VA OIG ANNOUNCMENT: VA Committed To Whistleblower Rights

VA OIG Announcement

A VA OIG announcement shows VA is clearly in a full-blown propaganda campaign to redefine its approach to whistleblower rights just in time for the coming election.

On Saturday, VA OIG released statement from Michael Missal about its commitment support the rights of whistleblowers. Apparently, the inspector general even received a recent certification from the Office of Special Counsel (OSC) to highlight its efforts.

OIG claims it is “committed to protecting the identity of any person who comes forward and reports serious allegations of criminal activity, fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement.”

To ensure it complies with the rights of others, OSC certified VA for its training. Somehow, this training was unable to protect the rights of whistleblowers harassed at Phoenix VA, Hines VA, Tomah VA, and practically every other VA where a crime was reported.

Apparently, in December 2015:

“OSC certified OIG for meeting our obligation to inform our employees of their rights and remedies under the prohibited personnel practice and whistleblower protection provisions of chapters 12 and 23 of Title 5. In order to obtain this certification, OIG had to meet five broad requirements, one of which included employee training. To protect whistleblowers, VA OIG employees are trained on protections and remedies guaranteed to Federal employees by the Whistleblower Protection Act, the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act, and related laws.”

I have talked with a few whistleblowers who think the press release was nothing more than a sham aimed at falsely proving to America that veterans are being cared for. It is total horseshit.

VA OIG ANNOUNCEMENT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

July 30, 2016

STATEMENT FROM VA INSPECTOR GENERAL MICHAEL MISSAL

“Today is National Whistleblower Appreciation Day. We as a Nation must recognize the important role whistleblowers play in exposing serious problems and deficiencies in Government programs and operations. Only when employees, contractors, and the public come forward to report criminal activity, mismanagement, fraud, waste, or abuse can the organization’s leadership begin to take steps to address and correct any exposed problems. In many cases, employees do not have a safe internal process to report such activities within their organization. In situations such as this, employees may confidentially report their concerns to the Office of Special Counsel (OSC) or the Office of Inspector General that oversees their department or office.

“At the Veterans Affairs (VA) Office of Inspector General (OIG), we are committed to protecting the identity of any person who comes forward and reports serious allegations of criminal activity, fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement. As VA’s oversight agency, we will protect whistleblowers while we thoroughly investigate their concerns through all avenues available to us.

“In December 2015, OSC certified OIG for meeting our obligation to inform our employees of their rights and remedies under the prohibited personnel practice and whistleblower protection provisions of chapters 12 and 23 of Title 5. In order to obtain this certification, OIG had to meet five broad requirements, one of which included employee training. To protect whistleblowers, VA OIG employees are trained on protections and remedies guaranteed to Federal employees by the Whistleblower Protection Act, the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act, and related laws. OIG’s Whistleblower Protection Ombudsman program provides education about protections for current or former employees of VA, VA contractors, or VA grantees who make protected disclosures.

“We continue to work with VA and OSC to strengthen protections for whistleblowers. Providing a safe process to report issues, protecting whistleblowers and instituting changes resulting from disclosures makes VA better able to deliver services and benefits that our Nation’s veterans have earned through their military service.”

Source: https://www.disabledveterans.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/VAOIG_Whistleblowers_Appr_Day.pdf

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58 Comments

  1. You guys and gals need to know, if you already don’t that all these abuses are NO ACCIDENT ! The VA is hiring doctors and nurses straight out of the Gestapo SS and the are trying to make sure that these doctors and nurses share their agenda ! After having been a member of the system for 38 years and 100 percent disabled vet for 20 years I After being followed by ex marines, attacked breaking my hand by ex marines vehicles damaged and yes tried to kill me at least twice in the Philippines and Mexico. I thought I had seen everything. Went to the FBI 3 times at least and they will do nothing. Came home from the Philippines and suddenly the doctors shut off my pain meds and anti inflamatories, and prostate meds then threatened to shut off my potassium and insulin, when the VA docs gave both to me to keep me alive in the first place, when the VA had good doctors! Then gave me methotrexate which caused my liver to go into failure! Then when I go to them with outside paperwork needing their support they not only refuse to help but put down phony evaluations and tell me not to come back. I went outside the VA and got everything I needed and my meds reinstated outside the VA. On the last visit the dr was wanting to know who my outside doctor is and I suppose they will try to get my pain meds cut or threaten the doctor for supporting my disability outside the VA. People you need to be aware that all this is NO ACCIDENT ! The VA really is hiring docs and some nurses (but not all nurses) with an agenda to deny care and deny health problems ! Otherwise why can I go outside the VA and get what I need and why did VA doctors give me the meds and health care in the first place? Keep your records because the VA will loose them too! Since the phoenix scandal and other scandals at the VA what has been done? NOT MUCH THAT I CAN SEE !

