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DVA 14FEB2012

1. VA budget seeks 10.5 percent boost in funding.  NavyTimes.com  In an era of tightened federal budgets, the Veterans Affairs Department has won a 10.5 percent funding increase justified by the return of combat troops to the US and the looming drawdown of the active-duty military.

2. DOD budget leaves tough pay, benefit decisions for future years.  Military spending will fall in 2013, but the first Defense Department baseline budget decrease since 9/11 leaves for the future difficult decisions about pay and benefits, now one-third of the defense budget and growing.

3. Army to lose nearly 10,000 soldiers in first year of end-strength cuts.  The Army will shed almost 10,000 soldiers and 14,000 civilian employees in fiscal 2013, and spend less on aircraft and ground vehicles, under budget plans announced Monday at the Pentagon.

4. Navy, Marines to lose personnel, but budget hit is minimal.  The Marine Corps will lose about 5,000 troops, and the Navy will cut 2,500 civilian personnel under the Pentagon’s fiscal 2013 budget plan.

5. Air Force plans all its personnel cuts for first year.  The Air Force would cut 9,900 personnel in 2013, equaling the pace of Army cuts next year, officials from the service announced Friday at the Pentagon. After that, however, planned Air Force end strengths cuts will end, while tens of thousands of more soldiers leave the service.

6. Army Reserve could help fill void in Europe and elsewhere, commander says.  As the U.S. Army prepares to cut about 80,000 soldiers over the next six years, it will depend on the Army Reserve even more for certain capabilities and may call on reservists to conduct longer training missions in Europe, Africa and other regions overseas, said Lt. Gen. Jack Stultz, chief of the Army Reserve.

7. Vets suffering from PTSD deserve help.  Central Florida Future  Studies done by the US. Department of Veteran Affairs have shown that returning soldiers with PTSD are more likely to experience trouble with the law, though other factors could contribute. Returning home with PTSD often causes soldiers to have ...
 
8. Houston Fast Becoming A Hot Spot For Helping VAs.  KUHF-FM  Over 22000 war veterans call Houston home, the second largest vet population in the United States. And the largest number of post 9/11 vets. So as local soldiers return in their droves from Iraq and Afghanistan, Houston veterans' programs are making ...

9. GE to hire 5000 veterans over next 5 years.  USA TODAY  Navy veteran Shaundell Vannooten listens to a recruiter at a job fair the Department of Veterans Affairs sponsored in New York on Feb. 1, 2012. By Mark Lennihan, AP Navy veteran Shaundell Vannooten listens to a recruiter at a job ...

10. From the battlefield to the classroom.  The Depaulia  According to Bedoya, both the Student Veterans Union and the Office of Veteran's Affairs are great resources for assistance and aid for struggling ex-soldiers. They offer job assistance for positions that are military-based, utilizing the skills ...

11. Nashville shelter prepares for rise in returning vets.  The Tennessean  Today, we have two more reasons to feel good about our local veterans, both of which were recently reported in The Tennessean. First, the US Department of Veterans Affairs is having a great deal of success in getting homeless veterans into affordable ...

12. Legion Commander: Veterans Well-Trained For Civilian Jobs.  Springfield (IL) State Journal-Register  "Employers sometimes think veterans of the US Armed Forces lack training for jobs in the civilian world, but they are wrong, the national commander of the American Legion said Sunday during a visit to Springfield." The 63-year-old Fang Wong, the "first Asian-American to lead the 2.4 million-member American Legion, made the comments before he participated in Sunday's 78th annual National American Legion Pilgrimage to Abraham Lincoln's Tomb in Oak Ridge Cemetery. He said the national American Legion...is having talks with private-sector employers to make it easier for employers to understand and appreciate the vast experience of today's veterans and their work ethic."
 
13. Therapy Dogs Are Helping Veterans.  WDTV-TV  On Sunday, patients received pet therapy at the Veterans Affairs hospital in Clarksburg, West Virginia. Therapy dogs visit the hospital "three times a month." WDTV added, "'One of the reasons we started pet therapy at our facility is to give the veterans an opportunity to...experience a more home like environment,' said Michael Andrews, recreational therapist."

