On April 6, Veterans and their families are invited to join The War Horse News and The University of Chicago’s Harris School of Public Policy for a day-long convening where members of the public can discuss the human impact of military service with legendary journalists, world-class scholars, and the senior government officials shaping the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs.
Jon Stewart will be the keynote speaker at The War Horse Symposium on April 6. Other speakers include VA Secretary Denis McDonough and Deputy Secretary of Defense Dr. Kathleen Hicks.
Inspired by The War Horse’s award-winning journalism and a Harris-authored white paper about how military “news deserts” threaten national security, The War Horse Symposium will explore the intersection of solutions journalism and public policy while promoting discourse and civic engagement about military and Veterans issues across the United States.
Register for free to attend virtually or in-person, here.
Symposium highlights:
- Clearing The Air: The Honorable Denis McDonough, secretary of Veterans Affairs, and Kelly Kennedy, War Horse managing editor, will discuss her breaking the story about burn pits in 2008 and the future of VA health care.
- The Importance of a Robust Fourth Estate: Legendary journalist Bob Woodward will discuss his Navy service and the importance of a robust Fourth Estate.
- Military Reporting is a National Security Issue: This panel will explore how, without a broader public awareness of what Veterans and military families are experiencing, citizens and elected officials will be challenged to make informed decisions about national policies at home and abroad. Join a conversation about the importance of examining the United States military through a lens of human experience, the place where its impact on our nation is most deeply felt.
- Afternoon Keynote: Medal of Honor recipient and retired Army Capt. Flo Groberg will discuss the human impact of military service and the importance of bridging the military and civilian divide.
- The Untold Stories of Military Service: Whether it’s food insecurity or the impacts of deployments on service members and their families, reporting about the military community is declining alongside local newsrooms. This panel will explore research findings and a first-of-its-kind white paper by The Harris School during a conversation showcasing boots-on-the-ground perspectives.
- The Human Impact of Military Service: Jon Stewart and The Honorable Kathleen Hicks, deputy secretary of Defense, will discuss the ongoing recruiting/retention crisis, the military and civilian divide, and issues impacting military families.
About The War Horse
The War Horse is a nonprofit newsroom with the mission of improving the public’s understanding of military and Veteran affairs. Since 2016, the newsroom has received top industry awards for excellence in investigative reporting and multimedia storytelling, and has led to multiple changes in military policy and federal law. In an era of disappearing independent newsrooms and an increasing prevalence of mis/disinformation, The War Horse has emerged as the most trusted source for military reporting. During a time when nearly 60% of Americans say they distrust news media, audience surveys in 2018 and 2021 show that The War Horse is a trusted source of news with 98% reader satisfaction. Learn more about The War Horse, here.
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This event did what I could not do for the last year, it pissed
off Gulf War veterans every where. Those that saw this as a
platform or a chance to be heard found a firewall up. Unless
you were in the room.
That Iraq war goes back 20 years? Thats the only part that
matters? Save OIF, and the snobs that run this monopoly thanks
to the PACT act failing us. A huge loophole.
DOD and VA relished yesterday. Was so easy to manipulate this
little group and provide false hope. 115 participants for Jon
Stewarts part is a damn insult. Then again, that wasnt any kind
of power house performance that will shake anyone up. Zoom is
terrible compared to Webex in many ways showing this. Was so
one sided if you werent there in he room. No chat bar session.
Even the VA RAC had difficulty with the format and opted for
youtube as they could not login. Sec of VA’s darlings found they
were cut off too. Not even told about it. Except by me. I got the
word out to the Gulf War crowd, and then they ran with it. Only
to find cold indifference.
Word has gotten out AP and others ignored us. Media in the
room was only interested in the room itself. Largely because
DOD and VA leaned on them to play nice.
Yes, your event was able to do what I could not – rally the GWI vets
in anger against your top down monopoly. That they dont matter.
War Horse might have meant something once, what I saw yesterday
wasnt anything like what we used to do 20 plus years ago. When
Gulf War veterans shook the media going back into Iraq in 2003.
Before the embedded media even showed up in Iraq.
You never even gave us a chance yesterday. Total shut out.
That was a insulting dog and pony show which will never be forgotten
by the Gulf War vets kept on the fence to watch it. Was just to help
the VA / DOD shut out of people like me – to give false hopes on
a highly flawed law turning away tens of thousands of vets.
Keep Jon Stewart at bay from really ripping them. Force him to play
nice to protect his little group. He was gagged. He knew VA and DOD
would never come back to the table if he slammed them.
I HAVE to be ugly about this, because the window is closing on public
comments for this event and its up to Google to keep this out there
for others to find. To show how old Skeletor handled me and the
Gulf War veterans he wanted shut out.
