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Word from around the Internet: IAVA's roundup of stories and events
Posted by Daniel on March 27 2009

An Open Letter to Veterans From Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki “My name is Ric Shinseki, and I am a Veteran.  For me, serving as Secretary of Veterans Affairs is a noble calling.  It provides me the opportunity to give back to those who served with and for me during my 38 years in uniform and those on whose shoulders we all stood as we grew up in the profession of arms. Read the rest of Sec. Shinseki's letter here.  Vets with post-traumatic stress fight for aid By Susan Elan The Journal News It was during his first deployment in Iraq that Marine Cpl. David Tracy, 23, of Peekskill earned his Purple Heart. "I was up top behind the gun when we stopped at a checkpoint and a roadside bomb exploded on the other side of the barrier," said Tracy, an infantryman who served as a machine gunner in Baghdad and Fallujah. Shrapnel nearly blew off Tracy's right earlobe. "The whole right side of my face was numb," Tracy said as he sat with his wife, Becky, and 8-month-old son, Sean, in the living room of their Peekskill condominium. "The handkerchief I used to pull up to cover my mouth (from sand, smoke and dust) was soaked in blood. Two Marines on the other side of the road were hit and lying on the ground." Medical personnel at the base near Baghdad sewed up Tracy's earlobe. About an hour later, he was back out on patrol. Read the rest of the story over at www.lohud.com  The Way We Get By Wins Special Jury Prize at SXSW Flim Festival A captivating and intimate look at three senior citizens in America as they struggle with the losses that come with growing old and the uplifting ways they rediscover their reasons for living. By greeting nearly one million U.S. troops at a tiny airport in Maine, Bill Knight, Joan Gaudet, and Jerry Mundy find the strength to overcome their own personal battles and demonstrate the meaning of community at a time when most Americans have lost faith in their country. The SXSW FILM CONFERENCE AND FESTIVAL explores all aspects of the art and business of independent filmmaking. The Conference hosts a five-day adventure in the latest filmmaking trends and new technology, featuring distinguished speakers and mentors. The internationally-acclaimed, nine-day Festival boasts some of the most wideranging programming of any US event of its kind, from provocative documentaries to subversive Hollywood comedies, with a special focus on emerging talents. http://www.thewaywegetbymovie.com/ CNN Freelancer Honored For War Reporting CNN producer Alex Quade (left, on assignment with U.S. special forces in Iraq in December) joins the ranks of Tom Brokaw, Mike Wallace and Tim Russert as she was honored as this year's recipient of the Tex McCrary Award For Excellence In Journalism. Read more over at mediabestro.com ‘Cover Me’ leaves no Marine behind  By Cpl. Nicholas J. Lienemann  , Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP PENDLETON, Calif.  — The Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund, hosted by Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, screened the film, “Cover Me,” at the South Mesa Club here, March 5, to help raise awareness and educate Marine leadership about combat operational stress. The film’s conception was centered on the Corps’ need to let Marines know it is all right to seek medical help for combat operational stress and in doing so, their careers will not be adversely affected. Read the rest of Cpl. Lienemann's article at www.marines.mil.  Disscussion of the Don't ask Don't Tell policy from The Daily Show The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10cNathaniel Frankcomedycentral.comDaily Show Full EpisodesEconomic CrisisPolitical Humor Ecstasy treatment draws rave reviews by Mark Rutherford Psychiatrists and researchers are using a notorious party drug to treat veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and are asking the Department of Veterans Affairs to expand the program. Scientists say methylenedioxymethamphetamine produces an experience described as "inhibiting the subjective fear response to an emotional threat." Late-night rave-goers know it as Ecstasy and say it produces an intimate, euphoric groove and makes you grind your teeth. The Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies is sponsoring clinical trials to determine potential risks and benefits of using the drug as part of the psychotherapy for treating post-traumatic stress disorder. Read the rest of the story over at Cnet News.  Supreme Court concurs with The American Legion's stand on public monuments From American Legion National HQ Supreme Court concurs with The American Legion's stand on public monuments A ruling announced this week by the U.S. Supreme Court gives weight to an argument by The American Legion against the placing of public monuments that could threaten the sanctity of veterans memorials. Justices ruled unanimously that an obscure religious group cannot use a "free speech" argument to force a small Utah city to erect a granite marker in a local park that is home to a long-standing monument to the Ten Commandments.   "At first glance, this ruling may seem unrelated to us, but it actually sets a precedent that is very important to veterans groups," said David K. Rehbein, National Commander of The American Legion. "The Justices have said, in effect, that a local government can choose what donated public displays it cares to exhibit on public land - and what displays it can reject.  This reduces the chance that a monument to an enemy or dissenting group, for instance, could be erected in the same space as a monument to our fallen warriors."   The ruling stems from a case precipitated by a small Salt Lake City, Utah-based religious group called Summum.  Summum went to federal court after its effort to erect a marker in Pleasant Grove City, Utah was rejected by the city.  Summum maintained that the city violated its right to free speech by refusing the donated monument.  The Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver agreed with the religious group, but the Supreme Court ruling reverses that decision.   The American Legion played an active role in the oral argument phase of the case. Last year, Liberty Legal Institute in Plano, Texas filed an amicus brief on behalf of The Legion and several colleague veterans and military service organizations. The brief's argument summary stated:   "The precedent established by the Tenth Circuit lays the foundation for the destruction of all donated veterans memorials nationwide and chills the erection of any future memorials. From the United States Marine Corps War Memorial in Arlington, VA, to the Vietnam Veterans War Memorial on The Mall in Washington, DC, to the myriad Spirit of the American Doughboy WWI memorials like that in Ft. Smith, AR, this precedent will require all governments, from the smallest municipality to the Congress itself, to make an impossible decision: either fail to honor our veterans by any donated monument whatsoever, tear down those that currently exist, or allow a monument honoring our veterans and then, upon donation, erect on the same hallowed ground one that dishonors them."   In his favorable Supreme Court opinion, Justice Samuel Alito said that while efforts to suppress actual speech in public parks would ordinarily violate the First Amendment, erection of donated physical entities such as markers and monuments is a different matter.  Justice Alito said "the display of a permanent monument in a public park" defines, in part, a community's identity and, so, "cities and other jurisdictions take some care in accepting donated monuments."   Commander Rehbein notes that the Supreme Court has also agreed to hear a case later this year involving the suppression of a war memorial in the Mojave Desert. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco has ruled that the memorial to World War I veterans is unconstitutional because it is the shape of a cross, which might connote religious symbolism. A proposal to transfer the land upon which the now-cloaked monument rests to the VFW, which erected the cross in 1934, was also ruled unconstitutional by the court. "Obviously, we favor the full and free display of that monument," said the Commander. "The Supreme Court ruling gives us hope for a good outcome in that matter, too."