1,838 Days Later

Meanwhile for the rest of us whose biggest dilemma is not how to hide your affair from your family, real problems still go unanswered.



via Cleveland Leader;

More than 43,000 U.S. troops found to be medically unfit were sent to Iraq and Afghanistan despite their medical conditions. These figures were based on health assessment forms completed by medical personnel before deployment, the USA Today reported on Thursday.

1831 Days Later

via Boston.com

It will be more than a year before the Army can end the unpopular practice of forcing soldiers to stay in the service beyond their retirement or reenlistment dates, a top official said yesterday.

Lieutenant General James D. Thurman, deputy chief of staff for operations, said he hoped that wartime demand for troops will decline enough by around the fall of next year to end "stop-loss." He said there are more than 12,000 currently serving under the practice - an action that critics have called a backdoor draft.

1816 Days Later

via the Washington Post, Combat Stress May Cost U.S. Up to $6 Billion;

About 300,000 U.S. military personnel who have deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan are suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or major depression, a mental toll that will cost the nation as much as $6.2 billion over two years, according to a Rand Corp. report released yesterday.

In addition, nearly 20 percent of the 1.64 million veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan, or about 320,000 personnel, reported a probable traumatic brain injury (TBI) during deployment, the report notes, although it says their treatment needs have not been determined.

1,809 Days Later

Why won't Vito Fossella support our troops?

Vito Fossella has thus far not signed onto HR 2702 the Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2007. The bill is the House version of Sen. Webb's Senate Bill 22 by the same name. It is referred to as the post 9/11 G.I. Bill. Via Senator Webb's website;

Under the legislation (S.22 in the Senate, H.R.2702 in the House), returning service members could earn up to 36 months of benefits, equivalent to four academic years, which would include payment of tuition, books and fees, as well as a $1,000 a month living stipend for those veterans whose military service qualifies them for the program.

snip

“As someone who has served our country, I can tell you that the current Montgomery G.I. Bill is not adequate. This is a peacetime bill, and we must expand it to accommodate our men and women returning from overseas. There is no better way to support our troops than to ensure that they re-acclimate into daily life seamlessly and that they have a bright future ahead of them. A comprehensive G.I. bill, like the one we are introducing today, is a way to achieve this.” said Congressman Christopher P. Carney, who serves as a Lt. Commander in the U.S. Navy Reserve.

snip

“Once an enlistment enticement, educational assistance has now become a transition necessity. This legislation is the right thing to do for those who are willing to take up arms and defend this great nation, something less than one percent of Americans are willing to do,” said Frank Yoakum, SGM (ret.), Legislative Director, Enlisted Association of the National Guard of the United States (EANGUS).

“Education is an expensive endeavor; many veterans can not afford to use the current G.I. Bill. The measure proposed by Senator Webb and Congressman Scott is an investment in our troops, an investment in our veterans, and an investment in our nation,” said Eric Hilleman, Deputy Director of Legislative Affairs, Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW).

We often hear Rep. Vito Fossella claim support of the troops and use that phrase to demean attempts by his opponents to bring an end to this war. When it comes down to it though it is Rep. Vito Fossella who is serving in Congress and failing to support our troops. Why has he refused to co-sign onto this bill for ten months now? Maybe he believes as long as the war continues our troops will not be home to utilize these benefits.

1,802 Days Later

Vito Fossella still has no thoughts on Iraq

Take your pick. More of the same failed strategy on Iraq or some new ideas from people who like most of us are tired with solutions coming from DC.

Military leaders are concerned Fossella's war in Iraq is causing some strain on our troops and could create problems for us trying to militarily be involved in theaters elsewhere, via USA Today;

Behind the Pentagon's closed doors, U.S. military leaders told President Bush Wednesday they are worried about the Iraq war's mounting strain on troops and their families. But they indicated they'd go along with a brief halt in pulling out troops this summer.

snip

The chiefs' concern is that U.S. forces are being worn thin, compromising the Pentagon's ability to handle crises elsewhere in the world.

Making matters worse The Washington Independent brings us this bad news, well good for Fossella bad for the average American;

As if to offer denial in the face of disaster -- and commit the U.S. to losing many more soldiers and Marines -- the Bush administration has begun negotiations with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to keep U.S. troops in Iraq for years, even decades, after President George W. Bush leaves office.

On the other side of this denial that we need to stay in Iraq longer and risk the lives of more troops is the Washington Post picking up a story on A Responsible Plan, endorsed by our own Steve Harrison;

More than 40 Democratic House and Senate candidates have endorsed a document stating that "there is no military solution in Iraq" and calling for an end to the war and the removal of all U.S. troops from the country, though not according to any specific timeline.

snip

The plan was crafted without the input or endorsement of the House and Senate Democratic leadership. Burner said "this was not driven inside the Beltway" and complained that "people inside the Beltway don't seem to get how big an issue this is for voters" in the rest of the country.

To date there is still no news about what Vito Fossella's plan for Iraq is or if he has one. The choice is yours.

see also: More on A Responsible Plan

4,000

via VetVoice;

AFP has noted that 97 percent of U.S. deaths in Iraq have occurred after George W. Bush declared an end to "major combat."

Fossella continues to ignore Iraq

While Steve Harrison and Domenic Recchia have promised to make Iraq a key campaign issue, Vito Fossella is again going to try to ignore it and talk about taxes. While the public is overwhelming opposed to the war many are finding news and discussion hard to come by. via the Washington Post;

Twenty-eight percent of the public is aware that nearly 4,000 U.S. personnel have died in Iraq over the past five years, while nearly half thinks the death tally is 3,000 or fewer and 23 percent think it is higher, according to an opinion survey released yesterday.

