Blog Post

IAVA Daily News Brief 10.15.12
Posted by Jacob Worrell on October 15 2012

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

MUST READS

1) Coming Home: Justice for our veterans

Yesterday, the news program 60 Minutes featured the Harris County Veterans Treatment Court. Among the first Veterans Treatment Courts in Texas, Harris County serves as an exemplary model of how a community has come together to fight for the health, stability, and recovery of veterans. To learn more about Veterans Treatment Courts and the efforts of Justice For Vets, click here.

2) Firms Press to Hire Young Veterans

The unemployment rate among younger U.S. military veterans, long a source of worry, is declining as companies step up efforts to hire them. Even so, many veterans are still struggling to explain the skills they learned in the military in ways that are relevant for employers, and the unemployment rate for younger veterans remains well above the national rate for nonveterans.

3) Don’t Thank Me for My Service, Just Hire Me!

With more than one million veterans set to reenter the civilian sector over the next five years, it is up to all sectors of society to ensure they do so with an opportunity to find gainful employment, health and wellness, education, and the support needed to make the transition as smooth as possible.

AFGHANISTAN

• A platoon of men in the 173rd Airborne Brigade ponder how to define success in Afghanistan as they persevere through their deployment in an isolated Jaghatu outpost.
• Prince Harry has reportedly taken fire from the Taliban during his current tour in Afghanistan. 

IRAQ

• At least six people have been killed in a series of gun and bomb attacks targeting security forces in northern Iraq.

MILITARY AFFAIRS

• The Department of Defense (DOD) has recently been given a larger role in protecting cyberspace.
• Gen. Martin Dempsey said that the qualities of today's fighting men and women are what will make this generation of veterans vital to the future success of the nation.

THE NEW GREATEST GENERATION

• Missouri Western State University and Northwest Missouri State University have both seen surges in the number of veterans enrolling.
• A 27-year-old infantryman of the New Mexico National Guard is heralded by paramedics and commended by the County Sheriff’s Department for saving a 19-year-old motorcyclist’s life.
• Most families are not prepared to cope with learning their loved one has a mental illness - it is important to remember there is hope and help.
• Mortgages guaranteed by the Department of Veterans Affairs surged by 50 percent in the fiscal year ended Sept. 30.
• Women compose 15 percent of homecoming U.S. troops and 15 percent of the U.S. armed forces, yet many Americans are unsure how to accept or view them, female veterans say.

INSIDE WASHINGTON

• Veterans are emerging as a significant political force this year because of their numbers, sacrifice, public popularity and the government's need to plan for serving troops returning from the Middle East.
• Mitt Romney’s Republican presidential campaign has filed a federal lawsuit in Madison, requesting that Wisconsin extend its deadline for military and overseas voters to return their absentee ballots.

A wide-range of views, positions, and publications are represented in these articles. These views, positions and publications are not endorsed by nor do they necessarily represent the views of IAVA.

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