Underplayed Story of the Day

Marine Cpl. James Dixon was wounded twice in Iraq -- by a roadside bomb and a land mine. He suffered a traumatic brain injury, a concussion, a dislocated hip and hearing loss. He was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder.

.

Army Sgt. Lori Meshell shattered a hip and crushed her back and knees while diving for cover during a mortar attack in Iraq. She has undergone a hip replacement and knee reconstruction and needs at least three more surgeries.

.

In each case, the Pentagon ruled that their disabilities were not combat-related.

.
George Bush needs to be asked about this TODAY! I swear, Republicans always talk about taking care of the military and veterans and this is the kind of sh!t that they pull? UNBELIEVABLE.

Question: did Gates know about this? If he did, this should scuttle the effort to have him stay on as SecDef.

sgw, Bush has checked out early.

We spend more than the rest of the world combined on warfare, but we do all we can to screw over the 0.5% of the population who actually serve.
-
The military-industrial complex is far more terrifying than I think even Eisenhower realized.

the Disabled American Veterans accused the Pentagon of "mutilating" the statutory definitions of combat-related disabilities as part of a "deliberate manipulation of the law."

Somehow the verb in that sentence carries an nice extra punch. And I'm not referring to "accused".

This is an example of what I call 'managing by spreadsheet' and its incredibly common in both government AND the private sector. In both cases, important decisions are made almost exclusively for their effect on paper and with utter disregard for their actual effect on actual human beings. And the ultimate kick in the butt is that people who make such decisions are usually congratulating themselves for their 'realism'.

And also, thanks KT for highlighting this important story.

This is an outrage. We need to send the group that made these recommendations to Iraq and have them go out and search for IEDs. Oh, and hold the body armour, please.

wvng
.
I want Bush on the record as evidence in the criminal investigation that will never happen

I suppose that once you've tweaked the definition of "torture", then it follows that you should tweak the definition of "injury" to correspond, right?

The Bush Administration continues to fail to meet my already low expectations for them.
--
Obama needs to be asked about this, in the context of Gates. In fact, Gates should be asked about this.

Yarr!
.
I'll be writin' me representatives t' see if they were supportin' this scurvy, cowardly bit o' head slop legislation! An' t' think me own pirate progeny be out defendin' bloody slime-eatin' sea sh*ts o' this type - makes a wench want t' hurl o'er th' poop deck (t' th' leeward side, mind ye, mateys)!

Yarr. I be in moderation fer usin' pirate-speak! Where's me First Amendment rights, mates ?

Does Bush have any speeches left in front of military crowds, his favorite type of audience? Paying lip service to military veterans while simultaneously cutting the legs out from under them (literally) is just par for the course for this despicable administration.
.
Let's not forget that they also allowed the brass to change the definitions of PTSD, resulting in many impaired soldiers being sent back into battle.
.
Cynical, selfish, lying and thieving... If a policy didn't line the pockets of their friends, it wasn't a policy worth supporting, despite the faux patriotism (used as a bludgeon against their foes).
.
There is no bottom to the actions of this crew. It's an abyss.

If Duckworth doesn't get the Senate nod from Blagojevich she sure as hell should be the new Secretary of Veterans' Affairs.

.
In the meantime, does anyone think this administrative atrocity will help the armed services' continuing recruiting difficulties – or does Clueless Leader assume the economy's so far down the crapper that we'll see plenty of new desperation enlistments?

demwoman, if there were ever a thread in need of arrrgggghhhhhhs and yarrrrrrrs, this is the one.
.
I wonder what these guys think about Zucchino's story:
.
But regardless of whether Gates stays on as secretary of defense, the new president faces daunting challenges in dealing with the American military. Not the least of these is that while conservatives go to great lengths to point out that the military is an almost exact reflection of the nation's ethnic and gender diversity, the simple truth remains that the new president will be the commander-in-chief of a military that is primarily southern, rural and conservative - an exact description of the one group of Americans that voted overwhelmingly for McCain.

Best news ever if true.
.
Ann Coulter's jaw wired shut.
.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/11/25/ann-coulters-jaw-wired-sh_n_146248.html

Best news ever if true. Ann Coulter's jaw wired shut.

^ First time poster, but I've been reading this board for a while. I mostly read it because I like the insight from commentators and KT and I am often entertained by the brutal treatment the other columnists receive when they put up ridiculous posts. My question is off-topic but seeing as how this week is sort of commentator week I figured I would use the chance to ask it:
.
Why isn't there any after-the-fact investigation or reporting on the spike in oil/gas prices that was the most important issue for the country just a few months ago? Why isn't anyone talking about the causes of the huge drop in price that occurred since (something like $155 to $55 per barrel)?
.
During the peak of that crisis, every politician had their opinion about what caused it and what we should do to alleviate it. Now that it is over and has been alleviated, why isn't anyone talking about who was right or wrong? Were there any steps implemented to make sure it doesn't happen again? Where did all that money go? I know Exxon made record profits in back-to-back quarters- was it all their doing?
.
Was "drill, drill, drill" the right idea? Was out of control speculation the problem and better regulation the solution? It seems clear that the long term solution is to get off oil period but what can be done to avoid more price gouges until then?
.
Did the huge jump in oil/gas prices partly cause the current recession? I read in another post that oil price jumps occurred right before previous slow downs in the economy- perhaps that should be looked into?

crdvis
.
I have asked the same question a couple of times. Although my questions were loaded because it is my opinion that the fact that oil dropped in conjunction with the financial crisis even though presumably oil did not have any subprime mortages or cds intruments pulling them down shows that its the out of control commodities speculation that drove the price of oil up and NOT supply and demand which is what the Republicans want us to believe. Note also crdavis that OPEC has actually CUT oil supply since the price started dropping but to no avail. Oil should never actually cost $140 bucks and instead it was just like the internet bubble and it finally burst. But you don't see anyone talking about it. As a matter of fact Congressional Right Winger Michele Bachmann has actually taken credit for the fall of oil prices both because of prayer and because the off shore oil ban has expired.

sgw. first things first. Always start with a hearty "Welcome!" to new posters.
.
Hey, crdvis - Welcome!

Actions speak louder then words. For decades the Republicans have been known as the security party. The party that advocates on behalf of veterans. My brother in law in a Marine, has been in for 11 years now. Over the course of those years my sister has seen his benefits get reduced time and again. It's shameful how our soldiers and their families are continually asked to sacrifice, but then get slapped in the face with laws like these. I think that if the Democrats really made strides to help soldiers and their families, improving their health care over all and housing and educaion on the bases for their families, you would see the troops start to move away from the Republican party when it comes to their votes.

wvng
.
you are right WELCOME CRDAVIS. Good to have you and don't be a stranger, we all welcome honest discussion and debate. Well everybody but rusty and texte but they are fun too lol.

This is an absolute travesty.
.
And our government wonders why they're having a difficult time making recruiting quotas...
.
I'm a huge proponent of Gates, as his military polices to-date have been pragmatic and forward-looking, but if he had anything to do with this, I want him out of office. You can't be SecDef and treat our Veterans like they're worthless, easily-replaced cannon fodder.

KT
.
I agree with you on that, but you do realize that oil is down to almost a third of what it was trading at 3 months ago? Do you think people stopped using gas that much? Oh and I could point out that this is the season when oil prices usually go up because people have to heat their homes. But why keep pushing facts on top of the pile right? LOL Don't get me wrong, I am LOVING gas being back down to $2 but i just want everyone to recognize that as soon as the stock market stabilizes oil will skyrocket back up.