Free Republic

BROOKS CITY-BASE, Texas, May 14, 2008 – Starting your own business can be a daunting venture, even under the best of circumstances. But add to that the challenges of being a service-disabled veteran, and the experience can be overwhelming. Professor Mike Morris addresses members of the first Entrepreneurial Bootcamp for Veterans at the Whitman School of Management at Syracuse University in July 2007. Morris is the Witting Chair in Entrepreneurship at Whitman. Photo courtesy of Syracuse University  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. That scenario troubled Mike Haynie, a former Air Force major. A few months after beginning his...

Stephen Baldwin, Gary Sinise, Robert Duvall, Namrata Singh Gujral lead Fest Line-upArlington, Virginia – Indo-American actress, Namrata Singh Gujral, will present the American Pride Films Award for “Encouragement of Films that Salute the heroism of the Armed Forces�, just one of the few highlights of the Second Annual GI Film Festival, which will be held May 14-18, 2008 at the Carnegie Institution for Science in Washington, DC. Fellow actors Gary Sinise, Stephen Baldwin and Robert Duvall are all scheduled to attend the 2008 star studded festival line-up. Overall, the five-day festival will present both classic and premier films honoring the...

WASHINGTON, May 12, 2008 – Two former Marines have set out to provide wounded veterans with a week’s worth of rest and relaxation in luxury homes. Dennis Cline, a wounded veteran, enjoyed a week’s vacation through Vacations for Veterans. The organization works to match Purple Heart recipients from the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts with available vacation homes. Homeowners donate at least a week’s worth of free lodging to the veterans and their families through Vacation for Veterans. Courtesy photo  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. “Our mission is to pair up recently wounded veterans who are the recipients of...

Run for the Wall returns More than 400 bikers rolled down Hobsonway last year, the first time Run for the Wall came through the town. This year a pair of helicopters plan to join in the parade to the Colorado River Fairgrounds. By Marty Bachman Over 400 motorcyclists will return to Blythe on May 14 as part of the 20th anniversary of the "Run for the Wall," paying tribute to veterans as they make their way to visit all the war memorials in Washington, D.C., including the Vietnam Wall Memorial. Veteran bikers from the Vietnam War, Somalia, the Gulf War,...

A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day Free Republic made its debut in September, 1996, and the forum was added in early 1997.   Over 200,000 people have registered for posting privileges on Free Republic, and the forum is read daily by tens of thousands of concerned citizens and patriots from all around the country and the world. A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day was introduced on June 24, 2002. It's only a small room in JimRob's house where we can get to know one another a little better; salute and support our military and our leaders; pray for those in...

LACKLAND AIR FORCE BASE, Texas, May 8, 2008 – Wilford Hall Medical Center here has launched a new program emphasizing the importance of literacy to parents and children alike. Reach Out and Read, a national nonprofit organization, uses several methods to promote early literacy as part of routine pediatric care, including having volunteers reading aloud in pediatric waiting rooms. Its main approach, though, is to promote literacy during well-baby or well-child visits for children from ages 6 months through 4 years. Pediatric providers trained in the Reach Out and Read model offer age-appropriate tips to emphasize to parents and...

WASHINGTON, May 7, 2008 – The names of four U.S. servicemembers were etched into the glossy black walls of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial this week alongside more than 58,000 of their fallen comrades. Finishing the addition today was the name of Raymond C. Mason, a Marine lance corporal who died a year ago as a result of ailing health stemming from a bullet wound that paralyzed him in February 1968 during the Tet Offensive. In a ceremony at the wall here, Mason’s widow, Priscilla Mason, watched as an engraver inched a sandblaster over the Marine’s stenciled name with surgeonlike precision....

A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day Free Republic made its debut in September, 1996, and the forum was added in early 1997.   Over 200,000 people have registered for posting privileges on Free Republic, and the forum is read daily by tens of thousands of concerned citizens and patriots from all around the country and the world. A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day was introduced on June 24, 2002. It's only a small room in JimRob's house where we can get to know one another a little better; salute and support our military and our leaders; pray for those in...

