Website debunking the Special Assistant 
for Gulf War Illnesses

Updated: January 30th, 2012

 

Come join our Organization as we face down the agency that lies about 

Gulf War issues. Deployment Health Support Directorate

 

1995 - 20,000,000 Gulf War military records declassified
1996 - 6,000,000 files given to OSAGWI to put on website

1996 - 1,700,000 files are medically relevant
1997 - 42,943 put up on gulflink.osd.mil website

 

At a cost of $150,000,000 less than .007% of the Gulf War Military 

records have been declassified for public release. 16 years later 

99.993% is classified , and the Pentagon has vowed to reclassify 

these records. This include Confidential Records that should have 

been released at the 15 year mark.

 

On February 14th 1999 I sent OSAGWI a FOIA asking for the bulk 

of its records names be declassified, and sent to me. I received a 

partial reply from General Vesser in a box with 2,877 pages, and 

two CD's. On the CD was the Structured database file and other part 

was a unstructured file. Again, only of the 42,943 files on the 

public server. In the Nov 5th1999 response letter from OSAGWI to 

me they explained they were processing the classified portion of the 

log sheets for me. That was the last I ever heard from them on paper 

concerning this FOIA. It remains mostly unanswered to this day 

on the other 6,000,00 files.
OSAGWI database file of 42,943 files 

OSAGWI response to me concerning partial response to FOIA

 

The Pentagon hides behind Executive Order 13292 so that the bulk 

of what happened in the Gulf remains hidden from the public. Except 

this is criminal intent to withhold information of neglect, misconduct, 

mishandling, and much worse during the Gulf War. The very same 

people who say nothing happened are the ones with full knowledge 

of those records, and vow to conceal them at all cost. The same people 

who lead us back to Iraq again under false terms, and created yet another 

disaster to live down.  

 

There should be FULL public disclosure, and we have the right to know 

what really happened in Iraq from 1990 to present.

How to complain to Veteran Affairs about your health care

January 30th 2013

Beginning of a bad year for Gulf War Vets

Its sad that we have such a corrupt government in place that defies

its citizens openly. The election was a dead give away that the 

general public has a short memory and little knowledge of what 

goes one in Washington DC. Worse yet after the election it did 

not even clean house at VA after Shinsekys / Gingrich performances

did little to benefit the veteran community. 

 

Nothing changed throughout 2012. Gulf War vets had no say in

 there healthcare or benefits. VA didnt even publish the Gulf War 

Review as its Gulf War Veteran Illness Task Force met in secret 

throughout the year. The GWVITF ignored the public comments 

from the veteran community in its annual report as they followed 

the private agenda of VA employees to rail road GW vets rather 

than offer them alternatives to there defunct ideas. The key push 

would be to endorse its Seattle psychiatric clinic under Dr. Stephen 

Hunt and relable Gulf war vets under the term CMI rather than 

Undiagnosed Illness. Then ask the IOM to do the same in its pending 

Chronic Multisymptom Illness report in January. 

 

The IOM even went as far as to ignore its findings in there "Gulf War 

and Health, Volume 8: Update of Health Effects of Serving in the 

Gulf War"  from 2010 in favor of trying to revert back to even 

more antiquated ideas of 1997. They gave them new terms but 

then had the nerve to use bad science terminology like Somatic 

Illness. This was of course to guarantee VA would give them a 

paycheck rather than fuss over the content. The report

Gulf War and Health, Volume 9: Treatment for Chronic Multisymptom Illness 

was presented to the public Wednesday, January 23, 2013 to the 

dismay of the veterans who listened in on the phone call. Chairman 

Bernard M. Rosof acted hurt by the public comments but stood firm 

the report was sound. The IOM will be blasted by the veteran 

community for years to come over this vile piece of literature that 

took so much for granted due to the peer review document method 

they chose. The content is such a joke of poor taste. If followed this 

would continue sending veterans under very narrow terms, through 

as very small referral window, to one visit programs that do not operate 

on a continuing basis. In essence, seeing less than 1% of 1% of the 

total volume while giving them mostly psychiatric clinic visits. This 

is the Gulf War Referral Centers all over again. The WRIISC? Right 

in this criteria of "one visit, one problem" visit over 3 days and no return 

visits provided you could get the first referral through. Ive tried to be 

seen by the WRIISC the last year and they dont even bother returning 

calls.