    1. No these are not accidental, The VA knows exactly what they are doing. That the problem instead of following the Laws and Rules they do what ever they want to and that is higher Managements fault. That is why it is so important to get rid of all mid-level and higher Management.

      These VA employee’s just do not care about anything to do with veterans. Its all about themselves. They want total control and if you don’t like it, they will make their employee’s lives Hell. They have passed a law, where they can now fire Federal Employee’s, it has to be signed.

      I am hoping that they take the No Prisoners attitude and Fire or press Federal charges against many of these employee’s. In order for this to work All VA Employee’s must see for themselves that there is a price to pay for hurting veterans and fellow Co-worker.

      This is going to be a major effort, but it must be done and they have to stop letting the VA police themselves. That’s how we got into this mess.

      Veterans new Moto for VA Fire, Fire, Jail !

      1. The VA secretary stated it was nearly impossible to fire employee’s and the new law was needed to get rid of bad employee’s. I just wonder who is going to be the one to find out who these bad employee’s are and who’s going to turn them in.

        We know that manager’s will not turn each other in. Someone has to be the top dog and that person needs to be held accountable if people are not fired or demoted. I also wonder if Veterans are going to have a say so about VA employee’s whom have harmed them.

        Veterans must have a voice, they are in the front lines and are the ones effected directly. I should also include VA employee’s that blow the whistle. I have yet seen the procedures of how they will identify bad employee’s.

        Employee’s like Kimberly Graves and Diana Rubin’s pled the 5th ! Someone will have to fix that loop hole. If any VA employee pleads the 5th, it tells the public that they are hiding something !

        We have seen over and over where the VA is investigated and either the Union or Higher management tells their employee’s not to speak with investigators. We have so many different agencies, like GOA who investigated and made their report and they see things that could be criminal and they have no authority to take action.

        They suggest that someone else another agency should look into the matter. But do they advise the other agencies such as the OIG, FBI or other agency with their conclusions.

        What is the process going to look like. I know one thing not until All VA employee’s see for themselves that anyone who harms a veteran or whistleblower in anyway that veteran or whistleblower should be able to file charges against the offender.

        Veterans who have been Falsely accused of anything or have been punished by the Disruptive Committee should be able to file charges of “Libel”, since it was published and the intent was to make other employee’s and the public to hate them and shun them. If the VA had no proof or evidence of the veteran ever being disruptive, Anyone and everyone involved should be held accountable, that includes all members of the disruptive committee and the employee making the allegation’s.

        The way VA wrote up the regulations about veterans being disruptive is very vague and wide spread. Such as May become disruptive, may be a threat in the future. We know that thousands of veterans have been accused of some type of disruptive behavior. Questioning their treatment, expressing how a VA employee treated them Etc.

        The regulations state that in order for action against a veterans it must be well documented in the medical record of any disruptive behavior. Well the VA does not follow their own regulations and in my case admitted they had any evidence or proof.

        They did not have one incident in writing of me ever being disruptive, as required per regulations and yet they punished me for 5 years. They let the very employee making the allegation’s answer any and all inquires and have defended that employee’s with out making the employee’s furnish any evidence.

        This has been going on since 2004 and since then I have accumulated written proof where the VA Denver Director told my Senators office that they never coded or Red Flagged my records for Disruptive Behavior, when the records state other wise.

        Not only did they code and Red Flag my records, they wrote into the records ” If we EVER hear that you become Disruptive or do not corporate with your treatment staff. ” You will have Federal charges placed upon you, you will be Arrested and you will be Banished from all VA care !

        They also called the Inspector General office and the FBI and my Local police department telling them that I wanted to shoot staff at my local VA clinic. This was done with not one shred of written evidence and me from the start that I never did anything wrong and I was only reported being disruptive as a retaliatory act by a former Co-worker who did liked me for something I said about her performance when I was employed as a VA employee.

        One must remember in Rural America, the towns are so small that most people know each other and the VA clinics have managers that hire their friends or people who they know will do their bidding. These employee’s will do just that, A government job in the Country is like hitting the lotto and they will do what ever they have to do to keep it.

        Lets not forget the yearly Bonus. If you keep your mouth shut about what you see, you qualify for that bonus, so if you as an employee question management, you are a threat and no bonus ! So VA employee’s will not speak out against management, especially when the clinic only employee’s about 10 people.

        Do you understand where I am coming from. The bottom line, VA management does not care whom they harm. It’s time to make massive change and VA employee’s MUST be held Accountable and Veterans must stop being Punished with employee’s using Hearsay as Fact.

        “LIBLE” is a class 6 Felony a firing offence !

      2. we need to have a march and protest in Washington DC and a list of grievances of VA procedures and practices that must be changed. Otherwise the VA will never change ! It will be business as usual screwing up vets lives for no reason !

      3. That has been brought up before and I agree. Its seems all other facets of citizens have done something to protest. The only group that I have not seen in public, is a large group of veterans.

