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O7 Florida Hispanic Yearbook, FLHY
Service in Iraq:
Just How Risky?
Arlington National Cemetery
VHA Information Letter 10-2006-010,
Potential Health Effects Among Veterans Involved in Military
Chemical Warfare Agents Experiments Conducted from 1955 to
VHA Handbook 1170.1, Accreditation of
Veterans Health Administration Rehabilitation Programs
Released Testimony: Privacy:
Preventing and Responding to Improper Disclosures of
Personal Information
Veterans History Project (VHP)
Purchased Health Care Services
Procedures Handbook
VHA Directive 2006-037 approved for
U.S. Latino & Latina WWII Oral History
Agent Orange - Court of Appeals
- August 16, 2006
August 10, 2006
- Statement by the Hispanic War Veterans
of America about today's Senate event on protecting Vet's
Holding Three in Connection With VA Computer Theft
statement by HOMELAND SECURITY
SECRETARY MICHAEL CHERTOFF announcing a change to the
nation's threat level for the aviation sector
Our Veterans' Missing Medals
Symposium for Young Veterans
Puerto Rico Plight
HR 4992 - Veterans
Medicare Assistance Act - Medicare Coverage for Veterans at
VA Hospitals
Now Online for Veterans
official, DD-214's are NOW Online.
Chaplains Corp Oldest in Military
identifies Corps' third woman KIA
Service in Iraq:
Just How Risky?
Washington Post Article
By Samuel H. Preston and Emily Buzzell
Saturday, August 26, 2006; Page A21
consequences of Operation Iraqi Freedom for U.S. forces are
being documented by the Defense Department with an
exceptional degree of openness and transparency. Its daily
and cumulative counts of deaths receive a great deal of
publicity. But deaths alone don't indicate the risk for an
individual. For this purpose, the number of deaths must be
compared with the number of individuals exposed to the risk
of death. The Defense Department has supplied us with
appropriate data on exposure, and we take advantage of it to
provide the first profile of military mortality in Iraq.
March 21, 2003, when the first military death was recorded
in Iraq, and March 31, 2006, there were 2,321 deaths among
American troops in Iraq. Seventy-nine percent were a result
of action by hostile forces. Troops spent a total of 592,002
"person-years" in Iraq during this period. The ratio of
deaths to person-years, .00392, or 3.92 deaths per 1,000
person-years, is the death rate of military personnel in
How does
this rate compare with that in other groups? One meaningful
comparison is to the civilian population of the United
States. That rate was 8.42 per 1,000 in 2003, more than
twice that for military personnel in Iraq.
comparison is imperfect, of course, because a much higher
fraction of the American population is elderly and subject
to higher death rates from degenerative diseases. The death
rate for U.S. men ages 18 to 39 in 2003 was 1.53 per 1,000
-- 39 percent of that of troops in Iraq. But one can also
find something equivalent to combat conditions on home soil.
The death rate for African American men ages 20 to 34 in
Philadelphia was 4.37 per 1,000 in 2002, 11 percent higher
than among troops in Iraq. Slightly more than half the
Philadelphia deaths were homicides.
The death
rate of American troops in Vietnam was 5.6 times that
observed in Iraq. Part of the reduction in the death rate is
attributable to improvements in military medicine and such
things as the use of body armor. These have reduced the
ratio of deaths to wounds from 24 percent in Vietnam to 13
percent in Iraq. Some other factors to be considered:
Branch of
service: Marines are paying the highest toll in Iraq. Their
death rate is more than double that of the Army, 10 times
higher than that of the Navy and 20 times higher than for
the Air Force. In fact, those in the Navy and Air Force have
substantially lower death rates than civilian men ages 20 to
Among the
Marines, there is in effect no difference in the mortality
risks for members on active duty and those in the reserve.
In the Army, on the other hand, reservists have 33 percent
of the death rate of those in active service because they
are not assigned to combat positions. Members of the Army
National Guard are intermediate in assignments and in
Rank: In
both the Army and the Marines, enlisted personnel have 40
percent higher mortality than officers. The excess mortality
of enlisted soldiers is diminished by the high mortality of
the lowest-ranking officers, lieutenants, who are typically
the leaders of combat patrols. Lieutenants have the highest
mortality of any rank in the Army, 19 percent higher than
all Army troops combined. Marine Corps lieutenants have 11
percent higher mortality than all Marines. But the single
highest-mortality group in any service consists of lance
corporals in the Marines, whose death risk is 3.3 times that
of all troops in Iraq.
Age, sex ,
race and ethnicity: In contrast to the civilian population,
mortality rates decline precipitously with age. Troops ages
17 to 19 have a death risk 4.6 times that of those 50 and
older. Differences in rank by age undoubtedly contribute to
this pattern, and so do differences in branch of service.
Sixty-five percent of Marine deployments to Iraq were of
those age 24 or younger, compared with only 39 percent of
Army deployments. Women are not assigned to combat
specialties in Iraq, although they do see enemy fire; their
death rate is 18 percent that of men.
Identifying racial and ethnic differences in mortality is
not straightforward because the Defense Department uses a
different classification system for deaths than for
deployments. Nevertheless, all attempts we have made to
reconcile the two systems reach the same conclusion:
Hispanics have a death risk about 20 percent higher than
non-Hispanics, and blacks have a death risk about 30 to 40
percent lower than that of non-blacks. That low death rate
appears to result from an overrepresentation of blacks in
low-risk categories: For example, 19 percent of blacks in
Iraq are women, compared with 9 percent of non-blacks, while
7 percent of blacks in Iraq are Marines, compared with 13
percent of non-blacks.
casualties: The number of wounded in Iraq through March 31,
2006, was 7.5 times the number of dead; the rate at which
wounds are incurred was one per 33 troops per year. We do
not have the same information about the characteristics of
those wounded as we have about those killed. But given the
overwhelming importance of hostile encounters in both wounds
and deaths, it is likely that variations in the risk of
being wounded are quite similar to those presented here.
Samuel H. Preston is the Frederick J. Warren professor of
demography at the University of Pennsylvania. Emily Buzzell
is a student in the Health and Societies Program at Penn.
Veterans History
Project (VHP)
Library of Congress is collecting oral/written histories
from our
veterans. A PDF of their
brochure can be viewed by clicking on this link
be doing a number of veterans' groups this Fall and I plan
to tell them about the Veterans' History Project and hand
out the printed brochures so that they can tell their
stories and be included. I think this is an important
project and worth our involvement with very little effort on
our part. If you want printed brochures, please contact
Jeffrey Lofton and he'll be happy to send them.
Jeffrey Lofton, APR
Public Affairs Specialist, Veterans History Project
The Library of Congress
101 Independence Ave., SE
Washington, DC 20540-4615
Tel: 202-707-6432
Fax: 202-252-2046
U.S. Latino & Latina WWII Oral History Project
Since 1999, the U.S. Latino & Latina
WWII Oral History Project at the University of Texas at
Austin has captured the untold stories of this WWII
generation. Altogether, the project videotaped more than
five hundred interviews throughout the country and in Puerto
Rico and Mexico.
This volume features summaries of the
interviews and photographs of the individuals. Among the
people included are Mexican American civil rights leaders
such as Pete Tijerina and Albert Armendariz of the Mexican
American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF) and
Virgilio Roel of the League of United Latin American
Citizens (LULAC). Others are community leaders such as Pete
and Elena Gallego of Alpine, Texas, and military leaders
such as Colonel Hank Cervantes and flying ace Richard
Women who served in the military are
also included. There are academic trailblazers, too, such as
Frank Bonilla, who became a major figure in Puerto Rican
studies. And there are a few Latinos who describe serving in
segregated "colored" units during the war, as their physical
features placed them in African American communities.
Overall, the vast majority of the men
and women interviewed in
Legacy Greater Than Words led private lives, and
their stories chronicle the everyday existence of Latinos in
the 1930s and 1940s—stories that generally have been omitted
from historical accounts of either the Great Depression or
World War II.
Reviews on " A Legacy Greater than
summaries of most of our interviews, with thumbnail photos
of most interview subjects. There are 20 chapters and
subchapters with lengthy historical intros, featuring quotes
from our interviews. We didn't stint on paper, used a more
expensive paper so that it would reproduce better, and a
better binding, so it would last. There are only paperbacks
and they're available for $30 donations-- plus $5 if we need
to ship it. We wish we could give them all away free, but it
took us a small chunk of change to produce it -- We worked
on it since last spring, through the summer, the fall and
over Christmas break, we had 5 people plowing away to square
away the zillions of details, like DOB, names of spouses,
children, units, etc. So, in producing the book, we also
added to the accuracy and detail within our files. It's
self-published, but UT Press is distributing it.
We are hoping some folks might buy multiple copies. Carlos
Velez-Ibanez, at ASU, in fact, just bought his first 50
copies. So, for your single or multiple copies, send us a
check and we'll send you the book/s. If you want them
inscribed, let us know what you want the inscription to say.
Maggie Rivas-Rodriguez, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, School of Journalism
University of Texas at Austin
1 University Station A1000
Austin, Texas, 78712
Legacy Greater than Words is a book that should be read and
available in all libraries and used as a reader in
Chicano/Latino Studies classes. Thanks to the U.S. Latino &
Latina WWII Oral History Project the contributions and
sacrifices of our WWII Chicano/Latino veterans are now well
documented and available to the public. The book is timely
given the current immigration debate and debacle in our
nation. I encourage you to purchase the book.
Gus Chavez
Former Director (retired)
Office of EOP & Ethnic Affairs
San Diego State University
Agent Orange - Court of Appeals
August 16, 2006
Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims recently held that VA
regulations defining who had service in Vietnam for the
purpose of establishing a presumption to exposure to
herbicides (e.g. Agent Orange) were too restrictive.
Consequently, those who served in Thailand, Laos and
Cambodia or on Navy ships off the coast of Vietnam may be
eligible for service connection of certain cancers,
including lung and prostate cancer, as well as Type 2
Veterans who were previously denied service connection for a
presumptive disability should reopen their claim with the
VA. Those who have a presumptive disability should apply
immediately for service connection.
who receive service connection for any disability are
entitled to free
treatment for that condition at any VA medical facility and
may be entitled
to a
monthly payment from the VA."
to Haas vs. Nicholson No. 04-0491 Decided August 16, 2006
Unquiet Minority
August 1, 2006
By Karen Rutzick
hold a smaller percentage of jobs in federal agencies than
in the private sector, and they're not happy.
At Gilbert Sandate's [from Newton Kansas - aws] retirement
celebration of a three-decade career in federal service,
Democratic Rep. Charles Gonzalez, a fellow Texan, rose to
make a speech. In Sandate, he said, the Library of Congress
was not only losing an accomplished employee, but a rare
breed in the federal government: an executive of Hispanic
origin. Gonzalez, who chairs the Congressional Hispanic
Caucus' task force on the census and civil rights, announced
at the May 23 party that he and several other
representatives have asked the Government Accountability
Office to find out just why the Sandates of government are
so uncommon.
The numbers are clear, even if the reasons for them are
not. According to the Office of Personnel Management's most
recent figures, in "Hispanic Employment Program Statistical
Report, February 2006" Hispanics comprise 7.4 percent of the
federal workforce compared with 12.6 percent of the general
workforce - a five percentage-point gap. They are the only
minority that is underrepresented. At the executive level,
the problem is even more pronounced. Hispanics account for
only 3.5 percent of senior-level federal employees and 4.6
percent of GS-13 to GS-15 managers.
Sandate spent 20 years bottlenecked as a GS-15. He applied,
unsuccessfully, for about 30 Senior Executive Service
positions, and bounced from the Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission to the Internal Revenue Service to the
Transportation Department and finally to the Library of
Congress in an effort to move up. He left government as the
library's director of workforce diversity
"Reaching the SES level is without question the hardest
thing imaginable," says Sandate, who has held a number of
leadership roles in groups promoting Hispanic em-ployment in
government and is chairman of the Coalition for Fairness for
Hispanics in Government. "I had so many doors slammed in my
face, generally because there was always someone, ostensibly
at least, better qualified."
Their scarcity at the top of government is alarming
Hispanics. "Candidly, the federal government and government
service has always been the door to opportunity for
minorities," Gonzalez says. "We know that, and that is a
historical fact. Hispanics can't really lag behind in what
should be the widest and most open door. I guess the crux of
it really is, wait a minute, this is probably where we have
the greatest opportunity to come into the great middle class
of America."
A lack of Hispanics where decisions about the allocation of
federal dollars are made has repercussions beyond missed job
opportunities, according to another attendee at Sandate's
send-off. Jose Osegueda, an executive at the Agriculture
Department, is president of the National Association of
Hispanic Federal Executives. "Those decisions are more than
likely being made without our input, our voice and our
recommendations," Osegueda says. "We think our community
will continue to have limited access to education, health
care and social services" without increased Hispanic federal
Survival Issue
As the Hispanic population rapidly grows - census data has
Hispanics making up a quarter of the population by 2050 -
the federal-civilian gap could widen. "What does it mean
when you have 50 percent of the kids in Texas and 50 percent
of the kids in California who are Latino in the first grade,
and you have less than 3 percent representation in the
Department of Education? A lack of awareness of the
bilingual, bicultural issues that are facing America," says
Harry Pachon, professor of public policy at the University
of Southern California and a former federal employee.
OPM puts Hispanic representation in the Education
Department at 4.2 percent for fiscal 2005, down slightly
from the year before. Data supporting Osegueda's and
Pachon's claims about funding allocation remains largely
anecdotal, yet potent in the community. "Government jobs in
particular are very important to our community because the
government has control of the purse strings," says Brent A.
Wilkes, executive director of the League of United Latin
American Citizens. "We end up losing out on all the federal
grants and opportunities that are there for the entire
country." LULAC, the largest Hispanic organization in the
country and one that deals with every Hispanic issue from
immigration reform to civil rights, runs an annual training
institute to encourage Hispanic federal job seekers.
Sandate's career illustrates the importance of having a
presence in government. When he began working at the Library
of Congress in 2002, he noticed that the Veterans History
Project included testimony from few Hispanic veterans - a
group, Sandate says, that has earned more Congressional
Medals of Honor - 39 - than any other identifiable ethnic
minority and that accounts for 13 percent of the casualties
in Iraq.
"There had never been any effort to reach out to the
Hispanic veteran community to try to include some of those
histories in the American archives," Sandate says. "We were
able to connect that program staff with some of the key
Hispanic organizations." As a Hispanic executive, Sandate
was there to observe the problem and had the power to fix
Public-private Hispanic employment disparity has caught the
attention of human resources thinkers outside the Hispanic
community, too. As baby boomers retire and Hispanics'
numbers boom, agencies will need them, says Max Stier,
president of the nonprofit Partnership for Public Service in
Washington. "When you consider that [the Hispanic] talent
cohort is growing very quickly, this is vital for the future
of the federal government," he says. "If the federal
government is going to get the talent it needs, it needs to
recruit the talent that exists."
Sean Clayton, an African American who chairs the National
Council of Hispanic Employment Program Managers, echoes
Stier. "It's . . a survival issue, although not just the
survival of a community but the survival of the nation," he
says. "If you look at where the job growth is taking place
and who is going to be in the workforce of the future, you
are definitely going to see that one out of four new hires
[is] going to be Hispanic within the next 40 years."
Keep at It
Richard Nixon was the first to address the relative dearth
of Hispanics in government with his 1970 Sixteen-Point
Program for the Spanish-Speaking. President Bill Clinton
created an interagency task force on Hispanic federal
employment in the 1990s. And yet, in 2006, the gap remains.
Demographic shifts, however, including the impending
retirement wave and Hispanic population growth, have given
solution-makers hope. Gonzalez's GAO report, due out at the
end of July, is just one of several new looks at the issue.
The Merit Systems Protection Board is initiating a set of
studies on federal diversity, including focus groups and
statistical surveys, and Hispanic representation is on the
list. "We are concerned with why Hispanics are really the
primary underrepresented group in the country," says John
Crum, MSPB deputy director. "Why is that occurring? We don't
really know. We may or may not get an answer. When you start
this research, you don't always know what you'll find."
But Crum and his staff have some hypotheses that, if proved
true, could guide a shift in how agencies approach Hispanic
recruitment. One has to do with the average age of an
employee hired into federal service: 35. "We think there may
be assessment issues," Crum says. "The government may reward
training and experience too much. Hispanics tend to be
younger on average . . . does that make them less capable to
do the job? Not necessarily. We may not be getting at a
person's potential, but really how old they are."
