Justice And Accountably At Its Very Finest By Our United States Government

[allan]

fwd from: Kelley

Veterans Issues –

Justice and ACCOUNTABLY at its very finest

by our united states government

April 25, 2007

Below are some comments by leaders in Veterans Groups around the nation.

I would like to add my dollar two ninety-eight comments as one who has fought the injustices with data, logic, rationale, stated scientific and legal misconduct, etc.

Obviously, the Walter Reed issues by our media and our honorable politicians are now being swept under the old political magic carpet. Rise to put out the media brush fire and now back to the normal stump breaking of Veterans and their families.

The Walter Reed Exposures brought up a lot of issues that the media seems less concerned with than dirty rooms. Many of those issues affect the Veterans and family for life. The Veterans reward for honorable service is met with less than an honorable government and its less than honorable leaders.

The inside 495 standard response to cover up issues is to assign some "so-called" independent committee that is appointed by politicians who are less than honorable themselves. Assign former politicians to the committee who also were less than honorable to cover up the issues or at least mislead the facts to minimize the effects and the damages and the absolute miscarriage of justice and accountability that Veterans face on a daily basis. A miscarriage of justice and lack of accountability that no other segment of society is subjected, including the illegal alien.

Mr. Bob Dole, while a former Veteran, was in federal politics for how many decades and did nothing to stop the injustices against our nations finest and most honorable citizens.

Ms. Donna Shalala, former health secretary stood by while more Vietnam Veterans died or became disabled uncompensated than the Viet Cong and the North Vietnamese Army manage to kill or disabled. She also did nothing.

These two are heading up the committee of what Washington normally does and that is; "the search for the guilty but punishment of the innocent." This is just another inside 495 Kabuki dance, otherwise known as the old DoD/VA federal agency two step.

Then we have Mr. Bush asking Mr. Nicholson the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to head a ‘so-called’ independent panel. What a joke!

Whenever the Veterans win a legitimate constitutional court battle against the crooked VA who is the first person to oppose the legitimate court ruling for Veterans? Of course, Mr. Nicholson, (or any other Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs) who then not only opposes the court rulings of our nation but also with the power given him by Congress in U.S.C 38 Paragraph 511 thumbs his nose at the mandamus court order. In any other segment of our society, the Secretary would be charged with obstruction of justice. Not so for our Nation’s Veterans and their families. They have no justice or even a legal forum to get justice or accountability for death and disability. Death and disability caused not only by the enemies of our government but our ‘own government’ as well.

Therefore, Mr. Bush’s actions, exclaimed in the press, are less than authentic and are certainly less than honorable.

Now this is not just a republican president issue. In fact, for the past 60 years, our presidents and many members of congress on both sides of the aisle have not acted honorably with our Nation’s Veterans. To say they did not know what was going on within the DoD and especially the VA/NAS-IOM/Ranch Hand connection misconduct with the massive use of toxic chemical herbicides in the 60’s and 70’s would be giving them just an excuse. To say they did not know the Secretary of Defense had the complete and legal authority to authorize biological chemical warfare testing of our Veterans and did so from 1962 to 1973 would also allow them nothing but an excuse.

These are supposed to educated men and women who all of sudden when it comes to Veterans and Veteran’s Family Issues become brain dead!

I will say, as a former Republican, I myself was shocked at the uncovering of the Reagan/Bush White House memo that clearly indicated an obvious lack of support for toxic chemical Veterans directed to all federal agencies. Along with an obvious, support for the Chemical Companies and their lobby money.

Before this memo, the foot dragging by all concerned in government, as well as the then VA, is well noted and documented. Yet, nothing was done by congress to protect their constituents from these brazen acts of corruption.

As the evidence mounted against the government and the Chemical Companies even more brazen scientific misconduct took place; the VA changed names with new powers given; government studies were interfered with, real scientific study protocols were mandated changed as even the government could not stop the found issues within the government’s own exoneration studies; Veterans Courts, outside the constitution, were set up; executive, judicial, legislative powers were given to the new Department of Veterans Affairs.

In a recent article sent to me by one our New Zealand Veterans states the follows in the New Zealand media.

"Indeed, the Prime Minister of New Zealand, (a Vietnam War Protestor), is reported in the media as, "Feeling Sick At the Suffering and Consequence of War upon communities. "Really! She does not seem to have a problem in spending some $10 million in order to enhance the National War Memorial when her Government continues to "rort" the actual combatants, their surviving widows, and DNA damaged children of previous conflicts in South East Asia whilst she was a University Student."