        If we do not speak out by the Hundreds or thousands we will not be heard. We all were brave enough to join the military and possibly be put into harms way and just did it. For the life of me, I can not figure out why we seem afraid to mass together and express out concerns openly.

        VA is lying, veterans for truth and disabled veterans.org should get together and advise the news that Veterans will express their 1st amendment right and will converge on Washington on a certain date. Once the information gets out, not only will Veterans mass, the American people would join in.

        Its the American way. We need a spokes man, someone savvy with the media. I am sure that many veterans would help in anyway possible. Just need to ask !

        VA is Lying, Veterans are Dying.

      4. So why don’t we start planning a march, not all of us are capable either physically or monetarily but if we don’t do anything nothing will happen for the better !

  2. If you read the article it actually explains what was certified. The education of the OIG employees. It says nothing that the policy is the will follow the established security procedures only the VA OIG personnel received awareness training and education on the policy.

    keep the double speak in mind. It will help to perform “close read” of what the VA is shelling out.

  3. How many here remember the “Khaki Mafia”? Which was many high ranking NCO’s in the military years ago. The “Sargent Major of the US Army” was given a ‘dishonorable discharge’ for his role in this “group”!

    I wonder how many of them are in high places in VA? It seems to me, this agency is being run like the mafia. I believe ‘redturtle984’ eluded to this a while ago. Saying VA was as the Catholic Church.

    If VA wishes to be a mafia, then let’s treat them as such. Bobby Kennedy had a plan. Let’s use it.

  4. The VA whistle blower protection plan (WBPP) is as follows:
    1. After the whistleblowers unemployment benefits run out, and the VA benefits are cut, the VA will refer the whistleblowers to homeless shelters, giving them priority over Veterans, in some cases.
    2. The VA will provide “begging” cards for ex employee whistleblowers which state, “Ex tVA employee..please help”., so that whistle blowers can beat out Veterans who have to print their own, “Homeless Veteran needs help” signs.
    3. Disabled whistleblowers will be given priority in homeless shelters over Veterans who are not whistleblowers, as long as there is space available, and its convient for the government.
    4. “Benefit of the doubt”. Whistleblowers who arrive at “under the bridge” at the same time as homeless Vets wil be given the benefit of the doubt, where the best sleeping quarters under the bridge will be given to the whistelblower, provided the Homeless Veteran did not get there first.
    5. In the event whistleblowers survive 5 years of homelessness, their homeless shelter ranking can not be reduced except for fraud. This will entitle senior homeless whistleblowers to complain to their senator once each 5 years.
    6, Va employees who murder whistle blowers will be responsible to the VAOIG and these employees will be promptly transferred to VAOIG ASAP, so they may help decide their own punishment, if any.

    1. Wait a minute! What about process?

      I think that adding an appeal would be nice.

      All appeals should be sent to the regional VA Senior Staff for review. Where do
      I sign up?

  5. I agree Ben and also call horseshit.

    “We as a nation must recognize the important role whistle blowers play”?

    Are you kidding me? The nation is way ahead of these buffoons and recognizes it, but cannot understand why those responsible for upholding the law have ignored that. Recall during Bush’s term when whistle blowers had great credibility in the media and on the left What absolute drivel this is. Whistle blowers are not playing any kind of role, but are reporting on fraud, waste, abuse and often blatant breaking of laws.

    It must be encouraging to employees and surviving family members that they were just playing roles, not reporting something serious.

    Employees have come forward, and the OIG and OSC have ignored the law and harassed whistle blowers. Members of the public have come forward, and they are ignored completely. I myself called the VA IG and was told their sole function was to investigate financial fraud or waste in the VA…not to investigate anything reported by some lowly veteran.

    This bullshit statement reads like every IG or OSC in every federal agency is as pathetic as the VA IG, but ask yourself, why do we not hear of the same scandals, fraud, waste, abuse and harassment in many other agencies? Is it because they follow the damn law?

    Why the statement about protecting whistle blowers identifies? Is that because they had a hit list of 29 employees at Phoenix? Is it because they routinely return complaints to the same supervisors being reported? Is it because the VACO was caught red-handed spying on employees emails as reported here previously?

    So the OIG is certified to provide training to their employees. Since December 2015, yet VA employees are still being harassed and fired. What about the rest of VA employees? Do they get training? How about supervisors doing the harassing and firing? Do they get training on their “obligation” to follow the law? Is it only the OIG office that was certified? What kind of grab-ass organization is this?

    At least VA employees can now point to this statement showing that the OIG and OSC are no longer ignorant of the laws protecting whistle blowers.

    What exactly are they doing to see that every VA employee has this training and protection?

    I have read bullshit statements before from federal agencies, but this one tops all of them. Perhaps the VA OIG or OSC should have someone other than an intern write their next statement.