In May, Stier's group released a report on rethinking
college campus recruitment for federal jobs. One of the
targets was Hispanics, and one of the target institutions
was the University of New Mexico, picked for its high
percentage of Hispanic students. The Partnership for Public
Service found that of white, Asian, black and Hispanic
students surveyed, Hispanics showed the highest interest in
government careers, with 51 percent indicating they were
"extremely" or "very interested." At the same time, they
were the least knowledgeable about government opportunities,
with 62 percent rated "not knowledgeable."
"There is a huge opportunity that has not been realized,"
Stier says.
Sandate says he had such difficulty rising in government
because there were no Hispanic executives to mentor him. He
has mentored about 100 up-and-coming Hispanic federal
employees, calling them on the phone two or three times a
week to check in. One of them became the first Hispanic, and
bilingual, administrative law judge in the Social Security
Administration's Office of Appeals. Sandate's son works for
the Forest Service.
Not Everyone Agrees
"What we need is a comprehensive strategy developed by OPM
to say that [under-representation] is an issue of concern,"
says Pachon, the USC professor. LULAC's Wilkes says OPM,
which leads the Clinton-initiated task force and is
responsible for guiding agencies' Hispanic recruitment
initiatives, should demand accountability from agencies.
"I think that you had folks out there that basically were
trying to go through these process objectives instead of
talking about results," Wilkes says. They say, " 'Hey, we
went to that LULAC conference and exhibited, we got 600
applications.' None of them got jobs, but we don't say that.
'We took a Spanish ad out in a Spanish magazine.' They talk
about all the great things they're doing other than the fact
there is no progress in closing the gap. You can show
yourself looking busy, but [you are] really just treading
Legally, there is only so much OPM can do, says Antonio San
Martin Jr., a lawyer in the general counsel's office who
coordinates OPM's interaction with many Hispanic advocacy
groups. Policies aimed at specific goals, such as parity
with the civilian labor force, are not legal. "I can't show
up to a conference with 50 jobs in my pocket and give them
out to the people there as door prizes," San Martin says.
"What we can give them is the information, the
accessibility, the opportunity, the encouragement to know
they will be treated fairly by the federal government. They
will be treated fairly on the merits."
A June GAO report (GAO-06-214) on the intertwined roles of
OPM and EEOC in guiding federal workplace diversity found
managers had mixed opinions of OPM's guidance on the
Hispanic issue. Forty-three percent received zero feedback
from OPM on their agency's Hispanic employment initiatives.
Of those who heard from the agency, only about 7 percent
found the information very useful and 11 percent somewhat
Not everyone believes OPM should do more. Curt Levey, a
private attorney, was involved in a 2002 reverse
discrimination lawsuit against the Housing and Urban
Development Department. He argued HUD was discriminating
against whites in order to increase minority representation,
even though there was no evidence of actual discrimination
against the minority groups. "The fact that the numbers are
not proportionate to the population does not mean there is
anything wrong," Levey says. "Different subgroups of people,
whether divided by gender or race, gravitate toward
different professions in different proportions. So to assume
that there is something that needs to be remedied is often a
Parity might not even be a realistic goal. Federal jobs
require U.S. citizenship, something not every Hispanic
working in the private sector has or needs. And many federal
jobs require higher levels of education than are common
among Hispanics, 57 percent of whom had high school diplomas
and 11 percent of whom held bachelor's degrees, according to
the 2000 census.
You can't slice it simply by race, says Roger Clegg of the
Center for Equal Opportunity, a Washington think tank
opposed to race-based preferences. "Let's suppose that the
problem is that the people who have not been in the United
States for as long a period of time are, for whatever
reason, less likely to apply to the federal government,"
Clegg says, "and a disproportionate number of Hispanics are
recent immigrants. Then what the federal government should
do is not reach out to Hispanics qua Hispanics; what
they should be doing is reaching out to recent immigrants.
There are obviously lots of recent immigrants who aren't
The National Association of Hispanic Federal Executives,
Osegueda's group, thinks otherwise, and they are not waiting
around for OPM to close the gap. "What are we doing
ourselves?" asks Al Gallegos, president of the Washington
chapter of the association. "Not just going out there
complaining. We're trying to be proactive."
The association is developing a workshop, scheduled to be
rolled out in November. Current Hispanic SES members will
lead it in their own agencies to help lower-level Hispanics
rise to the executive corps. The workshop will focus on
qualifications necessary to achieve SES positions and will
help participants plan years in advance to get into the
executive ranks.
The National Council of Hispanic Employment Program
Managers is taking things into its own hands, too. The group
started the annual Hispanic Youth Symposium, which this year
will host 550 high school students for three days at sites
in California, Maryland and Washington. A joint effort with
funding from corporations such as Kaiser Permanente and BB&T
bank, its aim is to plant the seeds of federal service
early. "We first [have] got to build a legacy of education
for these students, ensuring that they believe in college,"
says Jeffrey Vargas, an Energy Department employee and
former head of the council. "And then provide the bridge
between education and careers."
Some of the innovation comes from within agencies. The
Social Security Administration has 12.5 percent Hispanic
representation, right on par with the private sector, and
7.9 percent in the SES. What's the SSA's secret? Felicita
Sola-Carter, assistant deputy commissioner for human
resources and the first female Puerto Rican senior executive
in the agency, says it is leadership commitment, workforce
planning, aggressive recruitment and a business case hinged
on diversity. "We set out to represent the public we serve,"
Sola-Carter says. "That really has been our mantra."
SSA seeks employees fluent in Spanish to eliminate the need
to hire translators, making the agency more efficient.
Sola-Carter says Hispanic employees also have community
connections, which help in reaching out to customers. SSA
uses field offices as recruitment tools and its Hispanic
employees as recruiters. The agency also has a Hispanic
advisory council that meets periodically to suggest how to
better serve this group. SSA actively recruits on college
campuses with heavy Hispanic representation such as
California State University at Los Angeles, and engages in
national ad campaigns.
Sola-Carter, who began her career in 1971 in an SSA field
office in the Washington Heights neighborhood of New York,
says, "We have come a long way from occasionally showing up
at a college fair with a few handouts and a few applications
for employment."
Much of the rest of government still is catching up.
7.4% of the federal workforce is Hispanic
3.5% of senior-level federal employees are Hispanic
12.6% of the general workforce is Hispanic
12.5% of employees at the Social Security Administration are
13% of U.S. soldiers killed in Iraq were Hispanic
39 Hispanics have earned Congressional Medals of Honor
©2006 by National Journal Group Inc. All rights reserved.
Site URL:
Police Holding Three in
Connection With VA Computer Theft
By Karin
Brulliard and Christopher Lee
Washington Post Staff Writers
Saturday, August 5, 2006; 5:06 PM
people are in the custody of Montgomery County police in
connection with the May theft of computer equipment from the
home of a Veterans Administration analyst in Aspen Hill that
contained the names, birth dates and Social Security numbers
of millions of current and former service members.
The three
-- two Rockville 19-year-olds and a minor who was not
identified -- also stole jewelry and cash from the analyst's
home, and had no idea they had such sensitive information
from the computer and hard drive, Montgomery police said
today. The theft was the largest information security breach
in government history.
"As far as
we can determine, this was a random burglary," Police Chief
Thomas Manger said at an afternoon news conference. "They
did not know what they had."
identified the two adults under arrest as Jesus Alex Pineda,
19, of the 13000 block of Grenoble Drive and Christian Brian
Montano, 19, of the 13100 block of Grenoble Drive. Pineda
has been charged with first degree burglary and theft over
$500. Montano faces those charges, as well as conspiracy to
commit burglary and theft.
Both were
arrested last night at a McDonald's restaurant, police said.
The juvenile, whose arrest in the case is pending, was
already jailed on another charge. Police did not release any
information about him.
said the case was solved with the help of a tip called in to
the FBI, which passed on the information to Montgomery
police. The trio are suspects in at least five other
burglaries, he said.
computer equipment was recovered on June 28 when the person
who had the laptop contacted U.S. Park Police after seeing
news accounts and notices of a $50,000 reward offered by
Montgomery County police. Federal authorities said then that
the sensitive personal information of 26.5 million veterans
and military personnel apparently had not been accessed.
have not yet distributed the reward.
statement by
HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY MICHAEL CHERTOFF announcing
a change to the nation's threat level for the aviation
Department of Homeland Security
August 10,
DHS Press Office, 202-282-8010
Department of Homeland Security is taking immediate steps to
increase security measures in the aviation sector in
coordination with heightened security precautions in the
United Kingdom. Over the last few hours, British
authorities have arrested a significant number of extremists
engaged in a substantial plot to destroy multiple passenger
aircraft flying from the United Kingdom to the United
States. Currently, there is no indication, however, of
plotting within the United States. We believe that these
arrests have significantly disrupted the threat, but we
cannot be sure that the threat has been entirely eliminated
or the plot completely thwarted.
For that
reason, the United States Government has raised the nation's
threat level to Severe, or Red, for commercial flights
originating in the United Kingdom bound for the United
States. This adjustment reflects the Critical, or highest,
alert level that has been implemented in the United Kingdom.
To defend further against any remaining threat from this
plot, we will also raise the threat level to High, or
Orange, for all commercial aviation operating in or destined
for the United States. Consistent with these higher threat
levels, the Transportation Security Administration is
coordinating with federal partners, airport authorities and
commercial airlines on expanding the intensity of existing
security requirements. Due to the nature of the threat
revealed by this investigation, we are prohibiting any
liquids, including beverages, hair gels, and lotions from
being carried on the airplane. This determination will be
constantly evaluated and updated when circumstances warrant.
These changes will take effect at 4:00 AM local time across
the country. Travelers should also anticipate additional
security measures within the airport and at screening
measures will continue to assure that our aviation system
remains safe and secure. Travelers should go about their
plans confidently, while maintaining vigilance in their
surroundings and exercising patience with screening and
security officials.
The United
States and the United Kingdom are fully united and resolute
in this effort and in our ongoing efforts to secure our
respective homelands.
Our Veterans' Missing
8, 2006
Op-Ed Contributor
By JOSEPH A. KINNEY
Pinehurst, N.C.
Brian Chontosh is the kind of soldier who, in years past,
would have received a ticker-tape parade down Fifth Avenue.
As a
young lieutenant in 2003, he and his platoon were ambushed
near Baghdad. Machine gun fire, mortars and rocket-propelled
grenades spewed from every direction. Lieutenant Chontosh
ordered his Humvee directly into an enemy machine-gun
position, where his gunner destroyed the nest. He then
advanced on a trench, where he exited his vehicle and
scattered enemy fighters. After his ammunition was depleted,
he twice picked up an enemy's rifle and continued.
By the
time the smoke cleared, Lieutenant Chontosh had killed more
than 20 insurgents and saved the lives of dozens in his
platoon. For his incredible courage, he was awarded the Navy
Cross, the second-highest award given to Marines.
reasons I can't fathom, the Pentagon top brass don't feel
that our heroes in Iraq and Afghanistan are especially
meritorious. President Bush has yet to award a single Medal
of Honor to a living veteran of combat in either place.
(Only one has been given posthumously.)
the Vietnam War, 245 Medals of Honor were awarded. If
President Bush awarded the medals at roughly the same rate
for service in Iraq and Afghanistan, more than two dozen
would have been bestowed by now.
When I
called the Department of Defense to inquire, a public
affairs officer said he wondered whether our fighting style
might be less risky today than it was in Vietnam. How lame.
Fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan has been brutal, and many
of our troops have performed with incredible valor. Anyone
remember Falluja?
This is
more than an issue of justice denied. Tales of courage
inspire present and future warriors. They certainly
motivated my service in the Marine Corps in Vietnam. Today,
two of my four sons are good bets to join the Marines or
Special Forces. I don't want them to look to my generation
for heroes, but to their contemporaries.
I hope
President Bush will order a review of heroic acts performed
in Iraq and Afghanistan in the name of our freedom. Not
another minute should be lost in bestowing honors that are
A. Kinney is writing a book on the making of America's
National Symposium for
Young Veterans
address these problems of servicemembers returning from
Afghanistan and Iraq and their families, AMVETS is hosting
the National Symposium for the Needs of Young Veterans,
which is planned for October 18-22, 2006 in Chicago, Ill.
The symposium will bring together a diverse and
representative group of veterans to discuss how to ensure a
system of earned benefits that is both adequate and relevant
to the needs of younger veterans. Former Secretary of
Veterans Affairs Anthony J. Principi will co-chair the
symposium. For more information, visit
Rico Plight
Washington Times
Lawrence A. Hunter
Published August 2, 2006
Congress struggles over what to do about illegal aliens
coming to the United States from Mexico and Central America.
Yet a huge problem within the Hispanic branch of our own
American family is overlooked. Four million American
citizens of Hispanic origin struggle in Puerto Rico under
circumstances that can only be described as totally
un-American. The Institute for Policy Innovation described
this in a report three years ago ("Leave No State or
Territory Behind"). The Brookings Institution is publishing
a book with virtually the same findings.
born in Puerto Rico are American citizens with U.S.
passports who have all the rights of citizenship, including
dying for their country in the American military -- all the
rights that is except the right of electing voting Members
of Congress or voting for the president. Few "mainlanders"
recognize the U.S. has a colony, which they can visit
without a passport and whose residents may freely come to
the mainland to visit, work or live permanently without
presenting a passport, obtaining a visa or a green card or
going through customs.
1950 and the mid-1970s, Puerto Rico was considered by many a
showpiece of economic growth and educational advancement.
Since then, however, Puerto Rico's economy has been
stagnant, its standard of living has lagged, and the
educational system has deteriorated. Unemployment persists
at 11 percent, and labor force participation (60 percent) is
less than two-thirds the rate in the States, much lower than
any member country of the Organization for Economic
Cooperation and Development, including Mexico (82 percent).
half of Puerto Rico's residents still live below the U.S.
poverty line, and the gap in income relative to the mainland
continues to widen.
Brookings book and the IPI report constitute a consensus
among economists. Puerto Rico's lack of prosperity derives
from flawed tax policy and a bloated welfare state
stimulated and perpetuated not only by the government of
Puerto Rico but also by very smart tax lawyers who designed
fatally flawed tax policy for the U.S. government, which
benefited large multinational firms with territorial tax
credits but barely benefited the people of Puerto Rico.
the strategy did attract multinationals to Puerto Rico and
demonstrated for the relatively few hired how productive the
Puerto Rican people can be, the strategy ultimately
backfired. It was immensely costly to the Federal Treasury
-- on the order of $2.67 in tax benefits received for every
dollar of labor compensation paid -- and not only distorted
Puerto Rico's local politics, by making the tax incentive
dependent upon Puerto Rico's continued territorial status,
but also distorted the structure of production and
employment in Puerto Rico. Big multinational companies got
large tax credits, often for income attributed to Puerto
Rico but produced by activities in the States, resulting in
very few jobs or small-business opportunities for Puerto
Rico residents. As a result, 4 million people born in Puerto
Rico now live in the States where they can find a job and
tax breaks also exacerbated a willful blindness in
Washington of the urgent need to resolve the status debate.
Is Puerto Rico to become a state, remain a territory or gain
independence as a sovereign nation? The Bush administration
is to be commended for its recognition of the festering
political-status issue in its recent recommendations for
Congress to establish a formal process of Puerto Rico
self-determination to resolve permanent status in a timely
1996, with a generous 10-year phase-out period, Congress
repealed those tax credits, and the multinational firms have
remained on the island. But the history of corporate welfare
had created an economic strategy with one pillar --
perpetual dependency. In this regard, Puerto Rico's economic
problems are not unique and are only compounded by the
uncertain status situation.
This is
why a new economic strategy is required for Puerto Rico, one
that incorporates wise federal policies rather than
handouts; that encourages Puerto Rico to get its welfare
state under control. Members of Congress should read the
Brookings Book and IPI report and, at a minimum, create
national enterprise zones including Puerto Rico. That would
make it possible for these American citizens to climb the
ladder of prosperity and achieve the American Dream.
