & WATKINS LLP
600 West Broadway, Suite 1800
San Diego, CA 92101-3375
Direct Dial: +1.619.238.2823
Fax: +1.619.696.7419

http://www.vetspeak.org/

From Vietnam to Afghanistan: The more things change, the more they remain the same...

2009-10-23T08:50:00.001-05:00

A Poor Place To Have To Defend To Begin With

Chuck Palazzo

Interim Agent Orange Editor and VVAW Member

As you are all aware, my main interest right now is Agent Orange - what can be done about the required medical attention by those who are victims - either directly sprayed, having living in contaminated areas, and of course their offspring - Americans, our allies and of course the Vietnamese - and as I am learning, the widespread contamination reaches much, much further - Canada, Guam, Japan - I hope to write on that soon as I gather more information. I have also taken up an interest in UXO, am far from qualified to even write or comment about it, but I am a very strong supporter of the clean-up efforts involved, and the killing and maiming of innocents that occurs each and every day throughout the world.

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The story that the link below will take you to, I found as a result of UXO research. Its actually more about how the US put itself in harms way by basing a small camp, then trying to defend it, in a nearly impossible scenario. Our involvement in Afghanistan, fighting against brave warriors that defeated the Russians, and a fighting force that are defending their country, their families, their religion. A country that has fought on horseback, and in an impossible environment - long story short, they know what they are doing and in my opinion, we have no reason to be there. I personally draw many parallels between Vietnam and Afghanistan.
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Here is an eyewitness account of COP Keating - I use the term "eyewitness" loosely because it was provided by a General from a CP from who knows how many klicks away from the actual battle. But nonetheless, the words speak for themselves. It brought back vivid memories of some of our impossible missions in Vietnam - fighting for ground that was meaningless, no advanced air or artillery support, etc...
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Here is the link:
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http://ricks.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2009/10/10/the_battle_of_cop_keating_an_earwitness_account

Semper fi! and my condolences go out to the family members who's sons, brothers, fathers, husbands were KIA as a result of this yet, another waste. What was achieved? Death.

http://www.vetspeak.org/

Afghanistan?! What about the war at home?

2009-10-12T16:03:00.002-05:00

A Blog Posted On Blogger
By

Julie Anna Infantry Wife

(click to go to Julie Anna's Blogger blogsite)

Ed Note: I have taken the liberty of reposting Julie Anna's blog on our pages because, to me; this is the real collateral damage of war...when will the VA and the Pentagon ever learn? There are some serious lessons to be learned from Julie's experiences. I hope her husband somehow reads this, and realizes that he is not alone, through all of this...hope is the best motivator for finding the road home. Been there, done that. WH

13 August 2009

My heart is broken. My husband was diagnosed with PTSD and TBI and life has been hell for more than two years because instead of getting the help he needs, he was shit on even more. We all were. Now we are back at Fort Lewis and my girls and I are living alone. He can barely function with out freaking out, and for safety sake has moved out. We are all getting counseling of all kinds but I can still barely breathe. I thought an army wife was supposed to be strong, just like her warrior husband... now we are all broken.

I love my husband and I am still here for him, despite the things he's done which I can't even begin to mention. He says his biggest fear is to lose me and the kids, then why can't he see that I'M STILL HERE?!

i'm still here...

posted by julie anna

19:20

5 comments

http://www.vetspeak.org/

Alert: Stop The VA Land Grab!

2009-10-08T10:27:00.001-05:00

Call To Action!

RALLY TO STOP THE LAND GRAB OF VETERAN’S PROPERTY!

121 years ago, on 3 March 1888, a plot of land was irrevocably deeded by John P. Jones and Arcadia de Baker to the United States for the “sole purpose of providing veterans a place to heal from war”. That property is now called the “VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System” and is managed by the Department of Veterans Affairs.

In September 2007 the local VA entered into a “Shared Property” agreement with an organized group of Brentwood and Beverly Hills residents calling themselves the “Veterans Park Conservancy” to use 16+ acres of that land, rent-free, as a public park.

The LA Veterans Healthcare System has turned over one facility after another to private enterprises for pennies on the dollar rent. Most listings for the Veterans Wadsworth Theatre don’t even include the name “Veteran” anymore. The current deal with the VPC is just one more of the “slippery slope” deals will lead to the piece-by-piece fragmentation of the veterans’ property.

We must all stand together to protect this land on behalf of all veterans and not let this land be given away by the Veterans Administration. Once this land becomes “public property” the veterans will never see it again because reversing a “public agreement” will be next to impossible.

JOIN THE VETERAN’S REVOLUTION

AT THE N/E CORNER OF SAN VICENTE BLVD. AND WILSHIRE BLVD.

Los Angeles, CA (street parking is available on Wilshire)

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 11TH, 1:00 – 4:00pm

“SAVE OUR VETERAN’S LAND”

For more information contact:
Bob Rosebrock at 310-472-2717
Steve Crandall, VVAW, at 805-388-1542

http://www.vetspeak.org/

A Tough Week: the Phillipines, Indonesia, American Samoa, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand and of course, Vietnam...

2009-10-06T19:29:00.003-05:00

Typhoons, earthquakes, tsunamis, forgotten victims, and possible link to the spread of Agent Orange

Chuck Palazzo

Interim Editor for Agent Orange, VVAW

One thing amazes me during and after a natural disaster occurs – including those that have occurred in our own United States – has it ever occurred to anyone, or is it just me? Those that are mostly affected are those that need these disasters the least. Not to minimize anyone on our planet, their resources, the destruction and devastation that they have experienced, but why is it that the poor, those that have been through so much, those who have to beg for a few Dong just to eat seem to be the most gravely affected? It’s been an impossible week for so many people, so many countries. Is it our global climate change? Who knows and I doubt we will ever know. My heart goes out to ALL who have been affected. Living in Vietnam however, and in Da Nang especially, I feel a sense of brother and sisterhood – those who were once our enemies, all joined together this week as one nation, as one people – human beings helping human beings.

My neighbor’s here in Da Nang, Son Tra Province to be specific, which is a stone’s throw from the ocean, all came knocking on my door. The Vietnamese families that have “adopted” me, dropped what they were doing, stopped boarding up their own homes, just to make sure I was OK and offered their help. With my very limited Vietnamese, and their very limited English, we communicated in our own form of sign language, and ensured we would and always will, count on each other – in good times and bad. And my friends, this week was BAD and we all kept our words – we helped each other, placed others before ourselves – especially the children.

My friend, colleague, mentor and of course, fellow Marine, Willie H. and I recollected the Monsoon season here during the war – neither of us could remember it ever being this bad.

Café in the Morning

For those of you who don’t know, Da Nang is located on the coast of central Vietnam. (Please see the link to a map below). During the war years, it was attacked by both VC as well as NVA. Hue City is very close by. There are many Vietnamese who live here and in the general area who fought for the south and some who fought for the North. I happen to have coffee each morning (by the way, if you haven’t tried it, you must! Vietnamese coffee is some of the finest in the world) with a Vietnamese man who has become my friend. About my age and fit as can be – he finally told me he was a former VC and not proud of it. Many Vietnamese are not proud of their affiliations from the past – but the past is the past. Guess who was the first to knock on my door the day after the storm? My new VC friend. He calls me “bạn chiến đấu” which means “brother in arms”.

http://maps.google.com/maps?q=map+of+vietnam&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&hq=&hnear=Vietnam&gl=vn&ei=BgTGSqmnLJiQ6APPjMXKDA&sa=X&oi=geocode_result&ct=image&resnum=1

Why the lack of coverage about the Vietnam Disaster?

I have my own theory, and in my opinion, as we have publically come out to say time and time again, the war is behind us, the major difference is this - the Vietnamese really mean it when they say it. I also believe that there is indeed a link to Agent Orange and the potential spread of Dioxin via floods like what was just experienced. Some of you have read the question I posed to many experts in the field, and I am still sifting through all of this very valuable information. Thank you so much for all of you who contributed. Could it be, in some bizarre fashion, that by offering more aid to Vietnam, especially with flooding and the potential of spreading the poison Dioxin, we are indeed admitting guilt to war crimes? We all know that the chemical companies that created this nightmare are guilty of creating an uncontrollable negative future. We also now have proof that the US knew all along that this was a poison that would cause extremely serious consequences if used – beyond just being, excuse the pun, your garden variety weed killer.

I read and I write – especially about the war that I was part of, and the negative consequences it has brought on to so many of us. I see widespread press coverage by other countries as a result of this disaster – especially coming from the US. But I see little, if any, regarding the number of people killed, the homelessness, the destruction that has been created and the potential worsening of the dioxin problem here in Vietnam. (Kudos to the Wall Street Journal – they appear to be the only exception). Isn’t it ironic that I rely on finding this info from other countries but not the US? We are not putting our wealth nor are we offering assistance, to the country of Vietnam. Could this all be related? I believe in my heart of hearts, that it is.

Once again, I don’t dare minimize what these other countries have been through this week – but where is the coverage we owe to Vietnam, and the aid that is rightfully theirs from a global, if not THE Global Leader – the US? Our Secretary of State pledged $100,000! No typo folks. I am embarrassed to even state that number.

Audacity and Arrogance Defined

As I sift through all of this information, I find this story from a Canadian publication:

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/afp/091001/health/vietnam_us_military_health_agentorange_8

In brief, “Efforts to clean up contamination from the wartime herbicide Agent Orange in Vietnam took a step forward Thursday when the United States awarded a contract to prepare for dioxin containment.

The US said the 1.69-million-dollar project will involve building a secure landfill site to hold contaminated soil and sediment at Danang airport.

Full-scale decontamination could take years”.

Give me a break! It will cost billions to clean up Vietnam and give the medical attention to those of us who served here, the Vietnamese, our allies and the offspring that continue to be born with afflictions that can only be caused by such an insidious poison – dioxin.

I have to thank my good friend and colleague, Rena K. for pointing this out : if we use the number 3 million victims and this $1.69million in money just released by the US, that equates to $.56 (fifty-six cents) per victim PRIOR to administrative costs. As she puts it, this is worse than shameful, much worse – it’s an insult!

Timed perfectly by the Canadian Press – but I have yet to find any retort, any argument in favor of what the US continues to do – which in my opinion is nothing.

Links to Related Stories

Please friends, take some time and check out these links. I invite any and all comments, for and against what I am stating here. But please, show compassion to all, not just a select few.

http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportID=86390

http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/288276,typhoon-ketsana-death-toll-rises-to-101-in-vietnam.html

http://www.asiaone.com/News/Latest+News/Asia/Story/A1Story20091001-171214.html

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125442084699556929.html

http://www.mysinchew.com/node/29729

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-10/02/content_12172478.htm

This one has to be a mis-print. But please read what our secretary of state had to say:

On Friday, the United States said it would provide 100,000 dollars worth of assistance to help victims of the typhoon after Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said her country stands ready "to assist the people of Vietnam as they recover from this tragedy".

Came from this publication:

http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/world/10/02/09/vietnam-turns-clean-flooding-recedes

The stories go on and on, the tragedy and deaths continue, and the suffering just seems to be non-stop. And “poor us” in the US, we complain about the price of a Big Mac increasing.

http://www.vetspeak.org/

Lingering '70s Spittin' Image & VA Politics contribute to 2009 PTSD and New GI Bill SNAFU

2009-10-06T11:10:00.014-05:00

Sheddin' The Light of Truth: What was true then, is still true, today...
By

Chuck "Mutt" Winant

La Mesa, Ca

http://vvawsandiego.angelfire.com/

Among the many half baked lies about America's war against Viet Nam is the "they spit on us" myth that has served so well to deter many from any actual examination of the War. In the article "Viet Nam Veterans Now Get Warm Welcome", Aug 17, I'm now told I had bottles and eggs thrown at me...

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/la-na-briefs17-2009aug17,0,4753225.story?page=2

Never happened...

You know, after seeing what my country was up to in Viet Nam, the LAST thing I cared about was getting a parade. I'm hardly alone in this.

Oh, we were "spit on", all right - by the Veterans hospitals, foul dungeons where many died from medical neglect, by a VA which stonewalled any investigations into Agent Orange, and had but one bed, nationally, for heroin addiction.

We were spit on by a series of thuggish Saigon regimes, the last of which- Thieu/Ky, got rich off of, traffiking in that heroin.

We were spit on by our own Services, when returning vets, denied health care or drug treatment, were given bad paper discharges for speaking out - just like todays returning vets! There was no "diagnosis" of PTSD, back in the day, so not even any counseling, one on one or in a group setting, was available to us.

That is, until Viet Nam Veterans Against The War documented a common problem amongst returning Veterans that they called Post Vietnam Syndrome, later (1983) to become clinically recognized as an anxiety disorder called PTSD, with the publication of the DSM-III. With this development, the Swift Boat types created the media spin that we were cry babies, rather than veterans that were psychologically damaged by their harrowing experiences in an illegal war.

Who could forget the hosing we got from the VFW and Legion, who used their political weight to limit the new crop of veterans from getting the benefits they themselves enjoyed - shades of John McCain - voting down every VA bill that expanded veterans right and benefits for Veitnam Veterans. When anti War Viet vets joined VFW and American Legion posts, those posts were dropped from the rolls.

