WASHINGTON — For Sen. Jim Webb, it’s a question of fairness: Why don’t veterans of today’s armed services get the same benefits the GI Bill provided “the greatest generation” after World War II?

Actually Senator, the answer is pretty simple, Vets have always been handed the slick end of the stick, and you know that, perhaps PCness keeps you from saying it, I would hope NOT but that statement is nothing but the cold hard fact of the matter, if the government feels it needs a budget cut, Vets are the 1st to feel it.

But the Virginia Democrat’s effort to remedy the perceived slight, which has gained support in Congress, runs afoul of how officials at the departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs want to manage the all-volunteer military. Besides being too expensive and more administratively complex than the current GI Bill, they say it would make it more difficult to retain experienced troops beyond their first hitch.

Too expensive?? Too expensive to take care of our Vets and offer them better benefits after they have put their lives on the line in service to this nation?? The DoD and V.A. need to rethink that position and define the word ‘expensive’.

In my opinion expensive is Iraq, and what we are doing there, we are spending BILLIONS of U.S. tax dollars on a gamble that we’re not even certain is going to pay off, but we won’t spend the money to give top shelf benefits to the troops that are working their tails off in an attempt to make this gamble in Iraq and elsewhere work?

And another thing, if the DoD wants to retain experienced troops beyond that 1st hitch, they need to take into consideration exactly what those troops are going through, what their families are sacrificing, the ‘big picture’ if you will, and the DoD needs to address the issue of WHY troops are now on their 3rd, 4th and in some cases, their 5th combat rotation to Iraq, personally I think that ANY troops that has given that much of themselves, to and for this nation, deserve nothing but the very finest educational opportunities available.

“I see the educational benefits in this bill as crucial to a service member’s readjustment to civilian life and as a cost of war that should receive the same priority that funding the war has received the last five years,” Webb said.

The benefit would cover tuition and fees for the most expensive public university in any state where the veteran resides and pay an allowance for books and housing.

I have often said, I don’t support the ‘political party’, I look at the individual and make my decisions based on what I see from that individual and their actions, and in this case I have to say, I support the efforts and statements of Sen. Webb, and of those in office that are supporting him and his effort to obtain more and better benefits for our Veterans.

I read a lot of so-called Conservative and Republican Blogs that are always tooting their own horns about how much they support the troops, several sites come to mind, but they will go unmentioned because I won’t give linkage to hypocrites, and those same sites will call BS on this story simply because Sen. Webb is a Democrat, and that is why I believe certain individuals are the hypocrites I accuse them of being when it comes to REAL troops support.

If you truly support the troops, PROVE IT, support this effort to help increase educational benefits for our Vets, don’t just sit there and say “Oh yeah, I support the troops“, help get this thing moving, call or write your congressman or senator, tell them to support Sen. Webb in this effort, if you can support the war then you can surely support the futures of guys and gals that are doing the work. They deserve it!

Full Story Here:
Boosting GI Bill benefits could hit military roadblock

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EDIT TO ADD 12-14-07: Mr. Jay Agg, National Communications Director for AMVETS, has contacted me personally and has posted a comment in this thread, I want to thank Mr. Agg for his response and I also want my readers to know, Jay has been the only official from the list of charities receiving an ‘F’ that I have heard from on this matter…

To the gentleman from Alaska that keeps trying to post figures and so forth about the PVA, you’re NOT an official of PVA and your link to Fishing in Alaska or whatever it is, is the reason I am not letting your comments thru, I detect a bit of commercialism on your part, if you want to see the PVA’s viewpoint on this blog, have THEM contact me and have them submit their comments, facts and figures from an official site and an official position like Mr. Agg did…

EDIT TO ADD 12-13-07: I have sent emails to all sites that garnered an ‘F’ in this report, 3 of the site had no email available and one was returned as undeliverable, no mail there I guess

Here are the figures on how well some of the Veterans Charities are doing on a grading level, I am shocked at the grades received by several of these highly regarded charities, this is truly a disgusting situation and I hope this list and the story just below will wake a few folks up…

How many of you have the guts to re-post this list and the story below?? How many are going to take the stance of the Bush Bots and just blow it off and say all is well??

The American Institute of Philanthropy, a leading charity watchdog, issued a report card this month for 29 veterans and military charities. Letter grades were based largely on the charities’ fundraising costs and the percentage of money raised that was spent on charitable activities. The charities that received failing grades are in bold type.