14. Heart Attack Network Saves Time, Lives.  Miami Herald  A veterans hospital is part of the STEMI Network, which is "made up of a dozen South Florida hospitals and six fire rescue departments." The network has "streamlined the process for treating major heart attacks, driving down the cardiac emergency mortality rate in Miami-Dade to less than 1 percent."

15. Vietnam Vet Believes Agent Orange Led To Cancer, Nerve Damage.  KTVB-TV  65-year-old Seattle-area veteran named Ron Allen "believes his duty in the Vietnam War led to the cancer he has now, but the Department of Veterans Affairs says he just doesn't fit the rules" for Agent Orange exposure benefits. After noting that Allen served aboard the USS New Jersey during the war, KTVB quotes an advocate named Cyril Miller, who said vets like Allen are "being thrown away like garbage, and that makes me angry." But a VA spokesman "told KING 5 News they are deeply concerned about Allen's health" and that they are trying to expedite the appeal he has filed with VA.

16. VA Better Than Most.  San Bernardino (CA) Sun  Disabled veteran Ronald A. Nelson writes, "I must say that the VA is coping with the fantastic increase in their patient population with a great sense of urgency, especially under the leadership" of Secretary Shinseki. Nelson adds, "Parking is a problem but the Pettis facility is working on the problem."

17. Best Of The Best Honored At 19th Annual Law & Safety Day Awards.  Martinsburg (WV) Journal  "The best of the best Eastern Panhandle public servants were honored Sunday night during the Martinsburg Elks Lodge No. 778's 19th annual Law & Safety Day Recognition Program." The Journal adds, "Among those honored were members from the...Veterans Affairs Police Service."
 
18. Exonerated Texas Man's Grave Gets Permanent Tribute.  Reuters  State officials in Texas and the family of deceased veteran Tim Cole recently unveiled a historical marker dedicated to Cole, who was exonerated on rape charges more than 10 years after he died in prison. The marker is located near Cole's grave at a cemetery in Fort Worth, Texas.

19. Montana Ski Town's Quirky Winter Welcome For Wounded Troops Part Of A Growing National Trend.  AP  When eight wounded warriors and their families were showered with affection at a recent winter carnival in Whitefish, Montana, the event became part of a "growing trend in which communities across America are developing programs to give back to those who served. This one was done in conjunction with the charity Wounded Warrior Project, which says more and more towns and cities are reaching out to sponsor the visits of wounded troops and their families." The AP adds, "Whitefish has sponsored roughly two dozen troops and their families" at the annual winter carnival, raising over a quarter million dollars through the sponsorship program.

20. Looking For A Job? Head To One Of Four Career Fairs Coming Up.  Madison (CT) Patch  There will be four career fairs held in Connecticut this spring, including the Heroes4Hire Fair, which is "co-sponsored by the Connecticut Veterans' Administration." The event "will take place April 27 at Rentschler Field in East Hartford and run from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m."

21. Mass. Vets Tout Skills With Help From Comcast.  Boston Globe  Juliette Kayyem says the number of unemployed vets "is a systemic problem and one that seems to be resisting change." But Comcast Corp. has "launched a 'Hire A Veteran On Demand' program which hopes to link returning soldiers...to jobs in the civilian sector. The program is a series of video profiles of unemployed veterans talking about what they did while serving, what skills they acquired, and why that makes them good employees."

22. How Can Women Veterans Be More Successful In Interviews?  Modesto (CA) Bee

23. Auxillary's Projects A Blessing To Veterans. Jacksonville (NC) Daily News
 
24. Coalition Pushes To Find, Honor Ashes Of Veterans. Norfolk (VA) Virginian-Pilot

25. Women Get Closer To Combat; Many Practically There.  NPR audio  Veteran Kayla Williams, who spoke "about the ramifications" of a recent policy change made by the Pentagon, which "announced last week that the military would now allow women to serve in jobs that would bring them closer to combat."