Then we were spit on by the political generals of the Pentagon, Hackworths' "Perfumed Princes" - who put thier careers ahead of what was good for the country as well as the troops. And we were spit on by pro war flag waving nonothings, who reacted in rage and sometimes violence against Viet Nam vets who dared speak the obvious about that uspeakable war.

People who opposed that war stood behind us, and with us. They were on OUR side. Anti War vets, like Viet Nam Veterans Against the War fought all those forces to bring to light the realities of Agent Orange, and what they called PVS, going so far as to seize unused wings of VA hospitals, setting up our own PVS treatment centers, and forcing the military to upgrade thousands of bad discharges.

A parade? You want to buy me with a fucking PARADE? - tell you what; You want to honor my voluntary tour in Viet Nam, derail these latest public wars for private profit, devote however many billions it will take to do right by our wounded, and the damage we inflicted, and have those responsible for these disasters bought to justice.

Related Links
http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Spitting-Image/Jerry-Lembcke/e/9780814751466
http://www.drugtext.org/library/books/McCoy/default.htm
http://www.harpers.org/archive/2006/06/0081080
http://www.vvaw.org/about/
GORDON MARSHALL. "DSM-III." A Dictionary of Sociology. 1998. Encyclopedia.com. 6 Oct. 2009
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Hackworth

http://www.vetspeak.org/

VA GI Bill Payments SNAFU: Situation Normal, All F****d Up...

2009-10-01T17:28:00.008-05:00

X
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Sept 30, 2009
Contact: Katie Roberts
katie.roberts@va.gov or 202-461-4982

Secretary Shinseki Announces Ability to Sign Up for Emergency Educatio Benefit Payments on VA Web-Site this Friday

Vans to Help Veteran-Students

WASHINGTON - Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki today announced further outreach to Veteran-students eligible for a special emergency payment of their education benefits. Veterans can now apply online beginning October 2nd. Veteran-students can also request courtesy transportation to VA regional benefits offices.

"Our Veterans went the extra mile for their country," Shinseki said. "One of our top priorities in transforming VA is to be, first and foremost, the advocate for Veterans."

Last week Shinseki announced that on Friday, Oct. 2, VA's 57 regional benefits offices will begin providing on-the-spot emergency payments up to $3,000 to students who have applied for their education benefits but who have not yet received a government payment.

Citing the distance many Veterans would have to travel to apply in person at a VA benefits office, Shinseki announced Veterans can also apply online at http://www.va.gov/, starting Oct. 2. The online application will guide Veterans through the process to supply needed information. Shinseki noted that online applicants will receive their emergency payments through the mail after processing.

"VA is adapting to meet the financial needs of our Veteran-students who are on campus," Shinseki said. "They should be focusing on their studies, not worrying about financial difficulties."

Students without their own transportation can also request free van service, provided by volunteers, to carry them to the nearest benefits office. To obtain this service, Veterans would have to call their nearest VA medical center and ask for the "Volunteer Transportation Coordinator." Transportation will be on a first-come, first-served, space-available basis.

Veterans can find a map and list of medical centers at
http://www2.va.gov/directory/guide/division_flsh.asp?dnum=1.

Whether traveling by personal vehicle or volunteer van, VA officials suggest students check their mail boxes and banking accounts before leaving home, since some Veterans will find their checks have already arrived. VA would like to recognize the volunteers and Veterans Service

Organizations for partnering with us in ensuring that student Veterans' needs are met.

The emergency checks are an advance on each student's education benefits, and the amount will be deducted from future benefits payments.

Checks will be written at the regional offices for Veterans who bring a photo ID and evidence of their enrollment. VA officials emphasize that $3,000 is the maximum payment, with many Veterans receiving smaller payments based upon their likely monthly education benefits.

A map and list of the participating VA regional benefits offices is available on the Internet at

http://www2.va.gov/directory/guide/division_flsh.asp?dnum=3 . The most updated information regarding VA issuing emergency checks will be available VA's web site http://www.va.gov/ starting
October 1st.

Applications from approximately 25,000 Veterans are currently being processed for Post-9/11 GI Bill education benefit payments to students or schools.

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http://www.vetspeak.org/

Acorn: A successful model for grassroots organizers...

2009-09-27T20:12:00.003-05:00

Ed Note: I have chosen this piece for posting, in it's entirety, as opposed to a link, because I believe that there are some lessons for those of us involved in grass-roots organizing in many different demographics, regarding many varied social justice issue campaigns, to be reminded of, or to learn, anew. I am not taking an editorial position on the specific recent charges against Acorn employees, and the organization, in general; truth will out, in the end.

There are many parallels between Acorn and Vietnam Veterans Against The War, back in it's hayday, relating to empowerment. They rest in the organizational strategy, and democratic nature of the operational processes of the organization, as outlined (and editorially italicized) in David Morris' piece; organizers must be vested in the mission, and be allowed to be creative, in accordance with their demographic realities, and available resources.

Acorn gets it, in this regard. In a successful grass-roots campaign, there is no room for political dogma, from either side of the aisle, only pragmatic programs and solutions; dogma is a hindarance, rather than enhancement to this process, i.e. the Cracker Swamp Manifesto, posted on these pages on June 7, 2006. The intense Federal backlash that Acorn is experiencing is a measure of their success in delivering blows against the empire, much as the Gainesville 8 Trial was to the VVAW; that is the real story, and Morris connects all the dots, in this powerful posting. WH

ACORN: The Most Cost-Effective Investment the Government (and Foundations) Have Ever Made

David Morris

www.alternet.org/story/142812/

Posted on September 23, 2009

To understand the current attacks on ACORN, and the organization itself, we need to go back more than 60 years, to the 1930s and the New Deal, when for the first time, the federal government accepted responsibility for directly helping the non-working poor.

These programs were expanded in the 1940s, but in the 1950s, a backlash erupted against the poor, driven by several factors.

The postwar prosperity dramatically reduced the number of poor families, and an increasing number of black women were added to the welfare rolls, injecting race into the debate.

Meanwhile, a Republican White House mostly left welfare matters to the states.

The myth of welfare recipients as lazy, immoral chiselers began to circulate. States adopted punitive laws to reduce welfare rolls. Special units of welfare departments conducted "midnight raids" to see if the recipients were involved in a relationship with a man, something that would result in a cut-off of benefits. The average grant declined.

In desperation, low-income mothers in dozens of big cities organized for survival. They came together to collectively negotiate not only with welfare offices for benefits, but with utilities to eliminate deposits required from low-income households and with the post office to install locks on mailboxes in apartment houses to prevent the theft of welfare checks.

Several veterans of the civil rights movement worked to bring local welfare-rights organizations together into a national organization.

In June 1966, a coordinated national day of action brought tens of thousands of people into the streets in 16 major cities. Two months later, representatives of 75 local welfare-rights organizations convened in Chicago to create the National Welfare Rights Organization.

Led by George Wiley, a Ph.D. chemist and leader of the Congress of Racial Equality, NWRO was an unusual organization. It was a federation of local groups that coordinated local and national actions. Black women comprised a majority of its leadership.

NWRO's successes led to rapid growth. By 1969, it boasted over 500 chapters with 22,500 dues-paying families.

In the late 1960s, a growing number of people looked to create a broad-based anti-poverty movement, an idea embraced by the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. in his Poor People's Campaign, in which NWRO played an important role.

In 1972, when Wiley left NWRO, he told the New York Times, "The welfare-rights movement created a political and economic crisis around the issue of welfare which could have led to reform or repression. What we are witnessing is repression, and we need a broad, organized movement to counter it."

Wiley wanted to use the NWRO model to build a coalition of the working poor, unemployed, seniors and the lower middle class around issues such as national health insurance, consumer rights, housing and tax reform.

After a tragic accident took Wiley's life in 1973, the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, created by two former NWRO organizers Wiley had sent to Little Rock, Ark., in 1970, became the primary vehicle for implementing his vision.

Led by Wade Rathke, ACORN had affiliates in 20 cities by 1980. Today, it has about 400,000 low- and moderate-income members in more than 100 cities in 40 states.
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ACORN is one of the few grassroots neighborhood organizations capable of wielding power on a national scale.
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It is unique in the combination of strategies it uses: organizing, direct action, lawsuits, lobbying and the provision of direct services.
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That ACORN is a federation of self-governing locals with a national board comprised largely of poor people seems to both amaze and gall the right.
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Early this year, the conservative blog, Provocateur said about ACORN's board members, "They rose through the ranks of ACORN, often starting as foot soldiers fighting for causes near and dear to them. Since ACORN is often associated with causes for poor, most of the board are themselves poor. As such, they are often rather unsophisticated, and thus will be overwhelmed by the sophisticated nature of the organization itself."
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ACORN has been a target of the right virtually since its founding. During the l980s and early 1990s, President George H.W. Bush's Department of Labor convened a grand jury to investigate ACORN's relationship to the progressive labor union SEIU.
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The investigation was dropped after Bill Clinton took office. The President George W. Bush's Attorney General Alberto Gonzales was forced to quit in part because he fired several U.S. attorneys who refused to go after ACORN's voter-registration efforts when they found no evidence of alleged voter fraud.
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ACORN's bottom-up and coordinated structure has enabled it to confront national corporations in a way few other organizations can.
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When Reagan and the first President Bush's regulators failed to enforce the Community Reinvestment Act, ACORN and other groups conducted their own studies.
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They identified banks with patterns of discriminatory lending, exposed these practices to the media and then demanded regulators do their jobs. The combination of publicity and confrontations led many lenders to agree to make loans to borrowers who could afford them.
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Later, ACORN helped to get the Treasury Department to reverse its 10-year-old ruling that federal rules pre-empted 35 state laws curbing prepayment penalties that were costing borrowers more than $2 billion a year.
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ACORN's provision of services has also enabled it to see national problems before they become national problems. Its mortgage counseling for lower-income households led it to sound the alarm about an industry that was manipulating families into taking out risky loans.
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ACORN called adjustable-rate mortgages with teaser rates ticking time bombs. It beseeched Congress to not deregulate an increasingly irresponsible banking industry.
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Conservatives call ACORN's confrontation tactics "shakedowns" or "extortions," for they often result in large corporations shelling out money.
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I call it justice.
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ACORN doesn't have the power to fine corporations or put their executives in jail for misdeeds. It only has the power to ask those who have done harm to pay to reduce that harm and prevent future injury.
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In its 1993 campaign against insurance redlining, ACORN targeted Allstate and held actions in offices in l4 cities.
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Allstate signed an agreement creating a $10 million program to offer below-market mortgages to low-income buyers.
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In 2000, ACORN began a national campaign to combat the predatory lending practices of Household Finance Corp., one of nation's largest subprime lenders. ACORN used lawsuits as well as direct action, resulting in a $150 million class-action settlement that included $72 million for a foreclosure-avoidance program.
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As ACORN grew, it often created tensions with existing organizations in its new cities. It got a reputation for not playing well with others. But few questioned its effectiveness.
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Sometimes the scope of ACORN's activities is breathtaking.
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In 2008, John Atlas and Peter Dreier, who have followed ACORN closely for many years, listed some local news stories about ACORN in the previous few weeks.
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The New York Times wrote about ACORN's successful campaign to save 5,881 rental units of working-class housing in Brooklyn.
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The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette recounted an ACORN demonstration at a local bank, with members blowing whistles and chanting “Criminal offenders, predatory lenders.”
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The Dallas Morning News reported on ACORN's campaign to expand health insurance in Texas, while dozens of papers highlighted ACORN's key role in a new national coalition of unions, consumer and religious groups to fight for universal health care.
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The New Orleans Times-Picayune described ACORN's ongoing work to rebuild homes in the Lower Ninth Ward neighborhood battered by Hurricane Katrina.
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The San Francisco Chronicle reported that Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a bill pushed by ACORN that will help desperate California homeowners avoid foreclosures."
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Conservatives themselves reluctantly recognize ACORN's importance. In a 2006 Wall Street Journal column, Steven Malanga of the Manhattan Institute complained, "When Chicago's City Council this summer required big-box stores to pay new employees at least $10 an hour, supporters of the legislation held an impromptu celebration in the council galleries.
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"The hoopla was reminiscent of another scene five years earlier in New York, when opponents of Mayor Rudy Giuliani's effort to privatize failing public schools embraced in the streets after parents rejected the idea.
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"What linked these celebrations was the left-wing Association for Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) which led the campaign for the legislation and against privatization."
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Since the tax advice of a few ACORN employees is at the heart of the current controversy, it might be helpful to understand how and why ACORN became involved in tax assistance.
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In late 2003, ACORN launched a four-city program that offered assistance to families eligible for the Earned Income Tax Credit, the nation's largest income-support program. It did so in part because the IRS estimated that some 5 million qualified families failed to claim the credit.
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ACORN tax preparers were trained and credentialed in coordination with the IRS. ACORN members went door to door to inform people about free tax services and the EITC.
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In a formal evaluation of the program, Fred Brooks, Robert Fisher and Daniel Russell found that it was ranked near or at the top of all free tax services in those cities. Canvassed respondents in New Orleans, for example, were five times more likely to choose free tax preparation compared to income-equivalent comparison group, saving them $200-$300 each.
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ACORN's tax assistance resulted in almost $4 million in tax refunds to low-income families. The next year, ACORN expanded its EITC assistance to 51 cities and generated $19 million in total refunds.
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In typical ACORN fashion, its tax-advice service led to direct action. ACORN discovered that poor people who file for the EITC often take out short-term, very-high-interest loans, called Refund Anticipation Loans to receive their money a few days or weeks sooner.
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In 2003, more than 50 percent of tax preparers' customers who received an RAL also received the EITC. By some estimates, the almost 200 percent annual interest customers paid on their RALs, plus the associated administrative fees reduced the EITC refunds lower-income households received by more than $500 million.
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In the 1990s, when RALs exploded, state attorneys general went after companies like H&R Block for unfair and deceptive practices.
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By 2000, according to the New York Times, Block had been sued no fewer than 22 times.
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But lawsuits didn't stop tax preparers, or even slow them down, because RALs were extremely profitable. In 1999, H&R block made a profit of over 50 percent on its sale of RALs. In 2004, Jackson Hewitt, the second-largest tax-preparation chain in the country, said that RALs accounted for 29 percent of the company's revenues.
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In January 2004, ACORN mounted coordinated actions against H&R Block in 43 cities, accusing it of stealing from low-income communities. Within a month, H& R Block and ACORN reached an agreement: H&R Block agreed to give ACORN money to expand its EITC outreach and eliminate its RAL application fee nationwide. It also agreed to hire and train ACORN members to be tax preparers.
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ACORN has reportedly received about $53 million since 1994 from the federal government, about $3.5 million a year. If so, it must be the most cost-effective investment the federal government has ever made, assuming the investment was made to help the poor.
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In 2005, ACORN did an analysis of how much money its activities had generated for low- and moderate-income households in the 10-year period from 1995 to 2004.
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One should, of course, approach the findings of an internal report cautiously. But its methodology is transparent and sound. It counts, for example, only those campaigns in which it played the lead role.
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The conclusion? Over 10 years, ACORN's direct services and local and state campaigns generated monetary benefits for lower-income households totaling some $15 billion, or $1.5 billion a year. This includes the impact of enacting living-wage or minimum-wage or predatory-lending ordinances or statutes.
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The recent video of an ACORN employee giving tax advice to a make-believe prostitute and her "pimp" to engage in a make-believe crime is certainly damning.
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But we should compare the swift punitive reaction by Congress and the media to that video with their reactions to real-world tax advice given by huge accounting firms to the richest of us that resulted in real-world millions of foreclosures and millions more plunging into poverty.
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We don't have the tape of executives at the giant accounting firm KPMG dreaming up a new intangible asset that would save its client WorldCom millions in state taxes.
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The new asset was called "foresight of top management." Shortly thereafter, the foresight of WorldCom's top management resulted in a 25-year prison sentence for WorldCom's CEO and five years for its CFO.
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On the anniversary of the September 2008 financial meltdown, a plaintive CNN headline asks, "Will any Wall Streeters go to jail for this? … Why vengeance over the financial crisis is so elusive."
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Or consider the reaction by Congress and the media to cases where the misdeeds of profit-making businesses actually kill people.
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There have been four documented fatalities of soldiers from electrocution while showering in Iraqi barracks whose electrical wiring was installed by KBR.
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Until 2007, KBR was a subsidiary of Halliburton. Unlike in the case of ACORN, after the allegations became public, the federal government didn't rush to cancel KBR contracts.
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Instead, the Republicans stayed mum, and the Pentagon paid KBR huge bonuses. In early 2009, the Pentagon awarded KBR a $35 million contract for more electrical work even while the company was under a criminal investigation for two electrocution deaths, according to Pratap Chatterjee, former executive director of CorpWatch and the author of Halliburton's Army.
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If the misdeeds of individuals at ACORN are the problem, ACORN's swift action in bringing on an independent board to conduct an internal audit is the answer, not cutting off funds or pillorying the organization.
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But improving internal controls isn't the right wing's end game. Destroying a remarkably successful 50-year-old grassroots model for defending the poor and workers is.
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An improved management structure may well be necessary.
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But the desperate situation facing tens of millions of households in the country, and the reticence of Congress and the White House to act firmly on their behalf, makes this a time when foundations, for example, should expand, not contract, their financial support to ACORN.
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And perhaps Congress and the federal government could pull a Halliburton and double ACORN's contracts after its missteps became known.
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David Morris is co-founder and vice president of the Institute for Local Self Reliance in Minneapolis and is director of its New Rules project.
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© 2009 Independent Media Institute. All rights reserved.
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http://www.vetspeak.org/