 

But, this would be one of many rubs this month. On January 10th the 

President signed the 'Dignified Burial and Other Veterans' Benefits 

Improvement Act of 2012" which created a VA Burn Pit Registry for 

OIF / OEF vets from September 11th 2001. VA signed off on this 

happily excluding 1990 Gulf War vets like myself that are sick who 

were on burn pit duties 22 years ago. Really? Those that served in 

the same region doing the same thing 22 years ago dont count? This 

is discrimination, censorship, exclusion among other things. Certainly 

not a accident as several of those that sat on the GWVITF task force 

also reside over this. But, not a new tactic for VA to ignore information 

that might produce physiological data in favor of just ignoring vets 

under the right circumstances until we are dead. 

 

Then VA moved the Research Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans' 

Illnesses meeting from December 2012 to February 2013. It lingered 

claiming that due to a Congressional review that was hindering travel 

due to the VA Florida Conference fiasco. In the end it knew the RAC 

would be critical of the IOM report on Chronic Multisyptom Illness so 

they reduced the meeting to teleconference for one day. Now the RAC 

meeting on February 4th will have little time to do anything but discuss 

there Scientific report to replace the 2008 addition, and little else. 

 

The biggest issue in all of this is the defunct GWVITF that operates in 

total secrecy deciding monthly on Gulf War issues with no external 

input. No website, no blog, nothing. Just pushing the careers of its 

members ( Dr. Stephen Hunt ) and his PACT so that they can bring 

back very tired ideas and methods of VA 1997. Largely in part from 

influences at DOD ( Kelly Brix ) and other anti-social legacy personnel 

who literally bring nothing to the table of scientific value. 

 

There is a disease trend marker out there being ignored too. Gulf War 

vets have been sick for 22 years now. Being sick reduces your ability

to function, and through a more sedentary life you will manifest 

symptoms along those lines. Higher rates of heart disease, diabetes, 

stroke, kidney disease, respiratory, digestive, and so on. VA is studying 

the fact that 25% that served in the Gulf War have GI issues. But, only 

looking at bacteria and not parasites. Really? When 77% of the worlds 

population has parasites. The point is this is a physical symptom caused 

by external factors from a foreign country. The overall look should be to 

look at any new evidence that might surface to include possible disease 

trends. Then how is it they can ignore the ever so simple 'sedentary" 

model which might be elevated. Much less things like if we had worked

around burn pits as I had. 

 

VA has no objectivity in any of this. It has no new ideas and clings to 

the careers of folks that are true dinosaurs of there era. VA does a 

grave injustice to its Gulf War vets on so many levels and excludes 

all to include myself from any real input. It needs to clean house and 

remove much of its management that cant think outside the box other 

than to just out spend there budget. There is way too much contempt 

at VA to be healthy and it does not serve the greater good to treat its 

veteran customers like it does the 1990 Gulf War vets. 

September 7th 2012

Year in Review, or should I say the lack of....

 

What a disappointing year with VA. Little by little its been unfolding 

that they intend to play dirtier than ever. But, that shouldnt be a 

surprise since this is such a lame Congress with no teeth. Both 

House and Senate committees with there subcommittees are in 

collusion with folks at VA to do back door deals that pretty much 

go unchallenged. Reform, Armed Services, VA, and even the little

ones like Ethics ones just roll over rather than upset the rich power

brokers lobbying them for more contracts that conflict with national

interest. So why shouldnt VA just ignore the poor vets in favor of 

satisfying the corrupt administration it serves. Why not just ignore 

the vets cries outright and say out loud "look at how we serve them".

Im here to tell you that Gulf War vets like me are continually insulted, 

demeaned, and treated harshly by VA with total contempt in 2012. 

Thank you Barrack Obama for your super crappy term, god help 

us if your elected again. Then again, people did re-elect Bush which 

was such a bad idea. Obama will certainly destroy America in his 

second term as he helps the rich grind us under there feet.

 

The contempt at VA was so high towards Gulf War vets in 2012 

that it openly opposed the VA Research Advisory Committee this 

year. Enough so that the committee responded back publicly in

June with a hostile letter addressed to Sec Shinseky and COS 

Gingrich disputing there staff choices and methods towards GWI

goals in the future. VA's response was total indifference as they 

are above the need for critique. That Shinseky is above the law and 

can do whatever he wants regardless of commentary from any 

advisory committees. Just make it sound good like it helps while 

in fact what is there is a dead horse propped up with a stick.