26. Vets With PTSD Invited To Free UCF Clinical Program. Daytona Beach News-Journal

27. Vet Who Survives War Now Battles Cruel Fate.  Kennebec (ME) Journal

28. Akron: Volunteers Helping War Veterans. WKYC-TV

29. Oregon Marine Veteran Shares His Experiences In War, Post-War In Upcoming Documentary.  KMTR-TV

30. VA / VSO-MSO Hearings as February 14, 2012:
 February 15, 2012.  The House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs will hold a hearing entitled “The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Budget Request for Fiscal
Year 2013.”  10:00 A.M.; 334 Cannon

 February 16, 2012 (formerly February 7th).  HVAC-DAMA will hold a hearing to discuss the views of NCA and VBA relating to Budget matters.  10 A.M.; 334 Cannon

February 28, 2012.  Joint Hearing:  House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs and Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs will hold a joint hearing to receive the Legislative Presentation of the Disabled American Veterans.  2:30 P.M.; 345 Cannon

 February 29, 2012 (Formerly February 8th).  The Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs will hold a hearing entitled “The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Budget Request for Fiscal Year 2013.”  10:00 A.M.; 418 Russell
 
 February 29, 2012. The House Appropriations Committee will hold a FY 2013 Budget hearing.   2:00 P.M.; H-140 Capitol

 March 7, 2012.  House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs and Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs will hold a series of joint hearings to receive the legislative presentations of Veterans’ Organizations.  10:00 A.M.; G-50 Dirksen

 March 14, 2012. Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs will hold a hearing entitled “Ending Homelessness Among Veterans:  VA’s Progress on its Five Year Plan.”
10:00 A.M.; 418 Russell

 March 15, 2012.  The Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies will hold a FY13 VA Budget hearing.  10 A.M.; 124 Dirksen

 March 21, 2012.  Joint Hearing:  House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs and Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs will hold a joint hearing to receive the Legislative Presentations of the Military Order of the Purple Heart; Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America; Non Commissioned Officers Association; American Ex-Prisoners of War; Vietnam Veterans of America; Wounded Warrior Project; National Association of State Directors of Veterans Affairs and Retired Enlisted Association.  10:00 A.M.; G-50 Dirksen

 March 22, 2012.  House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs and Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs will hold a series of joint hearings to receive the legislative presentations of Veterans’ Organizations.  10:00 A.M.; 345 Cannon

March 28, 2012 (Formerly December 14th).  SVAC will hold a hearing on the nomination of Margaret Bartley, and Coral Wong Pietsch to be Judges of United States Court of Veterans Appeals for Veterans Claims.  10:00 A.M.; 418 Russell

