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In the last few years, I have had the opportunity to compare the human and veterinary health services of Great Britain, and on the whole it is better to be a dog. As a British dog, you get to choose (through an intermediary, I admit) your veterinarian. If you don’t like him, you can pick up your leash and go elsewhere, that very day if necessary. Any vet will see you straight away, there is no delay in such investigations as you may need, and treatment is immediate. There are no waiting lists for dogs, no operations postponed because something...

Deputies say a Cumming woman was concerned enough to take her sick pet to the veterinarian, but left her 22-month-old son alone in a hot SUV. Dawn Myers, 38, was arrested on charges of cruelty to children. Deputies were called to a Cumming vet’s office on Thursday for a report of a child unattended inside a Ford Expedition, said Capt. Frank Huggins, spokesman for the Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office. “The child was in the car for 30-40 minutes,” Huggins said. “The engine was not running and the windows were rolled up.” Myers took her two other children inside the vet’s...

Erik Roberts, an Army sergeant who was wounded in Iraq, underwent his 13th surgery recently to save his right leg from amputation. Imagine his shock when he got a bill for $3,000 for his treatment. Army Sgt. Erik Roberts was badly wounded in Iraq with two comrades in April 2006. 1 of 3 "I just thought it was bull---- that I'm getting billed for being wounded in Iraq doing my job. I always put the mission first, and now that I was wounded in Iraq, they're sending me bills," he said.

Robert Gannon, a Vietnam veteran who served on a medical evacuation helicopter, landed his Cessna 182 at Basrah International Airport with a $10,000 check and nine boxes of toys for the Basrah Children’s Hospital, March 18. USACE photo. BASRAH — A private pilot in his Cessna 182 landed at Basrah International Airport with a $10,000 check and nine boxes of toys for the Basrah Children’s Hospital, March 18. Robert Gannon, a Vietnam veteran who served on a medical evacuation helicopter, has visited 110 countries on humanitarian missions over the past eight years. He says that flying into Iraq and seeing...

Richard Thill's high school education was interrupted by the largest war the world had ever seen. But Wednesday — almost 70 years later — it came full-circle for Thill, when he was awarded an honorary diploma from Humboldt Senior High School. The honor came as a surprise to Thill, and he was visibly grateful — his voice began to shake, tears welled in his eyes. It was something he had been thinking about for a very long time. 'I'm really proud — boy, you can't believe,' said Thill, 85, holding the diploma. 'I'm going to frame this and have it...

John McCain's most powerful ad -- an open letter to Barack Obama in which an Iraq War veteran criticizes his stand on the war -- didn't cost the Republican candidate a dime. In "Dear Mr. Obama," army veteran Joe Cook stands in front of the camera and scolds the Democratic presidential candidate for calling the Iraq war a mistake. The two-minute video, which was posted on YouTube, has gotten more than 11 million hits and is the most popular election video on the site.

Iraq War Vet's McCain Endorsement Rockets to Top of YouTube The video, titled 'Dear Mr. Obama,' has been viewed more than 11 million times

Lt. Col. William Russell returns to Freedom Radio after his stint of active duty. We are overjoyed to speak with him LIVE for an update on the campaign. It is vital that we take back the House folks. It is the grassroots that will return Conservative thought to DC, not from the top down. Join us on Freedom Radio at 8pm est, Sunday August 3 and give this wonderful guy your support.

PORTLAND, Ore., July 30 (UPI) -- A Portland, Ore., WWII veteran helped chase off a gun-carrying robber with his cane, say police -- who nevertheless don't encourage the tactic. Art Iwasaki. 88, awoke from a nap Monday afternoon to find a masked man with a gun demanding money next to him. With help from his daughter, Stephanie Sakauye, 55, he managed to drive off the young robber and assist in a police search, the Portland Oregonian reported Wednesday.

"When John Brookner died of liver cancer at the age of 66 in late May, he'd been living at the Grand Rapids Home For Veterans for 12 years. Up until the day before he died, Brookner didn't want his daughter to know his condition. Officials at the facility showed the paperwork documenting his wishes to 24 Hour News 8." Veteran dies, family notified 38 days later.Video at link.Sad story.Doesn't sound like the daughters kept in close touch with their Dad.

(TOKYO - When Yosuke the parrot flew out of his cage and got lost, he did exactly what he had been taught - recite his name and address to a stranger willing to help. Police rescued the African grey parrot two weeks ago from a neighbor’s roof in the city of Nagareyama, near Tokyo. After spending a night at the station, he was transferred to a nearby veterinary hospital while police searched for clues, local policeman Shinjiro Uemura said.) I imagine, while being kept at the police station, the parrot was banging his cage with a tin cup yelling, “Let...