Agent Orange: The tragedy continues....

2009-09-19T17:44:00.014-05:00

The Damages Continue
Relief possibly in sight, still more to do, and so little time
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By
Chuck Palazzo
Interim Agent Orange Editor, VVAW Member
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Toxin in Agent Orange still polluting South Vietnam, study says. Link to the story:

http://www.wafb.com/Global/story.asp?S=11113506
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It’s absolutely no surprise that even to this day, environmental tests confirm extremely high levels of dioxin, the toxic ingredient that made Agent Orange what it was – an insidious poison that was sprayed for years in Vietnam as well as other countries for a variety of reasons– but especially in Vietnam. The base referred to in this article is Da Nang. That’s where so many of us flew in and out of, were stationed in or around, and where this poison was mixed, stored and loaded onto aircraft for eventual spraying in Vietnam.
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The earth was sprayed and contaminated, trees and plants defoliated, wildlife sprayed and killed, and worse, Americans as well as Vietnamese have suffered premature deaths, diseases they would not have been stricken with if not exposed to Agent Orange. They as well as their offspring continue to suffer as this toxic cocktail continues its journey from generation to generation. Dioxin levels at this location, to this day, continue to exceed ALL international standards and guidelines for toxic chemicals.
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"The work we have done really demonstrates that this is a manageable problem," said Thomas Boivin, president of Hatfield. "We now know where the contamination is coming from; we just need the international financial support to get on with the cleanup."
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We have known for years. It’s been well documented. In fact, the US Government, while they still contend they did no wrong in spraying Agent Orange on the Vietnamese as well as Americans and our allies, actually outlawed the use of Dioxin in the US for that very same reason. After years of disagreement on how to handle the ongoing problem, the US and Vietnam finally agreed to work together and come up with a solution in 2006. Yep, that’s not a typo folks – 2006. 31 years after the fall of Saigon.
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How toxic is toxic?
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Between 1961 and 1971, the U.S. military released more than 19 million gallons of herbicides in South Vietnam to destroy enemy crops and deny a very formidable foe cover by defoliating dense mangrove forests and triple canopy jungles.
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What some people knew at the time and people at the very top of the US Government and War Machine was that some of the herbicides contained a highly toxic form of dioxin, known as TCDD. The toxin was a byproduct created while manufacturing mixtures such as Agent Orange, the most widely used of a handful of herbicides contaminated with TCDD. Unintended? Perhaps. But known to be toxic and by more than just a few folks? Absolutely!
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Environmental scientists from a Canadian firm (Hatfield) last week presented the findings from the study, which documents that high levels of TCDD from the herbicides still contaminate soil inside a former U.S. airbase in Da Nang as well as sediment from a lake that abuts it. And this is just Da Nang – one of 3 hotspots identified within South Vietnam that was sprayed and that is still contaminated. Approximately 10 percent of South Vietnam was sprayed during those years.
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The study uses TCDD's chemical fingerprint to trace its movement through the food chain, from the soil and lake sediment to the fat of fish and ducks to the blood and breast milk of humans.
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Where are we today?
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Plain and simple, we are worse off than we were when we started a series of lawsuits, blogs, demonstrations and everything else we possibly could do to seek justice from the US Government.
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The VAVAO brought suit, after numerous other failed attempts to make things right against the US Federal Government. The arrogance of successive administrations in Washington was nail after nail in the coffins of those who suffered and eventually died.
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The then President of the Veterans For Peace (VFP) David Cline, was quoted as stating: “While the chemical companies had responsibility and should be held liable, the primary responsibility lies with the U.S. government which ordered the continued use of these poisons” after they were known to be toxic. “Our demand has always been testing, treatment and compensation for Agent Orange victims” by the U.S. government.
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Progress was made with passage of the Agent Orange Act in 1991 admitting that these chemicals cause a long list of diseases, he continued. Unfortunately, David succumbed to his many ailments, primarily directly linked to Agent Orange, before any major laws were enacted, and funds granted to help us all – which we still await. David was a dedicated activist as well as a decorated combat hero. His mission, and his legacy, were and are to make things right and make the US accountable for these and so many other wrongs.
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Judge Jack
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That brings us to recent days. On March 10, 2005 Judge Jack Weinstein of Brooklyn Federal Court dismissed a lawsuit filed by the Vietnamese victims of Agent Orange against producers of chemicals defoliants/herbicides, denying millions to those poisoned by the rainbow defoliants. Good ole boy, Judge Jack Weinstein threw out the lawsuit that was initiated by the VAVOA, rejecting their argument that Agent Orange was a weapon subject to the Geneva Convention and their use against civilians was a war crime. Weinstein held that Agent Orange did not target people in Vietnam but was instead a “defoliant” aimed at Vietnam’s jungle.
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Judge Jack, please allow us to spray you from head to toe with Dioxin – an eye for an eye? Certainly not. But The Honorable Judge needs to feel it and needs to pass it on to his offspring – then perhaps his head will come out of the sand. And guess who appointed Judge Weinstein? Our old friend and former US President, Lyndon Johnson. Starting to see a pattern evolve here brothers and sisters? Gulf of Tonkin lie and farce – thank the former President for that lie that caused the US to become more deeply involved in the Vietnam War.
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An additional case against the manufacturers filed by US veterans in the mid-1990s was dismissed at the same time. Both dismissals were upheld by an appeals court in 2008 and an appeal of the Vietnamese case to the US Supreme Court was dismissed in March 2009.
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The Recent International Tribunal
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Most recently, an International Tribunal convened in Paris. Rena Kopy, our sister member of the VVAW was selected to represent our organization as well as all of those affected by Agent Orange – US Veterans, allied Veterans as well as the Vietnamese and of course their offspring. The Tribunal, amongst other things, found in our favor:
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The US government is guilty of crimes against humanity for using Agent Orange in Vietnam according to a ruling by the International People’s Tribunal of Conscience announced in Paris on May 18. The verdict, reached after a two-day trial held May 15 - 16, found the US guilty of violating International Law by using Agent Orange to conduct illegal chemical warfare. Millions of gallons of the chemical were sprayed over Vietnam despite knowledge that it contained dioxin, one of the deadliest substances known to science. Dow Chemical, Monsanto, Uniroyal Chemical and 29 other chemical manufacturers were found guilty of collusion with this criminal act.
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After hearing testimony from 27 victims and expert witnesses, the tribunal ruled that Vietnamese Agent Orange victims and their families are entitled to full compensation from the US government and the companies that manufactured and supplied the chemical. The judgment also requires the defendants to restore the environment to pre-war conditions and remove all traces of dioxin from Vietnam. Additionally, it concluded that the Vietnamese State should be compensated for the costs of caring for victims and restoring the environment.
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To implement the verdict, the tribunal advised formation of an Agent Orange Commission to determine the amount of compensation for individual victims as well as their families and communities; to assess the amount needed to provide victims with health care, counseling, and other social services; and to project the cost of studying contaminated areas and conducting clean up operations. The amounts would be paid into a trust fund by the US government and the chemical companies. The defendants were not present at the trial, having ignored the summons and complaint sent to them by the Peoples’ Tribunal.
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The People’s Tribunal was organized to keep the issue of justice for Agent Orange victims alive in the court of international public opinion despite legal roadblocks erected by US courts. The tribunal was formed under auspices of the International Association of Democratic Lawyers, a non-governmental organization of progressive lawyers and judges founded in 1946. The IADL has consultative status with UNESCO and ECOSOC.
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Next Steps
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Indeed a good question and sadly, not an easy one to answer. We must continue our fight, brothers and sisters, and never give up. Write and call your congressional representatives, the press, the President himself. I leave you with this tidbit of information. The US has allocated $3million in funds earmarked for the cleanup of Da Nang and the surrounding area of the former airbase. Earlier this year, President Obama signed a bill allotting $6million in assistance for dioxin cleanup efforts – it’s not clear to me, however, if the $6million includes the original $3million or is an additional $3million to the already allocated $3million. In either case, it’s a pittance of what is really required.
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Someone please correct me if I am wrong, but Vietnam has not seen a penny of this funding to date. I hope I am wrong, but I can’t find any evidence indicating otherwise. As my good friend and fellow activist who lives here in Vietnam as well, points out to me, the boondoggle that Bush Jr. orchestrated as a “good will” gesture towards the citizens of Vietnam cost the United States a $3million hotel and related expense bill. Thank you Chuck S. for continuing to remind us of that fact – as sad as it is, it's fact.
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The US remains an imperialistic and arrogant country and refuses to admit its wrongs and remain true to its commitments - to its own veterans, our allies, and the people and environment that we so wrongly maimed, killed and destroyed.
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Semper Peace!
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www.VetSpeak.org

The Lion Sleeps Tonight...