 

The Gulf War Veteran Illness Task Force has demonstrated its a 

total sham now. It promises little and truly delivers nothing. They 

have no real teeth for policy since they bow to corrupt ORD 

employees that have long since out lived there terms. They keep 

appointing DOD operatives as secretaries to the committee so 

that Deployment Health can crush any promising opportunities 

that might come along. In the end creator COS John Gingrich 

turned out to be a DOD / VA policy puppet trying harder to make 

them happy than any truly needy Gulf war vets on the outside 

needing real help. Again, if they had any teeth there would be real 

changes at VA. Instead its a total shut out of advocacy and grass 

root groups while the iron fist of VA slams down on any outside 

efforts that would bring veterans back to the table to discuss policy 

and programs. Right now VA dictates to Gulf War vets they are 

Somatic and it uses phony doctors like Dr. Steven Hunt and 

Dr. Charles Engel to push ancient agendas designed to label 

Gulf War vets rather than serious medical science to look into 

physical causes. Yes, you dont want to find physical symptoms 

that demonstrate anything other personality disorders. Quacks.

 

The IOM has played dirty pool all year on its "Treatment of Chronic 

Multisymptom Illness" to include hiding meeting times from the public 

so that vets cant attend or protest this sham study. This is a ugly 

study that is designed not only to fail on purpose but push the VA / 

DOD agenda of GW psychiatric medicine. That was real clear in its 

April meeting. So over confident they are they wont allow public 

comment or written public records for the meetings of dissent to 

these folks methods. Its just a pay check to them to make the 

contractor happy. That is when I challenged them they didnt 

allow it. Ive attended these meetings since the 90's so its not like 

I am a new comer. My name is in some of the reports. But, leave 

it to IOM to find ways to make it sound like vets are happy with them 

when the BULK are not. Hey, find me one Gulf War vet out there 

that is not a civil servant and ask him if he is happy with GWI 

IOM reports. Only folks happy are VA. Then why do we fund this?

 

VA's contempt comes across loud and clear with the "Gulf War 

Review" as it spirals out of control. Its current creator hasnt 

bothered to produce a copy since July 2010 and from what I 

have been told openly defied any attempts to publish recently. 

Gosh, where do I sign up for a job that I dont have to produce 

and can spit on my employer if they ask me to produce. There 

are too many folks at 810 Vermont street that over stayed there 

positions. What happened to having a civil job required skill and 

the desire to serve the public trust. 

 

VA is once again trying to play down Gulf War veteran numbers 

as it did in 2008 with its GWVIS. My committees report outlined that 

of the 700,000 that served in the 1990 combat arena over 290,000 

filed for benefits. That was 2009. Which if you do the math is 41.4% 

of those that deployed versus what VA said in its recent press release
titled "Almost Half Of New Vets Seek Disability " on May 27th where 

they say only 21% of GW vets have applied. 

Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans Report  

 

VA created a new department it calls Deployment Health and it 

put its ringers on it to produce a very devious survey. Its members 

are above public scrutiny and certainly detest even casual inquires 

into there work. If your not one of there internal cronies, then dont 

worry about them every answering a  phone. In the 15 years Ive 

been doing advocacy Ive never seen so much out right defiance 

of public involvement as I have with all this. 

 

Hey VA, you dont like what I am saying? Then try something new 

like stop stiff arming me and the vets like we are going to swallow 

your super crappy programs like they are ice cream. As you get 

worse so will be the back lash from vets like me. The only reason 

your getting away with it is we have a lame Congress right now that 

cant wipe its butt without pooping on its hands. 

 

Let me put it this way, I helped create and serve on a VA Advisory 

Committee for Gulf War vets. The committee was rigged  

and produced a thin report I disputed in the end. Since then has VA 

tried to work with me? It has played games with me, lied to me, 

and has made every effort to black ball me from any of its GW 

activities while it does the very things I disputed. What this is 

saying is they want no form of oversight or outside involvement in 

Gulf War Illness policies that conflict with there internal agendas to 

wait us out till we die. This is a devious and malicious administration 

that needs to change as it does not serve the public good.

 

Critique of VA handling of Gulf War vets in 2012

Try as I might I cant find anything positive to say about VA's,

current GW issues. The attitude there is pure contempt while 

they let things languish. They have cut veterans off completely 

while there circus keeps defunct legacy government employees 

on payrolls that should have moved on long ago. Dinosaurs of 

logic and malice that should have sunk into the tar pits they 

are trapped in. 

