Monthly Archives: February 2010

Our country is in the middle of a health care crisis, the likes of which we have never experienced. At the center of this crisis is a silent wounding of our armed forces that often goes unrecognized. If you believe the Rand Corporation' s estimates, silent wounding may be affecting as many as 640,000 veterans.

If you live in the United States or Israel, the easiest thing to do is bury your head in the sand. Ask Naomi Chazan,...

This is a follow-up of my article on September 11, 2016 – The Patriots Day Coup, the first story was a fictional account used...

The Daily Show's Jon Stewart in a very funny take on CPAC's "Festival of Whites" at TPM. Death panels and Marxist demons aside, Sarah Palin's Grandson gets Socialist medical care, Stephen C. Webster tells it at Raw Story. McCarthyism is back, ugly as ever and even more dangerous this time around by Aemilia Scott at AlterNet. Those stories and more in today's picks.

Find out What's Inside Today's Local News for Veterans Shinseki "Fighting To Reduce" Red Tape For Vets Seeking Benefits. Lawmakers Urge VA Support For...

Dutch Prime Minister Balkenende said he expected Dutch troops to come home from Afghanistan before the end of the year, after efforts to keep them there longer caused the government to collapse, the New York Times reports. The war in Afghanistan has been increasingly unpopular among voters in in many parts of Europe, creating strains between governments trying to please the US and their own people.

Regional stories on veterans' health, education and other benefits and issues today from: Stockton, California, Shreveport, Louisiana, Biloxi, Mississippi, Hampton Roads, Virginia, Port Orchard, Washington, Albuquerque, New Mexico, Albany, New York, Columbia, South Carolina, Chicago, Illinois, College Park, Maryland, and Los Angeles, Califronia.

That's what has led to the current disaffection by both liberals and conservatives toward government. The American people can sense their rights slipping away, but they have yet to come to terms with what is actually going on. They have yet to realize that congressional gridlock is a convenient way of denying them their rights. They have also yet to recognize that the majority in the senate is allowing the minority to abuse of the filibuster procedure because both parties are in collusion. The Republican filibuster provides cover for the Democratic majority for failing to enact, or greatly watering down, legislation being demanded by the people, but neither party wants to enact.

Well may Secretary of State Hillary Clinton warn students in Qatar that “Iran is moving toward a military dictatorship.” She is, after all, an authority on the subject, representing a country where the Pentagon has long been ascendant. Her comment was followed up by Robert Gibbs, President Obama’s press secretary, who, at a February 16th news conference refused to deny the possibility of the U.S. taking military action against Iran, stating, “I wouldn’t rule out anything.”

No. 131-10 ----------------------------- CONTRACTS: AIR FORCE                   Northrop Grumman Defense Mission Systems, Inc., San Diego, Calif., was awarded a $77,915,492 contract which will provide the maintenance and...

Specifically singling out Vietnam War veterans, Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki said today that the VA is broken, the backlog of claims and the lack of...

Ever since the days of Henry Ford, the Economic Elite have needed a thriving US middle class to increase growth and profits, but now, in the global economy, they view the US middle class as obsolete. They increasingly look globally for profits and they would rather pay cheap labor in countries like China and India. On top of the millions of jobs they have already shipped overseas to increase profits at our expense, they are planning to ship an additional 25% of current US jobs overseas as well.

Ken Hunter, an IRS employee and 2 toured Vietnam Veteran loses life in Texas IRS Crash

A power plant for the home smaller than a breadbox; does it work? Ask Google or FedEx. Video from 60 Minutes. If students at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo can create a vehicle that gets 2752 MPG using existing technologies, is it too much to expect something more than 30 MPG from the big guys? That one from Jerry James Stone at Treehugger. Raw story tells the story of Colin Powell kicking Cheney to the curb and supporting the President on National Security issues. Those stories and more in today's picks.

Check White House.gov for more details. President Obama offers health care reform for American families. Specifics are difficult to argue against; the GOP's future is...

It is a breath of fresh air to read 'on-line' about a growing number of seriously progressive candidates challenging the politically strategic and deceitful...

Fiscal catastrophe is catastrophic. Face it, Republicans do not care; catastrophe is their goal and these guys are pathological. A big clue was waging...

This past Friday, on February 19th, I traveled to a gathering of WWII vendors in Louisville, Kentucky. It was called "The Ohio Valley Show...

by Warren P. Strobel | McClatchy Newspapers WASHINGTON — Here's a war game involving Iran, Israel and the U.S. that shows how unintended consequences can...

The AP (2/22, Hefling) notes that during a recent interview, Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki "said he's making it a top priority this year to tackle the backlog of disability claims that has veterans waiting months - even years - to get financial compensation for their injuries." Shinseki, "a former Army chief of staff who had part of a foot blown off when he was a young officer in Vietnam, was unapologetic about a decision he made in October to make it easier for potentially 200,000 sick Vietnam veterans who were exposed to the Agent Orange herbicide to receive service-connected compensation." Shinseki "said he's looking ahead to make sure Iraq and Afghanistan veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injuries don't have similar problems getting financial compensation."