Visitors stand in the Aldrich Cemetery in Hartland, Vt., Monday, April 21, 2008. A land buyer's proposal to move three graves from the old family cemetery has caused outcry from historians, veterans and neighbors. (AP Photo/Toby Talbot) HARTLAND, Vt. - The 130-acre property was exactly what Michel Guite and his family wanted: an old Vermont farm with mountain views, rolling hills and meadows. There was, however, one wrinkle: The property included a small family cemetery — with the grave of a War of 1812 veteran — surrounded by a fence on a scenic knoll. His proposal to move the graveyard...

These two young men, both well known to me, have several things in common. Both are Eagle Scouts from my very small central Iowa BSA district. Both are the same age as my youngest son, and served with him as summer camp counselors at our local Scout reservation. One is currently a college student, while the other graduated with my son from Iowa State. They have one more thing in common. Both are decorated combat veterans, and survivors of wounds received in Iraq.

4/30/2008 - SAVANNAH, Ga. (AFPN) -- The Air Force vice chief of staff paid tribute to members of the Air Forces Escape and Evasion Society April 26 during the society's 44th annual reunion near Savannah, Ga. The AFEES primarily comprises Air Force World War II veterans who were forced down behind enemy lines and avoided or escaped captivity to return to allied territory. The society also includes members of the French, Dutch, Belgian and other resistance networks who harbored allied aircrews and guided them to safety. "I cannot thank you enough for your noble service, your selfless sacrifice and for...

WASHINGTON, April 29, 2008 – Operation Homefront has extended the deadline for those interested in one of 25 American Patriot Freedom Scholarships the group offers to children of military families for tuition and other education-related expenses. “The organization is extending its application date to allow the children stationed at military bases abroad additional time to submit their applications,” Arthur Hasselbrink, founder and president of Homefront America, said. With the change in deadline, applications must be postmarked by May 30. Homefront America, with the help of the W. Daniel Tate family and Sara’s Hope, which offers annual scholarships to high...

PHILADELPHIA, April 29, 2008 – The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff called on the citizens of Philadelphia last night to embrace those who have lost loved ones or who have been wounded in service to America. Navy Adm. Mike Mullen received the Gold Medal of the Union League of Philadelphia during a ceremony at the 1862 building, right down the street from City Hall. The league was established during the Civil War as an organization to help restore the Union, and it has pursued its mission to uphold the nation for the 135 years since. Mullen challenged...

Sixty-three soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines, serving the U.S. government but not yet recognized by it, lined up on the steps of the Triangle's new immigration office Friday, ready to swear an oath to their adopted country. A breeze ruffled a high-flying flag and morning sunlight glinted off brass buttons as Jonathan Scharfen, acting director of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, led the candidates in their oath. With traffic rumbling down Interstate 40 and the smell of pizza wafting from a restaurant next door, the somber-faced service members forsook foreign princes and potentates and promised to defend the U.S....

Wednesday, April 23, 2008 Peace Terrorists Assault Iraq Vet & Family, Including Wife and Teenage Son I just read this on Melanie Morgan's site, as well as a companion report on PeaceThugs.com. This is so outrageous that it should make every red blooded American's blood boil with anger. Recently, I wrote about Iraq War Vet Jason Swartout, who was assaulted by some 82 year old woman in the name of "peace." This veteran and his family have also had to endure their home being attacked on two occasions, their car vandalized and now, this past weekend, his wife and teenage...

THE Returned Services League has called for military personnel and veterans carry to be allowed to carry their medals with them on commercial flights. RSL national president Major General Bill Crews said he knew of at least one incident in which a veteran was told by airport security he could not bring medals on board an aircraft because of the security risk. Maj-Gen Crews said airports should show more trust. "Airport security and the government in particular should recognise that people carrying medals are those whose own service is distinguished by those medals and who have the trust of the...