2009-08-28T22:00:00.012-05:00

A Humanitarian, Leader on Immigrant Issues, Gold Star Brother, and Friend

Has Left Our World

Melida Arrendondo

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Boston, MA - Carlos and I are pained to know of the passing of Edward Moore "Ted" Kennedy (February 22, 1932 – August 25, 2009).

Senator Ted Kennedy went out of his way to meet our family on several different occasions. In October of 2006, he honored our family by reading from a letter our son the late Lcpl. Alexander Arredondo wrote at a Memorial Concert and Tribute to Today's War Heroes held in Worcester, MA.

Senator Kennedy was also a man who provided enduring support to our immigrant family. He utilized a change in federal law prioritizing Gold Star family members to receive their citizenship when related to the death of fallen military kin. As a consequence, Carlos Arredondo was sworn in as US citizen on 12/12/2006, the first Gold Star father to receive citizenship as a consequence of a military death.
Senator Kennedy was also a donor to the Lcpl. Alexander Scott Arredondo memorial scholarship set up at the Blue Hills Regional Technical High School in Canton, MA where Alex had graduated (refer to attached letter).

A Gold Star brother due to the loss of Joe Kennedy, we witnessed how Senator Kennedy dedicated time to meet families of the fallen who had died as a result of the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq. His compassion and concern were genuine and true.

In addition, Senator Kennedy was instrumental in legislation that created community health centers, the American for Disabilities Act and the Women, Infants and Childrens (WIC) Program - each of these pieces of legislation having impacted Melida Arredondo's life. She continues to work for a health center, oversees a WIC program and has had a physical disability since birth.

Finally, only God can provide meaning as to why Ted Kennedy, the Lion Senator from Massachusetts, died on 08/25/09. This same date is the 5th year anniversary of the death our son Alexander as well as Carlos' birthdate. As a family, we can only conclude that Senator Kennedy had a strong connection to us and to so many. Therefore, God has willed for that connection to remain throughout our lives so that we always remember the dear Senator from Massachusetts.

The Arredondo family sends their deepest condolences to Mrs. Kennedy, Jeanne Kennedy and all of Senator Kennedy's children, grandchildren, nieces and nephews.

For further information, contact: Melida Arredondo: Day - 617-740-8129, Eve - 617-323-5623

VetSpeak.org

Our continuing battle on the Home Front: The Tragedy and Travesty Continue – More Collateral Damage

2009-08-27T16:25:00.003-05:00

Our sister, our supporter, our fellow VVAW member, our friend – her family needs our help and needs it now!

Chuck Palazzo

Interim Editor for Agent Orange, VVAW Member

Some of you are on my various mailing lists and I have been writing to each of you for the past couple of weeks now about the tragedy that has once again hit the home and lives (and deaths) of Rena and her family.
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A Brief History
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I think a fitting place to start, is to share a post to our VETSPEAK.org. It was dated May 30th, 2009 and was written and submitted by our Billy X. Here is the link, http://vetspeakblog.blogspot.com/2009/05/agent-orange-tribunal-paris-france.html, which also contains the Executive Summary of the Decision of the International Tribunal, which Rena attended and testified on our behalf. But I also want to share some of the writings from him here in my own article, of course referencing Rena:
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“One of VVAW's own has been in the fight for political as well as very personal reasons, for a very long time. That person is Rena Kopy, widow of John Kopystenski, VVAW member and Agent Orange victim. Rena was recently selected to present at an International Tribunal re Agent Orange; “Rena Kopy, long time peace activist, mother and member of Vietnam Veterans Against the War, has been touched very personally by that war. She was invited to testify at the recent hearings in Paris about the consequences of the chemical defoliant Agent Orange used widely in Vietnam.”
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Most of you already know about this decision, and our hope is that it will lead to financial and medical assistance for the American Veteran, their offspring, and our allies during the Vietnam War and their offspring, and of course to the Vietnamese and their offspring as well. I am first and foremost an American and that is where my dedication remains – especially towards my American brothers and sisters who have been afflicted and to their offspring who have been afflicted genetically by this insidious poison nicknamed Agent Orange. Of equal concern, however, is the Vietnamese who have been affected. This article is not about that per se, but about the personal tragedies Rena has continuously endured – and still works tirelessly with a strength and tenacity that just won’t quit.
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What my article is specifically about is the recent tragedy that has struck Rena’s family again. Yes, again, dear friends. A little more than a year ago, Rena’s husband, a former door gunner passed away. He was exposed to AO, during his time in Vietnam. Years later, he was afflicted by many diseases as a direct result of this exposure. Their son was in turn afflicted and continues to battle the physical as well as emotional pain of a skin condition and lives every day with the stigma attached to it. Their grandson, Gio, was afflicted with Autism – in my opinion, and in many others' opinions, as well, this too was a direct result of Rena’s husband being exposed and affected to AO while serving in Vietnam.
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Young Gio would have turned 6 this past Wednesday. His untimely and accidental death occurred almost one month ago. For a variety of reasons which I won’t go into here, Rena’s son, Gio’s dad, was charged at the scene with felony child endangerment. It’s up to the courts of our land to decide the outcome, but I can ensure you, there is more that meets the eye in this case. We will be following the developments of the case, and will keep you updated on the details, as they become available.
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What is needed and needed now?
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As I stated in my emails, it is always difficult to ask for money. The economic times, being what they are, the scam artists that prey on people’s hearts and emotions to receive money then just pocket it – the list goes on and on. As a result of the emails which were sent out by me as well as our brother Willie Hager from our Florida VVAW group were, for the most part, either ignored, deleted, wound up in people’s junk mail folders – or you just decided not to contribute. As I said, I understand the economic situation, but here is a case that we MUST sacrifice for. Rena, in spite of all of her own personal and family tragedies, dedicated the majority of the past 40 years fighting for justice in so many areas – especially from with-in the ranks of VVAW. Agent Orange, PTSD, and the list goes on and on. She has worked tirelessly, for the same things we believe in – 4o years, my dear friends. Is that not a huge commitment? All I ask is to give something back to our sister who is in great need right now. Not a week from now, nor a month, but immediately.
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Why the need?
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For the defense of Gio’s dad. We believe that he has wrongfully been accused of felony child endangerment. As a result, he and Rena’s family need the best attorney that can possibly be had. They have found that person, but as we all know, they don’t come cheap. But because of the laws in their State, the press is already doing a huge smear campaign against Rena, Alex and their entire family, and a local DA who seems to be chomping at the bit with this one to help him get back into office. Well, they need the best representation they can get, and they need us to help them get it; just as Rena has gotten help for so many of us in the past, through her activities with VVAW.
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Where and how to send your contributions?
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If you are reading this on-line, chances are, you have heard of PayPal. That is the most secure and reliable way to send in your contributions. Simply go to: http://www.paypal.com/ - Click “Send Money” if you already have an account or click “Get Started”, if not, and it will walk you through how to conduct the transaction. After you have completed setting up your account, send your contribution to:
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rpkopy@yahoo.com
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It’s that simple Folks...
On behalf of Gio, Rena and Alex, thanks for your ongoing support.
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Semper Peace!
Chuck
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VetSpeak.org

VFP Shout Out: Yo, Robin Long Supporters...

2009-08-24T18:10:00.006-05:00

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Vets & Our Supporters,
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FOR DISTRIBUTION FAR AND WIDE - A heart felt thank you from Veterans For Peace
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http://vetspeakblog.blogspot.com/2009/08/freedom-for-winter-soldier-is-not-free.html
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While the members of the GI Rights & War Resisters Committee, of the San Diego Chapter of Veterans For Peace, appreciate the acknowledgment for the small part that we played in the Campaign on behalf of Robin Long, America's First Active Duty GI War Resister to be Extradited from Canada, when in fact, we were really just one of many groups who supported Robin.
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The real credit for making this exceptional young man feel cared for and loved while in the brig those many months at MCAS Miramar are the hundreds of good people in the San Diego Peace & Justice Movement who showed up for the monthly vigil's outside the gates of Miramar and who donated both their time and money month after month after month. With out all of you we would have accomplished very little.
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You folks are the true hero's in our humble efforts as Veterans For Peace to "Really Support the Troops, all of the troops". We cannot thank you all enough for helping us get the word out to the local Television News Outlets and Newspapers, who came out numerous times to hear his story and to chronicle your efforts on his and all War Resisters' behalf, to acknowledge their individual courage and sacrifice in the name of Peace & Justice. Your generosity and commitment to Robin and his family have touched us all and you need to know the difference that you made. And last but not least Willie Hager of http://www.vetspeak.org/ for "Speaking Truth to Power", and for helping us to get the word out nationally. Thank you, thank you , thank you from the bottom of our hearts.
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Hoa Binh (Peace in Vietnamese)
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Jan A. Ruhman.
Vice President
Veterans For Peace
San Diego Chapter

VetSpeak.org

Freedom for the Winter Soldier, is not Free: A Resister's Journey

2009-08-22T14:03:00.008-05:00

Human Costs…

Robin Long

Winter Soldier & Resister

Released from MCAS Miramar Brig 07/09/2009

4 July 2009 - Five days prior to Freedom
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Wow what a journey the last four years have been. I started 2005 in a place I did not want to be. I was trapped between military commitment & moral convictions. By mid year, I had refused deployment to Iraq and followed the military resisters and draft dodgers of the 60’s & 70’s, north to Canada. I left with a backpack, sleeping bag, $600 and no idea what I was doing. I knew absolutely no one and my plans were limited to where I would sleep and where I would get my next meal. I followed my intuition and it lead me to Nelson, BC. ………

There, I met a group of 5 travelers, doing a documentary on societies waste and dumpster diving. A strong urge to follow them led me to: live in a 130 foot old growth cedar tree in Cathedral Grove, to keep the giant beauties from being cut down for a parking lot, so people could park and look at rare old growth cedars. The irony: go figure.

Then I hitchhiked from Toffino in Vancouver, BC, to Cape Spear, New Foundland. I hopped freight trains across the Great Lakes region from Thunder Bay in Ontario to Montreal, Quebec. I saw country most people don’t get to see any more. Then, just south of Toronto in Guelph, I met the future mother of my child, Renee, who joined our group. We traveled together to the East Coast. With her, I lived in the bush at a Rainbow Gathering, in northern Quebec, then came back to civilization and stayed at the Quebec Hilton, to meet her Mom. And then; back to the bush again. What a contrast…..

We lived in Mount Royal Park in Montreal, while our group of now 20 travelers hustled and worked to get money to buy a bus, to travel back West for the winter. I learned to spin fire from circus performers, Outside in the gazebo in the park we all got soaked by the tail end of Katrina. When we finally got the bus we made it livable, we ripped out the seats, put in hammocks and couches, then converted it to run on waste vegetable oil, the kind you find out behind restaurants.

Renee and I lived two hard Canadian winters in Marathon, Ontario, on the most northern tip of Lake Superior. You don’t know cold til you lived there- minus 40 for months at a time.

I applied for political refugee status & became legal in Canada. I got work teaching post High School students from all across Canada how to cook, reduce, reuse, and recycle. I also showed them how to express themselves artistically and was a mentor in a program called Katimivak, which means “meeting place” in Inuit. I helped run sweat lodges and learned about Native spirituality from two Ojibway elders of the First Nations people at the Pic River Reserve.

I hitchhiked to BC from Ontario, some 2000+ miles in the dead of winter, to see a fiend who had a tragedy happen. I apprenticed at an organic farm. I learned animal husbandry, and became a master gardener. I worked in exchange for organic veggies, meat, and knowledge…….

Renee and I had a child at home, and named him Ocean. His birth was the most amazing thing I have ever had the privilege of being a part of. He is such a smart, caring, and sensitive boy, it’s his generation that will change the world for the better, and I can only hope that I can be a shining example to him of humanity.

As another way of protesting the war I gave up fossil fuels. I bought a ’82 VW Vanagon diesel & converted it to run on waste veggie oil. I worked for a Victorian home specialty moving company. I grew Dreadlocks. I was arrested by Immigration in 2007 while I was working for the summer in the West. I was eventually let go but the circumstances of my arrest and required probation was fishy, and unfair, and kept me in BC away from my family. I was then arrested again under fishy circumstances, by Immigration on July 4, 2008. Coincidence? I think not.