Companion national enterprise zone bills including Puerto
Rico were introduced by Rep. Paul Ryan, Wisconsin
Republican, and Sen. Sam Brownback, Kansas Republican, in
the last Congress. And Puerto Rico's newly elected nonvoting
Member of the House, Luis Fortuno, introduced similar
legislation (H.R. 2182) in this Congress.
National enterprise zones provide a practical way to get tax
policy right, easing regulations and establishing incentives
for private capital and enterprise to invest and flourish in
these lagging sectors of America, whether on the mainland or
on that little corner island of America 1,000 miles off the
coast of Florida.
Lawrence A. Hunter is a senior fellow at the Institute for
Policy Innovation and former staff director of the
congressional Joint Economic Committee.
HR 4992 - Veterans Medicare
Assistance Act - Medicare Coverage for Veterans at VA
Under current law, Medicare-eligible veterans are not
allowed to use Medicare coverage at local VA hospitals.
Instead, they are forced to decide between receiving medical
care at a VA hospital without being able to use Medicare to
help them make their bill payments, or using Medicare at a
non-VA hospital and losing the personalized veterans' care
of a VA hospital.
On March 16, 2006, Rep. Sue Kelly (NY) introduced HR 4992,
the Veterans Medicare Assistance Act, that would provide
Medicare eligible veterans with Medicare Subvention -- the
right to use Medicare benefits to help pay their bills at
local VA hospitals.
"Veterans pay into Medicare for most of their lives, yet
the law prohibits them from using Medicare benefits at a VA
hospital later in life," Kelly said. "VA hospitals
specialize in treating veterans' needs, and veterans should
not be forced to choose between cost and comfort. Veterans
should be eligible for the same Medicare benefits at a VA
hospital that they would have at any other hospital."
"The federal government needs to keep the promises made to
veterans and ease their financial burden by providing
Medicare benefits at VA hospitals," Kelly said. "Veterans
have remarkably served our country, and in return they
should have every health care option available to them. They
should not be forced to make unfair and complicated
financial decisions about their quality of health care."
DD 214 Now Online for
The National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) has provided
the following website for veterans to gain access their
DD-214 online: vetrecs.archives.gov. This may be
particularly helpful when a veteran needs a copy of his
DD-214 for employment purposes. NPRC is working to make it
easier for veterans with computers and Internet access to
obtain copies of documents from their military files.
Military veterans and the next of kin of deceased former
military members may now use a new online military personnel
records system to request documents. Other individuals with
a need for documents must still complete the Standard Form
180, which can be downloaded from the online web site.
Because the requester will be asked to supply all
information essential for NPRC to process the request,
delays that normally occur when NPRC has to ask veterans for
additional information will be minimized. The new web-based
application was designed to provide better service on these
requests by eliminating the records center's mailroom
processing time.
It's official, DD-214's
are NOW Online.
The National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) has provided
the following website for veterans to gain
access to their DD-214s online:
This may be particularly helpful when a veteran needs a copy
of his DD-214 for employment purposes. NPRC is working to
make it easier for veterans with computers and Internet
access to obtain copies of documents from their military
files. Military veterans and the next of kin of deceased
former military members may now use a new online military
personnel records system to request documents.
Other individuals with a need for documents must still
complete the Standard Form 180, which can be downloaded from
the online web site. Because the requester will be asked to
supply all information essential for NPRC to process the
request, delays that normally occur when NPRC has to ask
veterans for additional information will be minimized. The
new web-based application was designed to provide better
service on these requests by eliminating the records
center's mailroom processing time.
Airborne Chaplains Corp
Oldest in Military
1, 2006
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Filed at 4:42 a.m. ET
BRAGG, N.C. (AP) -- They look like the other soldiers, but
the Army's airborne chaplains are noncombatants who carry
camo-clad Bibles instead of weapons when it's time to leap
from aircraft onto the battlefield.
Chaplains were authorized for the Army by the Continental
Congress in 1775, making the Army Chaplains Corps the oldest
in the American military. Today, chaplains are paired with
well-armed enlisted soldiers in a Unit Ministry Team, or UMT,
as they walk a line between the military and a supreme
Monday, about 50 chaplains and their assistants from
airborne units jumped from the ramps of C-130 aircraft with
350 other soldiers at a sandy drop zone deep inside the huge
Fort Bragg post. Many of the other chaplains based at Bragg
didn't make the jump because they were deployed or preparing
to deploy.
''Soldiers regardless of their faith background have a deep
respect for the unit ministry team -- the chaplain and
chaplain's assistant -- because they see them as their
pastors on the battlefield,'' Sgt. Maj. Stephen Stott, 44,
the senior chaplain's assistant for the 18th Airborne Corps,
said last week.
said chaplain teams spend much of their time prior to a
deployment preparing soldiers for the harsh reality of
military life.
the Army, there are 2,600 active-duty chaplains and
assistants and the same number of National Guard and Reserve
members, said Lt. Col. Randall Dolinger at the Army's Office
of Chief of Chaplains. The number includes Special
Operations, but the service doesn't talk about them, he
chaplains have been killed in Iraq or Afghanistan, but one
was severely wounded. More than 200 denominations have had
chaplains in the Army, but Protestant are the most
daily life of a chaplain in a combat zone can be dangerous:
Lt. Col. Jerry Powell, a nondenominational minister from
Kansas City, was ambushed while riding in a convoy to
conduct a memorial service in Iraq for a member of the
civilian police force in Baghdad.
was just part of doing ministry,'' Powell said. ''Gunfire
exchanged, we kept moving. It's a whole lot different from
getting caught in a traffic jam (at home) while doing
Pat Hash, chief chaplain for the 18th Airborne Corps and a
former Special Operations chaplain in Iraq and Afghanistan,
said military chaplains are different from those in civilian
churches because they are with soldiers ''out on the ranges
and jumping out of airplanes.''
former infantry officer who went to a Southern Baptist
seminary, Hash said there is no conflict between ministry
and combat. Soldiers have a job to do and ''we're there to
walk alongside those soldiers as they face some of the
challenges and turmoil of life,'' he said.
Chaplains don't seek converts but they rarely see a
committed atheist during combat, Hash said.
interesting how people, even though they say they're
atheists, are drawn to some type of faith when they have to
face stressful and difficult situations like war will
bring,'' he said.
DoD identifies Corps' third
woman KIA
The third
female Marine to be killed in action during Operation Iraqi
Freedom died April 8, the Defense Department announced
Lance Cpl.
Juana Navarro Arellano, 24, of Ceres, Calif., died from
wounds she received while supporting combat operations in
Anbar province, Iraq.
to a Defense Department release, Navarro was assigned to the
9th Engineer Support Battalion, 3rd Marine Logistics Group,
which is based in Okinawa, Japan.
In June
2005, Cpl. Ramona Valdez and Lance Cpl. Holly Charette, who
were assigned to the 2nd Marine Division, were killed by a
car bomb in Fallujah. Before Navarro's death, Valdez and
Charette had been the only female Marines killed in Iraq
since U.S. forces entered the country in March 2003, a
Pentagon spokesman said.
Forwarded by Kevin Secor, VSO Liaison, Office of the
Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs.
An organization called Veterans Affairs Services (VAS) is
providing benefit and general information on VA and
gathering personal information on veterans. This
organization is not affiliated with VA in any way. http://www.vaservices.org/us/index.html
VAS may be gaining access to military personnel through
their close resemblance to the VA name and seal. Our Legal
Counsel has requested that we coordinate with DoD to inform
military installations, particularly mobilization sites, of
this group and their lack of affiliation or endorsement by
VA to provide any services.
In addition, GC requests that if you have any examples of
VAS acts that violate chapter 59 of Title 38 United States
Code, such as VAS employees assisting veterans in the
preparation and presentation of claims for benefits, please
pass any additional information to Mr.Daugherty at the
address below.
Michael G. Daugherty
Staff Attorney
Department of Veterans Affairs
Office of General Counsel (022G2)
Articles in
July 2006 -
Click on an article to access
Lawsuit Not the Answer in VA Security Breach Says American
VA's Mansfield: No need for credit
monitoring services
Laptop with sensitive Agriculture Department info stolen
from car
Requests Investigation of VA's Efforts to Treat Veterans
with Traumatic Brain Injury
Texas Family
Loses Both Sons to War
Hispanic Population Has Grown More
Numerous Than Asian- and African-Americans in 26 of the 50
Tells Gold Star Mothers Their Sacrifice Not in Vain
VA Services Continues at Walla Walla
Deputy Secretary Mansfield Honored by DAV
"Disabled Vet of the Year" Honor Goes to VA's
U.S. urged to apologize for 1930s
Lawsuit Not the Answer
in VA Security Breach Says American Legion
To: National Desk Contacts: Ramona Joyce, 202‑263‑2982 or
202‑445‑1161 (cell) or Joe March, 317‑630‑1253 or
317‑748‑1926 (cell) both of the American Legion
INDIANAPOLIS, June 7 /U.S. Newswire/ – American Legion
National Commander Thomas L. Bock today said he is
encouraged that Congress and the administration are
scrutinizing the lapse in procedure that led to the largest
information security breach in the history of the Department
of Veterans Affairs (VA). However, the leader of the
world's largest veterans organization added that, "VA must
do everything possible to ensure that the personal
information of America's veterans, Active Duty, Guard and
Reserve personnel is never stored, packaged or transferred
in a method that will allow such an enormous loss to result
from the lapse in judgment of a single VA employee."
"The loss of more than 26 million veterans records to
include spouses, Active Duty, Guard and Reserve members, is
an inexcusable betrayal of trust," Bock said. "However, we
must now allow the office of the VA Inspector General, the
FBI, the Attorney General's office and Congress to resolve
this issue while at the same time taking steps to ensure
that the 26 million veterans and active servicemembers who
are on the stolen list do not suffer further anguish as a
result of criminal activity."
While a few veterans' organizations may believe that filing
suit against VA will help veterans, Commander Bock urges
patience in allowing the existing offices of oversight to
complete their analysis of this situation. "The Executive
and Legislative branches of our government are working
toward a fair and expeditious resolution to this matter.
Dragging the Judicial branch into this by filing a lawsuit
will only impede the process" added Bock. "It is unlikely
that the threat of a lawsuit against the VA would act as a
catalyst for the speedier recovery of the lost information.
Neither would it expedite the passing of legislation that
would compensate veterans for the cost of monitoring and
protecting their current credit ratings and personal
accounts or for those who may become victims of identity
Bock further stressed the importance of a swift resolution
to this issue by avoiding the inevitable delays and unfair
rulings that often result from class action suits. "The
outcome of the Agent Orange class action settlement should
serve as a reminder that judicial oversight isn't always the
best remedy," said Bock. "This historic case did not equate
to fair compensation for veterans exposed to Agent Orange.
Out of about 105,000 claims received, 52,000 totally
disabled veterans or their survivors received payments
averaging approximately $3,800. This certainly didn't cover
the health care for these severely disabled veterans.
However, the lawyers who split the $9.2 million granted by
Judge Weinstein weren't complaining."
In addition to a fair and expeditious resolution to this
breach of security at VA, Bock also called for a complete
review of IT security government‑wide. "I am sure that VA
isn't the only agency within our government that needs to
overhaul its IT security protocol. I urge the President to
review each agency to ensure that the personal information
of all Americans is secure."
VA's Mansfield: No need for credit monitoring services
July 18, 2006
By Rick Maze
Times staff writer
Department of Veterans Affairs sees no need to provide
credit monitoring services to service members and veterans
because officials are fairly confident that nobody made
copies of the personal data of more than 28 million people
that was stolen in the May 3 theft of computer equipment
from a VA employee's home.
Gordon H.
Mansfield, the VA's deputy secretary, told the House
Veterans' Affairs Committee on Tuesday that recovery of the
stolen equipment makes a lot of proposed legislation
unnecessary. "The FBI has concluded with a high degree of
confidence that, based upon its forensic examination and
other evidence developed during its investigation, the
veterans' data were not accessed or compromised prior to
their recovery," Mansfield said. "That development has
eliminated the need for much of what is proposed in the
legislation, and while we understand the concerns that
engendered these eight bills, we do not support their
example, Mansfield doesn't support the Veterans' Identity
Protection Act, H.R. 5455, that would require the VA to
notify people whenever personal information is lost, to
provide one year of free credit monitoring and free credit
reports over two years. The recovery of the data, which law
enforcement officials said appears to be uncompromised,
eliminated the need to offer credit monitoring or additional
free credit reports at this time," he said.
concerned about their credit can get a free copy of their
credit report once every year, he said.
One idea
Mansfield does support is a provision of the Veterans
Identity Security Act of 2006, H.R. 5467, which creates
criminal penalties for disclosing without authority any
personal information about veterans. The new criminal
offense would apply to VA employees, volunteers and
contractors who could face up to 10 years' imprisonment for
selling or attempting to sell personal information for
personal gain or trying to harm someone.Mansfield said the
VA would work with the House committee on details for the
Laptop with sensitive
Agriculture Department info stolen from car
July 18, 2006
another case of someone stealing a federal government
computer with personal information on it.
This time
it's a laptop swiped from the car of an Agriculture
Department worker in Kansas. The names, addresses and
Social Security numbers of about 350 employees may have been
accessed before the machine was returned to a meat plant. A
department spokesman says someone had obviously rummaged
through the case the laptop was in.
affected employees and state contractors work on federal
meat grading programs in 30 states and the nation's capital.
Back in
May, burglars stole a laptop from the home of a Veterans
Affairs worker. Although it was later recovered without
personal data being copied, it touched off concern for more
than 26 (m) million veterans and active troops.
2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material
may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or
Michaud Requests
Investigation of VA's Efforts to Treat Veterans with
Traumatic Brain Injury
WASHINGTON – Representative Michael Michaud (D-ME), the
Ranking Democratic Member of the Health Subcommittee of the
House Veterans' Affairs Committee, has asked the Government
Accountability Office (GAO), Congress' investigative arm, to
conduct a comprehensive study of the Department of Veterans
Affairs' (VA) efforts to identify and treat veterans with
mild traumatic brain injury (TBI).
"Many of our troops who survive the blasts from improvised
explosive devices are at risk of brain damage. With
thousands of our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan at risk of
TBI, this injury may be the silent signature wound of this
war," said Michaud.
Servicemembers who sustain a closed head injury may have a
mild TBI, which may not be readily identified by medical
professionals, veterans, or their families. Mild TBI
symptoms, including slower or confused thinking, memory
loss, and mood changes, may not be evident for months or
years after the initial injury.
Michaud's request for the GAO study came after newspaper
reports that researchers screening returning troops found
that 10% suffered at least one minor brain injury during
combat, which may go undiagnosed because troops have no
visible wounds.
In addition, the congressionally created VA Committee on the
Care of Severely Chronically Mentally Ill Veterans has
identified that the VA needs to develop resources to
identify and treat returning veterans who have brain
injury. The Committee recommended significant initiatives
to address the needs of veterans with TBI.
VA's Inspector General recently issued a report that gave
the VA mixed reviews for its treatment of severely and
moderately brain-injured veterans. VA's case management of
veterans care and support for families dealing with a
brain-injured veteran were inconsistent.
Michaud's request asks GAO to determine how the VA ensures
that veterans who have experienced a mild TBI are identified
and treated when they seek care at VA medical facilities,
how the VA provides the needed education and support for
families caring for veterans with TBI, and the obstacles to
identifying veterans with mild TBI.
[GAO letter attached, see 7-25-06 Letter to GAO pdf.]
Texas Family Loses Both Sons to
The Associated Press
Wednesday, July 26, 2006; 10:07 PM
LUBBOCK, Texas -- Less than two years ago, Roy Velez got the
worst news a father could get: His oldest son was dead,
killed during combat in Iraq.
This week, his pain only deepened with news that his
youngest son had died in Afghanistan.
Military officials notified the Velez family Tuesday of the
death of Army Spc. Andrew Velez, 22. His brother, Army Cpl.
Jose A. Velez, 23, died in November 2004 in Fallujah when
his unit came under fire while clearing an enemy stronghold.
"I can't be angry. I feel like my heart's been pulled out,"
Roy Velez said Tuesday. "We've done what the Lord allowed us
to do for our country.
"The family lost its only sons; there is one daughter.
The military does not have a regulation prohibiting the
deployment of family members at the same time. But families
can request that relatives return home if one is killed or
After his brother's death, the military gave Andrew Velez
the option of not returning to combat, Roy Velez said. But
Andrew Velez told his father he wanted to return to fight,
his father said.