MADISON, Wis. -- The U.S. military's health insurance program has been swindled out of more than $100 million over the past decade in the Philippines, where doctors, hospitals and clinics have conspired with American veterans to submit bogus claims, according to prosecutors and court records. Seventeen people have been convicted so far - including at least a dozen U.S. military retirees - in a little-noticed investigation that has been handled by federal prosecutors out of Wisconsin because a Madison company holds the contract to process many of the claims. It has not been accused of any wrongdoing. At the center...

Iwo Jima Veterans Blast Time's 'Special Environmental Issue' Cover Time editor tells MSNBC 'there needs to be a real effort along the lines of World War II to combat global warming and climate change.' By Jeff Poor Business & Media Institute 4/18/2008 9:40:43 AM For only the second time in 85 years, Time magazine abandoned the traditional red border it uses on its cover. The occasion – to push more global warming alarmism. The cover of the April 21 issue of Time took the famous Iwo Jima photograph by Joe Rosenthal of the Marines raising the American flag and replaced...

Allen West for Congress Blog Ryan SmithApr 17, 06:39 PM by Allen WestLt. Col. West,You probably don’t remember me, but I was in 2/20FA (one of the 13M “lightfighters from Bravo Battery” specifically) with you in Iraq in 2003. I just wanted to tell you that I remember your kindness to me, specifically the fact that you always took time to ask me by name how I was doing and how my day was going, and that was something that most officers wouldn’t do for a young enlisted soldier. I never had the opportunity to thank you for what you...

Despite outcry from veterans and supporters of the military over the cover of Time’s April 21 issue, a spokesman for the magazine insists editors did nothing wrong. The Business & Media Institute (BMI) posted a story on April 17 about Iwo Jima veterans outraged by Time’s decision to alter the iconic image of Marines raising an American flag at Iwo Jima and replace the flag with a tree. The altered image was used to illustrate a new war on global warming. “TIME has the utmost respect for our nation's veterans and we well understand the power of the iconic image...

DECISION 2008 Veterans have dominated presidential races for years Friday, April 18, 2008 BY JIM LEWIS Of The Patriot-News To O.P. Ditch, a retired Air Force colonel, the choice for president is as clear as the headline on his Web site touting Republican John McCain, a fellow veteran: "Our troops deserve a qualified Commander in Chief." The next president should possess a military record, particularly while we're waging a protracted war in Iraq, Ditch asserts on his site, Vets4McCain.com. "I'm with him all the way that victory is the only answer," Ditch, of Virginia, says of McCain. If American history...

Media: Time calls green "the new red, white and blue" and likens global warming to the fight against Nazism and fascism. As it insults World War II vets, the magazine seeks to impose a tyranny all its own.We never cease to be amazed by the inability of the left to feel shame and its lack of reverence for America and those who defend its freedoms, including the right to be stupid. The cover of the April 21 issue of Time, taking the famous Joe Rosenthal photo of Marines planting our flag on the blood-soaked island of Iwo Jima and replacing...

The U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs was in St. Paul Friday to open a vocational rehabilitation center for the Paralyzed Veterans of America. Dr. James Peake says veterans coming home from combat with spinal cord injuries need more than just top medical care. He says they also need vocational training to help them get back into society. Jesse Gonzales will be the first veterans to go through the center in St. Paul. In 1976, at 17 years old, Jesse became a United States marine. He wanted to see the world. "Okinawa, Japan and from there I went to Korea and...

The Daily Mail in the U.K. is reporting that WWII veterans are furious over next week’s cover of TIME and the manipulation of the famous photo of marines raising the United States flag during the battle at Iwo Jima after TIME replaced the flag with a tree for the article, “How to Win The War on Global Warming”. One Imo Jima veteran, 81-year-old Donald Mates, felt the Times’ cover was “an absolute disgrace” and that “Whoever did this is going to hell.” He went to say it was a “mortal sin”. Why would veterans be upset about TIME magazine essentially...

Furious World War II veterans called for a boycott of one of America's most influential and respected magazines today over a controversial picture on its front cover. Next week's Time magazine cover is based on the famous shot by war photographer Joe Rosenthal of marines raising the US flag on Iwo Jima during the bloody battle in the Pacific. But artists have replaced the flag with a tree to illustrate an article about global warming.

