Blog Post

Daily News Brief 05.08.12
Posted by Jacob Worrell on May 8 2012

Here are some of today's top stories and happenings at IAVA.  Prefer to receive real-time updates about major stories and legislation that IAVA is tracking? Follow us on Twitter @IAVAPressRoom and click here to get the News Brief delivered to your inbox every morning.

MUST READS

1) How Amazon learned to love veterans

Amazon.com has grown from a small online book retailer to one of the largest and most successful internet companies in the world. Part of the company’s secret to success has been its knack for identifying and recruiting hot new talent. Now, with highly-trained Americans coming home from Afghanistan in increasing numbers, Amazon is recruiting new veterans to run their logistic centers.

2) 9th Circuit tosses lawsuit over VA mental health care

On Monday, a federal appeals court rejected a lawsuit that sought to force the Department of Veterans Affairs to overhaul VA’s treatment program. An overhaul to VA's treatment programs must come from Congress, not the courts, according to the judge.

3) A High-Tech Hand for Kyle?

Kyle lost his right hand to an IED attack while serving in Iraq with the Marine Corps. Now back home with his wife and kids in Michigan, he has never felt that a prosthetic would help improve his quality of life. ABC News flew Kyle out to Hangar Clinic in New York to see if they could find the right prosthetic for him. 

AFGHANISTAN

• The U.S. military has apologized for an airstrike which mistakenly killed six Afghan civilians.
• Al Qaeda has released a video of an elderly American hostage kidnapped in Pakistan.
• The youngest American troops in Afghanistan are barely old enough to remember the event that led to their deployment.

IRAQ

• An Iraqi court has ruled to release a prisoner accused of engineering an attack on American forces in 2007.
• The global police force Interpol has called for aid in arresting the fugitive Vice President of Iraq, who fled the country in December.
• The last Humvee to leave Iraq has arrived at Fort Hood, where it will be displayed for the public.

MILITARY AFFAIRS

• A new report authored by VA’s Inspector General suggests that most homeless veterans suffer from mental disorders.
• According to the IRS, the nonprofit Disabled Veterans National Foundation has spent the vast majority of its funds on marketing schemes and free gifts to other veteran aid groups—not the veterans themselves.
• In an appearance in Washington, D.C. on Monday, Prince Harry urged his audience to remember the sacrifices made by wounded warriors.
• A Marine Reservist from Connecticut is suing his employer, which he accuses of wrongfully firing him after he told them he would need weekends off for drill.

NEW GREATEST GENERATION

• Meet ten Fortune 500 CEOs who served their country before working in the business world.
• A growing number of older reservists are volunteering for deployment, including one father and son duo.
• The Pentagon cancelled its collaboration with the makers of the blockbuster movie The Avengers because the film was thought to be too unrealistic.
• After five continents, nine countries and 22 cities, a military couple claimed first prize and $1 million in The Amazing Race show on CBS.

INSIDE WASHINGTON

• The House Armed Services Committee is on the verge of blocking a proposal to increase Tricare health fees.
• On Tuesday, Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric Shinseki appeared before the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs.
• A House bill proposes to cut social programs like Medicaid in order to protect defense spending.
• Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee Rep. Buck McKeon has proposed legislation that would bar private guards from providing security at American bases in Afghanistan unless they undergo screening.

  Share:
 del.icio.us  digg  reddit  facebook  newsvine myspace twitter