  6. This is identical to what is happening to medical administrators in the Army Reserves, and to Federal Army Civilian employees, and, ironically, RIGHT NEXT DOOR to the Altoona VA. Since the 316th Expeditionary Support Command Command Executive Officer, Mr. Kenneth Walter held a Town Hall Conference meeting in February 2015 openly admitting the theft military medical and VA funding in sending Federal emploees to psychiatric evaluations verses paying a severence packet during downsizing of Federal positions. It is STEALING hope from the Veteran who cant get help that is needed, sending Federal employees and Whistleblowers ahead of all else to victimize them.
    Unethical theives like Kenneth Walter, CEO of the 316th Human Resources, should be FORCED TO STEP DOWN for stealing medical resources to victimize tenured Federal employees out the door with nothing more than fraudulently stigmatizing the entire medical health history of the entire family with his lies, frugality, fraud and victimization.
    This is an area totally unregulated and it is PRECISELY the reason that well-funded, “medically” separated homeless Veterans are are the streets until they commit suicide, because of CEOs like Kenneth Walter who are well paid, administrative theives.

    1. I have heard of these “sent for a psychiatric evaluation” cases being used in the military, often to get a thorn out of someone’s side, but I never heard of it used on the federal civilian side. Clearly who you are speaking of learned of it in the military.
      As for being sent for an evaluation, those in the military don’t have much choice given it is usually an order. I cannot see how a civilian can be forced to get one without some kind of substance or reason.
      Regardless of civilian or military, it is clearly an abusive practice and a bastardization of health care. Anyone who uses it as a club against another should be court-martialed or prosecuted.

    2. About a year or so prior to the Roseburg DBC flagging me with a false felony accusation, a doctor that just resigned from Roseburg was on television. He said that the minute he questioned Senior Staff they referred him internally to a psychiatric review. He said in the medical profession that the referal was meant to kill a career and he was fuming mad.

      The newspaper took up the story and found other doctors and nurses also referred this way. The referral has zero to do with their family. In an industry that is as cut throat as the medical profession, a referal by Senior Staff at ANY medical facility for psychiatric evaluation is precisely and exactly for the doctors what a Catagory One Disruptive Patient flag is for the patient. It means you can’t go to the clinic anymore.

      1. So. Anyone that disagrees with higher management is reconsidered crazy. !

        VA management is completely out of control and their minds. Lock them all up. !

        I had 4 teen age grandchildren here and they think that they know everything and I told them. You think just because all four of you come up with something in your heads. That you think other people can’t see right through it. !

        Your wrong. Experience will trump your crazy thoughts. Their mouths dropped open. Like be turned the tables on us. !

        Now that was funny. !

    3. Our jails should be full of federal employees. ! Don’t build new jails just let the veterans out of the hospital’s hand clinics and lock the employees inside. !
      And in order to get out let Donald trump vent them. !

  7. .
    I am a loyal Democrat and veteran. THE VA HOSPITALS ARE COMPROMISED. THE MONEY DOES NOT GET TO THE VETS. IT IS RUN LIKE A CORPORATE BANKRUPTY WHERE THE VETS ARE LAST TO SEE THE MONEY. It is also run at best like a bad charity or like a bank that used bailout money to pay themselves big bonuses. The rating system is obsolete and an appeal is averaging 4 years. There is a lawsuit occurring right now where two Georgia lawyers are saying that is a DUE PROCESS violation. The VA has been lying to Congress for decades and zero oversight results in the scandals you have been seeing. There are thousands more you don’t see. PLEASE GIVE ALL VETS UNLIMITED MEDICARE BENEFITS so critically ill vets and those waiting decades can walk into a hospital and receive gravely needed healthcare.

    1. Who are the lawyer’s. I would like to call them. I want to tell them my story of how they lied for fourty year’s about my record’s being destroyed in the saint Louis fire in 73 !

      When in fact they lied and had them ALL along and just lied to get out of having to pay the disability payments.

      And how I had to suffer all those year’s without care hand not knowing I had a TBI.

      Failure to assist is non existent. !

  8. Was this taken from duffel blog? Reminds me of an O-3 who came up with a drug amnesty program, then busted the one young soldier who refused to listen to reason and turned himself in – only to find out “amnesty” in this case meant a felony conviction and time in Leavenworth.

  9. The VA has the potential (I mean potential which may or may not be actualized) to be the finest healthcare organization in the world.
    Currently, they are a disgrace not just to us veterans but to the human race. The talk about revamping VAOIG is more of the same sanctimonious drivel. It appears that the VA regularly trots out handbooks and mission statements and directives only to give them something to do. They do nothing to follow their own mandates. The VA is the largest sinkhole of our taxes.
    I had complained to the VA (when I was employed by them) of deliberate administration of wrong radioactive material to several vets against the ordering physicians orders, fraudulent maintenance of time keeper records, purchase of extremely expensive outmoded and unnecessary equipment, multiple diagnostic misreadings and errors by doctors, leakage of sewage in the cancer treatment facility directly on to biopsy trays for cancer patients. I provided evidence of all of this to Dr.Daigh of the VAOIG. When I found no response forthcoming, I called him personally to ask what had happened. He said they were short staffed and that the issues I brought up were too old to expend any resources on them. In the meanwhile the miscreants continue to get promotions and bonuses. The only reason the issues were too old was that he sat on it and did nothing.
    Mr. McDonald has very kindly given out his mobile phone number in case anyone should want to talk to him. He did not forewarn us that he would not be answering the phones. He also directed that I speak with his administrative assistant who dutifully handed me her card – but has never responded either.

