Military

Mattis: Deploy or ‘Find Something Else To Do’

February 19, 2018 by Daniel

Defense Secretary Jim Mattis had just a few words regarding the new rules requiring members of the military to be able to deploy or get out.

Military readiness has been a topic over the last few years. Deservedly so as many members are being deployed multiple times, and as the military changes and adapts to a more sophisticated fighting force.

After the Department of Defense (DoD) released it’s new ‘deploy or get out’ policy, Mattis said:

“You’re either deployable, or you need to find something else to do. I’m not going have some people deploying constantly and then other people, who seem to not pay that price, in the U.S. military.”

“This new policy is a 12-month deploy or be removed policy,” Robert Wilkie, the under secretary of defense for personnel and readiness, told a Senate panel Wednesday. “However, there are exceptions.”

“The situation we face today is really unlike anything we have faced, certainly in the post-World War II era,” Wilkie told the Senate Armed Services subcommittee on personnel and readiness. “On any given day, about 13 to 14 percent of the force is medically unable to deploy. That comes out to be about 286,000 [service members].”

In discussing having healthy warfighters continue to carry the load, Mattis said, “They need time at home, they need time with their families. We may enlist soldiers, but we re-enlist families. That’s the way it is. If you can’t keep the family together, then you’re either going to lose the family or you’re going to lose the soldier, and that’s a net loss for our society and for our military.”

Extremely Rare Revolutionary War Sword Headed to Museum

October 26, 2017 by Daniel

This extremely rare Revolutionary War sword belonged to Col. Jonathan Pettibone of the 18th (Connecticut) Regiment.

Inscribed with his name, this sword is set to go on display at the Museum of the American Revolution in Philadelphia beginning in 2018.

Fox News reports:

Experts note that it is unusual for Revolutionary War swords to have the name of the original owner inscribed on the weapon. The sword also bears the mark of its maker, silversmith Joseph Copp of New London, Connecticut.

“With the rare maker’s hallmark, and considering who owned it and the history it probably saw, this sword is truly one of the most fascinating Revolutionary War weapons I have ever seen,” said Dr. Philip Mead, chief historian and director of curatorial affairs at the Museum, in a statement.

The Museum received the sword Wednesday from donor B. Owen Williams of Maryland, a descendent of Pettibone.

“As a family, we are delighted that the Museum will provide a home for this article, where it should be, in an exhibit to be seen by the many visitors who come to the Museum from all over,” said Williams, in the statement. “I’m thrilled that it has survived in remarkably good condition despite my youthful exuberance and blissful ignorance to play with it surreptitiously as a boy.”

After Pettibone’s death the sword was passed on to his son Jonathan Pettibone Jr., who also served in the Revolutionary War.

In an interesting side note, Pettibone’s tricorn hat is on display at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History.

Veterans Group Beyond Upset at ‘Secret’ VA Rating System

December 8, 2016 by Daniel

A veterans group has blasted the Department of Veterans Affairs over leaked internal documents showing dozens of medical facilities performing at below-average levels.

The VA had previously refused to make the ratings public, claiming the system is for internal use only. It rates each of the VA’s medical centers on a scale of one to five, with one being the worst.

Roughly 45 facilities — many in the Upper Midwest and the Northeast — performed at an above-average rating, the report said, while 40 were below average.

The documents also show that some medical centers have not improved despite scandals and scrutiny from Congress. The Phoenix VA still sits at a one-star rating despite a 2014 scandal revealing veterans died while waiting for care and that staff manipulated wait-time data there and at other VA hospitals across the country.

The VA announced last October it plans to allocate $28 million to the Phoenix center in addition to its annual budget.

VA Undersecretary for Health David Shulkin told USA Today that the ratings system is primarily for internal use and that the public should avoid seeing it as a ranking tool.

“It is essentially a system within VA to see who’s improving, who’s getting worse, so we can identify both,” he told the newspaper. “My concern is that veterans are going to see that their hospital is a “one” in our star system, assume that’s bad quality, and veterans that need care are not going to get care. And they’re going to stay away from hospitals and that’s going to hurt people.”

Concerned Veterans for America, a veteran advocacy group that has been critical of the VA, released a statement condemning the findings. CVA Executive Director Mark Lucas said the ratings system underscores continuing problems in the organization and that the VA is not committed to transparency.