That just about sums up what our own government has done. About nothing except for deceit, interference, scientific misconduct, and out and out lies for over 40 years. Except the New Zealanders, Aussies, and Korean allies all depend on the processes used by our government as their own government cite Ranch Hand issues that we now know were not only covered up, minimized, and in total with the cohort assumptions of exposures flawed in all categories of medical findings including birth defects and DNA damages.

The Ranch Hand Study used as a government exoneration tool we now find was like running a 25 year clinical trial on a new medication, and you found out some of the people who were in your cohort comparison group were actually taking medications. That would spoil your whole study. Moreover, that's what's going on here to deny Veterans death and disability compensations created by our own government. In this studies case at least 600 of the 1300 are in question in comparison as to if they took the medication under study instead of placebos.

Nice touch on the part of caring government.

The government’s custodian of this study, the United States Air Force, when confronted by these facts and the reanalysis done by the former lead DoD scientists was? Destroy the DATA!

All present and future military veterans must be made aware of these government actions before they sign any retention or enlistment papers.

To care for those that have borne the battle and their widows and orphans has become nothing but a political joke.

If the United States Government in all most total harmony can do what I described above, of which most of you know I can provide documentation to these stated facts. Then does anyone ‘not believe’ with men like Dr. David Chu in the pentagon that what is described below of minimizing the effects of war on our soldiers and keeping the percentage less than 30% is not an unofficial goal of the DoD. As well as in conjunction with the VA keeping the numbers per year down of disabled Veterans along with the many conflicts of interest in the VA’s own definitions, which demonstrate a complete bias towards stalling the Veterans and Widows claims even more and more.

The classic government propaganda fraud is the following released on the 25th.

By Steve Vogel

Washington Post Staff Writer

Wednesday, April 25, 2007; Page A04

"President Bush last night ordered the Pentagon and Department of Veterans Affairs to come up with a joint process for establishing the level of disability of injured service members, and to implement other recommendations from a presidential task force."

What that article should have read is:

President Bush last night ordered the Pentagon and Department of Veterans Affairs to come up with a joint process for establishing the level of disability of injured service members, and to implement other recommendations from a presidential task force. Addendum: Just as long as the cost is held to a minimum; no more than 4% per year of all claims will be adjudicated, and no more than 2% of the 4% will be approved at any level of disability per year.

Thereby our government in total wants to make sure the Veterans of this nation shoulder the burden of the nation’s wars by supporting their own disabilities (enemy or government created) and their families supporting the Veterans government caused death with a lifetime of loss.

Charles Kelley

Author and Veteran of the DMZ 67-68

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ralph Parrott ralphparrott@cox.net

www.empoweringveterans.org

Folks,

When I read this my blood boiled again. It is becoming increasingly clear that this problem is being treated as an issue of bureaucratic bungling rather than a question of justice for the service member. Folks, what you are seeing is classic "slow walking" and it is pure bullshit. We cannot let it happen.

These guys are getting ready to redraw lines on a damned organization chart and declare the problem solved. It is outrageous.

To date this problem is being approached as a problem of red tape and bureaucracy run amok. Nothing could be farther from the truth. It is a conscious effort on the part of the military services to pass the problem along to the VA and in the process short change our service members and their families. To begin to correct this problem one must start to question some fundamental assumptions and practices that underlie the current program:

Assumption 1 - The current program assumes that it is OK to withhold retirement benefits, the most important of which is medical care and Tricare insurance from a large subset (less than 30% disabled) of service members that are separated from the service for service connected disabilities.

Assumption 2 - The burden of proof is on the service member to prove he is 30% or more disabled despite the complete control of the decision to separate the member and the PEB process being under the complete control of the military service.

Assumption 3 - In the absence of grievous physical wounds service members are assumed to be faking mental disorders and pain disorders.

I believe after you cut through the rhetoric of the DOD officials and listen to their denials you will come to believe as I do that these assumptions are alive and well in the current situation. Before any meaningful reform can be implemented these assumptions must be replaced as follows:

Assumption 1 - At the time of separation for disability, service members and their families are in their most vulnerable states emotionally and economically facing huge uncertainties about their futures. Simple justice demands that they be accorded continuation of benefits, especially health care and Tricare at least until their situation stabilizes. Under the current system this involves the assumption of at least 30% disability at the time the service decides to separate the member for a service connected disability.

Assumption 2 - Final disability determination of disability would be the responsibility of the VA. If the VA returns a determination of less than 30%, there would be an appeals board independent of both the services and the VA where the service member could appeal with the burden of proof being upon the services and the VA with counsel being provided to the service member.

Assumption 3 - Mental and pain disorders carry equal weight with physical injuries in disability determination.