Air Force Aid Society (A+)
American Ex-Prisoners of War Service Foundation (F)
American Veterans Coalition (F)
American Veterans Relief Foundation (F)
AMVETS National Service Foundation (F)
Armed Services YMCA of the USA (A-)
Army Emergency Relief (A+)
Blinded Veterans Association (D)
Disabled American Veterans (D)
Fisher House Foundation (A+)
Freedom Alliance (F)
Help Hospitalized Veterans/Coalition to Salute America’s Heroes (F)
Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund (A+)
Military Order of the Purple Heart Service Foundation (F)
National Military Family Association (A)
National Veterans Services Fund (F)
National Vietnam Veterans Committee (D)
Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society (A+)
NCOA National Defense Foundation (F)
Paralyzed Veterans of America (F)
Soldiers’ Angels (D)
United Spinal Association’s Wounded Warrior Project (D)
USO (United Service Organization) (C+)
Veterans of Foreign Wars and foundation (C-)
Veterans of the Vietnam War & the Veterans Coalition (D)
Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund (D)
VietNow National Headquarters (F)
World War II Veterans Committee (D)

SOURCE:
Veterans Charities - How They Fared

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WASHINGTON (AP) - Soldiers strained by six years at war are deserting their posts at the highest rate since 1980, with the number of Army deserters this year showing an 80 percent increase since the United States invaded Iraq in 2003.

While the totals are still far lower than they were during the Vietnam War, when the draft was in effect, they show a steady increase over the past four years and a 42 percent jump since last year.

“We’re asking a lot of soldiers these days,” said Roy Wallace, director of plans and resources for Army personnel. “They’re humans. They have all sorts of issues back home and other places like that. So, I’m sure it has to do with the stress of being a soldier.”

The Army defines a deserter as someone who has been absent without leave for longer than 30 days. The soldier is then discharged as a deserter.

Full Story Here:
Army Desertion Rate Highest Since 1980

There have always been deserters, as long as there have been armies, and as long as there ARE armies, there will continue to be deserters, it’s a fact of life, just like troops gripe, camp followers follow, there WILL be desertions, even in times of total peace…

The increase comes as the Army continues to bear the brunt of the war demands with many soldiers serving repeated, lengthy tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. Military leaders - including Army Chief of Staff Gen. George Casey - have acknowledged that the Army has been stretched nearly to the breaking point by the combat. Efforts are under way to increase the size of the Army and Marine Corps to lessen the burden and give troops more time off between deployments.

I really have a problem with this “stretched nearly to the breaking point by the combat.” thing, I know that the biggest majority of troops on duty in Iraq at this time are back in camp on an almost daily basis and are not pulling long deployments in the field under hostile conditions at all times, they are back in camp, having hot chow, showers, TV, internet and phone calls home nearly every day, and yes, I DO know they go out on combat operations, but according to our own Department of Defense, Iraq is a much more calm place now a days, less deaths due to combat operations, fewer IEDs and bombings being suffered by the troops now than just a few weeks ago, surely we’re not “stretched nearly to the breaking point by the combat.”…

If we are truly at the breaking point, then we have no one but the DoD and the Bush administration to blame, think about this, as Rummy said a while back, “You don’t go to war with the army you WANT, you go to war with the army you have…”, even I know that a small, albeit well trained, highly motivated and outstandingly patriotic all volunteer can’t stand indefinitely in a prolonged and drawn out war, at some point you have to acknowledge the fact that you need FRESH MEAT, and there’s only one way to get that FRESH MEAT, you draft it, and then you see what a high desertion rate really looks like, when you draft you scoop up a lot of undesirables and your basic cowards, the guys that wouldn’t volunteer and have helped to bring about the draft and then run like hell when actually called to help support that freedoms they enjoy daily…

I do think the draft is a good thing though, it shows America just how sorry a HUGE percentage of our youth can be, and it also shows that there are some damn good draftees as well, but the desertion rate will always be there, all volunteer army, all draftees army or ANY mixture of the 2, it’s always going to be there…

The Marine Corps, meanwhile, has seen the number of deserters stay fairly stable over that timeframe - with about 1,000 deserters a year. During 2003 and 2004 - the first two years of the Iraq war - the number of deserters fell to 877 and 744, respectively.

The Marines raise better children than the Army does, they weed em out better…

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WASHINGTON — Legislation to give some children of illegal immigrants a path toward legality failed a crucial Senate vote Wednesday, probably dooming any chance of major changes to the immigration system this year.

Supporters needed to 60 votes to advance the proposal, but the tally was 52-44. The measure would have allowed illegal immigrants who plan to attend college or join the military, and who came to the United States with their families before they turned 16, to move toward legality.