A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day Free Republic made its debut in September, 1996, and the forum was added in early 1997.   Over 200,000 people have registered for posting privileges on Free Republic, and the forum is read daily by tens of thousands of concerned citizens and patriots from all around the country and the world. A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day was introduced on June 24, 2002. It's only a small room in JimRob's house where we can get to know one another a little better; salute and support our military and our leaders; pray for those in...

PHILADELPHIA, April 17, 2008 – The World Affairs Council of Philadelphia honored U.S. troops and veterans of service in Iraq and Afghanistan during a dinner here yesterday. U.S. Marine Gen. James E. Cartwright, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, hands a commemorative coin to a soldier before the World Affairs Council of Philadelphia dinner in Philadelphia, April 16, 2008. The council presented its Atlas Award to U.S. troops and veterans of Iraq and Afghanistanin to recognize their service. Defense Dept. photo by U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Adam M. Stump   (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available....

David Bellavia, Vets for Freedom co-founder, member of our Board of Advisors, and now a candidate for Congress in New York's 26th Congressional District, resigned from our Board of Advisors Monday due to his candidacy. David will continue to be a member of the organization. Vets for Freedom wishes David luck in what will be a difficult battle for a contested seat, and we are grateful for the voice he continues to give veterans here at home and those serving abroad. Please make sure to visit www.Bellavia2008.com to find out more information.

A coalition of 16 Iraq War Veterans have united to support each other for a run at Capitol Hill. In a press conference at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. last week, timed to coincide with the arrival of Gen. David Petreus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker to Capitol Hill, six members of “Iraq Veterans for Congress,” IVC, outlined their frustration over the lack of representation in Congress of the new generation of veterans. (snip) Lt. Col. William Russell, an Airborne Ranger, husband, father and small business owner has a tougher fight on his hands in his congressional race than...

Yorktown Heights, NY – State Assemblyman Greg Ball (R – Carmel) held a press Saturday to announce that his landmark program to create a tuition remission program for veterans had been included in the 2008-09 State Budget. The budget was passed by both houses earlier this week. Effective July 1st, the measure allows combat veterans to attend SUNY graduate and undergraduate institutions at no cost. “This program is very good news for our veterans, especially the young men and women who are, right now, returning from overseas. It is important that we remember that there is a war going on...

Barack Obama wooed an audience of military veterans today at Washington & Jefferson College, pledging increased funding for veterans' services and improved health care benefits. "These sons and daughters of America are the best and bravest among us," Obama said during a town hall meeting that focused on veterans' needs. "They are a part of an unbroken line of heroes that overthrew a king -- faced down fascism and fought for freedom in Korea and Vietnam, from Kuwait to the Balkans," he said. "Today, they are serving brilliantly in the face of grave danger in Afghanistan, Iraq and around the...

DALLAS (AP) - The fourth suicide this year among mentally ill patients treated at the Dallas VA Medical Center has led the hospital to close its psychiatric ward to new patients, and investigators from the national Veterans Affairs office are expected to arrive next week to assess safety. Joseph Dalpiaz, director of the VA North Texas Health Care System, ordered the shutdown after a man hanged himself April 4. The hospital stopped admitting patients to its 51-bed psychiatric unit the next day; 10 previously admitted veterans are still being treated there. Dalpiaz "decided he wanted to ... give us some...

Lord, Keep our Troops forever in Your care Give them victory over the enemy... Grant them a safe and swift return... Bless those who mourn the lost. . FReepers from the Foxhole join in prayer for all those serving their country at this time. ...................................................................................... ........................................... U.S. Military History, Current Events and Veterans Issues Where Duty, Honor and Countryare acknowledged, affirmed and commemorated. Our Mission: The FReeper Foxhole is dedicated to Veterans of our Nation's military forces and to others who are affected in their relationships with Veterans. In the FReeper Foxhole, Veterans or their family members should feel...