I know you guys are getting tired of hearing this from me, but it is pretty damned clear that the politicians are not getting the message. I thought the statement by Bradley Mays was telling. He said, "It is a question of expenses." Why is it not a question of justice? Why is it never a question of expenses when handing out goodies to the rich and corporations but it becomes a question of expenses when doing justice by our service members?

I urge each of you to register your protest with the Dole / Shalala Commission by simply forwarding this message or, preferably, one of your own that uses even stronger language. Remember the "slow walking" is well underway and we simply must stop it in its tracks before our politicians use Dole / Shalala and the other variants as cover for doing not one damned thing.

Ralph Parrott

ralphparrott@cox.net

www.empoweringveterans.org

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-----Original Message-----

From: maddogusmc@bellsouth.net

Sent: Tuesday, April 24, 2007 9:42 AM

To: ralphparrott@cox.net

Subject: Pentagon May be Shorting Troop Benefits

"May?"

Pentagon May be Shorting Troop Benefits

Associated Press April 24, 2007

Military.com

WASHINGTON - An injured Soldier's disability should be determined by Veterans Affairs officials - and not the Pentagon - because the Army might be shortchanging troops, a presidential commission was told on Monday.

At a public meeting, the nine-member commission on veterans care chaired by former Sen. Bob Dole, R-Kan., and former Health and Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala delved into ways to cut down on paperwork and problems in the disability ratings system.

Under the current system, each of the armed services assign ratings to service members when they become injured. The ratings determine whether the service member is discharged from active service and if so, the amount of disability benefits to which he or she is entitled. The VA operates a separate system to determine benefits for retired veterans.

Critics say the Army rates its injured Soldiers at a lower level of disability compared with the other armed services and the VA so it can save on the costs of disability payments.

Veterans groups urged the commission to make a change so injured Soldiers aren't underpaid disability benefits.

Such a proposal would be a major shift in how disability benefits are administered, with both critics and supporters acknowledging it would likely add significantly to costs since the VA takes into account all the disabilities a Soldier has - not just one.

"We want to add our voice to others deeply disturbed by concerns of lowballing in Army disability ratings," said Robert Norton, deputy director for the Military Officers Association of America. "The ratings gaps are unacceptable."

In recent weeks, a separate review group found consistently lower disability ratings by the Army and suggested it might be because officials didn't want to pay benefits. The Army says it is perplexed by the finding but would investigate.

Bradley Mayes, director of compensation and pension service at the VA, told the commission that shifting the ratings work to the VA could be done. But he cautioned that the Pentagon would still need to be involved in making judgments on whether an active service member was fit for duty, as well as his level of military and severance pay for service. As a result, changing the current system could add to the level of bureaucracy.

"The question is expenses," Mayes added.

Dole and Shalala expressed openness to the proposal, which was made by a 2003 presidential task force co-chaired by Gail Wilensky, now a member of the Dole-Shalala commission. But they also cautioned against a rush to judgment.

At least nine congressional committees are currently investigating ways to improve care following disclosures of shoddy treatment at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, and well-meaning lawmakers could unintentionally add to the problem, they said.

"Although red tape in this country have a bad name, we often have legislation upon legislation as people try to fix problems," Shalala said. "This has led to complex systems that have grown up over the years that often aren't user-friendly."

"Simplify, simplify, simplify - keep those words in mind," she added. "While

detail is important, our purpose is clearly to foster a seamless system."

Dole wondered if shifting the disability system to the VA might actually create additional bureaucratic hassles. He noted that Pentagon officials have already begun to examine ways to overhaul its disability system.

"If it's that easy to fix, I don't know why it hasn't been fixed," he said.

President Bush created the commission last month to make recommendations following disclosures of shoddy outpatient treatment at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. The panel plans about a dozen hearings and site visits to military and VA facilities around the country and will issue a report by late July. Its next hearing, in San Antonio on May 3-4, will focus on traumatic brain injury and rehabilitative care.

SOURCE: http://www.2ndbattalion94thartillery.com/C...eransIssues.htm

[Pete53]

Same old same old horse manure. And some get mad at me when I say that I think that the VA has a 4% CAP on Awards. That is why the VA has so many holding pens to delay claims.

Maybe when the VA is made to pay penalty and interest for a delayed claim things will improve.

[allan]

>Maybe when the VA is made to pay penalty and interest for a delayed claim things will improve.

Hello Pete,

Thet would speed up the claims process alright.

What if the RO raters, NSO's, could be sued for false & misleading statements, with intent to deprive veterans of their earned benefits?