 

This commentary is quite hostile because since I was on the VA

ACGWV committee VA has gotten infinitely worse in its handling 

of our plight. How can it go backwards it has in so many ways. 

The recent February IOM meeting over Chronic Illness was 

such a travesty of justice that needs mocking from the highest 

mountain. So forgive me folks if I offend you, this posting for 

2012 is not for the faint of heart. As for VA, thanks for nothing 

as you folks screw the Gulf War vets.

 

IOM on Treatment of Chronic Multisymptom Illness?

The last meeting February 29th was by far one of the worst
IOM meetings probably in 7 years. You would think with Mark 
Brown gone there would be room for contracting improvement
and this happens.

Oh my god, the speakers were so bad this defied all venues
of explanation. What? No one else would volunteer to speak 
at this or did they really hand pick these folks. Sounds more 
like dead head zombie Kelly Brix picked these folks out so 
she could keep grinding her private axe against Gulf war 
vets. Man, talking about reaching all the way back to those 
pitiful GWIC conferences back in 2000 that she tanked. How
is more of the same Somatization crap a new breath into
this?

VA realized there needed to be public comments on this having 
received hostile correspondence denouncing this train wreck
of a meeting. Where is the veteran presence in this? Veterans 
stopped going seeing that the IOM could care less about the
opinions expressed by anyone other than its precious contractor.
Can you say "meal ticket" and not wanting to upset that balance
of a sure pay check even if the report is awful or heading that 
way. This is heading to a Congressional hearing soon enough.

You knew this was a joke just seeing Dr. Charles Engel on the
speakers list. Really? Him? why not just some arbitrary stranger
walking by that day - same difference on content.

Look for yourself. Read the presentations. Its shocking in
its absurdity. Treatment, we havent even got to proper diagnosis
yet. Undiagnosed? It wouldnt be undiagnosed if we had vets
going to real doctors rather than foreign national interns that barely
speak english. Where is your current monitoring data?

These IOM contracts need to be stopped so the money could
go somewhere else useful. Certainly not to the IOM, they enjoy
looking down there noses at sick vets in the room and then
blowing them off for contracting legal jargain. Peer review means
so little these days.

http://iom.edu/Activities/Veterans/GulfWarMultisymptom/2012-FEB-29.aspx

Meeting 2: Committee on Gulf War and Health: Treatment of Chronic Multisymptom Illness
February 29, 2012 (10:00 AM Eastern)


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Gulf War Review

Last report July 2010, almost 2 years ago. Publish it 2 to
3 times a year? Thats what they promised my VA committee
back in 2009. Did they? No. Who was there to promise that?
Mark Brown and Steve Sloan. Steve is still there and in charge
of this. Why? If I was in charge of this and produced 1 review
every 2 years VA would not keep me. Then why keep him?

That was the 2 years anniversary of the Gulf war. Its now 22
years later and the war is less important? You cant produce a
peice of shlock like this when you have no content and thats why
it doesnt publish. Its expensive toilet paper and treated that way 
in the hands of VA environmental agents. I take great offense 
at this that they cant be othered to give us something to even 
offer the most basic annual news.

More of VA's very hollow proimises in action. What, all these 
folks are dramatically healed and no longer need this? Its 
very much like a homeless shelter that has a open sign on 
it but the door is locked.

July 2010 - Vol 17, No 1
Secretary Shinseki Marks 20th Anniversary of Gulf War with 
Renewed Pledge to Improve Care and Services to Gulf War 
Veterans, VA Seeks to Cover New Illnesses for Gulf War Veterans...


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Pending Gulf War Survey

If this is not a medical research tool then its basicly a anecdotal 
device for collecting non-scientific information. Worse, its designed
to fail on purpose. Then why fund it?

We need a survey that has a purpose. Like having vets come
in for a full medical exam that this rides back end on. Why not 
collect current physical medical evidence that would benefit the
veteran as well as back up hard line data. Nah, lets just ask 
them psychiatric questions and brush them off as somatic.

This survey is a ruse and vets should not participate. Its meant
to do harm.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses Task Force 2011 Report

Its my understanding that after 2 months of stalling this final
report will be posted in the Federal Register either March 19th
or the 20th next week.