Regional stories on veterans' health, education and other benefits and issues today from: Sarasota, Florida, Chillicothe, Ohio, Minneapolis, Minnesota, South Bend, Indiana, Fort Myers, Florida, Remsen, New York, San Clemente, Caliornia, Evergreen Park, Illinois, and Kings Park, New York.

Our country exists for the people; not for the military-industrial complex, not for Wall Street speculators and banks. As soaring levels of unemployment appear...

Human beings make peace through direct action of recognizing shared humanity. 'Verbal terrorism?' Sure, militarists won't like it. But America should be funding Villages Group. When people...

Thus far we at VT have only managed to find two seriously progressive and independent thinker political candidates willing to take on the two...

Another veteran frustrated with the Dept of Veterans Affairs (DVA) and suffering from PTSD after surviving three combat tours, lost it and allegedly "made a...

Update: A reader, who identifies himself as "Rob" says the powerful moneyed interests are American heroes as opposed to the "socialist cronies  have created...

Despite the public's epidemic disgust with politicians, now would be a splendid time to run for office in this country. That's because the U.S. Supreme Court has made it infinitely easier for candidates to sell themselves to special interests, who in return will peddle those candidates to voters.

The SEC’s own Inspector General(OIG) has found that between 1992 and 2008 the SEC received six substantive complaints about fraudster Bernie Madoff’s hedge fund operations yet never conducted a thorough and competent examination of them. The SEC conducted two investigations and three examinations based on credible complaints about Madoff’s operations but never verified Madoff’s trading or conducted a Ponzi scheme probe.

These people are unbelievable. Henry M. Paulson says in a New York Times op-ed (Feb. 15, 2010) the biggest problem facing America is Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security. Paulson,...

Regional stories on veterans' health, education and other benefits and issues today from: Camp Lejeune North Carolina, San Francisco, California, Tallmadge, Ohio, Cicero, Illinois, Hampton Roads, Virginia, Sioux City, Iowa, Newton, Massachusetts, Fort Myers, Florida, Athens, Georgia, and Louisville, Kentucky.

By Jonathan S. Landay | McClatchy Newspapers WASHINGTON — Army Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, kept a remote U.S. base...

In a political convention which, by most accounts, was heavily overstocked with nut cases, Glen Beck was apparently a standout at CPAC; Mike Madden at Salon has the story. Sunnis, Baathists and Baathists go Lightly, may boycott next month's Iraqi elections from Juan Cole at Informed Comment and John Yoo says that George Bush had the power and authority to eliminate entire villages if the mood struck him from Raw Story are among the stories in today's picks.

Why we do not at least try for the United States do dedicate itself to providing jobs is beyond me. Free market nostrums mean...

A Turkish sixteen year old girl was buried alive for talking to males who were not part of her family.

His people loved him. Haig deserves respect. By Tim Weiner--Alexander M. Haig Jr., the mercurial four-star general who served as a confrontational secretary of state...

Update: Read MuzzleWatch's Think tank tells Israeli government to declare war on peace groups.—"They’re baaaaack - Israel’s 'most influential' think tank tells Israeli government...

“The money powers prey upon the nation in times of peace and conspire against it in times of adversity. It is more despotic than a monarchy, more insolent than autocracy, and more selfish than bureaucracy. It denounces as public enemies, all who question its methods or throw light upon its crimes… As a result of the war, corporations have been enthroned and an era of corruption in high places will follow, and the money powers of the country will endeavor to prolong it’s reign by working upon the prejudices of the people until all wealth is aggregated in a few hands and the Republic is destroyed.” Abraham Lincoln

Bob Herbert on explores US infrastructure and jobs in a NYT oped. Has anyone noticed how the GOP leadership is toadying up to the Wall Street on banksters? Jim Hightower has and comments. Speaking of the least productive people in the world, Scott Baker does a fine job telling their story at OpEd News. Bill Maher says the Tea Party is a cult, not a movement and he can prove it in a video at Crooks and Liars. Arizonans find speed trap cameras revolting so they are ...revolting. Those stories and plenty more in today's picks.

CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT TO YIELD BETTER BENEFITS FOR THOUSANDS OF VETERANS SUFFERING FROM PTSD AND THEIR FAMILIES - Lawyers Serving Warriors Veterans must opt-in by...

The healthcare accrediting agency may be following up on concerns raised by a series of Salon exposés By Mark Benjamin The Joint Commission, the nonprofit healthcare...

Regional stories on veterans' health, education and other benefits and issues today from Moundville, Alabama, Amherst, Massachusetts, Ontario, Canada, Lorain, Ohio, Tampa, Florida, Lynchburg, Virginia, Salt Lake City, Utah, Long Beach, California, Aurora, Colorado, and Hanson, Kentucky

Cindy Sheehan is once again among the leaders of the Pro-Peace movement rallying the troops of Peace. She is among the growing number of...