"You always do it for your buddy next to you," Roy Velez
recalled his younger son saying.
Roy Velez last talked to Andrew Velez on the phone Saturday.
His son told him he'd had "six close calls" as they tracked
Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan, and that he was tired.
He was scheduled to return for 10 days of leave during the
last week of August. "He said, 'Daddy, I'll see you in
August,'" Roy Velez said.
Andrew Velez joined the Army about five years ago. He
graduated in 2002 from Estacado High School in Lubbock.
During his school years, he wrestled, played football and
basketball and ran track. He also loved playing golf.
His older brother, Jose, joined the Army after graduating
from the same high school in 2000 and hoped to attend
medical school one day. He played football and was an honor
After his death, Jose Velez was awarded two Purple Hearts,
the Bronze Star and a Silver Star. But burglars stole them
all from his parents' home in June.
On Monday, the medals were replaced, thanks to the
assistance of U.S. Rep. Randy Neugebauer, Roy Velez said.
"And today at 12:30 I learned my other son was killed in
action," he said late Tuesday.
Andrew Velez's survivors include his wife, Veronica Velez; a
daughter, Jasmine Jade, 5; and two sons, Jordan Davis, 3,
and Jacob Andrew, 2.
© 2006 The Associated Press
On Tuesday
July 11, 2006 ,as applause broke out from the crowd of more
than 400, the Friends of the El Dorado County Veterans
Monument lead by Founder, Richard W. Buchanan NC, dug up the
first shovels of dirt ending a ten year effort by veterans
and supporters to make the El Dorado County Veterans
Monument a reality. Dedication date has been scheduled for
Veterans Day, November 11, 2006. Among the guests of honor
will be, Paul"Pete" McCloskey NC, Tom Johnson Secretary
California Department of Veterans Affairs, members of the
Legion of Valor of the U.S.A., and numerous House and Senate
History; "The
El Dorado County Veterans Monument was first envisioned by
former United States Marine, Richard W. Buchanan during
the Vietnam War. On May 24, 1968, as 27th Marines moved
against well-entrenched enemy forces during the battle of Le
Bac (1), Buchanan witnessed numerous examples of the
American fighting spirit and selfless devotion to duty by
his fellow Marines, and Corpsmen. He vowed that their
dedication, and the dedication and sacrifices of other men
and women of our Armed Forces would not be forgotten.
vision was shared with architect, LCDR Peter Wolfe USCG
(RET), in 1997, and "Friends of the Veterans Monument", was
Monument site overlooks the Sierra-Nevada Mountains in
Placerville, California, and will occupy most of the 2 acre
Monument components will include; the 140' monument wall
made of stone. Monument Plaza, which will seat 500, and
include eleven flag poles honoring our Armed Forces
,Veterans Administration, POW, Veterans Organizations,
California, and the Stars and Stripes of the United States
of America. The 150' long entrance, "Walk of Honor", will be
graced by a 400lb. bronze American eagle, followed by
the 30' diameter, "Circle of Honor", where most of the 1000
engraved bricks honoring our American Veterans will be
displayed. The Circle of Honors base will be an engraved map
of the world with bronze pegs calling attention to areas in
the world where our armed Forces have served the cause of
monument will be an significant addition to monuments across
our nation, and appropriately symbolizes the freedoms,
institutions, and way of life that our veterans have
gallantly sacrificed to protect.
The El
Dorado County Veterans Monuments theme;
Richard W.
Buchanan NC
EDC Veterans Monument
Friends of
the Veterans Monument;
Co-Founder, LCDR Peter Wolfe, Chaplain-Lt. Col. Tim Thompson
USA, Major General John Collens, USAF (RET), William "Bill"
Cathcart DSC, Don Donaldson,USN(RET), William "Bill"Schultz,
USN (RET), Jim Denmark USAF (RET), Lanny Langston USN, Col.
Gergory Etzel AFC
Hispanic Population
Has Grown More Numerous Than Asian- and
African-Americans in 26 of the 50 States -
Hispanic Population Truly a National Presence
July 13, 2006
Tomás Rivera Policy Institute
July 12, 2006 (Los Angeles, CA)
- Hispanics now outnumber African- and Asian-Americans in 26
of the 50 states, according to a Tomás Rivera Policy
Institute (TRPI) analysis of the 2004 census. While
California and Texas still possess more than 50 percent of
the nation's Hispanic population, southern states from North
Carolina to Arkansas have seen phenomenal Hispanic
population growth. (See Table 1.)
"The dispersion of the Latino community from its
traditional ports of entry, such as California, New York and
Florida, has been occurring for some time but has really
accelerated in the past decade," stated Harry P. Pachon,
President of the Tomás Rivera Policy Institute and Professor
of Public Policy at the University of Southern California.
In 1970, according to TRPI census analysis, Hispanics were
the largest ethnic minority in comparison to African- and
Asian-Americans in nine states. In 1990, that number grew to
11 states; in 2000 Hispanics were the largest ethnic
minority in 23 states; and now, at mid-decade, the figure
has grown to 26 states. (See Table 2.)
"The dispersion of the Hispanic community throughout the
country means that Hispanic community issues are no longer
single state or regional issues. Hispanic issues are now
national issues," continued Pachon.
According to Institute researchers, a variety of factors
account for this national dispersion, including employment
opportunities, lower housing values, and informal social and
familial networks.
About TRPI
Founded in 1985, the Tomás Rivera Policy Institute advances
critical, insightful thinking on key issues affecting Latino
communities through objective, policy-relevant research and
its implications, for the betterment of the nation. TRPI is
an affiliated research unit of the University of Southern
California School of Policy, Planning, and Development, and
is associated with the Institute for Social and Economic
Research and Policy at Columbia University. To learn more
about the Tomás Rivera Policy Institute, visit the
Institute's website at
Table 1.
Table 2.
Iraqi Tells Gold Star
Mothers Their Sacrifice Not in Vain
By Samantha L. Quigley
American Forces Press Service
N.J., July 10, 2006 – More than 40 American Gold Star
Mothers and their guests from around the country came
together here yesterday to honor the children they've lost
in the country's conflicts.
ceremony, held at the New Jersey Vietnam Veterans' Memorial
here, included a roll call honoring servicemembers from
World War I through the global war on terrorism. Mothers
who lost children in Vietnam and the global war on
terrorism, including operations in Afghanistan and Iraq,
placed wreaths near the center of the memorial.
Amin al-Istrabadi, Iraq's deputy permanent representative to
the United Nations, served as keynote speaker and thanked
the mothers for the sacrifices their sons and daughters have
made for his country.
"We were a
country without hope," Istrabadi said. "The intervention of
the United States in my country has been a lifeline for us.
It has restored hope for us that our future will be very
different from our past."
laughter in Iraq's streets again and no longer feeling the
need to cringe when admitting their heritage is part of what
America's intervention has given back to his country, he
"These are
not small things. These are things for which this country,
and you as individuals and your children, have earned our
tremendous gratitude," Istrabadi said. "Words of thanks
truly seem to me to be insufficient to convey to you the
thanks of a country, a grateful nation, which has lingered
too long under tyranny."
Iraq's gratitude to the United States and the families
who have sacrificed personally "will be eternal," he said.
Istrabadi spoke directly to events in Iraq, his message
resonated with all the Gold Star Mothers: Their children
did not die in vain.
those inspired by his words was Renate DeAngelis, a New York
Gold Star Mother delegate who lost her son, 22-year-old Navy
Petty Officer 2nd Class Christopher W. DeAngelis, when the
U.S.S. Stark was attacked on May 17, 1987. He was one of 37
killed when the Iraqis hit the guided-missile frigate with
two missiles during the Iran-Iraq War.
"It was
absolutely beautiful," DeAngelis said of yesterday's
ceremony. "(It was) very moving."
who has lived with her grief for more than 19 years, said
older Gold Star Mothers help those with more recent losses
deal with their grief. "With the younger mothers, it's too
new," she said.
participants in yesterday's ceremony got the opportunity to
acknowledge a friend or family member who died while serving
the nation.
The visit
to the memorial began with a viewing of "Twilight's Last
Gleaming," a short movie dedicated to Gold Star Mothers.
The group
will conduct its annual business meeting today and tomorrow
in Mount Laurel, N.J.
VA Services
Continues at Walla Walla
July 07, 2006 05:53 PM Eastern Standard Time
Services to Continue at Walla Walla, Washington
(July 7, 2006) – Veterans in the Walla Walla, Wash., area
will be receiving a new, state-of-the-art outpatient
facility for primary care, specialty care and mental health
care from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), the
Honorable R. James Nicholson, Secretary of Veterans Affairs,
announced today while visiting Walla Walla.
Walla veterans will get a modern outpatient facility that
continues the high quality of care they receive from VA,"
Nicholson said. "Veterans and their families can rest
assured that a new world-class outpatient facility will be
said the new facility will be located on the Walla Walla
campus. As suggested by a local advisory panel, VA plans to
use of the rest of the campus for housing and other services
for veterans.
"I want to
thank the local advisory panel and the many leaders for
their helpful input, including the Washington congressional
delegation, veterans groups, state and local leaders, other
stakeholders and VA employees," Nicholson added.
was joined at today's announcement about Walla Walla by Rep.
Cathy McMorris and Max Lewis, director of the VA regional
office responsible for Walla Walla. Lewis will oversee
establishment of the new facility.
VA will
work in partnership with local officials, non-profit
organizations, and state and local governments to develop
innovative ways to provide nursing home care, residential
rehabilitation, inpatient health care and inpatient mental
health services in Walla Walla, although not necessarily on
the VA campus.
noted the Walla Walla complex first opened in 1929 -- 10
years after the end of World War I and 12 years before the
start of World War II. No major improvements have been made
on the campus in 50 years.
The Walla
Walla decision was made after a study was completed that has
been in progress since 2004 to upgrade health care
facilities across the country that serve veterans.
VA Deputy Secretary
Mansfield Honored by DAV
Vet of the Year" Honor Goes to VA's Second-in-Command
July 3,
-- Citing a quarter-century's advocacy for all veterans and
his dedication to improving the lives of those injured
during military service, the Disabled American Veterans (DAV)
have named Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs Gordon H.
Mansfield as DAV's "Disabled Veteran of the Year."
Mansfield has had a profound impact upon all veterans, but
especially disabled veterans," said the Honorable R. James
Nicholson, Secretary of Veterans Affairs. "His knowledge,
tenacity and skillful advocacy have improved the lives not
just of disabled veterans, but all Americans with
the chief operating officer and second in command at the
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), is scheduled to receive
DAV's top honor August 12 at the group's national convention
in Chicago. DAV has 1.3 million members.
was shot and suffered a spinal injury during the Tet
Offensive of February 1968. His decorations include the
Distinguished Service Cross, Bronze Star and two Purple
During his
recovery, he earned a law degree from the University of
Miami and began legal practice in Ocala, Fla., where he
helped found a DAV chapter in Marion County, Fla.
In 1981,
he accepted the first of several positions with the
Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA), culminating as the
group's executive director from 1993 to 2001. His time with
PVA was interrupted by a four-year tour as assistant
secretary for fair housing and equal opportunity at the
Department of Housing and Urban Development.
was instrumental in elevating VA to a cabinet-level
department, creating the U.S. Court of Veterans Appeals and
passing the Americans with Disabilities Act.
# # #
U.S. urged to apologize for 1930s deportations
Wendy Koch, USA TODAY
His father and oldest sister were farming sugar beets in the
fields of Hamilton, Mont., and his mother was cooking
tortillas when 6-year-old Ignacio Piña saw plainclothes
authorities burst into his home.
"They came in with guns and told us to get out," recalls
Piña, 81, a retired railroad worker in Bakersfield, Calif.,
of the 1931 raid. "They didn't let us take anything," not
even a trunk that held birth certificates proving that he
and his five siblings were U.S.-born citizens.
The family was thrown into a jail for 10 days before being
sent by train to Mexico. Piña says he spent 16 years of
"pure hell" there before acquiring papers of his Utah birth
and returning to the USA.
The deportation of Piña's family tells an almost-forgotten
story of a 1930s anti-immigrant campaign. Tens of thousands,
and possibly more than 400,000, Mexicans and
Mexican-Americans were pressured * through raids and job
denials * to leave the USA during the Depression, according
to a USA TODAY review of documents and interviews with
historians and deportees. Many, mostly children, were U.S.
Related story: Some stories hard to get in history books
If their tales seem incredible, a newspaper analysis of the
history textbooks used most in U.S. middle and high schools
may explain why: Little has been written about the exodus,
often called "the repatriation."
That may soon change. As the U.S. Senate prepares to vote on
bills that would either help illegal workers become legal
residents or boost enforcement of U.S. immigration laws, an
effort to address deportations that happened 70 years ago
has gained traction:
On Thursday, Rep. Hilda Solis, D-Calif., plans to introduce
a bill in the U.S. House that calls for a commission to
study the "deportation and coerced emigration" of U.S.
citizens and legal residents. The panel would also recommend
remedies that could include reparations. "An apology should
be made," she says.
Co-sponsor Rep. Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill., says history may
repeat itself. He says a new House bill that makes being an
illegal immigrant a felony could prompt a "massive
deportation of U.S. citizens," many of them U.S.-born
children leaving with their parents.
"We have safeguards to ensure people aren't deported who
shouldn't be," says Jeff Lungren, GOP spokesman for the
House Judiciary Committee, adding the new House bill retains
those safeguards.
In January, California became the first state to enact a
bill that apologizes to Latino families for the 1930s civil
rights violations. It declined to approve the sort of
reparations the U.S. Congress provided in 1988 for
Japanese-Americans interned during World War II.
Democratic state Sen. Joe Dunn, a self-described "Irish
white guy from Minnesota" who sponsored the state bill, is
now pushing a measure to require students be taught about
the 1930s emigration. He says as many as 2 million people of
Mexican ancestry were coerced into leaving, 60% of them U.S.
In October, a group of deportees and their relatives, known
as los repatriados, will host a conference in Detroit on the
topic. Organizer Helen Herrada, whose father was deported,
has conducted 100 oral histories and produced a documentary.
She says many sent to Mexico felt "humiliated" and didn't
want to talk about it. "They just don't want it to happen
No precise figures exist on how many of those deported in
the 1930s were illegal immigrants. Since many of those
harassed left on their own, and their journeys were not
officially recorded, there are also no exact figures on the
total number who departed.
At least 345,839 people went to Mexico from 1930 to 1935,
with 1931 as the peak year, says a 1936 dispatch from the
U.S. Consulate General in Mexico City.
"It was a racial removal program," says Mae Ngai, an
immigration history expert at the University of Chicago,
adding people of Mexican ancestry were targeted.
However, Americans in the 1930s were "really hurting," says
Otis Graham, history professor emeritus at the University of
California, Santa Barbara. One in four workers were
unemployed and many families hungry. Deporting illegal
residents was not an "outrageous idea," Graham says. "Don't
lose the context."
A pressure campaign
In the early 1900s, Mexicans poured into the USA, welcomed
by U.S. factory and farm owners who needed their labor.
Until entry rules tightened in 1924, they simply paid a
nickel to cross the border and get visas for legal
"The vast majority were here legally, because it was so easy
to enter legally," says Kevin Johnson, a law professor at
the University of California, Davis.
They spread out across the nation. They sharecropped in
California, Texas and Louisiana, harvested sugar beets in
Montana and Minnesota, laid railroad tracks in Kansas, mined
coal in Utah and Oklahoma, packed meat in Chicago and
assembled cars in Detroit.
By 1930, the U.S. Census counted 1.42 million people of
Mexican ancestry, and 805,535 of them were U.S. born, up
from 700,541 in 1920.
Change came in 1929, as the stock market and U.S. economy
crashed. That year, U.S. officials tightened visa rules,
reducing legal immigration from Mexico to a trickle. They
also discussed what to do with those already in the USA.
"The government undertook a program that coerced people to
leave," says Layla Razavi, policy analyst for the Mexican
American Legal Defense and Education Fund (MALDEF). "It was
really a hostile environment." She says federal officials in
the Hoover administration, like local-level officials, made
no distinction between people of Mexican ancestry who were
in the USA legally and those who weren't.
"The document trail is shocking," says Dunn, whose staff
spent two years researching the topic after he read the 1995
book Decade of Betrayal: Mexican Repatriation in the 1930s,
by Francisco Balderrama and Raymond Rodriguez.