Since my arrest, I have been the first Iraq era resister to be deported. I have been through a Court Martial. I have been jailed: I have been in 16 cells in 8 facilities, in 3 states and 2 countries. I watched the Olympics, I watched the protests at the DNC and RNC. I saw Barack Obama become the first African-American President, I celebrated my son’s second and third birthdays, my 25th Christmas, Thanksgivings, two 4th of Julys. I missed my childs important development into being a toddler. The “terrific two’s”- what a magical time. I missed seeing his eyes light up on Christmas morning, at the box his gift came in and the hours playing with said box. I missed the first time he could count to 10, or recite his ABC’s or name colors. And the first time he drew a picture on the wall. I missed countless belly-aching laughing sessions. I missed being able to read him bedtime stories……

Instead of being woken by him jumping on my bed, I was woken by reveille, reveille. Every morning, when I looked out my window, I saw high fences and razor wire. I was locked in a facility where 85% are sexual offenders. I had to make sure someone wouldn’t steal pictures of Ocean. I had to be part of a facility that caters to sexual predators. This punishment was for having a moral disagreement to an unjust war. It was a constant reminder of the past 8 years of attacks on our civil liberties and rights. I was punished for the most basic right, freedom of speech. For being outspoken about the War and the Commander in Chief. After aggravating evidence prosecution presented to the judge- a video of me exercising my freedom of speech-she recommended 30 months. I was given a 15 month sentence that was my pre trial agreement. I have been given a Dishonorable Discharge, the worst grade of discharge, reserved only for the very worst military offenders. And for the politically outspoken……

Most people who go AWOL receive administrative discharges and spend 30 days in the brig. I had no criminal record prior to this and I am now a felon. This has put tons of restrictions on my future. I am barred from Canada because of a right wing Bush supporting Administration. I try not to think of it but there may come a time when Renee won’t be able to care for Ocean on her own because of her affliction with MS. She will need the help of her family in Canada and me. And the moral choice I made will hurt my young family. ALL this because I did not want to contribute in the killings of an unjust war and occupation.

I was visited by two Canadian Members of Parliament, had an essay I wrote read in a session of Parliament, that same essay was published in The Veteran. I made the front page of many newspapers, all while locked up. Now, twelve months and a couple of days later, I’ve been released and my journey has just begun. I’m so excited for the rest of my life.

During this whole time, the war in Iraq and the less reported war in Afghanistan have been going on. It’s still going on. “Defence contractors” and the war machine are still getting rich, while service members are underpaid for the work they are doing. Their families are falling apart; they are stretched to the max. They hate being killed, returning home with PTSD, missing limbs, and to empty homes. The suicide rate is at an all time high.

The contract I signed was to support and defend the Constitution of the United States, from all enemies foreign and domestic, and obey the lawful orders of the President and those officers appointed over me. I did not sign my name or swear an oath to be a strong-arm for corporate interests or oil. The so called Liberation of Iraq has turned into nothing more than a constant and protracted struggle for the people of Iraq against forces seen and unseen. Forces which are trying to force their will upon the Iraqi people, in a public war for private power and profit.

Our young men and womens’ sense of patriotism and loyalty to each other have been preyed upon and they have been given to believe that they are fighting for freedom and democracy. True freedom is the ultimate expression and condition of a people to control their own destiny, not the manufactured variety being offered here. True democracy isn’t found in the barrel of a gun; it rises up from within the masses. Many are fighting to get home, and get their brothers in arms home. Shame on the policy makers for this deception at the cost of the troops.

The world is looking at the US in a much different way now, because our leaders started a war of aggression in Iraq. It has set a horrible precedent. Our service members are feeling the ill effects of this new perception. Many in the service don’t see the bigger picture, or all the lies. All THEY see is their brothers in arms, to their left and right, and are just trying to get each other home. Many will see how wrong this war is, some will refuse service, others will feel the obligation to their fellow soldiers and fight for all they’re worth. Some will question orders. Some will refuse orders. But, we are equally heroic.

As members of the peace movement, we need to support our troops, and insure they know they have options and support in whatever they decide to do. We need to inform & mobilize the general public, to put pressure on the government to stop imprisoning resisters and start allowing other ways out of the military, and stop needless public wars for private power and profit. Peace is achieved thru compassion, compromise, and understanding. We cant show prejudice, terrorize and persecute an entire race and culture- it will only ensure the next generation of “terrorists”.

I’m sure we are tired of hearing about the monetary cost, the economic ad political costs of war. It’s the human costs that need to be understood and talked about. What is this costing our sons and daughters? What about fellow humans abroad? It needs to stop! We have become a nation OF war- there can be no excuses, illusions or confusion: just look at what we are spending your money on.

Only a fraction would pay for every Americans health care.

A military is a necessary evil in the world as we know it now, but our service members are being exploited in an unnecessary war. Bring them home. Don’t be fooled- just saying all combat troops are pulling out of Iraq doesn’t mean we are leaving. Our troops are now being called the same thing they were in Viet Nam: ”advisors”. 30 huge permanent bases in Iraq- we are not leaving anytime soon. Unless we all speak up.

Remember this, no matter what color our skin, we all bleed red. No matter our religions, we all have brothers, sisters, fathers, mothers, sons and daughters. No matter our language, we all have tears, fears, smiles, and prayers. We laugh the same language, we cry the same language. We are the same, co-existence is possible. Together we are strong and we can manifest peace. Two fingers raised for peace will be our V for victory… (Photo: Fellow Resistor, Sgt. Travis Bishop, under guard and shackled) - Ft Hood 08/09)

I’d like to thank a few people that got me through the past four years. Thanks to the Abundance bus crew. Dave and Chantal, of Dalew Farms, the kids of Katimivak, and Phil. Thanks to my friends Paul D, Jade, Bradley Klaus, Debbie & Kim. Thanks to Claire, Mark, and Yvonne, and Bonnie for letting me stay in their homes. Thanks to Proddy and Collette of the First Nation People, for their spiritual guidance, and for allowing me to participate so intimately in their sweat lodges. Thanks to Bob Ages for bailing me out of jail. Thanks to my lawyer and friend James Branum. Thanks to my Canadian lawyers Jeffery House and Sheppard Moss. Lee Zaslofsky and Michelle Robbideux of the WRSC. Jeff Patterson. Also Buff and Cindy for letting me call them any time and for taking care of my finances. And everyone at CTR for providing me with such a kick ass lawyer. Thanks to the San Diego Chapter of VFP, for all of their extra mile support for my family and my case, financially, emotionally, and otherwise. Thanks to IVAW, VVAW, Military Families Speak Out, VetSpeak, Code Pink, and the Quakers. Thanks to countless volunteers and people who showed up at vigils. Thanks to Candian MP”s Oliva Chow & Boris who came to visit me in the Brig, and MP Alex Atemanenko. Thanks to John Ellison of the CO Project, and Jerry Condon. And thanks to resisters Ryan Johnson, Patrick Hart, Jeremy Hinzman, and Ethren Watada. A big thanks to the music and writing of Micheal Franti whose influences played a huge role in my decisions and outlook of the world he opened my eyes to a lot.

And special thanks to my adopted Mom, Dawn Obrien of MFSO, and Pat Garrison. And to my friends Jan Ruhman and Mutt, of the San Diego VVAW, for coming to visit me most Sundays at the brig. And thanks to the mother of my child Renee.
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PEACE OUT

VetSpeak.org

After Action Report: VA Land Grab Rally

2009-08-21T10:06:00.006-05:00

Supporters Rally to Save Our Veterans Land
By
Steve Crandall

President, Ca Central Coast VVAW

The rally on the 16th of August to save our veterans’ property was a great success. We had individuals representing the Disabled American Veterans, Gold Star Families Speak Out, The Evan Ashcraft Foundation, Veterans of Foreign Wars, Vietnam Veterans Against the War, Iraq Veterans Against the War, Military Order of the Purple Heart, Veterans for Peace, Military Families Speak Out and the Broken Rope Foundation. Also several local civilians joined in to support saving our veterans’ land. These groups and individuals all have different political views about the wars past and present, yet they came together to save our veterans land and support our veterans’ rights.

Veterans came from as far away as San Diego and Ventura to participate in the rally. They spanned several generations of war from World War II, to the Korean War, to the Vietnam War, as well as the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars. Some were in wheel chairs and others were clearly still suffering from their wounds of war but none of these obstacles kept them from supporting our common cause.

They shared information about their military backgrounds and stories about their war experiences. Some of the stories were about the good times and others about the more difficult times. They also shared stories about their lives today, their hobbies and their involvement in fighting for veterans’ rights. Civilians spoke about their connections with veterans and desires to help save the land for veterans so they can have a place to heal from the affects of war.

The support didn’t only come from the sign holders but also from the drivers and passengers as the cars rounded the bend at Wilshire and San Vicente. The nearly constant sound of car horns echoed off the surrounding buildings as passengers as well as drivers gave us a thumbs up sign of support. Even though we had been on our feet for several hours it was that unexpected support from passerby’s that gave us the energy to hold those signs even higher and look forward to returning again.

This rally was a small example of veterans and civilians with different political viewpoints about wars past and present uniting around a common cause to Save Our Veterans’ Land. But as successful as the rally was, we still need the presence of the many veterans groups that weren’t represented. When we all stand together, the VA and our elected officials will have to rescind the public park land deal with the Veterans Park Conservancy and keep their promise to preserve this land as a place for veterans to heal from war.

For further information on this initiative, and how you can become involved:

Contact Steve at stevecrandall@verizon.net, or, by phone, 805 388-1542.

www.VetSpeak.org

After Action Report: VVAW SE Regional Conference

2009-08-16T18:13:00.020-05:00

VVAW SE Regional Organizing, Planning, & Tasking Conference
The Hootch, VVA Chapter 96 Home
Tallahassee, Florida
July 24-26 2009

The purpose of this conference was to gather the designated SE Representatives of VVAW, IVAW, VFP, MFSO, and other progressive Veterans organizations and allies in a relatively centralized location, for the purpose of identifying our strengths, and assessing and addressing our weaknesses with-in our demographic. Also, and most importantly, in my opinion, for key organizers with-in the region to meet and talk with one another face to face, and agree on a mutual strategy of unity of purpose, issues, and process, compatible with the stated goals and structure of our various organizations.
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The conference was sponsored by the VVAW National Office and was modeled on the VVAW West Coast Tour, undertaken in California this past spring. VVAW National was represented by Barry Romo & Marty Webster, VVAW National Coordinators. VFP designated Mike Hearington, Atlanta VFP Chap 125, as their SE representative to the conference. Jason Hurd, IVAW Savannah Chapter 55, member & IVAW Southeast Regional Coordinator, along with Zach Choate, IVAW/Atlanta chapter 4, were there, representing IVAW. MFSO was committed to other activities that weekend, but sent a letter of support for the stated goal of the conference; that of creating a unified front of diverse progressive Veterans groups, and allies. One where talent, resources, and priorities are shared and coordinated, around a slate of mutually pre-determined focal issues, as was done so successfully with the West Coast Tour.

The conference was hosted by Vietnam Veterans of America, Big Bend Chapter 96. In support of the goals of the conference, they provided their chapter home, The Hootch, for a two-day period, waiving the usual hall rental fees. The Hootch was built on land donated to the chapter by American Legion Sauls-Bridges Post 13. VVA Chapter 96 membership raised the funds for materials and drew up the plans. Work parties provided by the various chapters of the Vietnam Veterans of Florida, State Coalition, traveled from around the state to Tallahassee, to assist the VVAW 96 membership in the construction of the building. When the building was dedicated, it was for the use of all Veterans, under the management of VVAW Chapter 96.

Four persons, who had actively participated in that string of Florida Veteran’s history, were involved in the presentation of the VVAW SE Conference. Our host, Rick Clevenger, who was chairman of the building committee for The Hootch, and is the current President of VVA 96; Josh and Mac, Vietnam Veterans Of North Florida/VVAW First Coast, who provided logistical support for the Conference format; and myself, Vietnam Veterans Of North Florida/VVAW Organizing Coordinator. To all of us, this Conference was validation of over thirty years of struggle, together, to build and maintain a unified Veterans front; we had, for a fact, come full circle. The spirit of the VVNF and Florida State Coalition motto; Together Then… Together Again… set the tone for this VVAW SE gathering.

Friday evening, the 24th, we all got together at the Hootch, over a few beers, and to get to know one another better, and to learn more about what was going on back in our respective AOs. And, a large time was had, by all. Jason broke out his fiddle, and provided a musical backdrop with a folk bent, out on the front porch of the Hootch, overlooking lovely Lake Ella, on a lazy summer evening. We were able, there, in what we refer to here in Florida, as a boogie caucus, to learn about each other’s work back home. The bond of unity of purpose was reinforced with this down home social interaction. In addition to warming relations, we were able to refine the agenda, in preparation for the next day’s business eliminating any redundancies, and having a brief working knowledge of what was working at home, and what was not, up to this point in time

We used a round table format for the Conference on Saturday morning. I acted as Moderator for the session. Following the welcome, and opening introductions all around, VVAW National Coordinator, Barry Romo, made the opening remarks, followed by National Coordinator, Marty Webster. Barry’s comments spoke to VVAWs history of effective organizing around issues of not only social justice, but of Veterans rights and issue advocacy.

A primary example was that VVAW had led the fight for recognition of what we called Post Vietnam Syndrome (PVS), and carried the fight forward until PVS was recognized as a an anxiety disorder, in the DSM III, and was re-named there-in as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Barry talked about that, and other struggles, as well. He put them in the context of their times and stated that we all continue to re-think our strategies, in a rapidly changing Obama anti-war and social justice paradigm of grass-roots organizing tactics and strategies.

