Read the entire story at http://www.commondreams.org/view/2011/10/08-4

Everyone’s heard the definition of a boat: “A hole in the water into which one throws money.” I think a similar definition applies to our war in Afghanistan, but no one asked me.

. . . so sayeth the Stephen

With one twin son in Kandahar, his second time in Afghanistan, and his brother twin in the 10th Special Forces with one tour in Iraq under his belt, I know how I feel, but Leo’s essay isn’t about me, nor the twins for that matter. It’s about us, America, and what’s become of us. Read it, then read it again, then send Leo’s link to those you care about.

If you’ve a mind to pick up the phone and verbally drag some sad-sack politician through the high weeds, in the form of a downloadable spreadsheet titled “Who’s Who in Washington”, I have created a list, yours and mine, of the denizens which swarm Washington DC’s smelly under-belly. Save it from the Website to your desktop and use it. If you have trouble with the download, email me and I’ll email your personal copy right back (or as soon as I see your request.)

… so sayeth the Stephen

I stayed in formation and followed along in an ever lengthening parade of other Johnny-come-latelies in the somber hope that someone would leave and I would have unrestricted access to their spot. That wasn’t to happen either . . .

This is a good place to mention that I have a Handicapped sticker thingy hanging from my rear-view mirror, but in a land where EVERYONE has a Handicapped sticker, it becomes a moot point. Back to my story . . .

I finally gave up the search and elected to park on the grass behind the parking area on the far eastern side of the lot. To the uninitiated, without leaving the facility proper, that’s about as far from the front door as one can get. With some delicacy, it was over the curb and hope I didn’t get towed.

The queue at Central Check-in went quickly, but there were 40 people ahead of me for Labs. The auto counter read “107″. I pulled “148″. Ok . . . my Primary Care appointment was still 2 hours away and I’d brought something to read. I found an empty chair and planted myself. Two hours is, in the grand scheme of things, a long time, but when my Primary Care appointment was in just 15 minutes, I was thrilled when I heard a shrill voice yell, “One forty-eight? Who’s got number one forty-eight. I jumped to my feet and followed the guy in the scrubs to a blood-letting station in the back of the lab.

He asked if I was doing alright today and I answered in the affirmative and mentioned my Primary Care appointment was in something less then 15 minutes. He responded that they (Lab techs) were running late because of a personnel shortage that day. Not finding a convenient artery in the crux of my elbow, he asked if he could stick the back of my hand. “Nail it!” I said, and he did.

Dripping blood from the back of my hand, I arrived in the primary care clinic just as my name was called.

The good Doc and I went over my meds and he made a slight change, then came the kind of surprise one likes to hear. “Your labs just hit.” He said, “and you’ll be happy to know your A1c is 6.1. Everything else looks ok, so you’re good to go. Tell the nurse to give you a Flu shot on your way out.”

I said, “Really? My A1c is 6.1? Am I to understand my Diabetes is cured? Can I stop taking all these pills and shots?”

“I wouldn’t say that, but you definitely have it under control. We’re going to gradually cut back on your insulin and keep an eye on your A1c. You’ll never be cured, but if you can keep control of your glucose levels, you’re probably going to live longer.”

I’m thinking this ain’t all bad when Bam! The nurse hits my left arm with the flu shot. I’m no wuss and I’m used to shots, but I swear the needle was 6 inches long and had a square point.

Bottom-line, the tariff in time was a grind, parking sucked, but the outcome was stupendous. Wow! What great news.

Finally, just so everybody knows, Monday next, the 10th, will be the one-year anniversary of filing my VA claim. No, I haven’t seen a dime, and eBenefits says the same thing it always says, “Claim Status: Development Phase.” Go figure, eh . . . .

Jim Strickland answers these questions in an expose’ in today’s VA Watchdog. He names, names as he give sage and salient advice to Veterans.

Jim points out it costs the veteran nothing to file a claim with the VA. If the veteran is denied benefits, the veteran may pay an advocate to help in the denial of denial. There are many excellent advocates ready and able to help.

If you’ve been on the losing end of such a fraud, notify the VA. They will pursue legal action against the miscreant.

The VAWatchdog Web page lists several lawyer/ law firms that are qualified and approved by the VA to help veterans. To that list I’ll add Attorney Robert Walsh in Battle Creek, MI. His phone number is: (269) 962-9693.

Leann Murphy-Baker also provides the following URL where a Veteran can find out if someone is an accredited VSO.

If you’ve had a less than experience with a VSO, or so call expert, please share it with us!

What say you? Did I screw up? Is the VSO correct? This is what Jim Strickland had to say:

“The VSO is correct. Sort of. I recommend that no more than one or two claims be submitted at once. It can and does slow the process down if the claims are disparate. I’ve seen as many as 14 claims filed when the big claim was a service connected (agent orange) lung cancer. It really gummed up the works and the young VSO thought she was being thorough and she would show VA who was boss. I came in when 13 were denied and the primary condition was rated at 0%. If you file 5 or 6 claims it is likely that even if you win all of them, only the first 2 will make up the rating. That’s because of the effect of the CRT…VA math. It’s my opinion that you choose 2 claims that are clear winners and you submit those as perfected as possible. Then you wait for a decision before moving ahead with any other claims. Very few people have 6, 8, 10 or more well grounded claims. Most have 1. If the primary claim is a heavy hitter, go for it alone. VA raters are human and have short attention spans. You don’t want the water any muddier than it is already.”

. . . so sayeth the Strickland

“Today you can file for anything that comes to your mind. However, if your claim doesn’t have evidence, if you don’t have a current condition, if you haven’t been treated for what you want to claim, do your homework before you file.”

All of Jim Strickland’s “Pro-Tips” can be found on his excellent Website for Veterans: VAWatchdogToday

Jim Strickland and Wendi Goodman have a site called: VAWatchdogToday, and an accompanied Facebook page. It is one stop shopping for information every Veteran can use.

Wendi also has a blog where she writes about her and others experiences as they traverse the VA trail to Nirvana.

Both are sites to bookmark and visit frequently.