Free Republic

A Florida veteran says he was repeatedly put on hold for up to ten minutes at a time when trying to call the Department of Veterans Affairs suicide hotline. U.S. Air Force veteran Ted Koran told ABC Action News in Tampa Bay that he was experiencing suicidal thoughts following the death of his wife six months ago and tried to reach out to the VA hotline. ABC Action News reports: The U.S. Air Force veteran first called the James Haley VA Center in Tampa, where a recording gave him the 800 number to the hotline.

Having served overseas in three deployments during his tenure for the United Stated Army, SFC Monte Kaiser assumed his days of fighting were over. Tragic events in the past month however have charged a Desert Storm veteran with the task of preparing for what could be his greatest mission, where love and his sense of honor will be his primary weapons. Having lost his fiancee, Tanaya Goins, in a senseless and devastating tragedy, he need carry on without her for the sake of the son she left behind, and fulfill an obligation he takes on without reserve. Shortly after graduating from high...

A disabled U.S. Navy veteran in Glendale, Arizona, is “devastated” after he says police confiscated 28 of his guns, valued at over $25,000, after a neighbor made “false” allegations that he threatened him. Rick Bailey, a 56-year-old retired software systems engineer, told TheBlaze on Tuesday that he and his neighbor were engaged in a months-long dispute over his landscaping company. He said his neighbor would park two large, smelly “dump trucks” used for his business and other vehicles in the small cul-de-sac where they live. Bailey said he eventually filed a complaint with the city and the neighbor was ordered...

Robert L. Hite, blindfolded by his captors, 1942

Raul as a youth, was a dangerous, violent person who was ready to explode at any moment. This video chronicles the miraculous transformation of a person who was on a road to destruction to a man of God. This is the personal testimony of Raul Ries and how God demonstrates His grace, His love and His mercy. From Christiancinema.com: The true story of Raul Ries finds a young man full of hate and fight, lies and deception, and anger beyond control. This story focuses on Raul's high school days, martial arts experiences, and early years of his marriage. With everything...

<p>FLINT, MI -- A Flint man and Marine veteran imprisoned in Iran more than three years has renounced his Iranian citizenship and is requesting deportation from the country.</p> <p>A statement from Hekmati's family details what they call torture, abuse and a forced confession that he has been through. Those claims detail poor nutrition, foot whippings and long stretches of solitary confinement.</p>

Gov. Scott Walker is praising fellow Wisconsin Republican Paul Ryan for the congressman's role in broking a bipartisan budget bill that's been blasted a by number of conservatives. Walker said on NBC's "Meet the Press" that Ryan provided strong leadership on the bill that passed the House Thursday and awaits Senate action.

iegfried Meinstein discovered that he was dead in April. He seems to be handling the news well. “It isn’t really a problem in my daily life,” he said, sitting at a table in his Upper Arlington assisted-living facility. “Everybody accepts my money.” This probably requires a little more explanation, so here it is: The Internal Revenue Service thinks 94-year-old Meinstein bought the farm, bit the big one, took a permanent vacation. And despite his family’s best efforts, the IRS hasn’t changed its mind. “If they keep insisting, what is it you say?” Ron Meinstein asked his dad. “‘Eventually, they’ll be...

WILMINGTON, N.C. - An Air Force veteran who served in Kuwait found a note on her car Friday criticizing her for parking in a veterans-only parking spot in Wilmington. Mary Claire Caine told WECT-TV that she returned to her car from shopping at Harris Teeter to find a note plastered to her front window from a person identifying themselves as a "Wounded Vet." It read, "Maybe [you] can't read the sign you parked in front of ... This space is reserved for those who fought for America ... not you. Thanks, Wounded Vet." Caine, who served in Kuwait and on...

A North Texas World War II Army veteran was brought to tears recently after his house was burglarized. Thieves stole a television and guns from 90-year-old Bennie Welch, along with irreplaceable medals that include three Purple Hearts representing his sacrifice and heroism. Welch's daughter, Dorothy Smith, had taken him to the VA Hospital in south Dallas Monday afternoon, where Welch is treated for post-traumatic stress disorder, among other things. When they arrived back at their home in Telico, near Ennis, they quickly discovered thieves has taken the TV, a laptop and a .45 that Welch carried with him all those...

e Connecticut Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered the acquittal of a former Army medic who was sentenced to 15 months in prison for transporting a knife and police baton in his vehicle during a move out of state. Justices issued a 7-0 decision in the appeal of former Clinton resident Jason DeCiccio. The court said part of the state law on illegal possession of weapons in a motor vehicle violates the Second Amendment because it bans people from transporting weapons between residences when they have the right to possess those weapons in their homes.