Recognizing that we are, after all, a Veterans organization; by legal definition, as well as in membership, and that our status as such gives us a leg up in credibility with the American people, and with-in the ranks of the military; Barry suggested that we should hone our congressional lobby skills, and begin to take our message and our issues, not only to the streets, on the internet, and to the campuses and into the community; but to the halls of congress as well. VVAW has had some major successes there, over the years, he reminded us.
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The three focal issues that Barry offered for consideration for the conference were those of PTSD, Agent Orange, and Sexual Abuse of Women in the Military. Barry also re-stated that the current priority mission was providing whatever support we have available to IVAW, as they grow their grass-roots movement. I first heard this pledge from the membership at the VVAW 40th re-union, and VVAW has acted accordingly, ever since; not leading, but mentoring, when asked. IVAW has some pretty dynamic leadership of its own…coupled with our experience, it is a potent mix.
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Marty reinforced the message that we had initiated with the West Coast Tour; that of setting basic pragmatic goals and issues that all of our organizations could work in consort with, sharing talent and resources on mutually agreed upon focal issues events, presenting a united front to the VA, to the electorate, our various State houses, and to the Congress of The United States. This is a process that has already begun, out in SoCal, with the Rally to fight the VA Land Grab and Save Our Veterans’ Property, and with the Veterans’ Immigration issue.
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Marty said that what impressed him most as he traveled around the country, and made personal commo with folks on the VVAW Contacts list, was the bond VVAW, and with other allies of old, that still remained in so many folks. That, and their willingness to jump back in the fray, after all these years. Marty also said that he felt like continued support of IVAW’s actions and programs, and being available for logistical support for their actions and events was our main job, in the 21st century, as he saw it.

The focal issue that Marty put forth for consideration was PTSD and a restructuring of the paradigm for claims filing, and mental health service delivery. PTSD is the societal ticking bomb that has yet to be successfully neutralized; time for another look, by all of us. IVAW is the new crop of victims, and their numbers are soaring out of control. In keeping with the theme of the Conference, Marty concluded his comments with his belief that the first step to an effective strategy was realistic goal setting.
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IVAW Southeast Regional Coordinator, Jason Hurd, spoke to the fact that IVAW was in a process of examining some fresh strategies, and potential tactics, and were looking to VVAW for continued support for their programs and issues, and that they were looking to VVAW and VFP as mentors, as they rebuild their base, following a fractious year of internal strife. No problemo, all of us from the old school were graduates of similar processes with-in VVAW and VFP. His appeal dovetailed with the purposes of the conference, and were inspirational to the rest of us, in terms of designing a strategy for an over-all fragmented southeast, as it applies to grass-roots outreach, organizing, and program building. His personal assessment was that the IVAW’s cohesiveness was strongest at the regional level, and that given good options, and workable goals, the IVAW folks out in the more rural areas would feel the support, and rally, there in their communities.
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It is Jason’s belief that the first order of business should be for us to all unite around a mutually supportable set of focal issues, and together, design and implement an outreach program that would identify what IVAW describes as capacities, with-in the region, and expand a grass-roots network, from there. Together, he believes, we could design and present a program that would identify and begin to utilize that capacity network in a mutually agreed upon strategy that would rally folks around mutually selected focal issues. In that regard, Jason said that he felt that IVAW’s strongest capacities were just outside the gates of the major military installations, here in the Southeast, and that we should begin our initial outreach campaign there; in the heart of the beast. I couldn’t agree more. You gotta love this Brother’s spirit!
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Lastly, after mentioning the magic that he felt in the room, Jason discussed the power of the Winter Soldier events, both as an organizing venue, and as a therapeutic process for all those involved, but especially for those who testify. We all recognized and discussed the power of the testimonies on the raising of consciousness of the uninformed public with-in our communities and down-line e-mail networks…one of our most powerful tools, when used correctly. Jason thought that we should assess our capacity for presenting a major WS, here in the Southeast, as we begin our grass-roots outreach campaign. I suggested that, in so doing, we should insure that there is a panel of women Veterans on the program, to address sexism, and sexual assault, with-in the military, at home, and in the combat theatres. All there, agreed.
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These days, Winter Soldiers continue to lead the fight for Objective Truth, as it applies to our involvement in Iraq & Afghanistan, and our government’s duplicity in disinformation and outright lies, regarding the causal factors of our involvement, there in the Mid-East. Jason, an Army Medic, used a term that I had always believed to be a USMC tradition, to describe to us this Winter Soldier dynamic; Leadership By Example. If not us, then, who?
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Mike Hearington, The VFP SE representative to the Conference addressed his and Mike Burke’s (the Atlanta VVAW Contact) work with the Georgia Veterans Alliance in building a cross organizational network of Veterans’ activists, and allies, regardless of organizational affiliation. The key being applicable shared resources for the day-to-day quality of life issues for returning Veterans. They, and the Atlanta IVAW, for instance, work closely with the National Association of Black Veterans (NABVET), a grassroots Veterans self help group that is certified as a National Veterans Services Organization (VSO), same as the DAV, VFW, etc.
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This is something that Jason commented on, stating that he thought that VVAW and IVAW research the feasibility of obtaining certification, because he, like myself, doesn’t believe that there is enough assertive advocacy on behalf of Veterans in the ranks of the traditional VSOs, and yet that is a very real need on the part of our returning Veterans, as they try and thread their way though the nightmare world of Veterans claim law, far from what we would call an advocacy oriented institution. The current crop of VSOs, are to me, about on par with public defenders; underpaid, understaffed, and under enthused in the mission.
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Mike said that their most successful direct outreach tactic is working the Atlanta Airport, and welcoming returning GI’s home, and providing leaflets, brochures and resource references, to aid them with readjustment to life back in the world. VFP and VVAW, there in Hotlanta are also actively campaigning for GI Rights, specifically with regard to counter recruiting on campuses, and working on the issue of ROTC in the public schools. They also distribute a great new on-line and hardcopy VFP newspaper, the War Crimes Times. Well written, factual, and in dead earnest. Get it right here! Read all about it! Oh, yeah, it’s a blog, too; so, have at it with your personal take on things.
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Mike Burke of Atlanta VVAW was unable to attend, due to family matters, but he and Mike Hearington work closely on many projects there in Atlanta, together, and Mike H presented on his behalf, as well. Issues and/or events for consideration for rallying the troops, for them, were the School Of The Americas Vigil in November, GI Rights Outreach, and Counter Recruiting.
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All of that took us right up to lunch break. We broke up and sent delegations to of the closest Mexican restaurants to the Hootch; El Jalisco, at 2022 N. Monroe Street, Tallahassee, and the San Miguel Mexican Restaurant at 200 Tharpe St. By all reports, they were both, muy bueno!
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When we returned in the afternoon, having done a round robin on resources and/or capacities, and current ongoing work, back in our home 20s, we turned our attention, and our discussions, to focal issue priorities and strategy models.
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The focal issues that floated to the surface of our discussions were those that were directly related to Veterans, their families, and a better quality of life, following the trauma of suffering, or having resisted, or even having spoken out about, combat in foreign lands that are based on false premises, and outright lies. There was a consensus in the room, that ideological struggles, internally, and externally were a distraction to organizational or strategic effectiveness, in that they created divisiveness, rather than unity of purpose. Here are the issues that were mutually agreed should be the lynchpins of our grass-roots outreach campaign, here in the Southeast:

GI Rights and Counter Recruiting – to include continued support of COs such as Robin Long; development of counter high school ROTC programs; development of a Winter Soldier panel of recruiters, and what Jason called Base Building - the establishment of outreach facilities in close proximity to major military installations, which caters to both active duty military, and local Veterans, as well. In Jason’ words; a comfortable place to hang. One that provides access to local programs and services addressing a better quality of life for Veterans, and their families.
Sexual Abuse of Women in the Military – Development of Women’s affinity groups, such as what we used to call “rap groups”, or perhaps, women’s writing groups. Development of a Winter Soldier panel of Women Veterans who have suffered sexism or sexual assault while in the military, but especially in the combat zones. Support of the actions of currently organized Women’s Veteran groups.
Veterans’ Immigration and Citizenship Issues – This issue has already taken off in SoCal, with VVAW, VFP, IVAW, and MFSO, all actively supporting the established defense committee, which recently raised funds to travel and present, at the VFP National Convention. In addition, to lobby congressional representatives, in Washington, D.C. x
PTSD Outreach and Program Development – identify, and direct Veterans to already up and running, and with a record of accomplishment, grass-roots programs; redefine the current paradigm of diagnosis and services delivery models from mentally oriented, to social oriented.
VA – reform of Claims Division to an advocacy agency, as opposed to that of an adversarial screening agency; reform of the mental health delivery system; reform VocRehab educational payment system and incorporate it into the VA Disability payment matrix, rather than allowing it to continue with its current, counter-productive practices. This would include reform of periodical certification procedures, to be more user friendly for the Veteran; continued support of actions, calling attention to the VA’s reckless management of our affairs, and properties; reform of current Veterans’ outreach models regarding benefits and claims support, and increased direct access to the claims process by the Veteran

It was clearly acknowledged by all in attendance, that there were issues of ideology and political philosophy that needed to be regularly tuned up, in assessing the nature of an organization’s national perspective and actions. My sense is, that most believe, as I do, that this is the concern of National Steering Committees or Executive Boards, and are more matters for internal attention and adjustment, rather than as make or break grass-roots dogma.
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Outreach should not require a political oath or pledge, in order to be implemented on a Veteran’s behalf, any more than anyone ought to have to say a prayer, to get fed and a bed at a homeless shelter; all that should be required, is that they have a genuine need of the benefit, or service. As long as the outreach is undertaken with-in the goals and mission of the organization; the actions should speak much more loudly than the accompanying words, in order for them to be successful. Build it, and they will come. Actions, not words, are the fuel of successful Veterans outreach. This is true, whether for program and services information and implementation help with the day-to-days, or organizational membership recruitment.
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In that spirit, it was resolved by those present that we would form an organizational organizing committee, made up of VVAW, IVAW, and VFP reps. That group would, together, develop an itinerary for directly outreaching areas where we had capacity, and assisting those areas with chapter and/or program development. We would share our suggestions, and proposals of mutual tactics, when we next met. At the moment, that will be in Savannah, Georgia, at a GI Outreach forum being sponsored, and hosted by, the Savannah Chapter of IVAW, over the Labor Day weekend.
x
At this point it seemed that we had accomplished our stated mission; we had joined forces, agreed on unified principles, and had begun constructing an infra-structure, and a strategy for providing meaningful self-help information and programs, as well as having initiated an active plan for mutual chapter and membership building for each of our organizations.
x
It had been a very long, but very productive day, and we could smell the ribs smokin’, just outside the door…do I hear a motion? Actually, I heard a rumble; time to call it a day, here at the office. After an hour or so break, we all returned to the Hootch for a rib dinner, liquid refreshment, and an evening of one on one, relaxing on the porch, overlooking Lake Ella, on a long, balmy, southern summer evening. As the sun set, Jason picked on his fiddle as we talked, long into the night, and formed fast, and lasting friendships, as well as celebrated our mutually achieved accomplishments.

Together Then...

Together Again...

wwwVetSpeak.org

L.A. VA Land Grab: RALLY ALERT!

2009-08-15T13:39:00.015-05:00

STOP THE LAND GRAB OF VETERAN’S PROPERTY

We must all stand together to protect this land on behalf of all veterans and not let this land be stolen. Once this land becomes “public property” the veterans will never see it again because reversing a “public agreement” will be next to

impossible.

The “slippery slope” land grab by the Conservancy is not a Democratic or Republican fight. It is also not a local fight here in Los Angeles; this is a national fight for veteran’s rights.

JOIN THE VETERAN’S REVOLUTION

AT THE CORNER OF SAN VICENTE BLVD. AND WILSHIRE BLVD.

SUNDAY, AUGUST 16th, 1:00 – 4:00 pm

“SAVE OUR VETERAN’S LAND”

For more information contact:

Bob Rosebrock at 310-472-2717

Steve Crandall at 805-388-1542

www.VetSpeak.org

Agent Orange and who is hiding behind the curtain?

2009-08-14T20:08:00.001-05:00

Framing The Agent Orange Argument

Chuck Palazzo,

Interim Agent Orange Editor

www.VetSpeak.org

Ed Note: Chuck Palazzo is a fellow VVAW member, from here in Florida, and a fellow combat Marine, who served in-country RVN, during the same period as myself. He also, recently, moved his business to Danang, Vietnam. Chuck's windmill is Agent Orange. He has been involved in the fight on that front, for awhile. While in Vietnam, he began making contact with the Vietnamese victims groups, who were petitioning the US Government for the right to join a lawsuit, affixing responsibility and damages.

Through this work, Chuck "met" Rena Kopy, our VetSpeak Agent Orange Editor, who had recently presented to an International Commission, in Paris, France, calling for support of the Vietnamese Agent Orange Settlement lawsuit, and had done a piece on her experience, here on VetSpeak. Sadly, since that time, Rena has suffered a personal family tragedy. As a result, she is unable to focus her attention on anything but her family for awhile, and it would be unfair for us to ask her to do so. She has assured me, that she will let me know when she is ready to hoist the banner, once more.

Consequently; I have asked Chuck to be our Interim VetSpeak Agent Orange Editor, until such time as Rena's recent broken heart is well on it's way to mending. Thanks, Brother; Together Then... Together Again... WH

Shots Across The Bow...