Rather than post public comments verbatum its been editted
to narrow these ideas down to concepts. Sounds more like
censorship to take out the sting of veteran criticism of its 
content and that they left out public comments altogether 
the year before.

As long as ORD controls this task force its little more than a
invisible internal entity producing heavily biased documents
in favor of VA employess that fail at there jobs. What it should
be is reviewed by the GAO to produce a bit more biting
commentary on VA policies or lack of.

Based on last years report this and the prepress version of this
one - it should just say "go away GW vets". Thats what has
been going on for years and a bit closer to the reality of how
VA treats vets as well as advocates.

VA's Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses Task Force 2011 Report
How VA will transform medical care and services for Veterans of the 1990-1991 Gulf War


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The GWVIS and the Pre/post 911 reports

At least with the GWVIS there were reports several times each 
year even if they were always very late. I bring up the huge
February / August 2008 variations to my committee and they
scrap the program. Then take almost 2 years to produce a 
revised edition which they publish once and then think they 
are done doing more.

There will be a post 911 report by mid 2012. Then a another
pre 911 report hopefully by December 2012. Once someone
there at VA can get away from there video games long enough
to write a few pages to be picked apart by ther ever brutal 
concurrence.

Like many things VA does with "deployment health", it takes 
the name fo the deployment out to white wash the event data.
Instead of this being "Gulf War" it now has to be about 22 years 
in Iraq to diminish that data. Like how VA contracted the IOM to
study "ALS in Gulf war vets", then change it to "ALS in the military" 
to diffuse the numbers.

VA Gulf War Era Veterans Report: Pre 9/11  (3.08 MB, PDF) 
Statistics on use of VA benefits and health care by Gulf War 
Era Veterans from August 2, 1990 to September 10, 2001

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

VA Research Working Group

Here is another example of VA contempt for Gulf War vets.
The annual report to Congress on research proposals by
VA ORD.

Whats that you say? They havent filed since 2009. Its 2012
and there isnt even one for 2010. They have lots of great 
ideas dont they. No. Then why do they control this if they
dont feel the need to post anything.

Its because we keep these legacy government employees
that long since out lived there usefulness. It will stay that 
way as long as Kelly Brix, Joel Kupersmith, Tim O'Leary,
and William Goldberg keep dancing the yellow brick road 
to the OMB emerald city of defunct ORD.

• Gulf War Report to Congress, 2009
• Gulf War Report to Congress, 2008
• Gulf War Report to Congress , 2007
• Gulf War Report to Congress, 2006
• Gulf War Report to Congress, 2005
• Gulf War Report to Congress, 2004
• Gulf War Report to Congress, 2003
• Gulf War Report to Congress, 2002
• Gulf War Report to Congress, 2001
• Gulf War Report to Congress, 2000
• Gulf War Report to Congress, 1999
• Gulf War Report to Congress, 1998
• Gulf War Report to Congress, 1997

http://www.research.va.gov/resources/pubs/pubs_individual.cfm?Category=Gulf%20War%20Reports

---------------------------------------------

July 2011

Navy researcher links toxins in war-zone dust to ailments

I had said since 1999 that there was a problem with the 

soil contamination in Iraq after my sand sample was analyzed 

by CHPPM. The results are posted here: 

http://www.gulflink.org/chppm/sand.htm 

Now DOD is finally admitting that Iraq's very fine sand is a 

serious hazard to American troops. Its the fact that in the 

cracks of the silica particles alot of things can be carried. 

Such as fungus, bacteria, virus, chemicals, and metals 

from industrial dumping. It shows up in lung biopsies as of 

current troops. Well, that was also reported to the PAC in 

1995 that has been ignored on purpose by DOD / VA. All 

this carried down by the Shammal winds towards us.

 

RAC meeting in DC June 27th and 28th

 

This is a dead end only because VA has so undermined the 

RAC that they just dictate content to them via VA OR&D.

The research angle has been jinxed and VA has no intent 

of fixing it. Dont look to the GWVITF to fix any of it, these 

guys dont help with anything while they hold there monthly 

secret meetings at VA.

 

Gulf War Syndrome: A role for organophosphate 

induced plasticity of locus coeruleus neurons

 

Don Cooper Ph.D will be published July 8th 2011 with a 

paper titled "Gulf War Syndrome: A role for organophosphate 

induced plasticity of locus coeruleus neurons". This study is via

University of Colorado, with some funding from UT Southwestern 

of Dallas. As per there words "the first evidence that 

organophosphate pesticides alter an important brain region 

involved in arousal, attention and substance abuse." This 

will effect VA in future issues of organophosphates either 

in IOM studies or research issues into treatments. 