    Mr. Robert (call me Bob) McDonald says: “First, let me describe what sustainable accountability does not mean—it does not mean that heads always roll. That is an over-simplified, short-sighted, and negative interpretation of accountability, and it is not helpful to what we are about here at VA.”
    We would love to hear what the complex, long-rangeland positive interpretation is.

    I doubt very much that the shareholders of Proctor and Gamble would have put up with this kind of glib talk. No one put a gun to Bob’s head to take the job. Now that he has it, he needs to roll up his shirtsleeves and do the job that he is being paid to do.

    1. First ? Thank you for trying to help veterans. ! Yes. The VA is all about higher management and the veterans are the least of their concerns. !

      What he did is the VA way. They do it everyday ignore the problems. Put them on the back burner and forget about them. !

      Thinking the veterans and employees will drop or give up trying. !

      If the VA wants to continue doing the wrong thing for veterans and employees. Then I say enough is enough and put everyone of them on notice. !

      Due to lack of transparency you are being notified. That you job’s will be eliminated and you service’s will no longer be needed. !

      This would free up so much money that the national dept could be paid off ( right now ) !

      Employees won’t be able to hide under their regulations and the union and our veterans would be better served. !

      Again thank you and never give up. Write to OSC or your congressman. We as concerned veterans and citizens must keep the paper trail going. So when the shit hits the fan. !

      They won’t be able to hide and hopefully many employees would be gels accountable and placed where they belonged ( jail )

      Let’s get these people out of their jobs. !

      The farmer’s need people like them to pick their crops and hoe the beets.and so forth. ! The stock yards needs people to shovel the cow shit. !

      Their good at that and may get a bonous. A perfect cow pie. !

    2. “Potential” is the difference between the way it is and the way it can be. VA has demonstrated potential for generations.

      1. A “potential” fart is one I can choose to release into the wild when and where I please unless it’s “potentially” not really a fart after all. —-The grey and brown areas of ‘potential’ when applied to the rear-end of the VA Meat Grinder’s scatological wasteland.

  10. It’s all smoke and mirrors. They know their talking out of both ends. !

    Until employees are held accountable by am outside source. The corruption will continue. !

    The VA Is unwilling or incapable of policing themselves. !

    1. James,

      I admire your insights. Let me shed an idea on the reason this problem would normally be considered epidemic and precisely why it will not fix itself.

      opm dot gov has simple numbers on federal employment Since 1962. The AFGE, the union that represents executive branch folks at VA has been union strong since 1936.

      There is good news, and there is news that falls into the “oh my God when did they move the outhouse and not tell me!” kind of news category you get late at night walking to relieve yourselve at your North Idaho relations annual reunion.

      The good news is that since 1962 there is actually a drop in the total number of federal employees! Yay!

      Now for trip to the privy at night part….the total number of legislative and judicial folks employed has actually increased by 33,000 people. This represent two legs of our Constitutional Republic. The third leg, the Executive, added on a few folks too… lots and lots of them are AFGE folks. The Executive branch added 178,000.

      My math says that is a 539% difference in total folks employed by executive versus the other two combined which by the way are the only folks that could solve this. And keep in mind this is a RATE of change that we are seeing accellerating. The actual numbers projected forward are huge. As are the profits for those who control those numbers.

      How are the other two legs of government able to ride herd on these folks? The fllodgates as they say, are open.

      America has arrived at its destination in the night when everyone is sleeping just to find that AFGE moved the outhouse. I guess the VA would characterize the fall into the pit as having a remarably soft landing, but I think it smells to high heaven.

      1. Sounds like too many chief’s and not enough Indians. ! My wife hates Donald trump.

        I don’t agree with things Donald has said. But I also don’t like what other politicians say. Talking out of both ends. !

        Donald don’t give two cents what other politicians say. Even his own party ! That tells me no one is going to bull shit him and get sway with it. !

        If he’s elected he’s. Going to get the same treatment Obama got and he will have to used executive orders to get passed them. !

        They inaction end unwillingness to get thing’s done. Because of greed or what ever reason. Us shy were where ww1 at now jn this country. !

        So. If were going to hell on s hand basket. Why not let Donald trump leed the way or just maybe those elected officials will come to their senses or Donald will blast them in the news media. !

        Do you know what such hand such are doing and it has to stop. ( Your. Fired ) !