There was no equality yesterday, this is about how some veterans
are created more equal than others. It most certainly says our current
government and media are above the law. Its a top down dictatorship
where veterans like me that served our country have none of the civic
rights we fought for. Im not to be seen or heard at these events because
critics are NOT welcome. All is well, nothing to see here.
Yesterday? Thanks for nothing. Didnt change anything. I can go to bed
tonight hurting, miserable pain, and know nothing changed for me by
those that relish my suffering. Ole Skeletor ( McDonough ) gets the
satisfaction of avoiding real scrutiny while creating misery.
They gagged Jon Stewart. Read him the riot act offline
to keep him tame to protect his War Horse entourage.
I recognize the intimidation and guarded overly cautious
remarks. Felt that way when I was on my VA committee
after VA team members ham strung me behind the
scenes. I was threatened many times over 18 months to
limit my impact and try to bully me into submission. Till
at the end it was open public rude behavior to trivialize me.
Only, he isnt out here watching this event and himself
in it. He is there, not here – so on his end it probably
looks very different.
By holding back, he gave them what they wanted.
Made less impact. Didnt rally anger. Which is why there
are only 115 participants rather than 15 million.
Im furious at all of this. This was to humor DOD and
VA, and severely limit its impact. Which the media in the
room certainly made worse.
Reality? Diverting from this. By 6:35 he seemed to be getting
angry at how guarded he has been. Kathleen Hicks is trying
to hard to keep him in check. As they hint at ILER without
detailing it.
This wasnt hard hitting, this was light weight dancing.
Electronic records? Huge issue not being resolved. Right now.
Weird disconnect? 20 years of war? Try 32 years for us Gulf
War vets that have certainly been forgotten here. We have no say
in any of this and its highly offensive.
By 6:45 the pace slows to a crawl. Audits? Nothing specific.
Evasive? God yes. Dance dance dance. Spin. Corruption?
How about releasing classified records from these regions that
hinder claims processing?
Im squirming in my chair watching this. So much could be said
and isnt. Question are on cards from the audience, there is no
option online for us. Cherry picked? Yes.
Jon, you should have checked your bottle water. They tranked
you. You bored me to sleep. George Carlin would have ripped
them up by now and had everyone laughing.
There is a screenshot during Panel 2 with Sec of VA Denis
McDonough where I ask the question about the need
for a Toxic Exposure Pathology Center. 11:40am.
Told you they would censor me.
Ole skeletor there couldnt sit up straight or look at the camera.
Tenting his hands like Dr. Evil from a Austin Powers movie. Not
just once, many times. A control feature.
Its interesting, they point out Patricia Kime in the audience
during this session, and Ive sent her email for some time about
all this. Will send this screenshot to her and she will avoid it.
Further proving the censorship in all this at the War Horse.
Im really disgusted by this event. So very top down. Dictating to
the poor with no say in this. This is really vile.
OMG, is this a HEAVILY censored program. So much hiding
live comments from others. Impossible login. I cant get through
for 20 minutes and when I submitted a question it just vanished.
I was the first to submit and it just shows
“no one asked a question”. Not public or qued.
Empathy? You cant just say it, its more than a word.
Accountability? Its not dictatorial – much like this event.
I knew these people would never give us a chance. These people
cant handle scrutiny, and virtual internet is a way of claiming
you helped when all you did was censor us on the outside.
Progress? Boy have these people missed the mark. This is about
hiding in plain sight. PACT act, Burn Pit Registry, Gulf war, and
so many 32 year old issues that have no 2 sided representation
in VA, DOD, and DC. No true soap box. Certainly not the War Horse
today. I didnt feel involved, just dictated to.
I was there people, and they stiff armed me just as predicted. These
people could not handle me in the room, and they wont give me the
chance unless I had thousands to throw away for a trip to be
there. Money talks. Vets dont have it.
Virtual meetings are Americas way of keeping the poor at bay.
Panel 1 missed the mark and talked like it was talking but not
getting its top down vision.
Journalist get the story wrong every day in America. These were
people out of touch playing lip service.
To me, the War Horse today wasnt helping vets by talking at us.
They want to down play me. This just proved it. I asked a question
about the media censoring vets in 2023, and you censored me.
I did screenshots to prove it. Told panel 1 so via Q&A.
It saddens me to here Veterans say things like “ Having come home which was and still is my worse event, should have died in the field” and “ I’ve come home to a civilian world I don’t recognize “. The invisible wounds of war affects not only veterans but also the families they come home to. There is hope through mental health counseling and the Camaraderie Foundation is a nonprofit organization that provides the funding for mental health counseling services for Veterans, their family, and caregivers to the Veterans. This organization has been helping Veterans heal from the invisible wounds of war for over a decade. I am proud to be part of this organization.
Long story short, October 14th 2022 the NAS published
its findings about the Burn Pit Registry. Not many caught
on to the verbal snag is they say in the report vets received
optional evaluation – which means exam. What is the point
without a exam? This is what Ive been quoting for months.