Virginia Senator Jim Webb says there's growing support for his G.I. Bill. The bill would pay the college tuition for many military veterans who have served since the 9/11 terror attacks. The Bush administration and defense department have concerns. They say the costly bill could also cost the military when it comes to re-enlistment rates. On the grounds of the College of William & Mary, Army Veteran Corporal Harry Bethke talks about his future. "I sent out all these applications, all at once and I got approved for 7 out of 9." He says the campus is a stark contrast...

Though an immigration bill didn’t make it to the full Legislature this year, the issue was debated Wednesday as senators discussed a National Guard education-related bill. Omaha Sen. Ernie Chambers used the time to correct the record. Omaha Sen. Brad Ashford used the time to point out the importance immigration will have in legislative races. And Lincoln Sen. DiAnna Schimek used the time to encourage Congress to work out a humane and compassionate solution for the immigrant issue. Twenty-eight students — illegal immigrants because their parents brought them illegally to the U.S. — attend University of Nebraska campuses and pay...

When U.S. soldiers returned from the Vietnam War, many never got the welcome they felt they deserved. Instead of parades, many got sneers and lectures. Since the Iraq and Afghan wars began, Americans have responded much better to veterans returning from U.S. missions abroad. We throw parades. We wrap our arms around them. Then we forget about them as they try to enter the civilian work force, typically with less success than those who never enlisted. A recent survey for the Department of Veterans Affairs found 18 percent of vets recently back from tours of duty are out of work...

On a gray Tuesday morning on Capitol Hill Sen. John McCain addressed several hundred members of Vets for Freedom -- the largest Iraq and Afghanistan veterans' organizations in the country. In DC's upper Senate Park, McCain and other pro-victory Senators and Congressmen rallied for success in Iraq. The event was timed to support the same day U.S. Commander in Iraq Gen. David Petraeus and U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker returned to Washington to present their latest progress reports. Washington was one of VFF's last stops in the three-week National Heroes Tour, on which members spoke to and encouraged crowds...

WASHINGTON, April 9, 2008 – Wounded veterans recovering in some California Veterans Affairs facilities hear some of their visitors long before they see them. Blue Star Riders is a group of motorcycle enthusiasts who visit with veterans recovering at the Palo Alto, Livermore, Martinez and San Francisco Veterans Affairs facilities at least once a month, said Richard Hamilton, the group’s founder and president. “(Blue Star Riders) are dedicated to supporting our troops and veterans, as well as honoring all wounded troops and fallen heroes,” said Hamilton, a former Marine and Vietnam veteran. Members of the group visit with as...

In 2006, the Democrats had some success with a slate of veterans who used their military credentials to argue against the war... "Iraq's going to be a tough issue for everybody, but we're going to be uniquely positioned to deal with it," says former Marine Cpl. Keiran Lalor, a Republican running in the Hudson Valley of New York. "The Democrats went around and found the exception to the rule: They found the Iraq vets against the war." The Republican vets have linked themselves to Sen. McCain's presidential bid and hope to ride to victory on his coattails. While most of...

Here is video in three parts of today's speech (April 7, 2008) by Sen. John McCain to the Veterans of Foreign Wars Headquarters in Kansas City, Missouri. From the introduction McCain received, it is clear how VFW feels about the need to elect a President who will not say with words alone he/she "supports the troops," but will prove it by supporting the mission they have sacrificed and died for as well. McCain delivers a great speech here, making it clear that the Democrats are offering a recipe for disaster in calling for a "reckless and irresponsible retreat from Iraq,"...

Exodus 3 1 Meanwhile Moses was tending the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian. Leading the flock across the desert, he came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 There an angel of the LORD appeared to him in fire flaming out of a bush. As he looked on, he was surprised to see that the bush, though on fire, was not consumed. 3 So Moses decided, "I must go over to look at this remarkable sight, and see why the bush is not burned." 4When the LORD saw him coming over to look at it more...