  11. Outside law enforcement protects and helps agents and third party contractors do their dirty work against veterans. I am in the sixth year of repeated terrorism (harassment and intimidation) for coming forward and writing to the VA Hotline.

  12. note to admin; I appreciate the effort at equality in artwork but I must take you to task on this one. My personal observations have confirmed that the VA whistleblower pictured in no way could be a VA employee. I have seen VA employees stuffing hot dogs into their faces, twinkees, Chex Mix, and muffins.

    Ben, I have NEVER seen a whistle in their mouths and trust me friend I have been on the ol ward long enough to be an expert. THE WHISTLE AND THE CHICK are figmentary aren’t they Ben? I have pills for that if you need some…

      1. VA Psychiatrist to ‘Bad VA Art’ Whistleblower: “We must contain and sedate the orally fixated whistleblower but check if those are real diamonds in that whistle before proceeding to the master shredder and tossing her in the ward” 🙂

        If Ben were to make a ‘Bad VA Art” Calendar, today’s photo would be good for morale reasons alone for month of February or Valentine’s Day. 🙂

      2. Ben. Should show an American indian. Crying at a VA national cemetery and VA holding a dead veteran. With a snicker. !

        You known they American indian they used to protest about all the trash America throws away every day on the ground. !

        Something to Rhode effects. !

      3. @Ben Krause

        namnibor came up with a great idea. A “VA bad art calendar”!

        What do y’all think?

  13. Here’s a new article out from “M” ‘Daily News’.

    “Obama’s Final Address to Veterans Meets Rebuke from Some Vet Groups”

    2 Aug. 2016 | by Dianna Cahn

    Some real good “tap dancing” around the more important issues plaguing the Veterans Administration!

    1. That tap dancing earned him a Peace Prize. We have a sitting President who owns a Nobel Peace Prize for his contributions to the furtherment of mankind now and is generally treated with mesiah like reverence, but he cannot seem to bring peace to the veterans who had a small and insignificant role in his Prize.

      Our President of Peace cannot stop the AFGE from harming loyal Americans who do the right thing. The man of world peace, in eight years at the helm has presided over an epidemic of massive proportions perpetreated against veterans – and he got Peace Prize.

      He man dances a reallly good soft shoe, no?

    2. glad those groups rebuked!

      anyone anywhere ever hear hillary, bernie, or obamo, hold anyone at VA accountable for the blatant screwing over of veterans.

      each had the same evidence that Congress has and investigative journalists have presented, and the experiences of veterans, yet none of them held anyone accountable. they all blamed it on mo’ money and its the other side’s fault.

      there is no other side anymore! dems/reps for most part are all the same thug party.

  14. I believe this is more B/S being handed down by those on top. Everyone agrees, nothing will change. The foxes are guarding the hen house. Dr. Cyclops, Dr. Frankenstien and Nurse Ratchet are still alive and well at VA!

    Many VA employees do their best to throw their brothers and sisters under the bus. That, in itself, is a disgrace to all Americans.

    IMO, The only way this will work is IF an outside law enforcement agency were to protect the whistleblowers. Even then, they must have the power to arrest and bring criminal charges, against those who break the law(s)!

    The way it’s going now, the AFGE (doesn’t) gets involved and doesn’t protect thier own “dues paying members”!
    Question, “What recourse would a AFGE member have against that?” Shouldn’t the union be held accountable for NOT protecting its members?

    This meeting Obama had with the DAV is not going to change one damn thing. We all agree on this!
    The VSO’s need to change. They need to remember why they were brought about. Until this happens, everything will remain the same!

    On a side note.
    Mr. Trump is expected to speak (3 pm) tomorrow at the Ocean Front in Daytona Beach, Florida. I’ve got two tickets for the wife and I. Will let y’all know how it goes.

    1. UNIONS WILL NOT PROTECT THE the union employees on whistle blowing because the unions are with the employer such as the VA. Too many civilian injured workers with unions who blew the whistle were not only not protected but the unions aided and abetted in getting rid of the whistle blower. Even filing complaints will end up in arbitration where the arbiters too, will protect the employer. Looking in a union /employer contract, the union & the employer sign it together for the employer not for the employees only unless the employee will do whatever the employer wants and that is how those lying incompetent employees keep their job.
      Unions aren’t called business unions for nothing!
      I think some of it has to do with union dues being taken out of the employees paycheck automatically just as are taxes and other monies that are taken out. It saves the unions from having to go to each employee to single handedly collect the employees monthly union dues. SO , the unions get dues automatically and no accountability in what the dues are sued for, certainly not for fighting for the whistle blowers.
      I don’t know of any whistle blower that got representation from their unions in or for anything. The unions are all too powerful to even sue in federal court for misrepresentation or even the NLRB which helps back up the employer.
      Employees as a whole have had their labor and employment laws eviscerated throughout the last several decades. The EEOC is worthless as well as state departments for anything related to an employee who seeks any protections under the laws of the state or the federal government.
      Constitutions are not even adhered or some of the constitutions have been changed to benefit the employers.Public Policy doesn’t exist either. It is just all so corrupt and rife with fraud.
      There is nothing out there to protect any whistle blower.
      The labor deck has been stacked up against the whistle blower. It’s all rigged and all pre planned and with malice of forethought.