VA Gulf War Era Veterans Report: Pre 9/11

VA Gulf War Era Veterans Report: Pre 9/11 (3.08 MB, PDF)

Statistics on use of VA benefits and health care by Gulf War

Era Veterans from August 2, 1990 to September 10, 2001.

What you will find missing are the 2008 GWVIS reports from

there VBA historical page which via the GWVIC committee that

found critical flaws in them. The report now focuses on OIF/OEF 

and tries to play down the Gulf War as a small aspect of this 

regions 20 years of problems.

-----------------------------

 

January 2011

 

The 20th Anniversary of the Gulf War

As expected the few glory hounds out there with less than 

spectacular careers have done there own private ceremonies 

to boost themselves but not the whole. So the media ignored 

them as did the veterans community. The Army of one continues 

to plod on oblivious to its own nature, these so called advocates 

are just part of a greater problem. Thus the anniversary passes 

quietly in the media rather than the news firestorm of 1997.

 

George Bush senior had a really expensive and quite pointless 

event in Bryan College station that I attended. Talking about denial, 

the liberator of Kuwait and his merry band of fellow cabinet members 

sitting around talking about the war from there stand point like it 

all went well. Hmm, he left Saddam in place that lead to 20 years 

of problems with Iraq. Then turned his back on his troops and left 

us to fend for ourselves after 310,000 filed for disability. Even today 

he and his former cabinet have no hand in trying to help the vets of 

that war. Not to mention that if the war went so well then why is 99% 

of what took place still classified 20 years later, even though we 

occupy Iraq and its not a threat anymore.

 

VA saw the opportunity to take advantage of this break down in 

the vet community to further alienate them. The promises made by 

John Gingrich late 2009 and early 2010 are now distant memories 

as he shows he has no intention of truly changing VA or listening 

to the vets. He pretty much ignored the commentary by the vets on 

his Gulf War Task force discussion site and proceeded on making 

useless recommendations that have the appearance of helping Gulf 

War vets. Yet, the benefits afforded were nothing more than adding 

diseases presumptions from the Gulf War that veterans have long 

since died from. What is missing is a two way communication with 

VA on internal policy as they now completely shut out all contact 

with the veterans. This qualifies as "do as I say and not as I do". 

Most notable is the ongoing attempt to conceal the fact that in 2008 

VA committed fraud by trying to cook its books on GW vet numbers 

in VA system and seeking benefits. I caught them on it while on the 

ACGWV VA advisory committee. Now its two years later, no new 

GWVIS reports, no public explanation of what happened in 2008, 

and the new report to replace it has been deadlocked since September 

2010 as VA keeps rewriting to hide the truth. I ask every two weeks 

and they tell me its about to go out - month after month. They just 

want to wait out the anniversary time frame of the war so that the 

report less damaging. 

 

As a veteran of the Gulf War I am absolutely insulted by the contempt 

and arrogance of VA as well as DOD on this 20th anniversary of the 

war. Nothing has changed, we have no places to go for treatment or 

real healthcare, and very lame "undiagnosed Illness" presumption law 

on the books rather than a totally revamped deployment presumption 

for serving in Iraq - the most toxic battle field in history. Worst of all, 

VA/DOD has completely cut all outside contact with veterans and 

advocates to shut us out from commenting on there numerous failings. 

Thus hiding in plain sight.

 

The Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans

It had been a long time since I posted to Gulflink the website 

mostly due to the fact that while on the ACGWV federal advisory 

committee my every move was being watched. It was just easier 

to post some items to the mail list and not give VA as well as 

others too many heads up. After a while I forgot the website and 

focused on the committee activity. 

 

Things didn't go well on the committee. Simply put DOD had a 

heavy foot print in our work and the end result was pushing the 

bastardized version of the PDICI for Gulf War vets. This wasn't 

my idea and I still oppose it. The committee work was supposed 

to be about benefits and healthcare. Not about creating a national 

psychiatric program for GW vets. 

 

The end result report was a thin joke because it was censored 

down by the chairman until it just said little of nothing. It certainly 

didn't address benefits in any hard light and let so many like the 

IOM off the hook. In the end it didn't even do a single thing for the 

spouses and children of Gulf War vets, and I am very disappointed

at that having written that request in the letter to VA Sec Peake. 