“By keeping this rating system secret, the VA was admitting that preserving the illusion of competency matters more to them than actually serving veterans — and the VA fails at both,” Lucas said. “The lengths to which the VA will go to hide its own bad performance should disturb veterans and American taxpayers alike.”

4 VA Employees Resign After Vet Dies with Maggots Crawling in Wound

December 6, 2016 by Daniel

Owen Reese Peterson, a 73-year-old Vietnam veteran, initially went to the Oklahoma VA for an infection, which later ended up as sepsis – a condition in which chemicals, released by the immune system into the bloodstream to fight an infection trigger an inflammation throughout the body, damaging multiple organ systems, leading them to fail, commonly resulting in death.

Myles Deering, director of the Talihina Oklahoma Department of Veterans Affairs center, confirmed the maggots found did not enter the wound after Peterson’s death. Rather, they were present while he was still alive. He also stressed Peterson “did not succumb as a result of the parasites. He succumbed as a result of the sepsis.”

Peterson’s son, Raymie Parker, described his frustration with how poorly his father was treated saying, “During the 21 days I was there, … I pled with the medical staff, the senior medical staff, to increase his meds so his bandages could be changed.” And that he “Was met with a stonewall for much of that time.”

The result of this is that four staff members have resigned in wake of the investigation: a physician’s assistant and three nurses.

Deering said the agency reported the incident to the Oklahoma State Department of Health, and also submitted a report to the district attorney to see if charges are warranted.

Deering also said the agency is considering moving from the facility as it is nearly 100 years old, adding that fixing the existing structures would take millions of dollars.

Oklahoma State Sen. Frank Simpson, chairman of the Senate Committee on Military and Veterans Affairs, said, “The Oklahoma Department of Veterans Affairs is required to maintain certain staffing levels and currently is unable to meet them. At Talihina, they had to reduce the population of veterans there due to the inability to staff the facility.”

What about those Guardsmen who already repaid bonuses?

October 26, 2016 by Daniel

That’s the very question on a lot of people’s mind.

But, seriously… What about all those guardsmen who’ve already repaid their enlistment bonuses?

The other question that probably will never get answered is: Why wait until two years after they started collecting to put a stop to this insanity?

Military.com asked this very question and here’s what they got as a response:

“How do you go back and address soldiers that have paid money back when we start alleviating debts of other soldiers? That’s what makes this a very complex issue,” Col. Peter Cross, director of public affairs for the California National Guard, said on Tuesday during a telephone interview with Military.com.

“I don’t have an answer,” he added. “It’s going to take some very precise language and studying of the issue to make everybody whole again. Otherwise, you’re going to have disparate treatment of soldiers.”

Read more: Military

Well… doesn’t that sound reassuring? Sounds like more of that hurry up and wait stuff that members in the military have become so accustomed to.

Defense Secretary Orders Pentagon to Suspend Collection of National Guard Bonuses

October 26, 2016 by Daniel

Defense Secretary Ashton B. Carter said Wednesday that he has ordered the Pentagon to suspend its efforts to collect payments from California Army National Guard soldiers who were told to return their enlistment bonuses.

Carter announced steps to resolve the cases of thousands of soldiers who collectively received millions of dollars in bonuses at the height of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, but then were told years later that the money had to be repaid.

In a statement, Carter said he had ordered the Pentagon’s financial department to stop the payment collection until measures can be put in place to provide the affected service members with the support they need to appeal the process.

“There is no more important responsibility for the Department of Defense than keeping faith with our people. That means treating them fairly and equitably, honoring their service and sacrifice, and keeping our word,” Carter said in a statement. “Hundreds of affected Guard members in California have sought and been granted relief. But that process has simply moved too slowly and in some cases imposed unreasonable burdens on service members. That is unacceptable.”

CA National Guardsmen Ordered to Repay Bonuses

October 25, 2016 by Daniel

News broke over the weekend that National Guardsmen in California have been ordered to repay the bonuses they received for re-enlistment.

Here’s the glaring problem: It started 2 years ago!

That’s right. Two years ago the Pentagon performed an audit and realized that California was ‘overpaying’ re-enlistment bonuses to National Guardsmen.