    2. >>This meeting Obama had with the DAV is not going to change one damn thing. We all agree on this!

      absolutely agree!

      another BS smoke-n-mirror speech to prop up him and his party, even more so due to election.

  15. Bovine Faecal matter alert, has VA started gardening cause the fertilizer is being spread thick. I agree, what about us? They will happily retaliate against us, DBC.

    1. There is zero question that DBC proceedings are designed to harm a veteran. Period. I have multille FOIA minutes from DBC meetings and it is beyond jaw dropping. It reads like something out of Dukes Of Hazard except for there is more than one Boss Hog.

      VA is keenly aware of this. OIG in 2013 flatly stated there are so many vets now flagged that VA itself has no idea how many there are. Yet, VA persons who blow the whistle on this corruption have tacit support from VA. The vets so flagged do not. That is not the real sin though.

      The real sin is that they are taking extraordinary measures to protect VA employees from VA employees now, but I have not seen or heard a single item that explains just how they plan to dismantle these Kangaroo Courts. The Supreme Court ruled that these types of committees are Kangaroo Courts held for the convenience of the convened only. The accused has no rights. As in a landmark case many moons ago that involved committees deciding the fate of orphaned children in like manner, the Supreme Court ruled that NO class of citizen, even infants, are excluded from equal protection under the law. No citizen is denied Due Process in America. Even the hideous serial killers, rapists, thieves, and crooks are afforded. Due Process just like the children. Veterans at VA do not enjoy this freedom. Why?

      There is only one group that is not. Veterans doing business at VA. Despite a Supreme Court ruling that banned Kangaroo Courts by government. In America only two groups of patients must accept armed guard over them to access care; Incarcerated criminals and veterans. Why?

      It is clear that VA has evolved to care for those who have borne the battle of mediocrity and deception as they have served our Nation.

      AFGE has been the constant in VA since 1936. It is the ONLY thing that remains constant. AFGE is VA and they are untouchable.

      1. When they reported me to the disruptive committee. I contacted every agency OSC and other’s.

        They all passed the buck . even Bob McDonald’s office kept sending the inquires right back to Denver to answer.?

        They in turn let the very employee making the allegations answer the inquires. !

        Or they make up the B.S.. Write us a letter of what happened and now it should read and as will file it. !

        Hell they received it so many time. What did they do with all of those inquires. ?

        They should HAVE filed everyone of them. They probably did file them in the file 13 (trash can)

        Each agency state’s it’s not my responsibility and tell you to write to someone else and some of them will get smart ass with you. !

        I asked Ben if he would defend all of us. Who’s been accused or to disband the committee or if he knows an attorney who would take a case like this. !
        No reply as yet. !

        Turtle. For every veteran.I hole and pray Ben could find someone to defend is against this illegal committee.

      2. Turtle,
        Do lik reading the truth, besides the way you put it is always a good laugh!
        Seriously, yeah, these Illegal DBC Committees designed to further cause medical harm and harassment to veterans speaking up advocating for either their health, their spouse health, or just plain wrong medical care, wrong medication given, wrong reading on labs, radiology exams and such has to stop! I would be interested how many Suicides n DBC FLags on vets?? mhmm correlation?? I would say it 1-1 ratio Not that close but 1 per day at least suspect, sadly 🙁

      3. The disruptive committee is illegal and these employees are not qualified to act as accuser. Prosicuter. Judge. Jury and executioner. !

        Not only are they not qualified. They are breaking the law. By punishing veterans at will and taking away any and all rights. Such as a fair trial.

        Veterans civil. Constitutional and human rights. !

        Seems. No one really cares or those who have legal training would. Go after this illegal committee and shut them down. !

        This Is a human rights violation at it’s worst. How many veterans must be harmed or kill themselves before someone will get the messages that enough is enough. !

        There has to be someone with big enough ones to take these criminals to task. !

        It should be an easy win . for the veterans. !

        I’m willing to stand in front of a judge or committee to state. How they use this committee to punishment and how there is no therapeutic value. Other than to harm the veterans. !

        Hell they don’t even need any proof of the disruptive behavior. Just saying a veteran was disruptive is good enough. !

        The VA can’t even define what disruptive behavior is. And want value it has or how it benefits any veteran. Other than telling other veterans to keep their mouth shut or else. !

        They do the same thing to VA employees. Who blow the whistle. !

        No difference. Except VA employees have a way to fight back. Veterans have no recourse.

  16. I am delighted that a branch of VA is going to oversee the integrity of another branch of VA whose mission it is to protect VA employees from nrutal retaliation by VA emoloyees. Except against veterans, retaliation of VA on VA is brutal and quick.

