Veterans Bypass Vet Orgs With Technology To Get Justice
Minneapolis, Minnesota: A new coalition of veterans has formed over recent years to seek justice in an unusual place – the Web. “Rather than relying on traditional resources like Veteran Service Organizations for advocacy, veterans are now turning to technology for help,” according to DisabledVeterans.org founder Benjamin Krause.
Unifying these veterans is a common theme, a general dissatisfaction with the current state of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
Benjamin pointed out, “These veterans have created Facebook groups and WordPress websites aimed at increasing awareness of veterans issues and veterans rights.” Facebook groups like “Gulf War Veterans,” “Disabled Veterans – Chapter 31 Voc Rehab,” and others have unified thousands of veterans. Their creators also manage websites to broadcast their messages across the World Wide Web.
Ron Nesler is one such veteran who has been leading the charge. Ron has set up VAisLying.com and a corresponding Facebook group with the same name.
The backstory with Ron is that he is a Vietnam Veteran and stepfather to a child born with spina bifida. Ron first jumped into the news back in 2007. Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA) interviewed him about his battle with the Department of Veterans Affairs over benefits for his daughter, Honey Sue.
Honey Sue’s story is a sad one. She is the child of a Vietnam Veteran exposed to Agent Orange. Due to her birth father’s exposure to it, Honey Sue was born with spina bifida (Latin for “split spine). For over 40 years, she has lived through seriously limiting physical and mental disabilities due to the birth defect. Affording health care for Honey Sue was a burden for her parents, Ron and Sue Nesler.
Around the time of the VVA story above, Congressman Brad Ellsworth initiated a Congressional Hearing on the matter with the House Committee on Veterans Affairs. His goal was to pass legislation that would cover health care costs for children like Honey Sue.
The result of this hearing was the passage of H.R. 5729 Spina Bifida Health Care Program, which provided access to comprehensive health care that Honey Sue needed. The program obligated the VA to fund comprehensive health care to all qualified children with spina bifida.
In 2011, Congress held a second hearing due to problems with the VA not implementing the spina bifida program in the way Congress intended. Congressman Ellsworths’ successor, Congressman Larry Bucshon, assumed advocacy of Honey Sue for her second hearing with the House Committee on Veterans Affairs.
Ron recently talked about the benefits they are supposed to receive from the VA following these hearings. “After Congress took action, in 2008, we thought, ‘Now there’s going to be justice.’ But it never happened.”
“Five years later and two Congressional Hearings, we are still fighting with the VA to get care for our daughter. If she could just get care, there would be justice.”
On Monday, Honey Sue experienced heart attack like symptoms and was rushed to the hospital. “Had she been just getting the care we thought she was supposed to get back in 2008, maybe this would not have happened,” Ron said.
Ron went on to say he does not intend to wait for a resolution through Congressional action this time. After two failed attempts through the House Committee on Veterans Affairs to resolve the problem, Ron has turned to technology.
“That’s when Ron emailed me, and we have worked together ever since,” said Benjamin of DisabledVeterans.org. “He asked me to help by using basic journalism tools for information requests to pull in data from the VA.” By needling away at the VA institution in this way, Ron has been able to move his daughter’s cause forward.
Now that Ron and Benjamin have joined forces, they have started to create an intricate web of social media and advocacy tools aimed at fixing the problem. “If you want a job done right, sometimes it’s best to just do it yourself,” Benjamin went on.
They now have established a network of websites and Facebook groups used to post comments and articles to sway public opinion. “We have over 200 different domains at our disposal, and using search engine optimization, we can get our point across. Our point is that we are not going away until justice is served,” said Benjamin.
The most recent addition to their arsenal is an advocacy tool called Popvox. Popvox is a powerful online tool that allows engaged Americans to reach out to Congress via the Web. Both tech savvy and non-techy readers are able to send emails directly to their elected officials on Capitol Hill to inspire those officials to act.
Ron and Benjamin used it to set up an email campaign to Congress called, “Ensuring Needed Health Care For Veterans’ Children With Spina Bifida.” The campaign urges “Congress to demand the VA follow the law and provide complete care to Spina Bifida children.”