Over these two years, they have collected back roughly $22 million.

These orders have put an undue financial burden on those affected. So much so, that some have had to leave the state because they can’t afford to live there. Another had to refinance their home in order to repay their bonus and student loan repayments. Some soldiers are having their National Guard pay garnished in upwards of $600-$700.

Rep. Darrell Issa had this to say:

ISIS Suspected of Using Mustard Gas Against US Troops

September 21, 2016 by Daniel

ISIS is suspected of firing a shell with a mustard agent that landed at the Qayyara air base in Iraq Tuesday where US and Iraqi troops are operating, according to several US officials.

First on CNN: Officials say they suspect ISIS fired a mustard agent at US and Iraqi troops https://t.co/doSNQNSl6n https://t.co/axr7AQD8j5

— CNN (@CNN) September 21, 2016

The shell was categorized by officials as either a rocket or artillery shell. After it landed on the base, just south of Mosul, US troops tested it and received an initial reading for a chemical agent they believe is mustard.

A US defense official said troops had gone out to look at the ordinance after it landed. Based on seeing what they thought was a suspect substance, two field tests were conducted.
The first test was positive and the second was negative, the official said. The substance is now being sent to a lab for further examination.

US troops involved in the incident went through decontamination showers as a precaution. No troops have shown any symptoms of exposure, such as skin blistering. CNN has reported on previous instances where ISIS has fired rounds with mustard agents in Iraq and Syria.”I don’t know of a case like this where it was proximate to US forces like this before,” said one military official, noting that “potentially” the rocket round was “within hundreds of yards” of the US forces and “within the security perimeter” of the base.

“I don’t know of a case like this where it was proximate to US forces like this before,” said one military official, noting that “potentially” the rocket round was “within hundreds of yards” of the US forces and “within the security perimeter” of the base.The US officials said they “had expected” that ISIS might

The US officials said they “had expected” that ISIS might try to use chemical weapons as US and Iraqi forces push towards Mosul in an effort to take the city back from ISIS. Several hundred US troops are using the base as a staging area for supporting Iraqi forces.

Navy to Require Transgender Education Training by 2017

September 20, 2016 by Daniel

The U.S. Navy will require all of its sailors to undergo transgender education training by next summer in response to a recent policy change that will allow transgender people to serve in the military.

The training will begin Nov. 1 and is intended to educate all sailors about the new policy as well as emphasize ”expectations of personal behavior” in response to the policy change.

The Navy plans to dispatch “mobile training teams” to senior leaders to conduct face-to-face meetings on how to appropriately handle the policy change. In addition, a “commander’s tool kit” will be distributed to Naval leaders that will further guide all personnel through the education process, Naval Personnel Command spokeswoman Lt. Jessica Anderson told Military.com.

However, the content of the education sessions has not yet been made public.

“Service members are expected to maintain standards of conduct and treat each other with dignity and respect,” Anderson said. “Training for sailors will be conducted by command triads via mobile training teams or DVD with a facilitation guide if the unit is in a remote area and unable to receive face-to-face training. There will also be webinars for [commanding officers] to ask questions prior to delivering training to their commands.”

All Naval personnel are required to undergo the training by July 1, 2017, which coincides with the day the Navy plans to begin accepting transgender recruits.

Continue reading: TheBlaze

VA Slammed for Unanswered Crisis Hotline Messages

June 29, 2016 by Daniel

Sen. Mark Kirk (R., Ill.) blasted the Department of Veterans Affairs on Tuesday after investigators found that 30 percent of their text messages sent to the department’s crisis hotline for veterans went unanswered.

The Government Accountability Office conducted the review of the VA’s crisis hotline after requests from congress. The hotline, which is supposed to provide support for veterans in distress, has faced criticism from some veterans who say their phone calls have gone unanswered.

Kirk also railed against his Senate colleagues for neglecting to address the department’s issues in a VA funding bill this week. The appropriations bill was blocked by Senate Democrats due to their objections about emergency funding to address the Zika virus.

“Failing our veterans who are reaching out in their time of need is unacceptable,” said Sen. Kirk in a statement on Tuesday evening. “Yet today, instead of passing increased VA funding and more protections for whistleblowers, veterans took a backseat to partisan politics in the Senate.”