Website debunking the Special Assistant 
for Gulf War Illnesses

Updated: May 1st, 2008 

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

Gulf War, and Operation Iraqi Freedom

May 1st, 2008: Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans 

 

I was quite shocked to see that in the mail Monday morning a letter from 

the Secretary of VA welcoming me to the new committee. I do not even 

know how to respond to this as I truly didn't think I would make it on even 

after a blitzkrieg of effort to get on. Including multiple nominations from 

some prestigious people. To all of this I say "Thank You so much" and to

Secretary Peake "Thank You Sir". I hope I do this position honor in the coming 

18 months. 

 

The membership is as follows: 

 

Chairman

Charles Cragin
 
Members:
Martha Douthit
Henry Falk, M.D., M.P.H.
Mark Garner
Lynn Goldman, M.D., M.P.H.
John Hart, M.D.
William Jones ( Rusty )
Kirt Love
Daniel Ortiz
Daniel Pinedo

Thomas Plewes
Valeria Randall
Edward R. Reese ( Randy )
Steve Robertson 

Here is the charter:

Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans Charter

http://www.gulflink.org/acgwv/newcover2.jpg
http://www.gulflink.org/acgwv/page2a.jpg

 

There isn't much to report yet as this is all very early on other than trying

to get the biographies done. So I am just waiting for what is next and 

hope that we get under way soon. Very much like Lelia Jackson and 

Laura O'Shea at VA Policy and Procedure, they have been most

pleasant and professional. They are quite busy trying to get everything 

organized. 

 

March 20th, 2008: Gulf War Advisory Committee in Federal Register 

 

On March 6th the Federal Register posted the new VA committee with

some explanation of its function. The bad news was VA put a 18 month 

termination date on this committee. Which is hardly enough time to find 

anything before it wraps up. 

Federal Register Notice - New Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veteran

 

What is truly new is bringing back the spouses and children of Gulf War 

vets back to the table. For many years DOD and others have tried to gloss 

over the birth defects and other spousal issues. The Gulf War Spouse and 

Child Registry at VA was terminated. These people never went away, they 

were driven away from DOD / VA. So now they have a platform once again 

to address there now 17 year old issues.

 

Media coverage so far has been limited to Texas, but here it has been 

front page news:

 

  

 

In the news Beatrice Golumb published a report on AChEIs 

problems and the enzymes that work to clear them. That 

Pyridostigmine Bromide may have played a factor in this 

disruption of bodily functions. 

 

More and more the term "Metabolic syndrome" is being heard 

in the news as several factors in metabolism, and weight gain 

become a ever mounting issue. Hopefully in Gulf War circles 

there will be more attention to this and not just put all our eggs 

in one basket that neurology is the answer. 

 

The new "Gulf War Review" was supposed to be out in December 

2007. Its late March 2008 and for some reason the front office at 

VA has still been holding this up. The good news in this is that 

enough time passed that VA agreed to put in the new Gulf War 

committee into the publication. Which gives something for veterans 

to participate in. 

 

The VA WRIISC program started a new clinic in Palo Alto, California. 

They should be announcing it shortly for those vets on the west 

coast who cant seem to get a a referral. I myself had problems 

here in Texas getting a DC referral, and had to take special 

measures. Then VA came up with a excuse trying to say the 

WRIISC cannot do multiple visits. VHA handbook 1303.5 does 

not stipulate the number of visits one can make to the WRIISC. 

You think this would be for trying to find answers for vets, which 

is what we originally fought for in 1998 with PL 105-368. 

 

The "Gulf War Brain Bank" has been the best kept secret of our

issue for a while now. It appears VA wants to keep it that way just 

like the tissue vault at the AFIP. They don't want to promote it or 

discuss it publicly though for a year the doors have been open. 

Sounds like they want it to fail by making sure vets don't know 

about it. 

 

The RAC meets in Boston MA on April 7th and 8th 2008. Absent 

for almost a year, the attention will be around Dr. Haley and the 

Southwestern University funding. There will be a change of guard 

as Kimberly Sullivan, Ph.D. becomes the new Scientific Coordinator. 

The RAC will be in a office in Boston and has a new email address:

rac@bu.edu . What is noticeably missing is a phone number again. 

Something hopefully the new committee will have to answer veteran 

questions. 

 

I am not overly optimistic here on any of this as veteran involvement 

hasn't been pushed for real. Its hinted at. But, its still like prying a 

ring off the finger of a dead man to get answers even on little things. 

This is a far cry from the way things were in 2000 as DOD and VA 

have learned that keeping grass roots away keeps things silent. 

So I still have to work twice as hard as usual to stay on top of things.

 

February 23rd, 2008: New Gulf War Advisory Committee 

 

In September 2006 I had pushed the idea of the need for a coordinating 

board on the RAC. Something that could operate between agencies and 

function beyond the charter of the RAC for Gulf War vets. After a hour 

of deliberation with Jim Binns I was talked down to a smaller entity, 

an advisory committee. This wasn't exactly what I wanted but had a 

greater chance of happening. So in November the idea was pitched 

to VA with little fan fair. But, but February 2007 the RAC sent a letter 

to Sec. Nicholson asking for a new advisory committee. It was of course 

shot down by VA at that time. 