Articles in June
2006 -
Click on an article to access
Secretary Nicholson Announces VA to Provide Free Credit
Management structure contributed to VA data breach,
observers say
Secretary Nicholson Provides Update on Stolen Data Incident
VA's Investigation Providing New Details about Information
Potentially involved
Citizens Flag Alliance Statement on
Defeat of Flag Amendment by the U.S. Senate
Secretary Nicholson
Announces VA to Provide Free Credit Monitoring
June 21, 2006
– As part of the continuing efforts by the Department of
Veterans Affairs (VA) to protect and assist those
potentially affected by the recent data theft that occurred
at an employee's Maryland home, Secretary of Veterans
Affairs R. James Nicholson today announced that VA will
provide one year of free credit monitoring to people whose
sensitive personal information may have been stolen in the
continues to take aggressive steps to protect and assist
people who may be potentially affected by this data theft,"
said Nicholson. "VA has conducted extensive market research
on available credit monitoring solutions, and has been
working diligently to determine how VA can best serve those
whose information was stolen.
credit monitoring will help safeguard those who may be
affected, and will provide them with the peace of mind they
deserve," he added.
Secretary said VA has no reason to believe the perpetrators
who committed this burglary were targeting the data, and
Federal investigators believe that it is unlikely that
identity theft has resulted from the data theft.
This week,
VA will solicit bids from qualified companies to provide a
comprehensive credit monitoring solution. VA will ask these
companies to provide expedited proposals and to be prepared
to implement them rapidly once they are under contract.
After VA
hires a credit monitoring company, the Department will send
a detailed letter to people whose sensitive personal
information may have been included in the stolen data. This
letter will explain credit monitoring and how eligible
people can enroll or "opt-in" for the services. The
Department expects to have the services in place and the
letters mailed by mid-August.
Secretary Nicholson also announced VA is soliciting bids to
hire a company that provides data-breach analysis, which
will look for possible misuse of the stolen VA data. The
analysis would help measure the risk of the data loss,
identify suspicious misuse of identity information and
expedite full assistance to affected people.
As part of
VA's efforts to prevent such an incident from happening
again, Secretary Nicholson previously announced a series of
personnel changes in the Office of Policy and Planning,
where the breach occurred; the hiring of former Maricopa
County (Ariz.) prosecutor Richard Romley as a Special
Advisor for Information Security; the expedited completion
of Cyber Security Awareness Training and Privacy Awareness
Training for all VA employees; that an inventory be taken of
all positions requiring access to sensitive VA data by June
30, 2006, to ensure that only those employees who need such
access to do their jobs have it; that every laptop in VA
undergo a security review to ensure that all security and
virus software is current, including the immediate removal
of any unauthorized information or software; and that VA
facilities across the country – every hospital,
Community-Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC), regional office,
national cemetery, field office and VA's Central Office –
observe Security Awareness Week beginning June 26.
People who believe they may be
affected by the data theft can go to
www.firstgov.gov for more
information. VA also continues to operate a call center
that people can contact to get information about this
incident and learn more about consumer-identity
protections. That toll free number is 1-800-FED
INFO (1-800-333-4636). The call center is operating from
8:00 am to 9:00 pm (EDT), Monday-Saturday as long as it is
Management structure contributed to VA data breach,
observers say
June 7,2006
By Daniel Pulliam
As the scope of the Veterans Affairs Department's data
breach continues to expand, former agency information
technology officials say the catastrophe possibly could have
been avoided with a better IT management structure.
Robert McFarland, who stepped down as the VA's chief
information officer before the May 3 theft of sensitive
records from a VA career IT specialist's home, said the
database containing the personal information on veterans and
active duty military personnel fell outside the direct
control of the CIO office.
This setup, in which the department's IT systems and
databases are dispersed across its three divisions, is on
schedule to be changed, McFarland said, though that won't
happen overnight.
"You have these databases out there without any access
controls or notifications for when duplications are made ...
access is free and open," he said. "As bad a hit as the
agency is taking right now, it is moving in the right
Technology management at the VA has been a source of
on Capitol Hill and within the department.
The department's "federated" IT management model, adopted
last year, gives the CIO office line item budget control,
but critics, including House Veterans Affairs Committee
Chairman Steve Buyer, R Ind., argue that the department
needs to move toward a "centralized model."
Bruce Brody, vice president for information security at the
Reston, Va based market research firm INPUT and associate
deputy assistant secretary for cyber and information
security at the VA from 2001 to 2004, said during his time,
the CIO office could issue agencywide policies but lacked
enforcement power.
"He had no authority," Brody said. "He could not shut down
systems or cut off funds. If you centralize authority, at
least for security, there is a better chance you will get a
handle on this stuff."
But Brody said the data breach is being treated more as a
physical security issue than a cybersecurity problem,
because the employee walked out of the agency's offices with
the data. According to the VA, the employee had been taking
sensitive records home unauthorized for three years.
The House Government Reform Committee is scheduled to hear
testimony from VA Secretary James Nicholson and other
government officials Thursday regarding the security of
personal data in the government.
Committee Staff Director Dave Marin said Rep. Tom Davis, R
Va., chairman of the panel, is troubled that information
from the VA on the content of the data continues to evolve.
A chronology of the data breach obtained by Government
Executive shows that Michael H. McLendon, deputy
assistant secretary for policy, who
last week, knew of the incident less than an hour after the
GS‑14 employee discovered the break‑in. The employee
immediately notified his office of the possible data loss,
which then notified McLendon.
Nicholson was not notified until nearly two weeks later, on
May 16. Veterans and lawmakers were
of the breach on May22.
While the VA has received
to shift $25 million from its fiscal 2006 funding to support
a toll‑free number for veterans to call for information, the
overall cost of the breach is likely to rise.
Vietnam Veterans of America, along with four other national
veteran organizations and several individual veterans, has
filed a class‑action lawsuit that seeks a $1,000 award for
each veteran who can show harm due to the breach. VA
officials said Tuesday there are no indications that the
stolen information has been used to commit identity theft.
The suit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District
of Columbia, seeks an injunction that would prevent VA from
altering any data storage system and prohibit any use of any
such system until a court‑appointed panel of experts
determines how to implement adequate safeguards.
Secretary Nicholson
Provides Update on Stolen Data Incident
VA's Investigation Providing New Details about Information
Potentially Involved
June 3, 2006
(WASHINGTON) – In its ongoing efforts to better determine
what information was contained in a duplicate database
stolen from a VA employee's home last month, VA has hired
its own independent data forensic experts to analyze the
original data, Secretary of Veterans Affairs R. James
Nicholson announced today.
"I have made it clear since learning of this incident that,
as soon as VA learns any new information, the Department has
a duty to immediately inform those potentially affected,"
said Secretary Nicholson. "VA continues to conduct a
complete and thorough investigation into this incident, and
those efforts are providing additional details about the
nature of the data that may be involved."
VA has received no reports that the stolen data has been
used for fraudulent purposes, but is providing an update out
of an abundance of caution.
VA has learned through its ongoing analysis of the data
stolen on up to 26.5 million individuals, and in discussions
with the Department of Defense, that private information –
the names, Social Security Numbers and dates of birth – on
certain National Guard and Reserve personnel who are on at
least their second federalized active duty call-up could
potentially be included. The number of those potentially
affected is believed to be between 10,000 and 20,000.
Additionally, private information – the names, Social
Security Numbers and dates of birth – on some active duty
U.S. Navy personnel may be involved. This could
potentially include members of the U.S. Navy who remain on
active duty and completed their first enlistment term prior
to 1991. Working with the Department of Defense, VA has
determined this group likely consists of between 25,000 and
30,000 individuals.
This happened because these individuals were issued a
"DD-214" – or a separation from active service notification
– by the Department of Defense upon completion of their
first enlistments. This triggered an automatic notification
to VA that these individuals were no longer on active duty.
Subsequent to VA receiving the initial DD-214 these
individuals re-enlisted for another term of active duty,
meaning their information could still be in VA's data files.
"VA will continue to work with the Department of Defense,
other government agencies, members of Congress, and other
stakeholders to inform and help protect those potentially
impacted," said Secretary Nicholson.
VA is working with the Department of Defense to match data
and verify, to the greatest extent possible, those
potentially affected. Individualized notification letters
are being sent to those whose personal information may have
been included among the stolen data.
VA currently has no evidence that suggests full-time active
duty personnel from the other military branches of service
are affected.
VA began investigating the possibility personal information
of some active duty, National Guard and reservist personnel
may be involved after examining, with the Department of
Defense, the process by which VA is notified by the military
branches of an individual's change in duty status – or being
issued a DD-214.
Those who believe they may be affected
can continue to go to
www.firstgov.gov for more
information on this matter. VA also continues to operate a
call center that individuals can contact to get information
about this incident and learn more about consumer-identity
protections. That toll free number is 1-800-FED INFO. The
call center is operating from 8:00 am to 9:00 pm (EDT),
Monday-Saturday as long as it is needed.
Citizens Flag Alliance
Statement on Defeat of Flag Amendment by the U.S. Senate
(June 27, 2006) - The leader of the organization that
spearheaded the movement for passage of the flag amendment
since 1994 provided the following statement in light of the
defeat of Sen. Joint Res. 12:
an overwhelming majority of Americans that want our flag
protected, the U.S. Senate has ignored the people they
represent. Some Senators claimed that there are more
pressing matters to attend to; however, it is never the
wrong time to do the right thing.
While we
are disappointed that the flag amendment did not pass in the
Senate, the Citizens Flag Alliance, representing 147
organization and over 20 million members, remains committed
to returning the right of the people to protect our flag."
General Patrick H. Brady, USA (Ret.)
Chairman of the Board
The Citizens Flag Alliance, Inc.
Articles in
May 2006 -
Click on an article to access
Population Representation in the Military Services
Fiscal Year 2004
Latinos enlisting in record numbers
Filipino Veterans Disappointed with
$500K VA Grant,
Helping service members find a new
Vietnam POW exhibit opens at Air Force
Representation in the Military Services
Fiscal Year 2004
May 2006
enlisting in record numbers
Despite opposition to the Iraq war, pride motivates many to
sign up for military duty
Justin Berton, Chronicle Staff Writer
Monday, May 15, 2006
Amalia Avila never supported the war. But after her first
son, Victor Gonzalez, told her he wanted to join the
Marines, she felt a mixture of fear, concern and, finally,
"This war makes no sense to me," Avila said last week in her
Watsonville home. "I'd ask him why he wanted to go, and he'd
just say his brothers needed his help. ... But when Victor
did get into the Marines, when that day came, I was so proud
of him."
Avila paused to allow her tears. "It was a beautiful day."
It was also one of the last days Avila saw her son.
Gonzalez, 19, who was born in Salinas shortly after Avila
arrived in the United States from Mexico, served a little
more than a month in Anbar province before he was killed by
a roadside mortar explosion in October 2003.
The discord between Avila's unsettled feelings toward the
war and her son's sacrifice reflects a growing paradox
within the Latino community. A majority of Latinos believe
the troops should come home as soon as possible, according
to Pew Hispanic Center surveys, yet enlistment of Latinos
has steadily risen in the past decade.
According to the Department of Defense, in 2004, the most
recent year of confirmed data, Latinos made up 13 percent of
new recruits. This is an all-time high, nearly twice the
percentage of 10 years earlier.
Latinos' presence in the military still does not match their
17 percent share of the overall population ages 18 to 24.
And African Americans continue to be overrepresented in the
military, making up about 18 percent of active duty
personnel but only 13 percent of the U.S. population.
Nonetheless, the absolute number of Latinos entering the
armed forces continues to grow.
"The dichotomy is this," said Steven Ybarra, a member of the
nonprofit political advocacy group Latinos for America, "on
the one hand, our children view serving in the military as
showing they are part of this community; while on the other,
their grandparents and parents have seen this all before.
"But within the Latino family unit," Ybarra added, "maybe
more than others, there's a value system where the parents
will look at their son and say, 'Hijo, you're a man now.
You're going to do what you're going to do, and I will
respect that' -- even if it means going to war."
Historically, Latinos have been underrepresented in the
military, said Beth Asch, a senior economist at the Rand
National Defense Research Institute who has studied Latino
recruitment trends. An informal theory held that the rising
number of Latino enlistments during the 1990s and early part
of this decade simply mirrored a rise in the group's overall
"Their growth in population was fast," Asch said. "Their
growth in the military was faster." Latinos accounted for
about 17.5 percent of Americans ages 18 to 24 in 2000, while
13.7 percent were African American, 61.6 percent were
non-Hispanic white and 4.1 percent were Asian American. The
reasons Latinos are drawn to the military vary, Asch said.
Carlos Montes, an organizer with Latinos Against the War in
Los Angeles, cites a variety of reasons: aggressive
recruiters who prey on youth; the enticement of skipping the
usual five years that legal permanent residents must wait
before applying for citizenship; the immigrant's desire to
"When you're young and naive you see a guy show up on
campus, all dressed up, promising things you don't have,"
Montes said. "That kind of influence, especially in the
barrio, can be greater than even a parent's words."
Curtis Gilroy, director of accession policy for the office
of the secretary of defense, said that in a national youth
poll conducted last year, Latinos ages 18-24 simply showed a
"higher propensity to serve" than other ethnic groups.
Gilroy said a full 25 percent of Latino respondents answered
the question, "How likely is it that you'll be serving in
the military in the next few years?" by marking the box
"definitely" or "probably likely." Meanwhile, only 16
percent of African Americans and just 11 percent of whites
showed the same interest.
"We just don't know why that is," Gilroy said. "We don't try
and get behind the numbers too much."
On the ground in San Jose, Army recruiter Sgt. Brian Ditzler
recently fashioned a theory behind the numbers. Ditzler, who
was raised by his mother in Corozal, Puerto Rico, and speaks
fluent Spanish, staffed a booth during the city's Cinco de
Mayo festival. He said of the 22 recruits he enlisted last
year, 15 were Latino.
"The remarkable thing that is consistent with Latinos is the
sense of pride," Ditzler said. "More than any other group,
they have a deep sense of pride about serving for this
By comparison, Ditzler observed that his Asian American
enlistees were more interested in job-training skills, while
African Americans spoke of college tuition as the trade-off.
Whites, the recruiter observed, were most intrigued by the
"sense of adventure" the Army provided.
"So, knowing that Latinos were focused more on pride,"
Ditzler added, "that's the thing I'm going to show them: how
they can make themselves and their families proud."
For more empirical evidence, researchers such as Asch are
just now beginning to examine the results from field
studies. Already consistent with Ditzler's observations,
Asch said recent post-enlistment surveys indicate Latinos
noted "patriotism" and "service to country" as the top two
reasons for joining, as well as "duty" and "honor."
Still, according to a Department of Defense poll conducted
last year that was aimed at tracking the influences that
lead a civilian to enlist, Latino parents were more likely
than their African American counterparts to recommend
military service to their children as a way to fight the war
on terrorism.
"It's a conundrum, for sure," Asch said of the results.
When Orlando Mayorga, a 24-year-old in Antioch, told his
mother he wanted to join the Army, he said she was happy for
him. Mayorga, who is still awaiting a call for active duty,
makes his living cleaning buildings in the East Bay. Born in
Nicaragua, he migrated to the United States and obtained an
alien resident card as a teenager, he said.
Mayorga enlisted to take advantage of President Bush's
decision after Sept. 11 to speed the citizenship process for
green card holders who enlist. "The first reason is for
citizenship," Mayorga said flatly. "I don't have a second or
third reason," he said.
Mayorga's father and three brothers still live in their
native Nicaragua, and a sister lives in Costa Rica, he said.
After his four-year service, Mayorga will be awarded full
citizenship. If he dies while in the Army, citizenship is
awarded posthumously.
Despite the risk, Mayorga said family discussions about his
enlistment have focused only on what he stands to gain. Even
though he signed up to obtain citizenship, his family is
proud of his choice.
"My grandfather is proud that I'll be serving," Mayorga
said. "My mother is, my father is. My whole family is."
Fernando Suarez del Solar, whose son, Marine Lance Cpl.
Jesus Suarez, was killed in Iraq in 2003, said he felt a
reluctance to discuss the casualty risk with his son, who
had been a citizen since he was 15.
