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President Obama plans to overhaul the Joint Chiefs of Staff this year as he seeks to replace a handful of longtime members whose terms are coming to a close. Obama on Tuesday nominated Marine Gen. Joseph Dunford, commandant of the Marine Corps, to succeed Army Gen. Martin Dempsey as chairman this fall. He also tapped Air Force Gen. Paul Selva, head of U.S. Transportation Command, to replace Navy Adm. James “Sandy” Winnefeld as vice chairman. In the roles since 2011, Dempsey and Winnefeld are expected to retire after their current two-year terms end in October and August, respectively. What’s more,...

The 700th consecutive "Support our Troops" rally was held Friday at Monument Terrace. Men and women have gathered along Church Street every Friday since November of 2001.

A former Veterans Affairs employee who managed one of the department’s retail stores admitted that he stole $150,000 from the store and spent it on strippers, prostitutes, and gambling, according to the Justice Department.

What happens when a non-profit that was started to help veterans becomes the neighborhood bully? For a charity supposedly devoted to helping veterans, the Wounded Warrior Project spends an enormous amount of time suing or threatening to sue small non-profits—spending resources on litigation that could otherwise be spent on the vets they profess to serve. At issue is the Wounded Warrior Project’s brand: the charity has become particularly litigious over the use of the phrase ‘wounded warrior’ or logos that involve silhouetted soldiers. At least seven such charities have discussed their legal problems with The Daily Beast. The Wounded Warrior...

Former President George W. Bush doesn’t like to complain. How can he when he’s riding through sunny trails alongside some of our nation’s heroes? Number 43 kicked off the 5th annual Warrior 100K in Crawford, Texas, a three-day bike event held to recognize wounded warriors.Fox News’s Dr. Marc Spiegel caught up with the former president before he hit the trails Thursday. President Bush explained what made this group of bikers so special.President George W. Bush's 2015 W100k bike ride (Video) “We’re here riding with people that got hurt. Yet they’re refusing to let their injury consign them to a dull,...

The immediacy of social media, particularly Twitter and Facebook, offers us a window into the prejudices of others that is unprecedented in the history of our society. Not a day passes in the United States when some person does not commit career suicide, achieve viral fame, or both by posting to Twitter or Facebook. A hundred and forty characters or less can make a hero or freshly mint a villain. All it takes is an ill-chosen word or, perhaps more accurately, a moment of honesty. We are all creatures of prejudice to one degree or another; we all harbor likes,...

While conducting an interview with Democratic Maryland Representative Elijiah Cummings, CNN host Brooke Baldwin questioned whether the violence in Baltimore had something to do with the amount of military veterans in the police department. “Another thing that has to be done here, is we’ve really got to look at our police department,” Cummings began.

An avalanche triggered by a deadly earthquake in Nepal on Saturday buried a part of the base camp for climbers bound for Mount Everest, killing at least eight people, Nepal's tourism ministry said. "The toll could go up, it may include foreigners as well as sherpas," tourism official Gyanendra Shrestha said.

Twice a year Panama City Beach welcomes our wounded heroes into the community for the Warrior Beach Retreat, but an event aimed at honoring our nation's veterans took a different turn at their hotel. A group of college students didn't show these veterans the respect they deserve. "They actually spit on me and my service dog as well, and that's just so disrespectful and it hurts. I come and I feel honored and I feel safe and that I belong, but now I feel like I'm defending myself," said wounded veteran Nicholas Connole. Veterans say they were shocked at the...

In a voice choked with emotion, Rustyann Brown told lawmakers Wednesday how the Department of Veterans Affairs routinely turned its back on veterans and their families, even in death. Mrs. Brown, a former employee in the VA’s Oakland office, was assigned one day in 2012 to a special team given the job of reviewing more than 13,000 veterans’ claims dating back to the mid-1990s that had never been addressed. As they sorted through the mounds of papers, she said, they often discovered that the veterans had long since died without receiving the requested benefits. In those cases, Mrs. Brown testified,...

The annual Veterans Reunion is upon us at Wickham Park in Melbourne Florida. See this link for the flyer and the main web site for agenda, etc. Opening ceremonies start tonight, 20 April, at 6PM with the wreath presentation ceremony.