317,000 participants, 30,000 exams. I didnt make this up.
But, media sure missed this after October and since then
is eager to report whatever VA tells them to.
Ive been using the abbreviation ABHOR only because its
easier to say than AH&OBP. Air Borne Hazard rolls off the
tongue a bit easier. The other abbreviation might as well
be in Russian characters just for spite.
Not only was oil well fire data not provided, the oil wells themselves
are not listed as locations in southern Iraq when you login to
qualify. For Gulf war vets you pretty much have to say “Iraq” in
general and dates.
So much was left out of this registry for 8 long years. Gulf war vets
are most certainly the minority in this.
I have plenty to offer here. Thats why Im not welcome. The vets side
of the story from long ago. This is top down, not bottom up. That I
have 26 years of experience dealing with DOD and VA means nothing.
Hearings, government meetings, government reports, and so much more –
even global media like in 2003. Served on a VA committee? That
deserves to be cheapened and trivialized.
Gulf war vets deserve more than this one time dog and pony show.
VA has not treated us well, the PACT act did not fix this, and we
need to fix Title 38 to adjust for that. SS 3.317 does not serve us
and I said that very loudly on my committee. Only, VA does not want
us to have a benefits / healthcare committee to address this. Just
research which has totally failed us. The laws such as PL 105-368
have been twisted for decades – funding what VA wants of them, not
specialty clinics we begged for in 1998.
The last year has been pure hell for me. Been through the entire
regiment of Gulf war programs start to finish to test them in 2022.
At the end of all this I pushed so hard the VA RAC gave me a slot
Feb 9th 2023 to present my findings then tried to change it last
minute. As it became a critique of the committee it did not want.
The fight of my life on so many levels. Right down to identity theft,
middle east hackers, my website Gulflink.org blocked by Google,
and so much more.
Then the PACT act, and once it failed me – OMG. Like the gates of
hell opened up in ways I did not see coming.
You people on high dont care because people like me are not in
your offices. What you dont see, cant bother you. You treat me
like I just crossed the border into Texas – than a combat veterans
that served in a war. Because you dont feel pain, and many are
not even combat veterans.
Gulf war veterans need real permanent representation on our
issues in VA, not these occasional one sided events. Not send
us to a research committee and tell us our questions can only
be research. Now this has become 32 years in the middle east
with millions involved and for me its not any different than 1995.
DOD and VA play games at our expense. Keep us at bay.
The NAS report is still missing data, and Its about how “HOME”
handled it much of 2022. This isnt over.
Im limited to 5,000 words so had to gut this.
———————————————————–
Reassessment of the Department of Veterans Affairs Airborne Hazards and Open Burn Pit Registry
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2022.
Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/26729.
——————————————————-
https://nap.nationalacademies.org/read/26729/chapter/4#32
National Academy – Burn Pit Registry – page 32:
No data file from the Gulf War Oil Well Fire Smoke Registry was provided.
————–
https://nap.nationalacademies.org/read/26729/chapter/2#3
Summary of NAS report – Burn pit registry:
As of July 1, 2022, more than 317,000 participants had completed the registry questionnaire, while over 130,000 individuals had begun but not completed it. Approximately 30,000 of registry participants had received the optional health evaluation.
Unclear how this works that is how my voice will be heard during this symposium, but here is my thoughts about me after 37 years and six wars,
The Veterans Administration Secretary is useless, does not ever answer written letters to him regarding my concerns 57 letters to date
The Veterans Administration Ft Harrison Director is useless, does not ever answer written letters to he regarding my concerns 83 written letters
The Veterans Administration Patient Advocate is useless, does not ever resolve any issue just passes on in the circle of ignorance
The Veterans Administration Adjutant General’s office is useless, does not ever answer written complaints regarding legal violations of the law, Federal as well as VA published POLICY Standards
Basically as far as the VA is involved th4ey are not accountable to anyone and could care less about the veteran.
I am 100%, they will not even replay as to exceptions for me according to ADA 1980 and !960 Laws
Having come home which was and still is my worse event, should have died in the field. The VA and the public has ZERO understanding or treatment for PTSD
they the VA claims they do they do not, the Mental Health people do not even answer your letters or telephone calls asking for help
The public if you are in a wheel chair, crutches, blind, pregnant, ugly, fat, abusive they have a nicer action towards you, but if you have PTSD no one is trained in dealing with those like me. Even the agencies like Disabilities Montana, etc etc etc do not understand or give a dam period. Veterans like me are left out at third base with no one to even talk to about concerns or issues, Even the VET Centers around here use useless all they care about is keeping their job and paychecks. So if this symposium really reads this and is valid the solution is to remove all these worthless c ollege educ ated idiots because they learned nothing and do nothing
What a fine idea this is — and long overdue.