The survey, by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press, found that public awareness of developments in the Iraq war has dropped precipitously since last summer, as the news media have paid less attention to the conflict. In earlier surveys, about half of those asked about the death tally responded correctly.

Related Pew surveys have found that the number of news stories devoted to the war has sharply declined this year, along with professed public interest. "Coverage of the war has been virtually absent," said Pew survey research director Scott Keeter, totaling about 1 percent of the news hole between Feb. 17 and 23.

Even Fossella's perception about Iraq is off, he doesn't even think it is important to talk about. Want to know Fossella's stance on any Iraq issues? Well you will have a hard time finding answers because not only is Iraq not an "issue" on his issues page on his campaign site but he doesn't even mention Iraq once anywhere;



Here is Steve Harrison's Iraq issue page.

1753 Days Later

1739 Days Later

1733 Days Later

1727 Days Later

1718 Days Later

1711 Days Later

1704 Days Later

Two milestones unfortunately passed, 1700 days since "mission accomplished" and 3900 American troop deaths in a senseless war.

LTE: Flag waving won't help veterans

From a recent LTE in the Advance;

It is nice to hear that Elizabeth Hasselbeck of the "The View" has had a healthy baby boy, but is this top news?

Meanwhile, our soldiers are being treated like nothing upon their return from their duty -- hospitals in poor conditions; waiting hours and hours for a doctor to see them within uncomfortable, metal hospital beds.

Our soldiers are being demolished for no reason except for greed and for oil's sake! How long are we going to wait before it gets even worse? Just put out your flag. That will solve everything -- while these soldiers are maimed, and without proper veterans' benefits for themselves and their families.

For those of you no longer interested in just waving a flag and saying support our troops, Rep. Fossella has a solution. Window signs! You can do both with just one sign and not tire your arm. Thanks Vito Fossella!

Military Families trust shifts to Democrats

via the LA Times article from earlier this week;

Now the disapproval of Bush appears to have transferred to his party. Republican leanings of military families that began with the Vietnam War -- when Democratic protests seemed to be aimed at the troops as much as the fighting -- have shifted, the poll results show.

When military families were asked which party could be trusted to do a better job of handling issues related to them, respondents divided almost evenly: 39% said Democrats and 35% chose Republicans. The general population feels similarly: 39% for Democrats and 31% for Republicans.

"The Democrats are not seen as the anti-soldier group anymore," said Charles C. Moskos, a military sociologist at Northwestern University. He added that Bush's firm backing of the troops did not gain him any points because the entire country was now viewed as supportive of the military, even if not of the war. "He doesn't get extra credit for that."

Fossella refusing to suppport Veterans Guaranteed Bonus Act, Schumer on board

Last Wednesday we reported about a bill in the House by Rep. Altmire that would prevent the Army from removing signing bonuses from troops who have sustained injuries and are unable to serve. Rep. Fossella as we noted had not signed onto the bill as a co-sponsor despite 219 other members in Congress doing so. It appeared that after 40 plus days of non action that Rep. Fossella is refusing to support the injured soldiers and their families. This week we see that Sen. Schumer is now stepping up and taking action to prohibit the Army from these indecent acts;

Several New York veterans have been asked to repay part of their signing bonuses after war injuries prevented them from completing their tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, Sen. Charles Schumer said.

Hundreds of veterans nationwide may have been affected by what the Army characterizes as a mistake, said Schumer (D-N.Y.), who along with lawmakers including Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) has called for legislation to guarantee that signing bonuses won't be reduced.

Schumer said his office had received calls from several New York soldiers who complained that the Army had docked their bonuses.

As we noted earlier Rep. Vito Fossella still has not co-signed the bill in the House to prevent this and seemingly has made no comments or indications that he will support it.

49 the number of days that Rep. Vito Fossella has refused to sign on in support of the Veterans Guaranteed Bonus Act. Call his office and tell him to support this bill.
Staten Island: (718) 356-8400
Brooklyn: (718) 630-5277

Ex-Army commander in Iraq supports troop withdraw

via AP;

Retired Army Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, the top commander in Iraq shortly after the fall of Baghdad, said this week he supports Democratic legislation that calls for most troops to come home within a year.

His comments come as welcomed ammunition for the Democratic-controlled Congress in its standoff with the White House on war spending. This month, the House passed a $50 billion bill that would pay for combat operations but sets the goal that combat end by Dec. 15, 2008. The White House threatened to veto the measure, and Senate Republicans blocked it from passing.

snip

Sanchez added that the House bill "makes the proper preparation of our deploying troops a priority and requires the type of shift in their mission that will allow their numbers to be reduced substantially."

Vito Fossella disappointingly doesn't support Gen. Sanchez's thoughts and has continuously voted against bringing our troops home, despite advice like this from experienced military leaders.

Oh course this flies int he face of Fossella's former actions;

"The President has a responsibility to articulate America's long-term strategy before placing even one soldier in harm's way. He has asked the Congress and the American people to follow his lead, but he has shrouded in darkness where that road will take us. Leading military and foreign policy experts have questioned why the Administration won't define the mission and what plans are in place for us to withdraw."

"The President must have a frank discussion with the American people as to what our military's mission is, when victory will be achieved and how it will be achieved." [April 30, 1999]

Mr. Fossella how about you stand up and demand that frank discussion about our mission and how and when victory will be achieved.