Posted on Sep 15, 2020
Jon Stewart leads renewed fight on benefits for burn pit victims
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RallyPoint Members, Connections, and friends - Veterans advocates on Tuesday launched a new campaign for additional recognition and aid for troops exposed to toxic burn pit fumes during overseas deployments at the height of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, saying time is running out to provide real help to the victims.
“This is not about science, this is about money,” said comedian Jon Stewart in an emotional press conference on Capitol Hill featuring numerous families of dead and dying veterans whose rare illnesses aren’t officially recognized by federal officials as stemming from burn pit exposure.
“Listen to these families … Delaying care and waiting for veterans to die is not a mantle worthy of our country.”
Tuesday’s event coincided with new legislation introduced by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., and Rep. Raul Ruiz, D-Calif., which would provide presumptive benefit status for any veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan during the wars, as well as a host of other overseas military sites where burn pits were frequently used.
Click on the link and check out the rest of the story.
“This is not about science, this is about money,” said comedian Jon Stewart in an emotional press conference on Capitol Hill featuring numerous families of dead and dying veterans whose rare illnesses aren’t officially recognized by federal officials as stemming from burn pit exposure.
“Listen to these families … Delaying care and waiting for veterans to die is not a mantle worthy of our country.”
Tuesday’s event coincided with new legislation introduced by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., and Rep. Raul Ruiz, D-Calif., which would provide presumptive benefit status for any veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan during the wars, as well as a host of other overseas military sites where burn pits were frequently used.
Click on the link and check out the rest of the story.
Jon Stewart leads renewed fight on benefits for burn pit victims
Posted from militarytimes.com
Burn Pits
VHA
Benefits
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
Health
Edited >1 y ago
Posted >1 y ago
Responses: 5
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The government will drag their feet until most of them are dead, just like they have done with Agent orange victims.
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SGT Steve McFarland
SFC Chuck Martinez I have two friends who are dealing with AO-related health problems right now, and they are lucky to still be alive. I lost a brother-in-law a few years ago from AO-related health problems. It's one of those "gifts" that keeps on giving.
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SFC Chuck Martinez
SGT Steve McFarland - Sad but they are true facts, some live longer than others for whatever reason. God is the one in charge, PFC Albert Fillafane from NYC passed over 15 years ago from cancer. It killed him slowly, he was in my squad as the asst MG.
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SGT Steve McFarland
SFC Chuck Martinez Yes, Joe, who was an Army Ranger Officer in 'Nam, is in his 70's, and Don, who was in the Air Force and decontaminated equipment and aircraft that had been brought back from 'Nam, is in his early 60's. Don is my DAV Chapter Commander, and Joe is a past DAV National Commander.
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SFC Chuck Martinez
SP5 Jim Curry - I'm sorry to hear that Jim, Right now I have through the VA 180% of disabilities from head to toes but I try to keep on going and try not to let anything get to me. It is what it is and we just have to go with the flow, God bless you, brother!
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I guess they have forgotten all about the many Vietnam war Vets who were exposed to agent orange which was far worst than the burned pits. The burn pits were started way before the Iraq and Afgan wars. Agent Orange has killed over 400,000 innocent people in the Nam and has exposed soldiers five times more than the 58,000 soldiers who were KIA in Vietnam. I know that the VA has a list of over 200,000 soldiers on its burn pit registry but does not have one for those exposed in Vietnam to over 1,000 different types of chemicals! Just saying, we have to look at both sides of these issues!
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SFC Chuck Martinez
MSG Felipe De Leon Brown - When I arrived at the Kennedy Airport 1967, Mom and Dad were waiting for me with my oldest brother angel. There were other families waiting to see their loved one coming home from the battlefields in Vietnam. All was cool until we got to the baggage claim area. We ran into a bunch of hair-long hippies calling us murderers and baby killers. Dad just told them they could all go to hell, but mom got really nervous started to cry. Non of us never got a heroes welcome and I always wondered, were we heroes or just pawns used by our government to fight in a war they knew we could never win!!
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MSG Felipe De Leon Brown
To our families, I believe, we were heroes. One of my uncles and a cousin, both Airborne Infantry-Korea, were both very proud of me as well. As far as I was concerned, I was just happy to have survived. The gutless wonders who chose to attack us instead of focusing their opposition to the war on the government were no more than a pack of cockroaches whom I would have been happy to send straight to Hell. They had their heads so far up their rectums that they couldn't even smell the flowers many were wearing in their hair.
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SFC Chuck Martinez
MSG Felipe De Leon Brown - Actually my dad was as hard as a rock, he told me I was a freaking jerk for volunteering for the Nam war. I packed up my duffle bag and took off to my next assignment, Panama where six month into my tour, I got the Malaria again. Let me tell you, that is some really bad stuff!!
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MSG Felipe De Leon Brown
SFC Chuck Martinez - As much time as I spent in the boonies in both Viet Nam and Panamá, it continues to amaze me why and how I never caught malaria. My parents weren't really thrilled about me going to Viet Nam either but, they understood that I love our nation so much that I would never ever try to avoid it. My dad was a History and Social Science professor who saw the US's involvement in Viet Nam as folly. He was, however, proud of my having served with honor and loyalty to our Constitution as well as my being faithful to what I still believe in "Duty Honor, Country."
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Many who supported the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and are still currently in the government have never been directly affected by the illnesses caused.by exposure to the burn pits. One can only hope, however, that they will have enough empathy to support the funding needed to take care of those who served our nation so that they didn't have to.
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SFC Chuck Martinez
MSG Felipe, my take on this, if anyone was KIA in the Nam and the wars that followed, our close family, the parents and if not married, the wife of, during the Nam war, the GI insurance was only $50,000 dollars, a small price to pay for a human life. In present time conflicts, it went up to $100.000.00 barely enough for a down payment on a house. For those who were severely injured, they went through hell in our military hospitals for months at a time and again, if not married they are taken care of by the parents and if married by the wife. A double edge sword no matter how you put it. Like in Vietnam, many ended-up in wheelchairs, and Many with PTSD which cause 38% of divorces. In our recent wars, the divorce rate was from 40 to 50 percent due to more deployments of our military personnel. My point, after all I mentioned above, how many politicians are going to pay attention to those affected by exposure to burn pits when many of our wounded military or those with PTSD are still waiting to get treated. This mess, sorry to say will never get clean up!
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MSG Felipe De Leon Brown
Completely understand and agree with your take. Perhaps I'm too much of an optimist but I am hopeful that those who have never served will eventually wake up and start trying to repay the debt to them who have given more than most people could ever imagine. The mess will never be completely cleaned up, as you state, but any help at all is better than none. Fingers crossed.
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SFC Chuck Martinez
MSG Felipe De Leon Brown - Amen MSG, The VA is getting better, the VA in Seattle is awesome. I have had several surgeries there and most likely will get a couple of more. What amazes me is all the civilian volunteers they have all around the hospital. Good people who just want to help our veterans!
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