I admire what President Obama and his wife Michelle are doing for active duty troops and their families and the veterans and their families, they are far and above most Presidents and their First Ladies.

Senator Webb led the fight to get the New GI Bill passed thru the Senate to pave the way for new educational opportunities for this generations veterans, that equal what the veterans of WW2 era received fromthis nation to get them ready for life after their military service and which led in great part of the economic boon of the post war era, the educational opportunities led to doctors, engineers, entrepenuers, highly educated people that led to a upper middle class and a vew veterans that became rich, due to the opportunities they had from the GI Bill.

Soldiers and veterans gave up the normal college years to serve this nation during a time of 2 wars, it is the least we can do is to help them catch up to their peers who avoided military service.

This diary I wrote back in May 2010

one of the things that stuck in my mind about it was a Senate hearing when then Senator Obama told Chairman Larry Craig

"he would rather see one veteran get a check that he did not deserve rather than see one veteran denied the benefits he did deserve."

It was back during a time when they the VA was doing a review of 2100 cases of PTSD claims that were considred fraudulent

In the case of the 2100 cases of PTSD review mentioned yes there were errors what the article ignored was the fact that the errors were not the veterans fault but rather the VA officer workers themselves, not properly documenting the veterans files, it doesn't say the stressors (incidents) never happened just that the VA employees improperly documented them. The case of the New Mexico veteran who killed themselves upon learning the review was taken to Congress by the New Mexican Congressman Udall not Senator Obama, now Senator Obama may have used it during the Senate VA Committee hearing to get then VA Chairman Larry Craig to bring an end to the witchhunt for fraud, there were many voices in Congress demanding that mentally ill veterans stop being the focus of the Bush Administrations attempt to cut the VA expenses.

The truth of the matter was that less than 2% of the cases were fraud, the largest mistakes were made by VA Regional Office employees who had not documented the files properly. A government program with less thn a 2% fraud rate is usually considered a success, most normal fraud rates is in the 10% range. Medicaid, Medicare, military contracts, any programs available thru and handling federal funds is usually wide open for attempted theft and fraud. Most fraud in the VA is doen by VA employees and contractors NOT by veterans filing claims.

President Obama's saturday Address July 10, 2010

Remarks of President Barack Obama

As Prepared for Delivery

Weekly Address

July 10, 2010 Last weekend, on the Fourth of July, Michelle and I welcomed some of our extraordinary military men and women and their families to the White House. They were just like the thousands of active duty personnel and veterans I’ve met across this country and around the globe. Proud. Strong. Determined. Men and women with the courage to answer their country’s call, and the character to serve the United States of America. Because of that service; because of the honor and heroism of our troops around the world; our people are safer, our nation is more secure, and we are poised to end our combat mission in Iraq by the end of August, completing a drawdown of more than 90,000 troops since last January. Still, we are a nation at war. For the better part of a decade, our men and women in uniform have endured tour after tour in distant and dangerous places. Many have risked their lives. Many have given their lives. And as a grateful nation, humbled by their service, we can never honor these American heroes or their families enough. Just as we have a solemn responsibility to train and equip our troops before we send them into harm’s way, we have a solemn responsibility to provide our veterans and wounded warriors with the care and benefits they’ve earned when they come home. That is our sacred trust with all who serve – and it doesn’t end when their tour of duty does. To keep that trust, we’re building a 21st century VA, increasing its budget, and ensuring the steady stream of funding it needs to support medical care for our veterans. To help our veterans and their families pursue a college education, we’re funding and implementing the post-9/11 GI Bill. To deliver better care in more places, we’re expanding and increasing VA health care, building new wounded warrior facilities, and adapting care to better meet the needs of female veterans. To stand with those who sacrifice, we’ve dedicated new support for wounded warriors and the caregivers who put their lives on hold for a loved one’s long recovery. And to do right by our vets, we’re working to prevent and end veteran homelessness – because in the United States of America, no one who served in our uniform should sleep on our streets. We also know that for many of today’s troops and their families, the war doesn’t end when they come home. Too many suffer from the signature injuries of today’s wars: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Traumatic Brain Injury. And too few receive the screening and treatment they need. Now, in past wars, this wasn’t something America always talked about. And as a result, our troops and their families often felt stigmatized or embarrassed when it came to seeking help. Today, we’ve made it clear up and down the chain of command that folks should seek help if they need it. In fact, we’ve expanded mental health counseling and services for our vets. But for years, many veterans with PTSD who have tried to seek benefits – veterans of today’s wars and earlier wars – have often found themselves stymied. They’ve been required to produce evidence proving that a specific event caused their PTSD. And that practice has kept the vast majority of those with PTSD who served in non-combat roles, but who still waged war, from getting the care they need. Well, I don’t think our troops on the battlefield should have to take notes to keep for a claims application. And I’ve met enough veterans to know that you don’t have to engage in a firefight to endure the trauma of war. So we’re changing the way things are done. On Monday, the Department of Veterans Affairs, led by Secretary Ric Shinseki, will begin making it easier for a veteran with PTSD to get the benefits he or she needs. This is a long-overdue step that will help veterans not just of the Afghanistan and Iraq Wars, but generations of their brave predecessors who proudly served and sacrificed in all our wars. It’s a step that proves America will always be here for our veterans, just as they’ve been there for us. We won’t let them down. We take care of our own. And as long as I’m Commander-in-Chief, that’s what we’re going to keep doing. Thank you.

PS I was on the SyFy special last night with Lester Holt I think I had one 5 second spot and another 10 second spot I wonder what they did with the other 4 ours of tape rofl....... I was one of the "military test subjects" at least they didn't make me appear to be a "tin foil hat type" I can be grateful for that