[Video only] Watch the full version of the 4th Annual “Salute to Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans”, featuring General James N. Mattis, USMC (Ret.) at the Marines’ Memorial Club on April 16, 2015. The program included a Social Reception that followed General Mattis’ remarks.

Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) has sent a letter to Attorney General Eric Holder expressing deep concerns over Veterans Affairs evaluations classifying veterans as "mentally defective" and banning them in the federal background check system from purchasing or owning a firearm. According to Grassley's office, the VA "reports individuals to the gun ban list if an individual merely needs financial assistance managing VA benefits," keeping them from exercising their Second Amendment rights. (Bolding is mine) "The National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) is effectively a national gun ban list and placement on the list precludes...

It’s is a vividly accurate, cutting-edge film about one of the most shockingly misunderstood wars in American history – and it took Westminster, California, by storm when it premiered there this month, selling more than $30,000 in tickets in just three days during its limited release at a single movie theater. Overall, the film brought in $50,923 in a week of showings at the Regency Westminster 10 theater from March 27 to April 2. The film profits will support four charities: Semper Fi Fund, Agape International Missions, Field of Dreams and Allegiant Giving. “I’ve been waiting 40 years for this...

Veterans, Dependents Account for Disproportionate Share of ‘Mental Defective’ Category on Gun Ban List Apr 15, 2015 WASHINGTON – Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa, Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, is requesting an explanation for why nearly all of the names on the Justice Department’s gun ban list in the “mental defective” category belong to veterans or their dependents. “It’s disturbing to think that the men and women who dedicated themselves to defending our freedom and values face undue threats to their fundamental Second Amendment rights from the very agency established to serve them. A veteran or dependent shouldn’t lose...

Fifteen years ago, Indiana couple Denise Jones and her husband purchased two missing in action bracelets to help veterans. Over the years the name Bunyan Price Jr. became part of their lives. Often wearing the bracelet, Jones couldn't help but wonder about him. She even sought out his name. "We had seen his name on the traveling wall." Jones said. News of the emotional homecoming last week traveled all over the world through the internet. Jones and her husband watched the news report on WCNC.com. "The name was just ringing a bell with me. And I told my husband go...

He is a veteran. He was thinking about committing suicide. But when he called the suicide hotline for veterans, he says he wasn’t helped — he was put on hold. Ted Koran experienced deep depression on Saturday night, so much so that he considered killing himself, the Florida Air Force veteran told WFTS-TV. “I was missing my wife,” he said of his life partner Karen, who died of cancer six months ago. In his pain, he turned to the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Jerilynn Robinson feared the worst when she initially saw a note left on her car. However, upon closer inspection, she realized it was actually a note thanking her husband Tom for his service in the armed forces. Georgia teenager James Dorris, 13, had seen the veteran license plate on Robinson’s car and decided to leave a note,WSB-TV reported. “I was surprised,” Tom told WFLA-TV. “This is one of the very first notes I’ve ever gotten left on my vehicle, just thanking me for being a veteran, or for serving. And that did it. It brought joy to me.”

wikipedia/Doolittle Raider RL Hite blindfolded by Japanese 1942 Ever hear of the Doolittle Raiders? On Sunday, March 29, 2015, one of the last of the Doolittle Raiders, Robert Hite, passed away at 95.   [reference:  Robert Hite, 95, Survivor of Doolittle Raid and Japanese Imprisonment, Dies - NYTimes.com ] And his obituary included the photo, shown above in this public domain picture.  And it can be found on wikipedia with the following description: U.S. Army Air Force Lt. Robert L. Hite, blindfolded by his captors, is led from a Japanese transport plane after he and the other seven flyers were flown...

NASHVILLE — Before mentioning the National Rifle Association or even firearms at the gun rights group’s annual meeting in Nashville on Friday, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, a Republican, asked all the men and women in the audience who serve or have served in the armed forces to stand so they could be properly thanked. “Freedom. Endowed by our Creator. Defined by our Constitution, but defended each and every day by the men and women who proudly wear the uniform of these United States,” Walker began. He then asked anyone who is serving or has served in the military to stand...