In the end, both of these disabled veterans have committed to fighting for the rights of veterans and their family members across the country, one issue at a time.
Why the hard-on for VSOs Stephen Verges?…you think that VSOs can jump into the face of the VA, or Congress like these modern swordsmen do on the internet, websites and Facebook. No that is not going to happen! You do understand that VSOs are established by Congress, and undoubtedly there are tons of unwritten standards of conduct because when I questioned why our service officer did not jump on the VA regional director like I did? Needless to say, if we what to help veterans achieve their benefits, and we do that, then we have to play the game.
These veterans who take on the VA establishment and Congress through the means of modern technology might be successful in doing things like this change in Children of Vietnam Veterans exposed to Agent Orange and who have Spina Bifida is wonderful.
Just remember your computer cannot represent you in front of the judge when you claims case is being adjudicated. But, a VSO can. Something to remember.
Second paragraph – first sentence to read:
Hester R McCullough, an alcoholic and morphine addict who was the wife of TIme’s photography editor John T. McCullough, had viciously attacked Larry’s ideology as being that of a “Red”.
Veterans organizations … here is my two cents. My stepsisters [Susanna Sonnenberg & Emma Sonneberg [Emma Snowdon-Jones], had an amazing grandfather who was the most beautiful heart in terms of being a serviceman. Suzy and Emma’s grandfather was the late Larry Adler. Larry was thumbs up and hands down, the greatest harmonica player in the world. Larry went on tour not with a rifle but with a harmonica, and was the heart of the USO with his touring partner – Jack Benny. This was all during WWII and Larry performed non-stop for servicemen and women … behind enemy lines with the OSS … in allied territory of the rear echelon … and the hospitals of the wounded and dying. Larry Adler kept at this pace until he passed away.
Hester R McCullough, an alcoholic and morphine addict who was the wife of TIme’s photography editor John T. McCullough of Larry’s ideology being that of a “Red”. Sadly his only true crimes which are not a crimes at all, was being Jewish – a Baltimore, Maryland expatriate – a serviceman who had not just the ability to bend notes on what he referred to as a mouth organ but the ability to soothe the hearts of the wounded and those not yet to be wounded – and the indisputable fact that Larry was a legend before his time of life’s autumn and winter, oh yes and tour partner to Jack Benny.
Larry did receive one bit of criminal advice which was never used against him. Chicago gangster, Al Capone, scolded a young Larry Alder for not going to “shul” [synagogue].
During the grilling of Larry Adler both privately and publicly by HUAC wasn’t limited to just the legislative fraud organized by Senator Joseph McCarthy [WI], but Larry was attacked by VSO – American Legion numerous times by way of concert protest and anti-Semitic hate mail. Larry’s autobiography is a superb read and can be found by ISBN:ISBN-10: 0394557573 & ISBN-13: 978-0394557571, or purchased by independent sellers via Amazon – Ebay … https://www.amazon.com/It-Aint-Necessarily-So-Autobiography/dp/0394557573
As many suggest the VA can’t be a friend [because similar to corporations [and binders full of women] a bureaucracy is not a person, and last time I checked with guidestar.org [a non-profit’s worst nightmare] a non-profit is not a person either thus not the salary soaked friend which a VSO such as American Legion and DAV pretend to be. In this day and age the American Legion is still a racist Leviathan, an unaccountable Kraken, the “white whale” of Melville’s armada of whales, the Makara of an unorthodox deity. Visit Bel Air, Maryland’s two American Legion halls – they are segregated and for absolutely no good goddamn reason.
If every veteran had postage – stationary – printers – compute – internet — technology not “Perseus” would end the corrupt life of many of these Kraken like VSO’s. My computer is not my friend as a VSO is not my friend, but it sure can be said according to the works of English philosopher John Stuart Mill, that my computer provides a greater utility than the intent of the top five VSO’s put together. Not to mention my computer doesn’t call insult people by calling them “Jewish commies” or make a 350,000 a year salary for “Being There”.