31. Today in History:
• 1349 – Approximately 2,000 Jews are burned to death by mobs or forcibly removed from the city of Strasbourg.
• 1778 – The United States Flag is formally recognized by a foreign naval vessel for the first time, when French Admiral Toussaint-Guillaume Picquet de la Motte rendered a nine gun salute to USS Ranger, commanded by John Paul Jones.
• 1779 – American Revolutionary War: the Battle of Kettle Creek is fought in Georgia.
• 1779 – James Cook is killed by Native Hawaiians near Kealakekua on the Island of Hawaii.
• 1797 – French Revolutionary Wars: Battle of Cape St. Vincent – John Jervis, (later 1st Earl of St Vincent) and Horatio Nelson (later 1st Viscount Nelson) lead the British Royal Navy to victory over a Spanish fleet in action near Gibraltar.
• 1804 – Karadjordje leads the First Serbian Uprising against the Ottoman Empire.
• 1831 – Ras Marye of Yejju marches into Tigray and defeats and kills Dejazmach Sabagadis in the Battle of Debre Abbay.
• 1835 – The original Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is formed in Kirtland, Ohio.
• 1843 – The event that inspired the Beatles song Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite! is held in England.
• 1849 – In New York City, James Knox Polk becomes the first serving President of the United States to have his photograph taken.
• 1855 – Texas is linked by telegraph to the rest of the United States, with the completion of a connection between New Orleans and Marshall, Texas.
• 1859 – Oregon is admitted as the 33rd U.S. state.
• 1876 – Alexander Graham Bell applies for a patent for the telephone, as does Elisha Gray.
• 1879 – The War of the Pacific breaks out when Chilean armed forces occupy the Bolivian port city of Antofagasta.
• 1899 – Voting machines are approved by the U.S. Congress for use in federal elections.
• 1900 – Second Boer War: In South Africa, 20,000 British troops invade the Orange Free State.
• 1903 – The United States Department of Commerce and Labor is established (later split into Department of Commerce and Department of Labor).
• 1912 – Arizona is admitted as the 48th U.S. state.
• 1912 – In Groton, Connecticut, the first diesel-powered submarine is commissioned.
• 1919 – The Polish-Soviet War begins.
• 1920 – The League of Women Voters is founded in Chicago, Illinois.
• 1924 – The Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company changes its name to International Business Machines Corporation (IBM).
• 1929 – Saint Valentine's Day massacre: Seven people, six of them gangster rivals of Al Capone's gang, are murdered in Chicago, Illinois.
• 1942 – Battle of Pasir Panjang contributes to the fall of Singapore.
• 1943 – World War II: Rostov-on-Don, Russia is liberated.
• 1943 – World War II: Tunisia Campaign – General Hans-Jurgen von Arnim's Fifth Panzer Army launches a concerted attack against Allied positions in Tunisia.
• 1944 – World War II: Anti-Japanese revolt on Java.
• 1945 – World War II: On the first day of the bombing of Dresden, the British Royal Air Force and the United States Army Air Forces begin fire-bombing Dresden, the capital of the German state of Saxony.
• 1945 – World War II: Prague is bombed probably due to a mistake in the orientation of the pilots bombing Dresden.
• 1945 – President Franklin D. Roosevelt meets with King Ibn Saud of Saudi Arabia aboard the USS Quincy, officially starting the U.S.-Saudi diplomatic relationship.
• 1945 – World War II: Mostar is liberated by Yugoslav partisans.
• 1949 – The Knesset (Israeli parliament) convenes for the first time.
• 1949 – The Asbestos Strike begins in Canada. The strike marks the beginning of the Quiet Revolution in Quebec.
• 1950 – Chinese Civil War: The National Revolutionary Army instigates the unsuccessful Battle of Tianquan against the People's Liberation Army.
• 1956 – The XX Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union begins in Moscow. On the last night of the meeting, Premier Nikita Khrushchev condemns Joseph Stalin's crimes in a secret speech.
• 1962 – First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy takes television viewers on a tour of the White House.
• 1979 – In Kabul, Setami Milli militants kidnap the American ambassador to Afghanistan, Adolph Dubs who is later killed during a gunfight between his kidnappers and police.
• 1981 – Stardust Disaster: A fire in a Dublin nightclub kills 48 people
• 1983 – United American Bank of Knoxville, Tennessee collapses. Its president, Jake Butcher, is later convicted of fraud.
• 1989 – Union Carbide agrees to pay $470 million to the Indian government for damages it caused in the 1984 Bhopal Disaster.
• 1989 – Iranian leader Ruhollah Khomeini issues a fatwa encouraging Muslims to kill the author of The Satanic Verses, Salman Rushdie.
• 1998 – An oil tanker train collides with a freight train in Yaoundé, Cameroon, spilling fuel oil. One person scavenging the oil drops a lit cigarette, creating a massive explosion which kills 120.
• 2005 – Lebanese self-made billionaire and business tycoon Rafik Hariri is killed, along with 21 others, when explosives, equivalent of around 1,000 kg of TNT, are detonated as his motorcade drove near the St. George Hotel in Beirut.
• 2005 – Seven people are killed and 151 wounded in a series of bombings by suspected al-Qaeda-linked militants that hit the Philippines' Makati financial district in Metro Manila, Davao City, and General Santos City.
• 2008 – Northern Illinois University shooting: a gunman opened fire in a lecture hall of the DeKalb County, Illinois university resulting in 6 fatalities (including gunman) and 18 injuries.
• 2011 – As a part of Arab spring, the 2011–2012 Bahraini uprising, a series of demonstrations, amounting to a sustained campaign of civil resistance, in the Persian Gulf country of Bahrain begins.