 

In October 2007 I met with Rep. Chet Edwards talking about the 

desperation of Gulf War veterans everywhere. Chet at one point had 

said to me "But I had thought Gulf War vets where being taken 

care of", of which I recanted that things couldn't be worse. So Chet's 

staff asked me to draft a letter to send to the Sec. of VA for this new 

advisory committee. 2 months would pass while this was being hammered

out. Having it modeled after the VA OIF advisory committee and that 

veterans should have a say in the committee formation. By January 

3rd 2008 it was signed and delivered to Sec. Peake.

http://www.gulflink.org/chet/gulfwar.pdf

 

January 15th 2008 the story of this project went out in Stars and Stripes 

newspaper. Which was met with a instant negative reaction that 

morning from VA. They claimed they had not even seen the letter 

yet much less had a response to it. 

Stars and Stripes-Congressman wants to make VA access easier for Gulf vets  

 

By February 5th 2008 the Secretary of VA James Peake responded 

back to Chet Edwards that he would create the committee.

http://www.gulflink.org/chet/VaPeake.pdf

 

Man getting clout for Gulf War veterans - 

Temple Daily Telegram

http://www.gulflink.org/chet/veterans.html

 

Local Veteran Fights For Better Care For Veterans - 

Channel 25 Waco

http://www.kxxv.com/Global/story.asp?S=7868799 

 

While this all was happening I was quite busy with other projects 

that also needed attention. One of those more important items was 

the fact that the incidence of Leishmaniasis in the military was 

double what was being reported. This I brought up with the VA OIF / 

OEF Advisory Committee. In 2007 AMSA was reporting 1,280 cases 

when the following month the Boston Globe said it was 2,500.

http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/05/07/africa/07combat-disease.php 

The committee responded back to me that they received this. 

 

The there is the issue of the MDR Acinetobacter Baumannii that has 

spread across America since 2003 thanks to the military. This super 

bug no longer responds to antibiotics and there are no laws in place to 

force the military or the medical community to report these infections 

like they do diseases. Which by a technicality has killed people and 

taken arms as well as legs by unnecessary amputations. This being 

unnecessary if precautions had been taken early on to protect these 

people from this infection rather than deny its existence until too late. 

American Legion magazine interviewed me on this but narrowed down 

my part in this since 2004 just like Forbes and Wired news magazines. 

I was the first to bring this up in front of the IOM, to DHSD, and many 

others like Government Reform from 2004 and following years. All the 

time being told lie after lie about how many are infected. The advantage 

DOD had in this was the fact that people didn't want to make a big deal 

of the infection when they survived it. So Acinetobacter has no real 

celebrity spokesperson or surviving victim that wants it dealt with. Which 

gives DOD just what it wants to go on ignoring responsibility for releasing 

this drug resistant pathogen on America. 

The Iraqibacter 

 

The "Gulf War Review" went out of publication back in July 2006 as 

Mark Brown at VA conspired to get rid of it. First, he would stop printing 

it then they would stop posting a pdf to the website as well. Anything 

that would give the illusion that vets were not interested though the 

subscription list was 220,000 vets. I bought this up to the RAC in 

November 2006 and literally called DC from the meeting to show Jim Binns 

that in fact the "Gulf War Review" was not being printed anymore. So the 

RAC asked Sec. Nicholson to reinstate it early 2007. Word was a budget 

was put back in place for it. But, once again Mark Brown would make sure 

in his own way it wouldn't go out. The year passed by until in October 2007 

I asked Chet Edwards office to look into this. After a Congressional request 

Mark Brown recanted the "Review" was being held up by the IOM study:

"Gulf War and Health: Physiologic, Psychologic, and Psychosocial Effects 

of Deployment Related Stress". They wanted to include its findings in the 

review. But, this study doesn't even make recommendations for Gulf War 

vets of the 1991 war. However, it was reported it would go out December 

2007. Then the next hold up was Secretary James Peake had to approve 

it but hasn't said a word on it. So here it is almost March 2008, and the 

"Gulf War Review" hasn't made it to the publishers. Gulf War vets are always 

on the back burner with this as it drags out 19 months from the last publication. 

Which to me is a clear sign that VA just wants us to go away. This review 

will no doubt be a rag on top of it since Deputy Director Steve Sloane isnt 

interested in any input, I know because for a year I have tried with NO 

response from him or Mark. The 2 black holes of information at VA when 

it comes to our issue. 

 

The best intel at this shows that Mark Brown, Craig Hyams, and Steve 

Sloane have been asked to provide input on the new advisory committee. 

Talking about putting the "Wolves in charge of the hen house". This 

committee was created because of these people who cut off communication 

with VA, and now the Secretary has put them in charge of this? No doubt 

in a effort to tank the new committee or skew its committee membership 

to reflect people loyal to VA - passive. Not what I had drafted in the letter 

to Chet Edwards toward the bottom of that letter. So the deadline for the 

charter has passed and VA is being secretive about the committee 

processes rather than involve veterans in it like I had asked. This does 

not bode well for something that was to help us if it doesn't involve those 

of us that created it. I am now very suspicious of this whole process.

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 

      Contact: Kirt Love

---

The Turkey Awards:       Given to those individuals      that  struggle to make Gulf War     veterans lives worse instead     of better.

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