A few minutes ago SWAT found out that the PTSD gunman who killed four in Souderton and Lansdale, Pa was not in home in Souderton, PA. Escaped. Whereabouts of gunman unknown, more deaths expected. New crime scene in Pennsburg, Pa with police investigating.....unknown.

Service dogs are trained to do specific tasks. They help vets do things that they cannot due to a disability. They can be trained to help someone who has seizures by moving things out of the way or barking to warn their handler of an oncoming seizure. It is interesting to note that providing emotional support, protecting a handler, or being a companion does not qualify a dog to be a service animal. To qualify, they have to do things that are different from natural dog behavior.

LONE JACK, MO (KCTV) - A Lone Jack grandfather says he fears for his life after a run in with police. Bill Swan was on his tractor when he took issue with a utility crew trying to dig on his property. His family says that before long the Lone Jack police arrived and Swan was left bloodied and more from being yanked off the tractor. "I'm afraid for us to even drive out of our driveway or to get on the street. I don't know what they will do," Libby Swan, Bill's wife, said. Libby Swan hasn't asked her husband...

Matty’s back! Days after The Post exposed the military’s wrongful, 16-month-long separation of injured Army Spc. Brent Grommet and his war dog, Matty, the two were finally reunited on Friday. “I’m about the happiest I’ve ever been,” Grommet, 23, told The Post. Grommet and Matty, who specialized in detecting IEDs, were injured when one exploded near them in Afghanistan. Grommet came back with PTSD, traumatic brain injury, migraines, severe chronic back pain and breathing problems. Under Robby’s Law — signed by Bill Clinton in 2000 — military dog handlers have the first right to adopt their animals if injured together.

NORTH HIGHLANDS (CBS13) — He survived three tours of duty, but a 91-year-old veteran couldn’t survive the brutal beating he suffered in a home invasion. Akemi Girion had to make the toughest decision of her life this weekend—saying goodbye to her stepfather, John Masson. “His face was all broken—jaw, cheek, head—everything was broken,” she said. “Even if he survives, hes not going to have a quality life.” Masson was badly beaten on Oct. 28 when thieves broke into his North Highlands home in the middle of the night. They blindfolded and tied up Girion and a caretaker and demanded Masson’s...

I keep this calendar on my desk, and while I don't look at it very often I notice that this Wednesday is Veterans Day. It's one of ten federal holidays that we have. Well, I'm a veteran but I hate that name. Considering that we aren't technically at war now, there's an awful lot about war in the news, too, even when it's not something like Veterans Day. I suppose that's because there's so much fighting in the world. There are half a dozen small wars going on right now, some of them in places most of us have never...

Arrowhead (John) fell off a 20’ ladder at work, onto his head, and has a severe brain injury! Broke all the bones in his face and skull, broke his shoulder blade and some ribs. His last post was 10/20 in the morning. He fell about 2pm that same day and was LifeFlighted to the hospital; then, after about 6 hours of surgery, he went directly to ICU. It was touch and go for days in critical condition. After 2 weeks in ICU he has been transferred to a Specialty Neurological Rehab center in Austin, as of 11/3. He can move...

2014 Veterans Day Free Meals, Discounts, Sales and Deals Read more: http://militarybenefits.info/veterans-day-discounts-sales-deals-free-meals/#ixzz3HfEEMUVw

Flag flap: Indiana veteran, wife battle homeowners association over Old Glory Posted: Oct 28, 2014 3:16 PM CST Updated: Oct 28, 2014 3:17 PM CST Bob Willits, 82, of Greenfield, Ind., insists he'll fight a local homeowners Association over the American and POW/MIA flags outside his home. FOX News - An elderly veteran and his wife say there's “absolutely no way” the flagpole outside their Indiana home is coming down, despite threats from a homeowners association — and a local prosecutor intends to back them in court if necessary. Bob and Judy Willits insist they intend to fight multiple letters...