Suarez said Jesus enlisted only after a recruiter told him a
year's commitment in the Marines would lead to a job as a
Drug Enforcement Administration agent. Since his son's
death, Suarez has become a counter-recruitment activist and
recently participated in the immigration protests in Los
Angeles. The combination of the rising Latino death toll,
Suarez said, and the recent proposed immigration legislation
has only stirred more contentious feelings within him.
"I feel it twice," Suarez said. "First it's: 'My son served
this country in the military and died,' and now: 'They're
attacking the parents with this legislation.' On one end of
the school campus, they want our sons to enlist. On the
other, they want us out of the country.
"When my son told me he wanted to join, I said, 'No, no,
no!' " Suarez added. "I never believed in this war, but I
believed in him."
Of the more than 2,400 U.S. casualties in Iraq since 2003,
270 have been Latino, according to the Department of
Jesse Martinez, 19, was killed after his vehicle crashed in
Tal Afar, Iraq, in 2004. Jan Martinez described her son as a
couch potato before he joined, the kind of teenager who,
"didn't have a smile on his face most of the time."
As they watched the events of Sept. 11 on television from
their Tracy home, mother and son had different responses.
Martinez said she sensed a war was coming. She did not favor
it, she said, nor could she disagree with the action,
either. Her son, meanwhile, felt compelled to join the
"I asked him to wait a little while," she recalled. "I asked
him to let things blow over, because I knew things could get
"But once he signed up, he started smiling. He felt good
about himself. It gave him a sense of purpose."
After her son's death, Martinez said she still felt
ambivalent about the war.
"There are good things and bad things that have come from
this," she said. "One of the bad things is that kids die.
... But you still got to be proud of them."
©2006 San Francisco Chronicle
Filipino Veterans
Disappointed with $500K VA Grant,
Coalition for Filipino Veterans, Inc.
News Release 5/5/06 Contact: Eric Lachica 202 246-1998
Actions Planned in May and June
(May 5, 2006) - Filipino World War II veterans leaders had
mixed feelings about the recent 3-day visit of US Secretary
of Department of Veterans Affairs Jim Nicholson.
On Saturday afternoon April 29, Nicholson paid a courtesy
call on Philippine President Gloria Arroyo at the Malacanang
Palace. There he announced the forthcoming US VA medical
grant-in-aid of $500,000 to the Philippine Veterans Memorial
Medical Center (VMMC).
In the evening, he socialized with 100 veteran leaders and
Philippine Government officials at a reception held at the
US Ambassador Kristie Kenney's home.
"We thanked Nicholson. We also asked him to support
hearings on our equity bills in the US congress. We were
disappointed when he replied that it was up to the congress
to decide," said Franco Arcebal, 82, vice-president of the
American Coalition for Filipino Veterans, a Washington-based
advocacy. "Nicholson passed the buck despite his earlier
praises on the courage and sacrifices of the Filipino
soldiers who fought for America in WWII," Arcebal added.
According to Arcebal, Philippine government officials he
talked with seemed disappointed that Nicholson only
announced the $500K grant - half of the expected annual $1
Million grant-in-aid that they had received over the past
three years.
At the reception, local leaders from the American Legion,
the Veterans Federation (VFP), and the Philippine Veterans
Legion (PVL) approached Nicholson. Mariano Eslao, 86,
adjutant of the American Legion Philippine Department, hand
delivered to Nicholson a copy of their recent annual
conference resolution in Clark Airbase. It urged Nicholson
and Kenney to recommend hearings on their equity pension
bills, S. 146 and H.R. 4574.
On Monday morning May 1 under tight security, Nicholson and
Kenney toured the VMMC hospital with hospital officials and
Philippine Ambassador Albert Del Rosariio. They inspected
the $3 Million worth in earlier donated new equipment and
repairs. The aging facility was gifted by the American
People in 1955. Currently, about 18,000 surviving WWII
veterans, in addition to their sickly dependents and
Philippine military retirees, avail of the VMMC services.
Arcebal who was visiting from Los Angeles and his fellow
veteran leaders in Manila plan to meet with Ambassador
Kenney and the VA regional director at the US Embassy to
follow up their requests. They will embark on a media
campaign on the unkept American promises to the former US
The coalition is also planning action forums in San
Francisco, San Jose, Sacramento on weekend of May 13-16 to
mobilize their supporters in preparation for their June 8-9
Action Days in Washington DC.
They are also expected to meet soon with California
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to follow-up his December 8,
2005 letter to President Bush urging support for their bill:
the Filipino Veterans Equity Act and the $200 monthly
pension proposal of Rep. Lane Evans (D-Illinois), the
retiring ranking Democratic member of the House Veterans
Affairs Committee.
service members find a new home
By Linda
May 6,
PENDLETON – Carlos Vasquez served six years in the Marine
Corps and 15 years in the Naval Reserve.
started a second career in real estate six years ago. Now he
wants to help other bilingual service members move into
civilian jobs. During the job fair at Camp Pendleton last
month, Vasquez talked about a new education and training
program called Welcome Home GI. Vasquez is one of its first
graduates in the San Diego area.
Web-based program prepares service men and women who speak
Spanish and English for jobs in mortgage banking. The
program is a joint effort by the Mortgage Bankers
Association, Freddie Mac and the Hispanic War Veterans of
America, along with other sponsoring partners.
"A lot
of bilingual veterans come back from Iraq with a disability
or demoralized, which makes it hard to find a job. This is a
way to help," said Jess Quintero, president of Hispanic War
Veterans of America. It's also a way to bring more bilingual
speakers into the mortgage banking industry to help Latino
home buyers.
program kicked off two years ago and word is getting around
to bases throughout the United States. So far more than 300
service members are registered in the program across the
country, and 50 Marines signed up at Camp Pendleton last
month during the job fair. The program is geared to areas
like San Diego where there is a large Latino population
living near military installations.
field is wide open as more Spanish-speaking people are
planning for home ownership," said Vasquez, a loan officer
for the Integrated Lending Group. For Vasquez, who had a
background in real estate, the program brought home the
technical side of loans.
learned the terminology to work between lender and buyer and
how to get the right kind of credit report to get a loan for
a buyer," Vasquez said. Vasquez finished the program in one
month, but participants have eight months to complete five
online courses in one of four career tracks.
include an overview of mortgage banking, mortgage loan
production and administration and commercial and multifamily
mortgage banking. Welcome Home GI is coordinated through
CampusMBA, the educational arm of the Mortgage Bankers
appreciate the sacrifice of our service members and want to
give them a foot in the door when they transition out of the
military," said Brook Ostrander, manager of programs and
administration for the Mortgage Bankers Association. The
program is open to veterans, military service members and
their families.
gave me a chance to build a second career and it put me in a
helping position," Vasquez said.
For information about the program, see
Vietnam POW exhibit opens at Air Force museum
No. 5-03-06
May 17, 2006
DAYTON, Ohio (AFPN) -- Visitors can get a rare glimpse into
the lives of prisoners of war through a dramatic new exhibit
at the National Museum of the United States Air Force.
The exhibit, titled "Return with Honor: American Prisoners
of War in Southeast Asia," located in the museum's Modern
Flight Gallery, is now open to the public.
Visitors enter the exhibit next to a reproduced doorway to
the "Hanoi Hilton," the name given by Americans to Hoa Lo
Prison. Photographs, videos, dioramas and artifacts tell the
story of prisoner torture, political exploitation, filthy
living conditions and endless attempts at communist
Visitors can look inside re-created, life-size prison cells
for an up-close picture of POW living conditions. Several
artifacts, including handmade games, rings, cigarette cases
and clothing that were created by the prisoners during their
confinement, also are on display.
"We are extremely honored to have an exhibit that pays
tribute to the courage and bravery exemplified by these
POWs," said museum director Charles D. Metcalf. "The POW
story is one that ignites emotion and this exhibit will give
visitors a greater understanding of the inhumane conditions
the POWs endured."
The exhibit also features a Son Tay prison camp rescue raid
display. Although the raiders in November 1970 found that
the prison camp did not hold any POWs, the raid proved a
success in other ways. A daring raid so close to Hanoi
showed that the United States had the will to carry out
exceptional operations to ensure POW well-being. POW morale
soared on account of the raid.
The exhibit also highlights the story of U.S. forces' final
combat in Southeast Asia, which occurred in May 1975 when
the American cargo ship SS Mayaguez was seized by the
Cambodian Khmer Rouge navy while it was in international
waters. Featured in this display are a life ring from the
Mayaguez and a beret worn by one of the pararescuemen who
participated in the operation.
The National Museum of the United States Air Force is
located on Springfield Pike, six miles northeast of downtown
Dayton. It is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. seven days a week
(closed Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day).
Admission to the museum and parking
are free. For more information about this and other exhibits
at the museum, please call (937) 255-3286, Ext. 302. Also,
visit the web site at
Articles in April
2006 -
Click on an article to access
selected to manage financial service programs for Veterans
heroine, 93, gets her wings at last
Non-Citizens in Today's Military:
Final Report
New Fisher
House Dedicated at VA's Palo Alto Facility
P-40 Pilot Laid
To Rest With International Honors
VA MESSAGE for 4-21-2006 -
NEOF selected to manage
financial service programs for Veterans
WASHINGTON, DC (April 10, 2006) – The National Economic
Opportunity Fund (NEOF) has entered into an agreement with
The Veterans Corporation (TVC) to develop a small business
and micro loan program for Veterans and Service Disabled
Veterans. Under this unique program, TVC members and
Veterans will have access to the type of financing that
makes all the difference in the first stages of business
According to Walt Blackwell, President & CEO of TVC, "The
vast majority of calls we receive at TVC are from Veterans
who need funding to begin or grow a business. With this new
program, we are addressing that need head-on."
Recent studies have shown that Veterans and
Service-Disabled Veterans do not have adequate access to
capital. These studies emphasized that providing Veterans,
particularly Service Disabled Veterans, with access to
capital would significantly impact new job creation in the
United States. As a community development entity, NEOF is
dedicated to bringing jobs and economic growth to distressed
communities across the country. By partnering with TVC, NEOF
will be able to align the interests of Veteran and
Service-Disabled Veteran business owners with the goals of
the communities they serve.
According to James Mingey, President & CEO of NEOF, "In my
experience, Veterans and Service-Disabled Veterans have made
some of the best entrepreneurs. This program will be an
excellent way to maximize their considerable skills."
In addition to the small business and micro loan program,
NEOF will work with TVC to develop a portfolio of financial
products and services such as credit cards, commercial bank
loans, business consulting services, and investments that
will be available to TVC Members.
The National Veterans Business Development
doing business as The Veterans Corporation, is a
Federally-chartered 501(c)(3) organization that was created
by Public Law 106-50, the Veterans Entrepreneurship and
Small Business Development Act of 1999. This Act recognized
that America "has done too little to assist Veterans…in
playing a greater role in the economy of the United States".
The Corporation is charged with creating and enhancing
entrepreneurial business opportunities for Veterans,
including Service-Disabled Veterans.
The National Economic Opportunity Fund
is a community development financial intermediary, which has
developed a specialized, public-private franchise model
focused on accelerating economic development by working with
Women, Minority, and Service Disabled Veteran Owned
businesses. To accomplish this goal, NEOF has aligned local
community development interests with the forces of national
advocates such as the Business Roundtable, the Metropolitan
Business Collaborative, the Minority Business Roundtable,
and the National Community Reinvestment Corporation. For
more information about NEOF, please visit our new web site
www.neof.com or contact: Chris
Baily -Community Investment Banker, Marketing and Brand
firstname.lastname@example.com (917) 304-3822
enrolled for VA health care are guaranteed various privacy
rights under Federal law and regulations, including the
right to a notice of privacy practices, i.e. how VA may use
or disclose their personal health information. VA's privacy
practices are detailed in the VA Notice of Privacy
Practices, IB 10-163, issued by the Veterans Health
Administration (VHA) in April 2003. All veterans enrolled
for health care have a right to a copy that notice, which
informs veterans what VA can do with their personal health
information. The Notice also advises enrolled veterans of
their rights to know when and to whom their health
information may have been disclosed; how to request access
to or receive a copy of their health information on file
with VHA; how to request an amendment to correct inaccurate
information on file; and how to file a privacy complaint.
The VA Notice of Privacy Practices, IB 10-163, may be
obtained from the Internet at http://www1.va.gov/Health_Benefits
or writing the VHA Privacy Office (19F2), 810 Vermont Avenue
NW, Washington, DC 20420.
Secor - Veterans Service Organizations Liaison, Office of
the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, Washington, DC
War heroine, 93, gets her
wings at last
By Colin Randall, in Paris
For a
real-life Charlotte Gray
who risked death to serve Britain, the discreet ceremony in
France yesterday was a sign that it may never be too late
for your country to say thank you.
Pearl Cornioley with her wings: 'This is a woman whom it is
impossible to meet and not admire'
Pearl Witherington, who was denied the Military Cross
because she was a woman, had already sent back the MBE
offered in recognition of her perilous wartime exploits in
Churchill's secret army, the Special Operations Executive or
Being a woman had not saved the former Air Ministry typist
from having a bounty of one million francs placed on her
head by the Nazis. A civilian honour was of no interest to
someone who had effectively commanded 1,500 French
resistance fighters.
But yesterday, at the age of 91 and 63 years after she made
what a parachute instructor calls an "almost recklessly low"
jump from 300ft into unfamiliar territory behind enemy
lines, she finally collected her parachute wings.
Now known as Pearl Cornioley, the widow of a resistance
fighter she married after the Second World War, she felt she
should have received her wings to mark her parachute
training before the drop into occupied France in 1943.
To her intense annoyance, her case was overlooked, probably
because of the highly secretive nature of the SOE and
official reluctance to admit that women had undertaken such
dangerous roles.
Her cause was not fully taken up until 2002, when Sqn Ldr
Rhys Cowsill, an RAF parachute jump instructor, saw her in a
television interview and travelled to France to meet her.
"This is a woman whom it is impossible to meet and not
admire," Sqn Ldr Cowsill said yesterday, after joining Major
Jack Lemmon of the Parachute Regiment to present the wings
at the retirement home where Mrs Cornioley lives in
"She was very brave, which is obvious from what she did, but
also exceptionally determined, putting herself through
training that was certainly not to be undertaken by just
anyone and, in those days, was quite remarkable for a
Still spirited despite "a few rusty spare parts", Mrs
Cornioley said she was "thrilled" to have received belated
"I didn't refuse the MBE because I considered it an insult,"
she said. "I didn't do anything during the war in the hope
of having decorations. But put it like this: if you are
going to do the job at all, do it properly. The MBE was a
civilian award."
Mrs Cornioley was born in Paris to English parents and
worked at the British embassy. When the war began, she
escaped to England and put her fluent French to use after
joining what she did not realize at the time was the SOE.
She was dropped from an RAF Halifax near Chateauroux, in the
southern Loire, and joined the "Wrestler" resistance group
of maquis fighters until France's liberation. She went on to
marry her wartime fiancé, Henri Cornioley.
Her story was published in 1997 with the title Pauline, her
French codename, and bears many similarities to the
fictional character Charlotte Gray created by Sebastian
Faulks and later turned into a film.
Mrs Cornioley said she remembered her SOE service clearly,
though she had no recollection of fearing that each day
might be her last.
"When you ask me to recall perilous or uncomfortable events,
it all depends what you mean by danger and discomfort," she
said. "We knew we risked capture and that our training had
prepared us to hold out and keep quiet come what may for 48
hours to let others get out.
"I trusted myself to be able to do that if the need arose.
"The most awful things I remember are actually travelling by
unheated trains in that bitter winter of 1943/1944.
"I blended in as much as I could. I'd carry plenty of
pro-German newspapers and as I was fairly tall and had
plaits like Germans, I didn't look French. In any event,
nobody ever interrogated me.
"Dangerous? I'll say it was. But I have never regretted my
experience. It made me very open-minded and added great
richness to my life."
Don Touhig, the minister with responsibility for veterans,
said he was delighted that Mrs Cornioley's long wait for her
wings was over and praised her "outstanding bravery in the
face of extreme dangers throughout the war".
"Not only does it take great courage to make a parachute
drop, but doing so alone, into hostile territory at the
height of a vicious war is all the more exceptional," he
"It is clear her determination and selfless commitment were
exemplary and contributed in no small measure to the overall
success gained by the Allies."