I am a Vietnam vet and otherwise a life-long photojournalist so this really speaks to my experience and observations.
Sounds like a activity
I’m a disabled USAF 6 years honorable discharge, I need My medications
Thank you for allowing me to make a comment.
Since I served in The United States Military and was Honorable discharge don’t I have the right to be in this country. I see that many people acquired their citizenship after five years of being here. In my case I have been here for more than 43 years and have been awaiting deportation by the immigration for the last eight years. I have been married to an American Citizen for the last five years , and every time I call the immigration in Orlando, they told me the same, that my case still pending. So, pending until when? I am 63 years old and I am still pending? Can anyone please help me with my case?
Sincerely, a Disabled American Veteran
When will the speaker and government officials come to Arizona and talk with some of our veterans
With the way I have been treated, I wish I had never moved to Florida from Denver and to the doctor at the VA! I am destroyed and pray for help! I am so sorry for my injuries that have become so life changing that the VA has carried the burden of treating me and they struggle to continue to treat me! Glad I did not give up on you, Navy, my life was yours!
If VA and the Sec of VA keep ignoring my public comments tied to the
other PACT act articles here at New.va.gov, then I suspect they will create
another diversion so Im not allowed to speak at this either. Much like the
last 2 PACT act events here in Waco Texas.
Ive spelled out how the PACT act failed me, my current claim, and Gulf war
veterans in general unless its terminal cancers. Ive shown how the Burn Pit
Registry has excluded vets over 8 years, and of the 317,000 participants
about 30,000 got actual exams. X-ray, PFT, and 10 minute exam. Thats about
9% for 8 years. Not to mention the issues with the qualification webpage.
I made a presentation to the VA RAC in Feb 2023 about some of this:
https://www.va.gov/RAC-GWVI/meetings/Feb2023/Feb_2023_Index.asp
How VA never corrected the wrongs done my committee in 2009 or the
RAC in 2012 by Sec of VA Eric Shinseki. Gulf war vets were betrayed and
swept aside since then. As VA got rid of more and more, with no real public
statistical reporting to track that.
My former committee I fought so hard for that VA killed off in 18 months:
https://www.va.gov/gulfwaradvisorycommittee/
There has been no discussion about improving tissue collection to prove
Toxic Exposures. So information collected is mostly blood samples,
10 minute exams, and imaging. We need to improve on this with a better
version of DOD’s Joint pathology center, and create a VA national Toxic
Exposure Pathology Center that can do forensic style work without it
having to be post mortum.
The PACT act is highly flawed, designed to fail most but the terminally ill
or terminal cancers. It need revision, amending in its language, and to begin
service connecting by region – time frame as DOD will never release the
relevant medical records its classified to that region over 32 years.
No insult is intended to the creators of the PACT act. They didnt know how
VA would twist the meanings and language to there advantage. Why do
you think VA adopted this so quickly. The legal team picked up on this
and do what they always do. Burden of proof is still in theater and this
does not tie to that. SS 3.317 for Gulf war vets is a long list of items
that dont tie to regions and time frame without records that put them
there saying those exact words in service. Another loop hole.
In the end, no part of my current PACT act claim benefited me. Regional
threw up its hands at me. Now Im finding tricks to the QTC contracting
like with imaging – it doesnt say a key word in the file name – then it
doesnt apply. By there definition, I have no back imaging since 2005
and there fore no new evidence to offer. Never mind all the abdominal
imaging like CT scans, MRI’s, and Xrays that show the degenerated disc,
ostecytes, spinal stenosis and scoliosis that wasnt there before the war.
The media is no friend of PACT act veterans. Ive been through it all with
them and found they want to grovel at VA’s feet. Even misreported me
getting help I didnt. Texas is literally veteran hostile, but giving 2 days
notice to the Waco event to keep veterans at bay. They worked real hard
to keep me from this event. Not like the other 40 regions they posted
right after this event.
This event coming up will be one sided. Pro-VA, and pro Sec of VA. It will
make sure nothing I said here today or then will make the news. It will
portray a happy event, no one wronged, and how many vets are being
helped. Yeah, like with the Burn pits? Showing participants on the webpage
but not numbers of exams. State by state, one but not the other. Because
VA learned with gulf war vets how not to report much of anything – they
dont have to produce statistical reports of claims, death rates.
So Im a ghost here. I dont really exist. Sec of VA Denis McDonough has
bent over backwards the last year to trivialize me at all cost, The veteran
community is mostly spectators. They dont come to unite. VA is counting
on one liner public comments with no sense of direction. The public has
spoken. Only, I have asked them to launch Uservoice once more and let
the vets vote on ideas – at least propose them. Let the vets say what they
want rather than forced on us.
I will try to be there, but they already know how to tank this for me, and keep
me at bay. As long as they can avoid me, then things stay static. They win.