There has been a more than usual series of articles in the press lately about Agent Orange and its possible link to Parkinson’s disease. The study that these articles reference was commissioned by the VA, in accordance with a mandate from the US Congress, to review every two years evidence about the effects of Agent Orange exposure. In my opinion, beyond the Congressional mandate, the VA is either opening their minds further to the possible link to additional disease and afflictions caused by Agent Orange and its most insidious ingredient, Dioxin, or, they are trying to nail the door shut on existing and future claims as they relate to Agent Orange and Parkinson’s. All of the articles emphasized, and rightfully so, the need to further study the possible link. There is nothing conclusive yet, but the VA did in fact upgrade Parkinson’s from the status of “inadequate or insufficient evidence” to the status of “limited or suggestive evidence of an association…” This, in my opinion, is progress.

There are many of you that are on various mailing lists that might have been following my debate, which was joined by Willie Hager as well, with a person or an organization of some kind located in the UK by the name of “Viartis”. I state it that way, because they/he/she refuses to identify who they really are, or the qualifications they claim to have. Their self proclamation is that they are experts in the field of study – cause and effect – of Parkinson’s. The reason I challenged them immediately after reading all the press, was because there’s was the only article that was entitled “Agent Orange Wrongly Linked to Parkinson's”. This raised curiosity as well as a deep concern for all of us that may have been exposed to AO and could result in being afflicted with Parkinson’s at a much earlier age than what is typical.

My debate with them was civil, asking several pointed questions, but they refused to give any information beyond one specific database that they rely on for their information. They further went on to say that it was impossible for Parkinson’s to develop after so many years since exposure to Dioxin because of some kind of biochemical mumbo jumbo. I, admit that I am not a medical or a biochemical professional. I have no clue what they are talking about. But I do have an open mind and have enough sense to know that regardless of past research, new research could result in a new conclusion. With conclusive, supporting evidence – that there is indeed a link between Parkinson’s and AO. My only point and I continue and will continue to stand by it, is “True, the facts are not all in, true, the link to Parkinson's is not yet confirmed. But the possibility DOES exist.”

For those of you that don’t have the email thread that includes Viartis, Willie, and me, I will be glad to share it with you. Just send me an email at chuck_pal@yahoo.com and you can read the debate for yourself.

The more important point is this – we cannot allow people/organizations like Viartis to discourage us. We must continue our fight and seek the truth, and obtain the benefits we are entitled to. If there are any of our readers that are in the health and/or research professions and have supportive evidence – either for or against this argument, please send it to me.

Semper Peace!

www.VetSpeak.org

Action Alert: VA Veteran Land Grab Rally

2009-07-31T15:56:00.008-05:00

Join the Rally to Save Our Veterans’ Property

Once again we are being called to defend our land. This time it is not from a far away land but here at home. Our weapons of defense have changed from rifles to pens, laptops and protest signs. This time we are fighting over a broken promise. The promise is included in a 388-acre deed by John P. Jones and Arcadia de Baker to the United States. The deed states that this land is to be used for the “sole purpose of providing veterans a place to heal from war”. This property is now called the “VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System” and is managed by the Department of Veterans Affairs. Our new battle is with the VA and the “Veterans Park Conservancy.

In September 2007 the Los Angeles VA entered into a “Shared Property” agreement with an organized group of Brentwood and Beverly Hills residents calling themselves the “Veterans Park Conservancy” (VPC) to use 16 acres of that land, rent-free, as a public park. The agreement runs for 20 years with an option for 10 more. The $6M - $7M worth of improvements are to be paid for through donations collected by the Conservancy. Because the $6m - $7M includes the cost of permanent structures, reversing a “public agreement” is going to be next to impossible and the land will never revert back to its intended use.

The veterans along with Senator Alan Cranston and Senator Pete Wilson saved this land once before in 1986 when the Federal Government wanted to sell 80 acres for public development. In response to the veterans efforts the VPC made a statement that the "VETERANS TOUCHED OUR HEARTS AND INSPIRED US TO PRESERVE THEIR LAND" but their actions tell a different story. When the agreement was originally drafted the VA had a clause for a one-year termination-for-convenience. This meant that with a one-year notice the VA could rescind the agreement with the VPC and take the land back. The VPC and community supporters pressured the VA to remove the one-year termination-for-convenience clause because per Sue Young, the executive director of the VPC, “the clause would make fundraising impossible and would jeopardize the project”.

To further demonstrate their insincerity, VPC advertised the proposed park by placing a sign “Beauty, Honor, Country”, thus trivializing the US Military Academy’s motto “Duty, Honor, Country”. Their focus on “Beauty” rather than “Duty” clearly indicates they do not understand the sacrifices veterans and their families have endured to protect our country. To claim to have the veterans’ interest at heart is a slap in the face to all veterans.

Even the VPC’s original website stated: The 16-acre parcel will be for the “creation of the first new community park to be built in West Los Angeles in over 50 years. It further stated: “What we have in mind is a scaled-down version of a grand community park in the tradition of New York's Central Park. Most importantly, it will attract all segments of our West Los Angeles community: Veterans and civilians, children and adults, featuring numerous activities for everyone.”

The quest to turn the veteran’s land into a public park does not rest solely with the Conservancy group. They are backed by Congressional Representatives who would rather put this land in the hands of their wealthy constituents than honor the original deed agreement and provide the veterans that fought for this country a protected place to heal from war. That’s why the CA Veteran’s Democratic Caucus created a resolution to rescind the shared agreement. On July 19th the California Democratic Party’s Executive Board adopted the resolution, stating that the shared agreement “is inconsistent with the exclusive use for veterans envisioned by the donors, and the trust conveyed in their deed to the United States”.

Unfortunately, Representative Henry Waxman (D CA-30), in whose district the property falls, and Representative Bob Filner (D CA-51), the Chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Committee, and U.S. Senators Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer can toss this resolution in the recycle basket if they wish. But if they toss the resolution aside it will put them in direct conflict with the philosophical belief of the California Democratic Party and all supporting veterans.

So we still need your support. A small group of dedicated veterans stand vigil over the veterans’ land in West Los Angeles every Sunday. Don’t let them stand-alone. We must all stand together to protect this land on behalf of all veterans and not let this land be stolen.

Join us on August 16th for a rally to “Save Our Veterans’ Land” at the corner of San Vicente and Wilshire Blvds. in West Los Angeles from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m.

Steve Crandall, President
CA Central Coast Chapter of the Vietnam Veterans Against The War
805-388-1542

www.VetSpeak.org

Veterans caught up in ICE immigration dragnet nightmare...

2009-07-19T17:42:00.017-05:00

Defense Committee Seeks Funds For Travel to VFP National Convention

Ed Note: This is an initiative that VetSpeak strongly supports. Jan Rhuman, our VetSpeak Operations Coordinator, and my friend, and VVAW Brother, of 37 years, has taken the issue of the deportation of America's Veterans, many with-out benefit of due process, to heart. Woe unto the HMFIC of that blatantly unconstitutional model of protection of American citizens. The light of Truth is about to shine, and chase away the cockroaches of spin. Jan's on the mission.

He has, out of pocket, along with an old school Bar Sinister (L.A. Law Collective that worked with VVAW 1972-1974) style lawyer, and a few Veterans who have fallen victim to this outrage, formed a Defense Committee, and is re-framing the argument regarding Veterans and immigration issues. In just the short time since we were all together there in SoCal, on the West Coast Tour these folks have made some very serious moves on behalf of this issue. They have motivated local and regional coalitions of progressive Veterans and Families groups to work on making it a focal issue in their mutually supportive agendas. This trip to the VFP Convention to present their case for National VFP support, is their first national outreach.

I hope that you will all find it in your heart, and in your pocket book, to support their immediate mission, and assist them in getting to the Convention, where their voices can be heard, in a national Veterans forum. WH

Jan's e-mail appeal:

Dear Friends,

Many of you are aware that we have begun working on a National Veterans Issue & Campaign seeking Justice for American Combat Veterans who have served our nation in the military and received honorable discharges, who have been incarcerated in Department of Homeland Security Prisons nation wide and are being processed for banishment from America the land they fought to defend.

The link below is an article from the front page of last Sundays, June 12th San Diego Union Tribune and a video interview of one of the Vietnam Era Veterans incarcerated and facing deportation:

http://www3.signonsandiego.com/stories/2009/jul/12/1n12deport211228-few-options-veterans-who-await-de/?metro&zIndex=13067

We need your help in getting four Defense Committee members to DC to present the Veterans Facing Deportation Work Shop from the recent VFP Sub-Regional in Oceanside, Heather Boxeth, Attorney, myself, Louie Alvarez (vet facing deportation) and a family member Angelica Madrigal at the National Veterans For Peace Convention August 5th-9th. In addition we have been invited to meet with Congressional Committee Staff from several Congressmen.

The actual costs for flights, lodging, transportation and convention registrations fees are around $3,600.00. We have committed $2,350.00 cash on hand leaving $1,250 short at this point in time.

I am asking that you consider making a donation and help us raise the needed funds between now and next Tuesday, July 22nd when we commit $911.00 for housing the four delegate. It's personal contact we need with folks that may be willing to help us. I'm reaching out and doing the same with my friends and associates.

Please consider making a donation and sending out a request to anyone you deem appropriate.

Thank you for your help,

Jan A. Ruhman

jan.ruhman@vetspeak.org

Donations:

On-line: Go to www.sdvfp.org; on right side of home screen, you will see "donate" superimposed on a graphic of a homeless Veteran, just to the left of the Robin Long poster, click on the graphic, and use the General Donations Pay-Pal button, make donation and ref VFP Trip, if given the option, on the Pay-Pal form.

Snail Mail: Mail check or money order to Veterans For Peace, C/O Jan Ruhman, 8632 Garde Ct.,

San Diego, Ca 92126

www.vetspeak.org/

After Action Report: IVAW Southeast Regional Retreat 07/03 - 07/05

2009-07-11T14:00:00.020-05:00

Fire On The Mountain…
By
Willie Hager
www.VetSpeak.orgx

x Cracker Swamp, Fl – A week has passed, since my friend of 26 years, Josh, and myself, returned from camping with, meeting with, and partying with, the future of the progressive Veterans movement, here in the Southeastern region of the United States. We were up on Red Top Mountain, just outside Cartersville, Georgia, a few miles north of Atlanta, for the IVAW Southeast Regional Retreat, held 7/3 - 7/5, 2009.
x
We were there representing Vietnam Veterans Against The War (VVAW), in the capacity of what I refer to as elder statespersons or VVAW old schoolers, rather than as Old Folks with a lot of time on their hands. The very types, in the context of Veterans progressive grassroots activism, that are, by definition and from my perspective, those that, through their actions as VVAW members, back in The Day; laid the foundations and set the standards for the creation and development, as well as produced much of the original leadership of Vietnam Veterans Of America, Veterans For Peace (VFP), and who worked logistics and staffed security for IVAW's Winter Soldier Iraq &Afghanistan, in Silver Spring, Maryland.

Today, VVAW's 41 year history of activism as an anti-imperialist progressive Veterans organization speaks for itself, and is the result of the political principles & ideals, strategies, and activities, that are well documented, on these pages and in historical archives all over America...pages lived and written by actions of these old school progressive movement types.
x
VVAW's focus issues have aways been oriented to ending militaristic involvement in campaigns of political and capital imperialism; equally proper care and treatment of Veterans by the VA, in both the medical and mental health claims, service delivery systems, and claims processing; anti-sexism and racism with-in the military, as well as society, in general; and, GI Rights & Resistance. The folks that I refer to have been always been there, as the grass-roots impetus to the writing of VVAW's inspiring history.

I believe that many of us old schoolers see our role, since coming together at the VVAW 40th Reunion, as that of a known quantity resource for IVAW, and also as a resource group, for the mounting of a national campaign to build a unified front of progressive Veteran and Allied groups and supporters, who are rallied around a core group of focal issues and actions.

This is a strategy model that has emanated from the coming together of that 40th Reunion gathering. This is an effort that began in earnest with the VVAW National Coordinators West Coast Tour, this past Spring, and that is continuing as an organizing strategy, as we all move forward in the 21st century. Thus, our presence, representing VVAW at the IVAW SE Retreat. My personal take on all of this is, that VVAW's soul has always been out in the grass-roots, that it's spirit of political activism is still alive and well, and is at work in their communities (...still crazy after all these years?), and that it is that spirit which is VVAW, today.
xx
There were two of us old schoolers from VVAW, there on Red Top Mountain with the IVAW, the first day of the IVAW SE Retreat; Josh (Vietnam Veterans of North Florida/VVAW), Mike Hearington (the Atlanta VFP contact), and myself (VVNF/VVAW). Mike Burke, who is the VVAW Atlanta contact, came out and joined us at the encampment on Saturday morning.

Our combined VVAW mission task, was to invite IVAW's active participation in our own Southeast Regional gathering, to be held in Tallahassee, Florida, July 24th thru July 26th.

I am happy to report that the assigned mission was a success. As a result of our outreach, IVAW Southeastern Region will be represented in Tallahassee, in the persons of Jason Hurd, the IVAW Southeast Regional Coordinator; Zach Choate, the Atlanta area organizer, along with several other Georgia IVAW members one of whom is an active duty GI. Also in attendance will be representatives from the Gainesville, Fl Chapter of IVAW. Due to mild attacks of CRS, I only recall Micah Goulet's name, from the G'ville bunch...good meeting and talking with you, Micah. (Photo, L to R; Josh M., Mike H., and your's truly)
xx
VVAW was on the agenda to present to the group on Friday evening. By then, we had managed to do some "socializing" and everyone was definitely in the spirit of the event as we gathered around the campfire in the waning light of a great afternoon of getting to know one another.