If turning 100 doesn't win you the right to celebrate with busty waitresses in tight clothes, Iowa resident John Persinger can't imagine what does. The centenarian rang in his entry into the triple digits at Hooters on Wednesday, according to a report by The Des Moines Register. His late wife Vi wouldn't have objected, since she was a regular with him at Hooters, the infamous chain known for the cleavage it serves up with beer and buffalo wings. The Register notes that Persinger is one of only a few thousand American men that are 100 or older. "I don't know...

The remains of a World War II hero are returned to family members here in Tucson. For 63 years, the family of Tech Sgt. Hyman Stiglitz knew his plane was shot down over Germany. But not until now did the family learn of their loved one's heroic actions. It was the summer of 1944. Tech Sergeant Hyman Stiglitz was a radio operator on a mission flying over Germany. He was in a B-24 bomber part of the 492nd wing. Their target a bridge. But when they hit it not all of the bombs fell out putting the crew in danger....

CASTLE ROCK, Colo., Dec. 19, 2007 – A disabled Iraq war veteran thought he came here Dec. 14 to pick out colors and tiles for a bathroom remodel, but instead was surprised with the keys to a new home. Disabled Iraq war veteran Brandon Burke, left, is surprised with a new home during a live radio broadcast in Castle Rock, Colo., Dec. 14, 2007. American Military Family, Inc. teamed with 30 contractors to provide a fully remodeled, handicap-accessible mobile home to the former U.S. Army combat medic, who was permanently disabled during a 2005 mortar attack in Baghdad. Photo...

Airmen, civilians lay wreaths at Arlington http://www.af.mil/news/story.asp?storyID=123013643 by Senior Airman J.G. Buzanowski Air Force Print News 12/19/2005 - WASHINGTON (AFPN) -- Despite the cold, wind and snow, about 75 people gathered at Arlington National Cemetery on Dec. 15 to lay more than 5,000 wreaths on gravesites, including four at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Since 1992, members of the armed forces, civil air patrol, veterans of foreign wars and several civilians have gathered to take part in the project, a brainchild of Maine resident Morrill Worcester. Mr. Worcester owns and operates a holiday decoration company. Thirteen years ago he...

On 15 December 2007, Wreaths Across America will be conducting its annual wreath laying at Arlington National Cemetary. This is a request for all DCFReepers and members of the DC Chapter of Protest Warrior to join me in lending a hand.

HUD-VA Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH) Program Description (PDF | 52 KB | 1 page) Preventing and Ending Homelessness for America's Veterans (PDF | 53 KB | 1 page) Sample Local Press Release (DOC | 32 KB | 2 pages) Sample Op-ed (DOC | 30 KB | 1 page) Vital Mission: Ending Homelessness Among Veterans (PDF | 23 KB | 1 page) The Homelessness Research Institute, the research and education arm of the National Alliance to End Homelessness, will release Vital Mission: Ending Homelessness Among Veterans. This report details the number of homeless veterans by state, how housing and lack of housing...

The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of a U.S. serviceman, missing in action from World War II, have been identified and will be returned to his family for burial with full military honors. He is 1st Lt. James W. Blose, U.S. Army Air Forces, of Sharpsville, Pa. He will be buried Sept. 29 in Hermitage, Pa. Representatives from the Army met with Blose’s next-of-kin in her hometown to explain the recovery and identification process and to coordinate interment with military honors on behalf of the Secretary of the Army. On April 22, 1942,...

WASHINGTON, Aug. 23, 2007 – Permanently blinded and severely wounded by a booby trap in Vietnam in 1969, Stephen Maguire spent more than 17 months being treated at Walter Reed Army Medical Center here. Now Maguire has returned to Walter Reed to help wounded warriors and their families obtain assistance that wasn’t available when he was hospitalized here. He’s now director of the Soldier and Family Support Center at Walter Reed, formerly known as the Medical Family Assistance Center. The support center staff is a team of active-duty officers, noncommissioned officers and enlisted soldiers appointed by the commanding general to...

8/9/2007 - ROYAL AIR FORCE LAKENHEATH, England (AFPN) -- "I don't have anything really profound to say," said Col. Leo Thorsness, retired Air Force fighter pilot and Medal of Honor recipient. The colonel, who visited RAF Lakenheath Aug. 7 to speak to Airmen about the importance of teamwork and families as part of a successful military, received the Medal of Honor for his heroic actions in Vietnam. Colonel Thorsness took the stage with a spring in his step and not looking all of his 75 years. He had bright eyes and many smiles as he recalled stories which focused on...