The failure of the Title 38 section on Undiagnosed Illness totally 

fell short of helping vets, but in the end it was recommended to 

keep this section rather than create a new section for service in 

the Persian Gulf.

http://www1.va.gov/gulfwaradvisorycommittee/

 

Veterans should have been part of the committee selection process 

so the committee wouldn't have had so many ringer friends of the 

Chairman, and seats filled by people who didn't attend or have 

much of anything to say. It was designed to fail. Then add the 

deliberate short life span and the chairman's desire to close it way

before that deadline made it impossible to dig deep or get answers. 

Veterans stopped coming to our meetings towards the end when 

they realized they weren't being heard. That was not my desire or 

intent but I was just one voice in there. VA didn't put out a press 

release for the final report. I think that was largely due to the fact 

that I opposed the PDICI in the final report, and that letter of dissent 

effected the outcome of this because I created the committee. 

 

The Gulf War Veteran Illness Task Force

This was a wolf in sheep's clothing. The Chief of Staff John Gingrich 

spoke before our committee about forming this task force to 

continue on in essence what our committee had started. It was 

touted as being big, fast, and provide a report in a few months. 

I asked him that I wanted to stay a part of this effort though our 

committee was disbanding, and provide input when there wont 

be a channel for it. 

 

Sure enough the task force was all internal VA employees 

meeting in secret through out the process. I warned people there 

was a problem here because it was invisible. No website, no 

public meetings, nothing while policy was being decided. Sure 

enough when the report was finally published it was a joke in 

that it wanted to bring back DHWG and the IOM like they had 

always helped Gulf War vets. It was clear that ringers within VA's 

ranks wanted to trip up the Chief of Staff so that things would end 

up going back to the way they were or make it worse. There 

was however a opportunity to interject with the creation of a 

public comment section to the report. The backlash filed on the 

website was swift as 250- pages of materials poured in by mail 

and internet over the 30 day period. By the end the task force 

was realizing that public opinion wasn't all that happy with them. 

I had kicked it off by trying to create a writing style and method 

to post a response in the cryptic and over simplified website. 

Having started posting in most of the categories in the first 3 

hours of operation others caught on. But, I pushed and pushed 

this website far and wide goading people to post.

http://yourgulfwarvoice.uservoice.com/ 

 

The Task Force tried to sneak its materials out on Saturday to 

through the media, and its report brief was ugly in that it pushed 

things like greater DOD involvement. What? The last thing Gulf 

War veterans need was DOD involvement. It was clear things 

were going backwards.

http://www1.va.gov/opa/vadocs/gwvi_draft_report.pdf 

http://www.va.gov/Gulf_War_Background_Brief.pdf

 

The Uservoice website was disappointing in that it tried to coach 

generic 21 responses to what VA wanted of the vets. After a bit 

people just wrote to the first topic and then posted what they wanted

hoping to get top billing. It stopped being topic driven and then things 

became a bit anecdotal. The saving feature was the voting system 

which drove interest up.

http://yourgulfwarvoice.uservoice.com/ 

 

The GWVI Task Force wasn't what we wanted though. Its still 

a invisible entity with no outside involvement. They even went as 

far as to alter part of my committees report to seem like a endorsement 

of the PDICI, of which I am most displeased. Anything done with 

Environmental Agents as a alternative should not mirror the failed 

clinical program in Seattle. That is VA trying to step backwards 

again rather than make VA EA do its job in a more robust fashion 

with a architecture already in place that wouldn't require large 

amounts on money to gear up. I am being silenced on this and 

heavily censored to keep this idea at bay though I fought the whole 

time I was on the committee for it. 

 

Congressional subcommittee a joke 

Since September the House Veteran Affairs subcommittee has 

gone out of its way to cater to VA while trying to sabotage its 

intended Gulf War hearings. The last 2 Gulf War hearings had 

been pro-government jokes that all but endorse the IOM. Now it 

was time to make VA look good once more. 

 

The line up for the pending hearing in November would be designed 

to make VA look like it was making a difference. It would only parade 

out VA best, and make sure that only Chairman Cragin from my 

committee would present for us. That though I dissented on the 

final product and created the committee that I would be censored. 