Non-Citizens in Today's Military: Final Report
April 2005
New Fisher House Dedicated at
VA's Palo Alto Facility
April 19, 2006
– Life just got easier for the families of veterans
recovering at the Palo Alto Healthcare System, thanks to the
dedication today of a new Fisher House at the facility
operated by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
Families will be able to receive free lodging at the Fisher
House to be near their loved ones during lengthy recoveries.
"This new
Fisher House will help us bring those families closer to
their loved ones at a time when they most need it," said
Gordon Mansfield, VA's Deputy Secretary.
Mansfield took part in a ceremony
today transferring ownership of the Fisher House, which was
built by donated money, to VA, which
will maintain and operate it at
no cost to its residents.
This is
the 34th Fisher House built by the Fisher House
Foundation and the first one on the West Coast. At least
one Fisher House is located at every major military medical
center and seven VA medical centers. Palo Alto will make
the eighth VA Fisher House.
Mansfield noted that many families travel long distances to be with their loved
ones, especially the veterans of the Global War on Terror,
during their rehabilitation in Palo Alto's polytrauma
But the
facility's other programs will also benefit from the new
Fisher House. These programs -- hospice and palliative
care, spinal cord injury, organ transplant, post traumatic
stress disorder, blind rehabilitation and traumatic brain
injury -- are highly specialized and family members play an
important role in the recovery of their loved ones.
P-40 Pilot Laid To Rest With
International Honors
Mon, 17 Apr '06
not every day that delegates from China attend a
lieutenant's funeral in North Carolina, or that four A-10
Thunderbolt IIs fly overhead in a missing-man formation, or
300 people show up without having ever met the Air Force
pilot. Even a congressman made an appearance.
But 2nd
Lt. Robert Upchurch wasn't just any pilot. Although his
death remained a mystery for 61 years, his memory stayed
alive -- in two countries -- that entire time. Lieutenant
Upchurch was a P-40 Warhawk pilot with the Flying Tigers.
They protected the Chinese by fighting along its Burma
border during World War II.
On Oct.
6, 1944, the lieutenant took off from Kanchow, China, on his
first mission with the Flying Tigers. After completing the
strafing mission, they started home. They flew into bad
weather en route. First Lt. Robert Gibeault, a fellow
pilot, said in an official report that he had last seen
Lieutenant Upchurch climbing through overcast skies
dangerously close to some mountains. The rest of the flight
turned back and tried a different route than the one
attempted by Lieutenant Gibeault and Lieutenant Upchurch.
Later, Chinese officials reported a plane had crashed and
burned at Shang Pau Has, and that pilot and plane
identification was impossible.
there was no means of identification, the Army Air Force
wasn't certain it was Lieutenant Upchurch and listed him as
missing in action.
1945, eight months after the fatal crash, Flying Tigers
Chaplain Albert Buckley wrote a disheartening letter to the
lieutenant's parents. "I believe it is only right to tell
you that the outlook is not at all favorable or encouraging,
particularly in view of the fact that your son has been
missing since last October," the chaplain wrote. "It has
been our experience that when a pilot lands safely in free
China, even though he might be injured, we receive
notification from the Chinese in a comparatively short time.
Such a report has never been received on your loving son."
In October 1945, the Army Air Force presumed Lieutenant
Upchurch dead.
Meanwhile, in Guidong County of the Hunan Province in China,
villagers buried the pilot in Chinese tradition, wrapping
him in a red cloth and setting off firecrackers, according
to a Chinese newspaper report.
Although the villagers never knew the identity of the pilot
they buried, they never forgot him.
the past 60 years, the people of Guidong County, have
quietly watched and tended the grave of Lieutenant Upchurch,
who has been a hero commanding their highest respect and a
symbol in their mind for everlasting pursuit of peace," said
Haung Renzhun, a representative from the Foreign Affairs
Office of the Hunan Provincial Government.
Renzhun said that every year during "Tomb-Sweeping Day,"
local students and citizens voluntarily came to pay their
respects and lay wreaths and flowers at the tomb of the
unknown pilot. The grave was well-maintained until May 2005,
the date they discovered his identity.
In May
2005, a task force from the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command
in Hawaii conducted investigation operations in three
Chinese provinces for about 30 days. World War II left more
than 78,000 MIAs, many of those in the Pacific, and the team
was investigating four of them.
At what
is now Santi Park in Guidong County, team members recovered
possible human remains, personal effects and life support
equipment. The monument there simply read "American Pilot."
that year, the task force identified his remains by
comparing them to DNA samples collected from the Upchurch
family that remained, which were mostly second-generation
nephews and nieces.
61 years, the Upchurch family finally learned of the
whereabouts of their uncle, and the people of Hunan Province
discovered the name of their hero. "Moore County of North
Carolina was where this great fighter grew up, and my
hometown, Guidong County of Hunan Province, was where he
rested in peace for decades," Mr. Renzhun said during
Lieutenant Upchurch's funeral on April 8 in High Falls, N.C.
"Lieutenant Upchurch is one of the bravest American pilots
and a hero in the worldwide war against fascism," Mr.
Renzhun said. "He assisted the Chinese people in the fight
against the Japanese and sacrificed his young and precious
life. On behalf of the 67 million people of Hunan Province …
our government wishes to take this opportunity to pay high
tribute to Lieutenant Upchurch."
Carolina Governor Michael Easley wrote in a letter to the
family: "Lieutenant Upchurch gave his life for his country
and is a true hero. Without hesitation, he fought to
preserve and defend the ideals for which this great nation
In the
end, the Chinese lost a hero, while High Falls buried one.
[ANN Salutes Master Sgt. Orville F. Desjarlais Jr., AFPN]
One of the true hallmarks of a great society is that they
never forget their heroes... and Lt. Upchurch's sacrifice is
one that should always be remembered. Godspeed,
Lieutenant.--Jim Campbell, ANN E-I-C.
Ann Mills Griffiths, Executive Director, National League of
POW/MIA Families
1005 North Glebe Road, Suite 170, Arlington, VA 22201
VA MESSAGE for 4-21-2006 -
Employees from the San Francisco VA Medical Center and
former Viet Nam War veterans recently traveled to Vietnam to
support children who bear the burden of a war they never
saw. The Vietnamese Children's Wheelchair and Prosthetics
Group presented the first of what the group hopes will be
thousands of wheelchairs to a school that takes care of
children affected by Agent Orange and parents of disabled
children in Bac Ninh Province. Corbin Cherry, retired San
Francisco VA chaplain and decorated Vietnam veteran, founded
the fundraising group after a trip to Vietnam a few years
ago that drew his attention to children suffering the
long-lasting effects of the Vietnam War – injury and
disability from unexploded ordinance and land mines and the
lingering contamination of Agent Orange.
He also
found that though a manufacturer in Vietnam could produce a
wheel chair for only $80, it was a luxury few families could
afford. Upon his return, Cherry proceeded to create a tax
exempt organization to raise funds for the project and
contacted a cadre of fellow Vietnam veterans and VA
employees to get things started. By December, they had
raised enough money for 175 wheel chairs and in January they
were on their way to Vietnam.
team includes Jim Thompson, a computer analyst at the San
Francisco VA Medical Center, and Linda Hudock, a VHA Support
Service Center employee based at the San Francisco VA
Medical Center.
Secor, Veterans Service Organizations Liaison, Office of the
Secretary of Veterans Affairs
Washington, DC
reviewed hundreds of pages of documents, some provided by
Dunn and MALDEF and others found at the National Archives.
They cite officials saying the deportations lawfully focused
on illegal immigrants while the exodus of legal residents
was voluntary. Yet they suggest people of Mexican ancestry
faced varying forms of harassment and intimidation:
Raids. Officials staged well-publicized raids in public
places. On Feb. 26, 1931, immigration officials suddenly
closed off La Placita, a square in Los Angeles, and
questioned the roughly 400 people there about their legal
4/5/2006 6:57 AM By Dan MacMedan, USA TODAY See photos and
full article at
The raids "created a climate of fear and anxiety" and
prompted many Mexicans to leave voluntarily, says Balderrama,
professor of Chicano studies and history at California State
University, Los Angeles.
In a June 1931 memo to superiors, Walter Carr, Los Angeles
district director of immigration, said "thousands upon
thousands of Mexican aliens" have been "literally scared out
of Southern California."
Some of them came from hospitals and needed medical care en
route to Mexico, immigrant inspector Harry Yeager wrote in a
November 1932 letter.
The Wickersham Commission, an 11-member panel created by
President Hoover, said in a May 1931 report that immigration
inspectors made "checkups" of boarding houses, restaurants
and pool rooms without "warrants of any kind." Labor
Secretary William Doak responded that the "checkups"
occurred very rarely.
Jobs withheld. Prodded by labor unions, states and private
companies barred non-citizens from some jobs, Balderrama
"We need their jobs for needy citizens," C.P. Visel of the
Los Angeles Citizens Committee for Coordination of
Unemployment Relief wrote in a 1931 telegram. In a March
1931 letter to Doak, Visel applauded U.S. officials for the
"exodus of aliens deportable and otherwise who have been
scared out of the community."
Emilia Castenada, 79, recalls coming home from school in
1935 in Los Angeles and hearing her father say he was being
deported because "there was no work for Mexicans." She says
her father, a stonemason, was a legal resident who owned
property. A U.S. citizen who spoke little Spanish, she left
the USA with her brother and father, who was never allowed
"The jobs were given to the white Americans, not the
Mexicans," says Carlos DeAnda Guerra, 77, a retired
furniture upholsterer in Carpinteria, Calif. He says his
parents entered the USA legally in 1917 but were denied
He, his mother and five U.S.-born siblings were deported in
1931, while his father, who then went into hiding, stayed to
pick oranges.
"The slogan has gone out over the city (Los Angeles) and is
being adhered to * 'Employ no Mexican while a white man is
unemployed,' " wrote George Clements, manager of the Los
Angeles Chamber of Commerce's agriculture department, in a
memo to his boss Arthur Arnoll. He said the Mexicans'legal
status was not a factor: "It is a question of pigment, not a
question of citizenship or right."
Public aid threatened. County welfare offices threatened to
withhold the public aid of many Mexican-Americans, Ngai
says. Memos show they also offered to pay for trips to
Mexico but sometimes failed to provide adequate food. An
immigration inspector reported in a November 1932 memo that
no provisions were made for 78 children on a train. Their
only sustenance: a few ounces of milk daily. Most of those
leaving were told they could return to the USA whenever they
wanted, wrote Clements in an August 1931 letter. "This is a
grave mistake, because it is not the truth." He reported
each was given a card that made their return impossible,
because it showed they were "county charities." Even those
born in the USA, he wrote, wouldn't be able to return unless
they had a birth certificate or similar proof.
Forced departures. Some of the deportees who were moved by
train or car had guards to ensure they left the USA and
others were sent south on a "closed-body school bus" or
"Mexican gun boat," memos show.
"Those who tried to say 'no' ended up in the physical
deportation category," Dunn says, adding they were taken in
squad cars to train stations.
Mexican-Americans recall other pressure tactics. Arthur
Herrada, 81, a retired Ford engineer in Huron, Ohio, says
his father, who was a legal U.S. resident, was threatened
with deportation if he didn't join the U.S. Army.
His father enlisted. 'We weren't welcome'"It was an
injustice that shouldn't have happened," says Jose Lopez,
79, a retired Ford worker in Detroit. He says his father
came to the USA legally but couldn't find his papers in 1931
and was deported. To keep the family together, his mother
took her six U.S.-born children to Mexico, where they often
survived on one meal a day. Lopez welcomes a U.S. apology.
So does Guerra, the retired upholsterer, whose voice still
cracks with emotion when he talks about how deportation tore
his family apart. "I'm very resentful. I don't trust the
government at all," says Guerra, who later served in the
U.S. military.
Piña says his entire family got typhoid fever in Mexico and
his father, who had worked in Utah coal mines, died of black
lung disease in 1935. "My mother was left destitute, with
six of us, in a country we knew nothing about," he says.
They lived in the slums of Mexico City, where his formal
education ended in sixth grade. "We were misfits there. We
weren't welcome."
"The Depression was very bad here. You can imagine how hard
it was in Mexico," says Piña, who proudly notes the advanced
college degrees of each of his four U.S.-raised sons. "You
can't put 16 years of pure hell out of your mind."
For Immediate Release
April 4, 2006
Washington, D.C.—The
Harley-Davidson Foundation has doubled its support for
The Wall That Heals,
bringing its total donation for 2006 to $50,000, announced
Jan C. Scruggs, founder and president of the Vietnam
Veterans Memorial Fund, which operates the mobile exhibit.
The Wall That Heals is a half-scale replica of the Vietnam Veterans
Memorial in Washington, D.C. This traveling exhibit enables
many thousands of Americans to have the educational,
emotional and healing experience of The Wall in their own
A national sponsor of
The Wall That Heals
since 2001, the Harley-Davidson Foundation has, in years
past, contributed $25,000 a year to help defray the many
expenses involved in operating this traveling exhibit.
However, normal wear and tear has made it necessary to
replace the replica. So, for 2006, Harley-Davidson has
doubled its contribution, donating an extra $25,000 to help
pay for construction of the new traveling wall.
"We salute Harley-Davidson Motor Company for its
long-standing commitment to America's Vietnam veterans,"
said Scruggs. "The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund is
grateful to the company and to the people who use
Harley-Davidson products for helping the Memorial Fund
continue our mission of education and healing."
The Wall That Heals also features a Traveling Museum and Information
Center. The Museum chronicles the Vietnam War era and the
unique healing power of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, while
the Information Center serves as a venue for people to learn
about friends and loved ones lost in the war.
The new
Wall That Heals
will be unveiled on the Lenior-Rhyne College campus in
Hickory, N.C., on April 6-9. For a complete 2006 tour
click here.
Lisa Gough at
393-0090, ext.109 for more information related to this press
Articles in March
2006 -
Click on an article to access it
Cesar Chavez Breakfast brings out the Best
Veterans Legislation
VA Forms Committee to Advise on Genomic Medicine
VA Secretary Makes First Visit to Puerto Rico
Winners of the Sixty-Third Annual
Pictures of the Year International Competition
Mortgage lending biz recruiting Hispanics
Cesar Chavez Breakfast brings out the Best
By Carolyn Dryer
Frank Balkcom, Glendale Police Lieutenant and Past Maricopa
and Arizona State President of the National Latino Peace
Officers Association, holds up his honorary high school
diploma from Glendale High School. Balkcom received the
Diversity Award presented by the Glendale Chamber of
Attendees at the Cesar Chavez Breakfast hosted March 31 by
the Glendale Chamber Foundation, were not disappointed by
the rousing message: diversity.
Keynote speaker Art Othon reminded the audience that
although Chavez came from humble beginnings, he did not let
the fact that he worked in the fields with his hands keep
his mind and heart from growing. In spite of the fact he
attended 37 schools before graduating from eighth grade at
the age of 15, Chavez, who became a migrant worker at the
time, soon became passionate about education.
In 1962, he founded the National Farm Workers Association,
which later became the United Farm Workers Union. His last
union activity was April 22, 1993, when he defended a
lawsuit against lettuce workers in Yuma.
During the breakfast, the Glendale Chamber Foundation
presented the Cesar Chavez Foundation with a $5,000 check.
Local police officer Frank Balkcom received the Diversity
Award for his service to others and the community. Balkcom
retired after 30 years of service in the Marine Corps and
served in Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Desert Shield
and Desert Storm. Glendale Union High School District
Superintendent Vernon Jacobs also awarded Balkcom with an
honorary Glendale High School diploma. Balkcom said he
learned tolerance and the need for equality as a Marine and
considers it a privilege to serve the community.
