Posted on 09/23/2010 10:12:04 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
NEW YORK -- At a conference traditionally dominated by international concerns, First Lady Michelle Obama chose instead to focus on an issue much closer to home in her speech Thursday that closed the sixth annual Clinton Global Initiative. Drawing on one of the event's themes of "Harnessing Human Potential," Mrs. Obama encouraged the audience of business and nonprofit leaders to employ former military service members and their spouses.
Following an introduction by President Obama -- who praised his wife's "moral voice and her moral center" -- the first lady made the case for engaging returning servicemen and women. "I'm asking you to take advantage of their talent, their dedication, and their experience," she said. "I'm not asking you to do this out of the goodness of your heart -- do it because it's good for your bottom line and the success of your organization."
Praising the capabilities of veterans, the first lady said they had "highly valuable, highly transferable, highly marketable skills -- skills that I know many businesses, including those represented here today, are desperate to find." Those who have served in the armed forces, she went on, "master state-of-the-art technologies, run the world's most complex operations, oversee hundreds of their colleagues, and shoulder more responsibility than many CEOs."
Mrs. Obama lady praised military families as well, likening the work of spouses who lead Family Readiness Groups (FRGs) as similar to that of "a CEO -- or COO -- or senior executive."
She also advocated for veteran employment in the nonprofit world -- specifically in areas such as disaster assistance and relief work. While serving in the military, soldiers "go on regular humanitarian missions throughout the world, providing everything from food aid, to medical care, to help with construction," she said. "They're called to act as diplomats, social workers, mediators, and educators."
Providing context for this high-profile employment drive, the first lady highlighted the problems faced by recently discharged troops. According to her remarks, 150,000 recent veterans are struggling to find jobs; three-quarters of veterans report having difficulty translating the expertise gained in the military into a resume; 61 percent of employers do not fully understand the skills that veterans have to offer.
Mrs. Obama addressed the psychological toll exacted by unemployment on these returning service people: "It's hard to give so much, for so long, for a cause greater than yourself, only to come home and find that there's nowhere you quite fit in."
She noted her husband's work to help veterans -- including a "21st Century GI Bill which is helping nearly 300,000 veterans and their families get the education they need to fulfill their dreams" and hiring nearly 33,000 veterans in the federal government. But, she added, "the government can only do so much."
The first lady then made a pledge. "As part of my ongoing efforts to encourage folks to support our veterans and military families, I'll do my part to connect you with advocates and experts -- and with resources throughout our government -- from the Department of Labor to the Defense Department and the VA."
She added, "I will use my platform as first lady to bring folks together around this issue. I'll work to spark not just a national conversation, but national action to give our vets and military spouses the opportunities they deserve."
What and have honorable US Veterans serve at the pleasure of the UN for this Global nonsense? Not this vet.
Business leaders already know that military experience is a great plus on a resume.
What and have honorable US Veterans serve at the pleasure of the UN for this Global nonsense? Not this vet.
You got it. These bastards always have ulterior motives.
Thank you for your service, celtic gal.
Take the global agenda VERY seriously:
Global Governance 2025 - at a critical juncture
The United States’ National Intelligence Council (NIC) and the European Union’s Institute for Security Studies (EUISS) have joined forces to produce this assessment of the long-term prospects for global governance frameworks. This exercise builds on the experience of the two institutions in identifying the key trends shaping the future international system. Since the mid 1990s, the NIC has produced four editions of its landmark Global Trends report. The most recent one, Global Trends 2025: A Transformed World, published in late 2008, noted that momentous change was ahead, with the gap between increasing disorder and weakening governance structures widening. The EUISS produced the first EU-level report on the factors affecting the evolution of the international system in 2006, The New Global Puzzle. What World for the EU in 2025? The report stressed that a multipolar system is emerging and that matching the new distribution of power with new rules and institutions will be critical to preserving international peace and stability.
thank you for your service maam and thank you for finding out about Me-chelle’s actual lib motives. Her hubby hates the US military and what it stands for. Marine “corpse” men, anyone?
sorry, Navy “corpse” man to Sotero.
please its a politcs daily a left wing front group obama pr piece.
Really?
Because I am still waiting to see this for myself. After I got out of the military I didn’t find a job until I took the word ‘Army’ out of my resume and replaced it with ‘Dept. of Defense employee’. All this crap about employers being veteran friendly is nothing more often than not public relations BS in my experience.
Bump and save for reading, after I read Michelle’s entire speech.
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