My Father in Law died last weekend. My husband and I brought him to the hospital for orthopedic surgery. The next day we found out he suffered with pancreatic cancer. The next week we sat by his side 24/7 as he suffered and died but mostly talked about his experiences in the Navy. What were his last words? "I was an Aviation Machinist Mate in the US Navy". He prayed with us. He joked with us. But he loved his country and he was so proud of his service. He mostly loved to talk about that time than any other...

SNOWMASS VILLAGE, Colo., March 31, 2008 – As disabled veterans test their mettle this week during the National Disabled Veterans Winter Sports Clinic, they’re finding motivation not just on the slopes, but also in each other. Retired Marine Cpl. Jason Poole, severely wounded during a bomb attack in Iraq near the Syrian border in June 2004, called the National Disabled Veterans Winter Sports Clinic the “most fun, craziest, most beautiful time ever!” He brought his girlfriend, Angela Eastman, to this year’s clinic, his third. Photo by Donna Miles  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Four hundred disabled veterans, 67...

SNOWMASS VILLAGE, Colo., March 31, 2008 – Sixty-seven veterans wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan are among 400 disabled veterans who converged here yesterday to kick off the world’s largest disabled ski clinic. Deputy Veterans Affairs Secretary Gordon H. Mansfield praises participants at the National Disabled Veterans Winter Sports Clinic for applying the same qualities of dedication, pride and self-worth they demonstrated during their military service to their rehabilitation. Photo by Sgt. KaRonda Fleming, USA  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Deputy Veterans Affairs Secretary Gordon H. Mansfield and Robert T. Reynolds, national commander of Disabled American Veterans, opened the...

"In a lawsuit Van der Hooning filed against the U of I, he claims top administrators of the business school indicated there were too many "jarheads" in the program. Van der Hooning says he was ordered to reduce MBA scholarships from 110 to 17, and told to concoct "technical reasons" to dump veterans from the program." "In other words, he claims that the U of I ordered a cover-up."

Have you ever heard or seen something that sped up your heartrate and gave you that fight-or-flight adrenaline rush just because it was such a blatant and poisonously lie? It enraged you because even though you knew it was clearly a lie, other people right around you didn't know better and probably ate it up? That's how I felt two months ago when I sat in a Manhattan movie theater packed with left-wing yuppies and the preview for Stop-Loss, which opened this weekend, flickered on the screen. The premise of the movie is this: Army war hero and small-town everyman...

Illinois' disabled veterans are at "rock bottom" - "dead last" - in benefits and claims processing of applications for disability. But Illinois' veterans take a back seat because their junior senator is running for president. And that senator, Barack Obama, has missed an astonishing number of hearings and meetings of the Senate Veterans Committee.

As I am somewhat new to doing on-the-ground reporting, and I simply wanted to give these patriots in an out-of-the-way small town their due, their diligence and determination truly struck me today - below 30f, windy and on a busy street corner (Petroleum Street bridge and Front Street). Apparently this particular troop rally has been going on for quite some time (several months), and as I work nights it is quite conceivable that I could miss it (asking for a pass :-) ). Hearing and seeing about these kind of rallies going on in our major metropolitan areas is nothing...

After suffering through name-calling in the early 1970s, and then the years of denial that followed, Roger Rahor finally is ready to own up to his Vietnam veteran status with pride. The Signal Mountain resident plans to march as a veteran for the first time on Saturday, which marks a first for Tennessee and the nation: the first official Vietnam Veterans Day. “Time does heal many wounds,” said Mr. Rahor, who has been in counseling for the past nine years and still fights post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of a yearlong deployment to Vietnam with the U.S. Army in...

Concern for "student safety" was a primary reason that the Forest Lake School District canceled a visit by touring military veterans to its high school, says a newly issued statement today from Superintendent Lynn Steenblock. Police said today, however, that those concerns, weren't relayed to them. "At no time was student safety mentioned to the chief of police or to our assigned liaison officer at the high school," police Sgt. Greg Weiss said this afternoon. Steenblock this afternoon said that the safety concern was not passed on to police because it was alleviated when the event was scrubbed. He said...