This looked more and more like the subcommittee staffers bucking 

for a job promotion in other arenas like VA and DOD. But, the hearings 

got bumped because the GWVIS ( of which I had attacked on our 

committee for its Feb 2008 to August 2008 alterations ) and the Task 

Force report were not finished. Well, there was also the IOM report 

they wanted added.

 

Then there was to be a hearing in February 2010, and that was 

scrubbed to give VA more time. Then in April, then in June, and 

so on. By this point the full committee was supposed to step in 

and take over the hearing from the subcommittee. Well, there 

was the announcement for the July 27th hearing but it doesn't 

seem possible since the GWVIS and the the GWVITF are not 

ready for the deadline. But, it doesn't really matter since this 

hearing is rigged to fail as well. 

http://veterans.house.gov/hearings/hearing.aspx?NewsID=601 

 

Collapse of any descent medical research, clinics, or trials 

The VA Research Advisory Committee had failed Gulf War vets 

year after year. Its good ole boy mentality and non-rotating 

monopoly of ringers had kept it lingering. Worse yet, they fully 

endorsed the 2005 Hutchinson earmark legislation that would 

put all our eggs in one basket. I warned them all back then it 

was a bad idea to put it all at UT Southwestern. Well, as I had 

expected VA waited in ambush knowing that given time the 

situation would line up in there favor. Sure enough, Dr. Haley 

made enough mistakes that VA could cut his throat. The funding 

was never really there though, and it was a attempt to bleed UT 

Southwestern dry by finding excuses not to pay them once the 

money was committed on UT's side. 

 

I fought on my end year after year to get a Gulf War clinic set 

up at VA through some channel. In the end here in Texas it 

came down to the problem that none of the VAMC's here have 

space left for such a clinic. The Temple VAMC took it a step 

further and tried to get me in trouble with VA HQ for trying to 

get some kind of clinic there. The Temple VAMC had become 

outright hostile to Gulf War veterans and even took down a 

kiosk in the lobbies rather than put GW materials in it as I 

had asked. There is is much more, but I digress.

 

The push now with VA is to try and make much of this about 

PTSD and fire up a mental health campaign. If the clinic is to 

be built it will be mental health. Yet, Environmental Agents is 

a untapped reservoir already in place to find physical ailments 

that might environmental in nature. Its just been mismanaged.

 

There could have been rudimentary dietary trials in place by 

now. There could have been unique benefits and better ratings 

reviews in place by now for us. The could have been different 

medial clinical care in place for GW vets. Instead we have things 

being decided for us right now by legacy government personnel 

determined to take us back to the stone age. 

 

What could make the greatest difference right now is visibility. 

That a Gulf War vet could walk in and see a familiar face they 

can identify with. Both at the bottom and at the top. But, attrition 

has been one of our greatest enemies these years. Then compound 

that with a invisible program and hierarchy that you cant find, well 

you have the past repeat itself. So on one finds anything new or 

stays around long enough for the next person to learn of it. 

 

You also need a clinic not based in traditional old style medicine. 

Not based on the tired ideas of hack retired hack doctors from 

Walter Reed who feared too much testing was bad. But, doctors 

who deal with global medicine or at worst 3rd world industrial 

medicine that at least deals with the kinds of injuries that happen 

in those regions. American doctors are the worst as well as 

American medicine. Getting paid for failure. They don't do that 

in other countries, you get paid if the patient lives long enough

to do it there. Here, medicine is a expensive joke. 

 

I can go on about the numerous failings around me in the ranks 

of both the advocates and the government - but it doesn't do much 

good if people out there just want to sit back and watch. This has 

all failed because most of you out there take the system for 

granted. You need to get up out of your seat, away from your 

computer, and show up somewhere to make a difference. Go 

there and get involved. One person does make a difference, I 

know because I have bumped heads on high for 13 years and 

saw what happened when I got involved. If only a few more would 

try, and for the right reasons rather than personal gain we might 

actually get what we asked for. But, its starts with you.

 

We continue here at DSBR to ask questions, and ask that you join
our discussion group at GulfLINK Mail List.

 

      Sincerely

      Kirt P. Love 

      Disabled Gulf War Veteran 

              Former member: VA Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans

      Contact: Kirt Love 

                   P.O. Box 414, 

                   Crawford, Tx 76638

 

Note: Yes, I live a few miles from George Bush. But, 

people out here don't talk with him since he left office. 

He just hides out in his house and sulks.

 

 

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The Desert Storm Battle Registry P.O. Box 414 Crawford, TX 76638