I presented on our behalf, and made three proposals to the gathering; that the SE Region attend our VVAW SE Regional meeting in Tallahassee, that VVAW, VFP, and IVAW work together in staging a major SE Winter Soldier event; that we all rally our membership and our resources in support of the School Of The America's Vigil at Ft. Benning, Ga., this coming November.
xx

At a meeting of the IVAW membership, held on Saturday morning, all three proposals were discussed and agreed to, and will appear on our VVAW SE agenda, for discussion of our mutual strategy.
xx

Our assigned mission was accomplished; face to face communications had been established as a first step in forming a network of Veterans' activists and resources, that are willing to work together, on pre-defined focal issues, presenting a unified front (our most powerful lobbying tool/political capital, in my opinion) to our elected representatives and self serving political power brokers. The fire to be fanned is in the hearts and minds of the American electorate; now, just the same as it was, back in the day.

That fire of political consciousness was definitely re-ignited among the folks who were lucky enough to have been there on the mountain, together, on Independance Day. The energy was that was flowing, was palpable, and infectous. When we looked into their young faces and eyes, we were seeing another side of ourselves, from another time, and yet there didn't seem to be any time separating us, as we made friends, and talked together, late into the mountain night.
x
Che Guevara once said, "You North Americans are very lucky, you live in the heart of the beast..."; Che always wanted to ride the rankest bull. Well, my friends, in the world of progressive political organizing, the Southeast, is the rankest bull in the bunch.

Long ago, VVAW had a history here; Last Patrol & the '72 Republican Convention, The Gainesville 8 (actually 12) Conspiracy Trial, Operation County Fair in Bogue Chitto, Ala, in partnership with the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) group from that area. I, and many of my friends from VVAW, who have sine re-newed their membership, were there with VVAW for these actions and operations. Since those heady times, with all of the voting rights, and civil rights headway that was made, the wave of political consciousness and Democratic party gains that were so hard won, have, somehow, long since, slipped away.
x
The Southeast, these days is, once again, the heart of the far-right conservative beast. A far cry from where we brought it to, only thirty years ago. As a result of the grass-roots political and social struggles there, it became a beacon of hope and progress, for those who believed in the power of the people. Power that they had physically seized from the clutches of Nixon's version of Republicanism...we called it fascism. Since then, the neocons re-took political ground with the Gingrich revolution, the Contract With America, and what George Lakoff refers to as re-framing the arguement in his book, Don't Think Of An Elephant.

Although they have suffered some serious set-backs to these initiatives, up to, and including the election of Obama. They have not given up the fight; they are just even more pissed off than they were back in the Gingrich hey-day. They've still got plenty of PAC money, Rush, the FOX News gang, and the Swift Boats in several of their manifestations, all out there stirring up the base at the grass-roots, and trying to once again re-frame the political arguement, to fit their political needs. The folks that we met with, in Georgia, certainly seemed up for the fight to re-take the political high-ground from them, here in Dixie.

VVAW National Coordinators, Barry Romo and Marty Webster will be there in Tally to meet with us, and to participate in the dialogue, as well. If you are a VVAW, VFP, IVAW, or allied group (i.e. MFSO) member, somewhere in the Southeast, and wish to join the fight, and rally with us at the VVAW SE Regional Planning, Organizing, and Tasking Conference, in Tally, on the week-end of the 24th-26th of July, for the purposes of designing a Southeastern grass-roots strategy to attain our mutual national goals; please contact me at windbender@rose.net, with VVAW SE Regional in the Subject field. I will get right back to you with conference location and registration info, ASAP.

www.Vetspeak.org

Di Wood Revisits Winter Soldier II - 05/07/2009

2009-07-02T16:04:00.010-05:00

First Unitarian Society of Minneapolis
900 Mount Curve Avenue; Minneapolis, MN 55403; Phone 612.377.6608; Fax 612.377.2151

Summer Assembly Previews

7/5/09 “Remembering Winter Soldier 2: A First-
Hand Report”

Speaker: Diane Ford Wood
x
Diane Ford Wood, granddaughter-in-law of Abe and Ida Kaufman, guarded “the box” at Winter Soldier 2 in March 2008 and heard every word of testimony from just a few feet away.
x
Diane’s volunteer job involved securing the area directly in front of the dais where American veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan war bravely told their tales to an international media audience. Pro-war protestors, angered that veterans would “air America’s dirty laundry in public,” worked hard to invade and disrupt the proceedings, creating a tense, even dangerous atmosphere.
x
While Amy Goodman of Democracy Now and www.VetSpeak.org both did a thorough job, of reporting these events, most American media did not attend. Backed by a few veteran friends who were also there, Diane will tell what it was like from her perspective and what she believes to be the legacy and lessons of the event.

www.VetSpeak.org

VVAW: A Living History...

2009-06-21T16:38:00.010-05:00

Ed Note: This piece by our Agent Orange Editor, Rena Kopy, is a prototype for a serial feature, to be carried on the pages of the soon to be awakened on VetSpeak.org on-line mag. This type of piece dovetails nicely with VetSpeak’s mission of recording and preserving VVAW’s history. We choose to present that perspective from those who lived it, not that of observers and researchers. It is always compelling, but quite often, humorous, as well. Much of VVAWs real story hasn’t been available to folks. The real history of those who really made it happen hasn’t been fully tapped, as of yet; that being the personal and unprecedented history of Veterans organized in struggle with the government over the policies of illegal warfare, and the imperializing of the US Presidency, and foreign policy. Rena and VetSpeak.org, hope to change all that, and put an “I was there” face on that history.WH

x
THE LIGHTER SIDE OF ACTIVISM
By
Rena Kopy, Editor
Mirth & Frivolty
(As well as Agent Orange)
www.VetSpeak.org
xx

My recent rededication to Vietnam Veteran Agent Orange activism has brought about a most unusual phenomenon. In the middle of doing either research, writing or studying, I find myself stopping to gaze into the déjà vu of my memory bank. I do not come up with great moments of what others have credited me with, such as changing laws or the perception or should I say misconceptions of what was at one time the most horrendous image of American heroes. What keeps stopping me to recollect is some of the strangest and even hilarious moments that were accumulated over the years.

In recent dialogues with my fellow activists, like Ward Reilly, Willie Hager and Chuck Palazzo, I have recounted stories of days gone by and experiences that, I guess, were all part of the penning of the “How to Be an Activist for Dummies” handbook. It was decided that I will relate some of those long ago (but obviously not forgotten) excursions to the choppy waters of activism, in the hope that others who read these memories will (since it is probably only activist read anyway) come up with stories of their own to add to this new endeavor.

The memory that started this idea for an interactive column was one that involved one of the very first demonstrations of the original organization that John and I started: A.O.V.N.J. - Agent Orange Victims of New Jersey.

It was a Saturday afternoon in the spring of 1980 that a group of about 35 or 40 of us met outside the main gate of the East Orange VA Hospital in East Orange, New Jersey. We had to do this on weekends, because contrary to the public image of Viet vets, at the time, almost everyone had a paying job they could not take time away from. We were all dressed in our “Sprayed and Betrayed” tee shirts and ready to keep moving, as the law required, across the front of the hospital entrance. We formed an orderly line and began to walk and chant “test and compensate” or “agent orange kills”, etc., back and forth across the street that led into the front gates. After a few minutes, we realized that something was missing and that with all of our planning and organizing no one had been put in charge of the signs, banners and placards!!!!!!!

Since we were a suburban group of vets and vet families from, far away, Monmouth and Ocean counties, no one had any idea where we could get the much needed signs, etc. So, for approximately an hour we marched, back and forth, from one side of the street to the other, yelling out our chants and cadence at the top of our lungs. The only problem was that to the public, we looked like a whole bunch of people who were walking back and forth, trying to decide what side of the street we wanted to be on and YELLING AT EACH OTHER!!!!!

One of the VA security guards, turned out to be a Vietnam vet, a brother, who during his break, got in his car and drove past us, showing us his hand in a “wait” gesture, which we did not understand because we were still trying to look “official”. He came back, slowed down right in the midst of our picket line and quickly handed, out of the driver’s side window, a stack of oak tag and construction paper and a whole bunch of markers. He then drove quickly away so as not to lose his job for collaborating with the enemy. For years, we told the story of the “activist virgins” who lost their cherries on the cement streets of East Orange.

In the mid 80’s, we had organized a demonstration outside the Diamond Shamrock plant in the Ironbound section of Newark, New Jersey. It was a families demonstration and we not only brought our children, decked out in our tees and kids cammies, because, keeping in mind that most of our Jersey membership were suburbanites, we even had a “cabbage patch contingency” of cabbage patch dolls with pitch signs taped to their little hands. The media was waiting for us (as were the “unmarked” FBI agents) but after only about 30 minutes into our demonstration, the media became thinner and the ever-present helicopters left as well. We went on with our demonstration because we figured either that the media got what they needed or they were watching from beyond our sights.

It was a cold day, so my husband John and Buzz Pucillo kept running over to the “well hidden” FBI car with cups of hot coffee. When we got home, the phones started ringing because as all of us flipped on the television news it became evident that the reason the media had left was because the landmark Freehold Racetrack had burned to the ground. Every vets group who knew us flagged their newsletters with a story about how the government was so worried about the mark we were making that they burned down the only trotter’s racetrack in New Jersey to keep us off the radar!

The greatest feat that A.O.V.N.J. ever pulled off was at a St. Patrick’s Day Parade in one of the coastal towns, which, if memory serves me, was Belmar, New Jersey. Our group, in a show of patriotism by the town council was invited to participate in their local parade. We showed up with a long flatbed trailer float, which was decorated with flowerpots on prettily covered podiums, with happy children, vets and their wives all smiling and waving from the moving float. (One minor problem was that someone who probably much later in their career came up with the recent idea of flying Air Force One low over Manhattan, without warning the still shell-shocked residents of lower Manhattan, was that the float behind us was an engine which was manned with what sounded like rifle shots going off, until we explained to them that one more volley of “gun salutes” and we couldn’t promise any flashback safety.)

Everyone was cheering and waving from the spectators’ area, until, we were coming close to the reviewing stand, and, suddenly our float came to a complete stop and a full tarp was drawn over the entire float. Within 2 to 3 minutes, which was a feat of theatrical timing in itself, the tarp came away and the pretty plants were now dead twigs sitting on top of 55 gal. Drums with orange stripes, the women were screaming in horror as they held children lying across their arms in a dead pose, while the vets were wearing Scott paks and gas masks and shooting an orange liquid (food coloring) out of spray bottles at the crowd. That was what went slowly past the mayor and all the other dignitaries sitting, in shock, on the reviewing stand, as spectators ran to get away from the orange spray!!!!! Needless to say, we made the front page of every newspaper in the tri-state area and no one ever asked us to do a float parade again. We certainly taught those people what happens when you burn down a racetrack to deprive us from getting our word out!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

These are just a few of my more colorful memories and we have not even started on Dewey Canyon 81’, but more for another day. As the newly appointed editor of creativity and frivolity, here at VetSpeak.org, I ask for readers submissions that will also provide me with a defense against mental illness and weird stunts when I go before the big activist judge in the sky. Who knows, maybe we can come up with a book to be read aloud in Congress before any votes are cast to commit to an opportunistic war.

www.VetSpeak.org

PTSD: We can all be part of the solution...

2009-06-14T18:52:00.007-05:00

Cynthia Orange is Writing a book for the loved ones of people with PTSD

Ed note: Micheal Orange is a member of the VetSpeak.org Blog Squad, and pens on our pages as Agent Orange, as does his wife Cynthia, nome de plume, VetWrite. Micheal is also the author of Fire in the hole: A Mortarman in Vietnam, a narrative of his own time spent in-country. Micheal sent this e-mail out to myself, and two other friends, asking for us to distribute it as widely as possible, so, here it is; to read, and to, hopefully, act on...WH

Dear Bob, Willie, and Woody:

My wife, Cynthia, is writing a book for the loved ones of people with PTSD that will be released in the spring of 2010, and she would love input. We're hoping that you can distribute this letter to your respective contact lists. Also, please forward this to others like yourselves who have links to other veterans organizations.

The book will weave throughout it anecdotes and examples gathered from trauma survivors and those affected by a loved one’s trauma to illustrate how some families deal with the challenges inherent in this disorder. The focus will be on self-care, and it will also contain advice from mental health professionals and other experts in the field of PTSD.

She's written extensively about PTSD and co-occurring disorders, prevention and recovery (I gave her plenty first-hand learning opportunities over our 36-year marriage). She has developed three questionnaires 1) for trauma survivors, 2) for the loved ones of those who suffer (or suffered) from PTSD, and 3) for experts who work with trauma survivors and/or those who are affected by a loved one's trauma or PTSD.

Those interested in completing or forwarding a questionnaire should respond to Cynthia at: cynthiaorange@mac.com.

Thank you.

Peace,

Michael Orange, VFP member since 1991