Full Story Here:
Immigrant ‘Dream’ Act Fails Key Senate Vote

WASHINGTON — The Senate today rebuffed a measure that would grant legal status to hundreds of thousands of young illegal immigrants if they attend college or join the military.

Supporters of the DREAM Act fell eight votes short of the 60 needed to keep the legislation alive, with Texas GOP Sens. Kay Bailey Hutchison and John Cornyn splitting over the bill. Cornyn voted against the measure on a key test vote while Hutchison worked behind the scenes with the legislation’s chief sponsor to find ways to make it more palatable to Republicans.

Full Story Here:
Senate kills DREAM Act Bill

Well by God, the DREAM Act is going away, at least for now, but you can bet that at some point in the near future there will be some bleeding heart bunch of Dems and a few RINOs that do their level best to bring it back, in one incarnation or another…

Recently there have been rumors that Sen. Hutchison is thinking of retirement and wanting to come home and run for Governor, well, she can plan on retirement alright, after this BS of working WITH the DREAM Act people she won’t get re-elected to the Senate from Texas, not as a Republican, and I will campaign as hard as I possibly can against her if she comes home and DOES run for Governor, I have lost ALL respect for Hutchison now, and once upon a time I thought she was the best of the bunch, I guess I was wrong…

Hutchison has been talking the talk, but when it came out today that she was working “behind the scenes with the legislation’s chief sponsor to find ways to make it more palatable to Republicans”, well, that was it for me, it’s time for Texas to find a replacement for Sen. Hutchison and let Sen. John Cornyn take the helm as Texas senior Senator…

My fathers family came to Texas from Canada in 1919 and later settled in Louisiana, but by God they came here legally and raised their children to be Americans, not Canadian-Americans, just plain, old fashioned AMERICANS, and nothing else, and AMERICAN was good enough, and again I ask, what part of ILLEGAL is being missed by some of the Congress and Senate??

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A picture is worth a thousand words…

During rendition of the national anthem when the flag is displayed, all present except those in uniform should stand at attention facing the flag with the right hand over the heart. Men not in uniform should remove their headdress with their right hand and hold it at the left shoulder, the hand being over the heart. - United States Code, Title 36, Chapter 10, Sec. 171

Turns out that not wearing a flag lapel pin isn’t the only way Barack Obama chooses to show he’s a different kind of Democrat.

Have a look at the photo from the October 1, 2007 edition of “Time.” It shows Obama, Hillary and Bill Richardson at the Steak Fry of Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) on September 17 in Indianola, IA during [according to the photo caption] the National Anthem. Richardson and Clinton have their hands on their heart. But not Obama. Does he perhaps believe that, like wearing the flag pin, the hand on the heart isn’t “true patriotism”?

“Time” ran the photo without comment. I haven’t seen coverage of this anywhere else in the MSM. Perhaps some enterprising reporter can ask the Illinois senator about his decision to spurn this American tradition.

Meanwhile, does Obama have some third act or omission planned to demonstrate that he’s not falling for those corny, old-fashioned displays of patriotism?

H/T reader J.S.

NOTE: The original version of this item, based on a reader submission, stated that the photo was apparently taken during the Pledge of Allegiance. I’ve now located the original “Time” image, whose caption states that it was taken during the National Anthem.

SOURCE:
Obama: No Hand on Heart for National Anthem

I know there will be a few readers that say I’m picking on Obama because he’s black and because I’m a NAZI or a racist, or a skinhead or some such garbage, and to those people I say, as usual, you’re wrong, I am taking issue with Obama on this matter because he IS an un-American, closet Muslim ASSHOLE…

Is that plain enough for all the reverse racists, bleeding heart libbers and dyed in the wool Dems out there?? Your boy Obama has NO concept of AMERICA, he has no love of country, he is an empty suit and his only agenda is to get elected so he can, in MY opinion, surrender this nation to Islam…

His words say otherwise but his actions speak the truth, a lot more than he would care to have known, any man that will NOT honor the flag of his nation is NOT a patriot, if the Dems in this nation are too stupid to see this for themselves, they are truly a lost cause, and I sincerely hope that they are NOT that stupid, don’t fall for the bullshit that comes from this America hating SOB Obama, he is NOT what he wishes you to believe him to be…

A hat tip to my blogging buddy Chicago Ray for having this story up, I found it there and I hope every blogger in this nation uses it, even the so-called progressives, Obama is their enemy as much as he is the enemy of all Conservatives…

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