"We must not forget Cesar Chavez's work for justice, dignity
and equality for all people from all walks of live," he
(introduced March 16, 2006): To provide for Medicare
reimbursement for health care services provided to
Medicare-eligible veterans in facilities of the Department
of Veterans Affairs was referred to the Committee on Ways
and Means, and in addition to the Committees on Energy and
Commerce, and Veterans' Affairs, for a period to be
subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for
consideration of such provisions as fall within the
jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Representative Sue W. Kelly [NY-19]
(introduced March 16, 2006): To require the Department of
Veterans Affairs to provide mental health services in
languages other than English, as needed, for veterans and
family members with limited English proficiency, to expand
the scope of mental health services provided to family
members of veterans, and for other purposes was referred to
the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
Representative Hilda L. Solis [CA-32]
(introduced March 15, 2006): A bill to amend title 38,
United States Code, to increase burial benefits for
veterans, and for other purposes was referred to the
Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
Senator Barbaras A. Mikulski [MD]
(introduced March 15, 2006): A bill to amend title 38,
United States Code, to expand the scope of programs of
education for which accelerated payments of educational
assistance under the Montgomery GI Bill may be used, and for
other purposes was referred to the Committee on Veterans'
Senator Conrad R. Burns [MT]
(introduced March 15, 2006): A bill to ensure the proper
remembrance of Vietnam veterans and the Vietnam War by
providing a deadline for the designation of a visitor center
for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial was referred to the
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
Senator Ted Stevens [AK]
VA Forms Committee to Advise on Genomic Medicine
16, 2006
WASHINGTON – Continuing the leadership role of the
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) in medical research
benefiting all Americans, the Honorable R. James Nicholson,
Secretary of Veterans Affairs, today announced formation of
a committee of internationally recognized scientists and
veterans' advocates to advise the Department on emerging
issues in genomic medicine.
The new Genomic Medicine Program Advisory Committee will
help the Department establish policies for using genetic
information to optimize medical care of veterans and to
enhance development of tests and treatments for diseases
particularly relevant to veterans.
"As medical practice incorporates the advances of science,
we must harness VA's triple mission of health care, research
and training to bring these advances to the veterans we
serve," Nicholson said. "Part of the job of these respected
advisors is to help us push forward, but to do so
thoughtfully and compassionately, mindful of ethical and
privacy issues."
The nine-member committee will be chaired by Dr. Wayne W.
Grody, professor of pathology and laboratory medicine and
pediatrics at the University of California, Los Angeles.
The committee is expected to meet up to three times
annually, but its first meeting has not yet been scheduled.
"VA is moving to a model of care in which care is tailored
specifically to the needs and challenges of individual
patients," said Dr. Jonathan B. Perlin, VA's Under Secretary
for Health. "Genomic medicine will help us move from
providing medicine that is preventative to medicine that is
Advisory Committee
The committee is being asked to recommend policies to gather
and use both genetic and other medical information for
medical care and research. In this regard, it will help lay
the groundwork for future development of a comprehensive
genomic medicine program for VA.
A copy of the membership of the Genomic Medicine Program
Advisory Committee is attached.
Genomic Medicine Program
Advisory Committee
Wayne W. Grody, M.D., PhD, professor of pathology and
laboratory medicine and pediatrics at the University of
California, Los Angeles (UCLA). He also directs the UCLA
Molecular Pathology Laboratory.
Mouin J. Khoury, M.D., director of the Center for Disease
Control's Office of Genomics and Disease Prevention in the
Department of Health and Human Services.
Francis Collins, M.D., PhD, director of the National Human
Genome Research Institute, where he oversees the
International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium.
Michael S. Watson, PhD, executive director of the American
College of Medical Genetics. He also is an adjunct
professor of pediatrics at Washington University in St.
Col. Brion C. Smith, U.S. Army Dental Corps, director of the
Department of Defense DNA Registry and DNA Identification
Annette K. Taylor, PhD, president, laboratory director and
sole owner of Kimball Genetics of Denver.
Wylie Burke, M.D., PhD, professor and chair, Department of
Medical History and Ethics at the University of Washington.
She is also an adjunct professor of medicine and
epidemiology and an associate member of the Fred Hutchinson
Cancer Research Center.
Margaret McGovern, M.D., PhD, professor in human genetics at
Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City.
David Gorman, executive director of the Disabled American
Veterans Washington Headquarters.
VA Secretary Makes First
Visit to Puerto Rico
Cabinet Head Meets Veterans, Staff
March 17, 2006
WASHINGTON – Historic budget increases and a medical system
that leads the health care industry are allowing the
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to meet its commitments
to the veterans of Puerto Rico, said the Honorable R. James
Nicholson, Secretary of Veterans Affairs, during his first
trip to the island since taking office 13 months ago.
In meetings with VA staff and veterans at the San Juan
Regional Office and medical center March 17, Nicholson
highlighted VA's record-setting budget proposal for the
fiscal year starting Oct. 1 and the Department's new
initiative to combat obesity and diabetes among veterans.
"Puerto Rican veterans have been important contributors to
the nation's defense," said Nicholson. "VA is committed to
honoring their service by providing world-class medical care
and other valuable veterans benefits."
In February, Nicholson announced a landmark VA budget
proposal of $80.6 billion for fiscal year 2007. If enacted,
the budget request will result in a 69 percent increase in
the VA spending since fiscal year 2001, allowing the
Department to meet the needs of veterans returning from Iraq
and Afghanistan along with those of veterans from earlier
Nicholson noted that Puerto Rican veterans are expected to
benefit from VA's newly-launched drive against obesity and
diabetes. About 29 percent of Puerto Rico veterans have
diabetes, significantly more than the 20 percent rate among
all veterans and much higher than the 7 percent rate for the
general U.S. population.
Puerto Rico 2/2/2/2
This year, VA expects to spend about $870 million to serve
Puerto Rico's 130,000 veterans. VA maintains a major
medical center in San Juan, satellite clinics in Ponce and
Mayaguez and community-based outpatient clinics in Arecibo,
Guayama, St. Thomas and St. Croix, plus Vets Centers,
benefits offices and a national cemetery.
VA is nearing the end of a year-long celebration of its 75th
anniversary. On July 21, 1930, President Herbert Hoover
signed an executive order uniting in one organization – the
Veterans Administration – a number of veterans programs.
The Veterans Administration became the Department of
Veterans Affairs in 1989.
Recruiting Hispanics:
The Marine Corps Experience
30 March, 2004
Published 2005 by the RAND Corporation
An ongoing concern of Congress, the U.S. Department of
Defense (DoD), and the armed services is the social
representation of the military, particularly of active duty
accessions. Hispanics are a growing segment of the youth
population yet have been underrepresented historically among
military accessions.
The widely cited reason is their below-average rate of
graduation from high school and the services' preference for
diploma graduate recruits. But other less-studied factors
may contribute. These other possible factors may include
lack of language proficiency as reflected in their applicant
aptitude test scores, fertility choices, health factors such
as obesity, and involvement in risky activities such as the
use of illegal drugs. These factors could adversely affect
the ability of some Hispanic youth to meet service
enlistment standards. The RAND Corporation project "Hispanic
Youth in the United States and the Factors Affecting Their
Enlistment" is conducting an analysis of the factors that
lead to the underrepresentation of Hispanic youth in the
military. This documented briefing summarizes interim
results from the research effort's first year. First, it
highlights the various enlistments standards recruits must
meet in each branch of service. Then using available data on
American young adults, it summarizes the degree to which
Hispanic youth qualify for service relative to youth who are
members of other racial and ethnic groups.
This documented briefing is intended for individuals
interested in military recruiting and in the population
representation of personnel in the armed forces.
Read the Documented Briefing:
Winners of the Sixty-Third Annual
Pictures of the Year International Competition
year's pictures were judged between February 19 through
March 8, 2006. The competition was
by Missouri School of Journalism with support from MSNBC.com.
year's judges were:
Berman, Redux / Freelance, Cathaleen Curtiss, Director of
Photography, America Online Michel duCille, Senior
Photographer, The Washington Post, Denis Finley, Editor, The
Virginian-Pilot, Kathleen Hennessy, Deputy Director of
Photography, The San Francisco Chronicle, Boyzell Hosey,
Director of Photography, The St. Petersburg Times, Eliane
Laffont, Editorial Director Hachette Filipacchi Media, Bill
Luster, Senior Photographer, The Courier-Journal, Peter
Menzel, Freelance, Kathy Moran, Illustrations Editor,
National Geographic, George Olson, Freelance, Janet Reeves,
Director of Photography, The Rocky Mountain News.
First Place - Todd Heisler The Rocky Mountain News
When 2nd
Lt. James Cathey's body arrived at the Reno Airport, Marines
climbed into the cargo hold of the plane and draped the flag
over his casket as passengers watched the family gather on
the tarmac. During the arrival of another Marine's casket
last year at Denver International Airport, Major Steve Beck
described the scene as one of the most powerful in the
process: "See the people in the windows?
sit right there in the plane, watching those Marines. You
gotta wonder what's going through their minds, knowing that
they're on the plane that brought him home," he said.
"They're going to remember being on that plane for the rest
of their lives. They're going to remember bringing that
Marine home. And they should."
Second Place - Todd Heisler The Rocky Mountain News
The night
before the burial of her husband's body, Katherine Cathey
refused to leave the casket, asking to sleep next to his
body for the last time. The Marines made a bed for her,
tucking in the sheets below the flag.
Before she
fell asleep, she opened her laptop computer and played songs
that reminded her of 'Cat,' and one of the Marines asked if
she wanted them to continue standing watch as she slept. "I
think it would be kind of nice if you kept doing it," she
said. "I think that's what he would have done..........
A Brief History of POYi
POYi began as a photographic contest in the spring of
1944 in Columbia, Missouri, when the Missouri School of
Journalism sponsored its "First Annual Fifty-Print
Exhibition" contest. Its stated purpose was, "to pay tribute
to those press photographers and newspapers which, despite
tremendous war-time difficulties, are doing a splendid job;
to provide an opportunity for photographers of the nation to
meet in open competition; and to compile and preserve...a
collection of the best in current, home-front press
In 2001 the
Pictures of the Year International Endowment
fund was established so as to provide a firm financial
footing as POYi increasingly becomes a center for
research and discussion and education.
30, 2006
Karen Rutzick
are three Rs in the federal workplace that spell extra
earnings potential for employees: recruitment, retention and
In each
area agencies can offer employees bonuses to help meet
staffing needs. Who is eligible for the awards and how big
can they be? Individual agencies make their own arrangements
on a case-by-case basis, but as with almost everything in
the federal arena, there are boundaries and regulations.
The Office of Personnel Management,
which administers pay and benefits regulations for the
government, issued a new
set of Q&As last week to clarify
the rules.
Assuming you're already a federal employee and not looking
to change locations, retention bonuses may be the most
intriguing. OPM defines retention bonuses as "an incentive
an agency may pay to a current employee if the agency
determines that the unusually high or unique qualifications
of the employee or a special need of the agency for the
employee's services make it essential to retain the
employees would like to describe themselves as uniquely
qualified and essential, but OPM provides specific factors
that agencies must take into account when deciding to use
the authority:
market, including the availability of candidates who could
replace you with minimal training.
of recent recruitment efforts for similar positions.
Desirability of the job, including work environment and
geographic location.
Salaries typically paid outside the federal government for
comparable jobs.
Importance of the job in achieving the agency's mission.
Agencies can pay retention bonuses to individuals or to a
category of employees, which can be defined by grade level,
assignment to a special project or location.
agency official who is at least one level higher than the
employee slated to receive the incentive must approve the
award. The agency must document, in writing, the basis for
singling out the employee or employee group as essential, as
well as the individual's or group's likelihood of leaving
federal service.
who are awarded a retention bonus can receive up to 25
percent of their base pay. When an entire category of
employees is chosen, the ceiling is 10 percent. With OPM
approval, however, the cap can be raised to 50 percent for
both groups. OPM grants that exception if it determines the
agency has a critical need.
extra money can be doled out in a lump sum after completion
of an agreed upon period of service, or by installments in
synch with the pay periods. OPM advises agencies that a
service agreement is required in most cases for retention
bonuses. That agreement should include dates of the service
period, for which there is no set time requirement.
Mortgage lending biz recruiting Hispanics
Adolfo Pesquera
Express-News Business Writer
The San
Antonio Express-News
Tuesday, March 21, 2006
Last week, marine surveyor Adolfo Ramirez was on the
Mississippi River on a civilian contract to assist in the
removal of casino barges that sank during Hurricane Katrina.
On Wednesday, the recently retired Coast Guard captain will
be in Live Oak to encourage Spanish-speaking job fair
visitors who are leaving the military to do what he's
planning to do - get into the mortgage lending industry.
Ramirez is a graduate and proponent of Welcome Home, a free
training program initiated by the Mortgage Bankers
Association and the Hispanic War Veterans of America. It
began two years ago to help men and women leaving the
military by recruiting them for careers in mortgage lending,
servicing and collections administration, or commercial and
multifamily banking.
"I was trying to find a job that would be interesting and
let me stay in the
Latino community," Ramirez said.
Ramirez, 52, was the Coast Guard's National Minority
Outreach Program director. He completed the program to get
home to San Antonio but still stay active in something that
met a need for Spanish speakers.
As the fifth-largest Hispanic market in the nation and a
city with a large military community, San Antonio is seen as
a critical place by the industry, both as a consumer market
and a place to find officers willing to go to other
critical- need markets.
Those who complete the Web-based courses - they have eight
months to do so - receive a certificate and enter a national
employment database.
Normally, a loan officer position requires a bachelor's
degree in finance or a related field. But students can go
through the program and get into residential lending without
a degree. The job involves gathering and verifying a
client's financial history, determining creditworthiness and
giving advice on the most appropriate loan.
Being a loan officer requires some sales skills. To attract
business, officers build relationships with real estate
agents. And the job requires basic computer and good
communication skills.
Dan Thoms, vice president for education and business
development at the Mortgage Bankers Association, said the
need for bilingual loan officers is especially great. About
400 students are taking online courses worldwide today, he
said, "but I really believe we should be in the thousands."
Julio Rivera, a San Antonio real estate broker and owner of
Ultima Rea Estate Services, said agents see deals fall
through time and again. Because many Spanish speakers are
suspicious of the process.
"Traditionally, they don't like to disclose a lot of
information when they get into the loan process," Rivera
said. "And loan officers pretty much want to know your life
"We've conducted studies on how Latinos react," Rivera said.
"We have to try very hard to reassure folks it's OK to
disclose financial information. They need to feel that the
loan officer is being honest. A lot of these folks have been
taken advantage of, even by people who spoke their own
The Hispanic population is projected to create more than
$100 billion in mortgages over the next five years. But the
shortage of officers is hindering the industry from
achieving that potential.
The program was initially targeted for active military and
veterans. In an attempt to accelerate recruitment, it was
expanded in October to include their family members.
"There are spouses stuck in military base housing," Thoms
said. "They are eager to work. They don't know what to do.
This is an opportunity for them to learn a new profession."
Corporate participants that are hiring through the program
include GMAC Mortgage, US Bank, Citimortgage, BB&T Mortgage
and Freddie Mac, Thoms said.
For Ramirez, the program is unbeatable. He said not many
industries provide a free education for a job that in a
short time can pay more than $50,000 in base salary and
"It gives you a shot that you wouldn't get otherwise," he
Articles in February
2006 -
Click on an article to access
Reporting Additional Servicemember
Demographics Could Enhance Congressional Oversight
Demographic Profile of the Department of Defense and U.S.
Coast Guard
Reporting Additional
Servicemember Demographics Could Enhance Congressional
As agreed with your offices, this report addressed three
questions: (1) What are the demographic characteristics of
servicemembers, and how do they compare to those of
similarly aged and educated civilians in the U.S. workforce?
(2) How well are the services meeting their recruitment
goals, and what influences whether or not individuals join
the military? (3) What are the demographic characteristics
of servicemembers who remained in the military in fiscal
years 2000, 2002, and 2004? You also asked us to examine the
demographic characteristics of servicemembers who died or
were wounded in combat in Iraq or Afghanistan in support of
Operations Iraqi Freedom or Enduring Freedom.
Annual Demographic Profile
of the Department of Defense and U.S. Coast Guard
Articles in January
2006 -
Click on an article to access it
Reporting Additional Servicemember
Demographics Could Enhance Congressional Oversight - GAO-05-952
Senate Panel Approves Gonzales on a Party-Line Vote
Veterans Daily News Summary
VA Awards Grant for Montana State Veterans Cemetery
Veterans' Benefits "hurtful" to National Security, Says
VA Secretary Nominee Says He's Prepared for Daunting Task
Senate confirms Gutierrez as Commerce Secretary
POW/MIA Update
Reporting Additional
Servicemember Demographics Could Enhance Congressional
Oversight - GAO-05-952
this link to access
Annual Demographic Profile of the Department of Defense and
U.S. Coast Guard