    Retaliation against veterans is as brutal and quick. Vets get no office of whistleblower protection. of e two groups most likely to suicide, vets are off the charts.

    Is this equation balanced? Nope. Is it Constituitional. Nope. Have generations of vets told us their rights are systematically discarded. Yep.

    I am glad that VA is finally dedicated to providing protections for VA against VA, at least in printed form. I wonder if theynuse the same printers to print the DBC letters that they use to inform VA workers that they are being protected against illegal VA activity too?

    Yay for VA.

  17. Office of Special Flakes must have produced a new prize in their breakfast cereal box that was a super secret whistle decoder ring in which it was redefined as a Whistle Blower Protection Training Certificate Decoder Ring. They are blowing it hard but hardly nobody at the VA can hear it because nobody at VA is actually listening.

    Plausible Deniability and legal goobly-gook protecting their evil asses or….a$$et$ so POTUS can tout how GREAT the VA is doing….you know, all for the troops.

    Anyone else sick and tired of the VA “redefining” the very laws and rules they are to follow? I call horseshit on this as well. (no offense intended towards all horses)

    1. >> anyone else sick and tired of the VA “redefining” the very laws and rules they are to follow? I call horseshit on this as well. (no offense intended towards all horses)

      yep, been tired of it for years, like you and everyone else on these veteran blogs.

      VA can start with adhering to “Title 38—United States Code Veterans’ Benefits”.

      when was the last time a VA doctor actually helped any veteran to document medical condition(s) to help veteran obtain legal rightful service connected disability? chap 31 benefits? etc…

      i bet most of us have experienced the opposite of such help.

      doesn’t Title 38 in all its legalese state something like “benefit of doubt” goes to veteran, or like VBA is to lean towards “more likely than not”. i’m no legalese guy so @Ben could clarify this.

      and where are the veteran service orgs on getting the VA to adhere to Title 38?

    2. Speaking of assets, perhaps Ben can check his contacts and see if there is a Congressional hearing coming up soon in which they want to ask the VA about whistle blowers, and settlements they have recently paid to whistle blowers.
      I have been seeing more comment about whistle blowers at Phoenix, including Brandon Coleman and one other there that got their jobs back, and that settlements were paid. A settlement would be typical when a whistle blowers case is found to have merit, particularly when harassment can be shown.

      I don’t fault any employee who blew the whistle on wrong doing only to be harassed or fired.

      This statement just makes me suspicious. Did Congress notify the VA they want a hearing on all of this, including the settlements which could be many thousands of dollars?

      Is the VA putting out this statement ahead of the hearing so they can point at it and say, “see, we are now doing a good job”? Hoping that nobody asks them why there were not doing this all along?

      The Whistle Blower Protection Act was first passed in 1989 according to wikipedia, so the VA should have been following it all along, not patting themselves on the back 27 years later that they are now providing training.

      Interesting note in that wikipedia article. The Senator Barack Obama vowed to appoint a special counsel committed to whistle blower rights. Rather than just create a seat-warming, do nothing job, he could have easily ordered his agency heads to follow the damn law.

  18. We hear a lot about whistle blowers rights and there service to veterans with back lash from the VA, and I would agree that there should be protection for the ones coming forward to expose the abuses . All said what about the veterans who witness themselves who have been subject to abuse at the hands of Dr,s Nurses staff and others within the VA. Not much call for any help here. If a veteran feels that he or she has been subject to a wrong they are told to go see the Veterans advocate . I have been twice since this past Fathers day and both times was told i would receive a call from the VA within 7 days to address my concern of my complaint of an abusive nurse and Dr.( my Health Care pro) with no results going on 60 days at the Charlie Norwood VA Augusta Georgia no call backs nothing but promises .Seems to me they protect there own. Shame !! YES.

    1. You are exactly right and I bet dollars to donuts ? If You call the patient rep. They will below you off again or claim you were harassing them and report you to the disruptive committee to shut you up. !

      You dare to complain. We’ll fix you. !

      The patient rep is a VA employee decated to protect higher management. !

      Shall we see if I’m right call them and or write a letter to the director and tell them how you been treated. !

      We have to leave e paper trail on everything or they will blow it off. They think if they sit on it. You will give up and not do anything about it.

      Get s copy of your record’s and see what their writing about you. !

    2. va deathcare does kill vets on wait list for the bonous $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

    3. Put your concerns in writing, including the fact that you reported this to the Patient Advocates and have heard nothing. Take the letter to the Patient Advocate, then tell them you want a Report of Contact sent showing you brought in the letter, and ask for a copy of the Report of Contact.
      If the Patient Advocate refuses to do the Report of Contact, tell them you are taking the letter to the Directors office, then do it.

      1. Yes. A paper trail is the only way to do it and retain copies of everything or they will blow it off and say they don’t know anything about it. !

        I believe it has to be sent to more than one person ? Like your congressman !

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