Okay, so American troops cannot leave Iraq until it is "stable," which, presumably, means no American casualties. So, how do you think that is going to be achieved? Another surge?

There will ALWAYS be American casualties in Iraq as long as we occupy that county. If it's not the Iraqis themselves, it will be extremist groups who will continue to terrorize Americans in Iraq as well as the innocent Iraqi population. Anti-American groups will do all they can to keep us bogged down there, wasting our money and our soldiers' lives.

We are doing nothing at all to stabilize the situation over there. There is no Iraqi government and that is fine with Cheney, Haliburton, McCain, et al. who are profiting from a state of endless war.

So you, and McCain, are saying that you want our troops to be in Iraq indefinitely -- regardless of the cost and the loss of life. At least McCain is making money from it...what do you get out of it?

Posted at May 29, 2008 11:11 AM in response to Obama Clarifies Position On Meeting With Foreign Leaders

McCain's position needs no distortion. American troops in Iraq for 100 years equals dead American soldiers for 100 years. Iraq is not Germany or South Korea.

Posted at May 29, 2008 10:29 AM in response to Obama Clarifies Position On Meeting With Foreign Leaders

Thanks for bringing attention to the tragic plight of our veterans suffering from PTSD. I am one of them. I served in Desert Shield/Storm and I was lucky enough to get the proper diagnosis from VA doctors. That was the end of my good fortune in dealing with the VA.

I was granted 40% disability for Gulf War Illness but I was denied compensation for PTSD as the VA ruled that it was not service connected. I was a stinger missile gunner with the 3rd AD, whose mission was to cut off the retreating Republican Guard as they fled north from Kuwait back to Iraq. Though there were no aircraft to shoot down, I was right up front with A-1 tanks firing on both sides of me and AH-64's and A-10's pummeling targets 3k away from me from above. The VA ruled that it was not the combat that caused my PTSD, (my guess is because I was honest and said that I never fired my weapon) but they made no attempt to postulate another cause. There isn't one.

Here's the worst part, imagine having your claim denied, (given the info above) and then reading the VA's own guidelines for establishing service-connection:

"It is the defined and consistently applied policy of the
Department of Veterans Affairs to administer the law under
a broad interpretation, consistent, however, with the facts
shown in every case. When, after careful consideration of
all procurable and assembled data, a reasonable doubt
arises regarding service origin, the degree of disability, or
any other point, such doubt will be resolved in favor of the
claimant. By reasonable doubt is meant one which exists
because of an approximate balance of positive and negative
evidence which does not satisfactorily prove or disprove
the claim. . . . The reasonable doubt doctrine is also
applicable even in the absence of official records,
particularly if the basic incident allegedly arose under
combat, or similarly strenuous conditions, and is consistent with the probable results of such known hardships."

So how do they acknowledge that I was there and was harmed (awarded 40% for Gulf War Illness), make no attempts to find an alternative cause for my VA diagnosed PTSD, then deny my compensation based on service-connection?

Frankly, I'm not surprised about the veteran suicide cover-ups and memos about under-diagnosing veterans with mental health issues. I'm quite convinced that the VA would rather see veterans take their own lives than have to sign off on their disability compensation.

Mr. Keller, good luck to you. I hope that your story will turn out better.

Posted at May 20, 2008 2:00 PM in response to PTSD And The VA Claim Process

"It's your game to win or lose now. Get to work, and Good Luck."

This really bothers me. I have witnessed and I understand some of the bad feelings between Obama supporters and Clinton supporters, but let's be clear -- It is the Democratic Party's game to win or lose now! It is us against Bush/McCain. Let's not lose sight of what we are ALL working for in this election.

I would not have been thrilled to go to the polls in November and cast my vote for Hillary, but you'd better believe that I would have done it and I would have tried to convince everyone I know to do it. The stakes are too high for us to risk losing this election over hurt feelings and a split party. I, personally, never engaged in bashing Hillary's supporters, but I sincerely apologize for those who did.

I hope that all of Hillary's supporters will rally behind the Democratic ticket. Never has the Democratic cause and our vote been more important.

Posted at May 7, 2008 12:57 PM in response to I'm Done

Regarding the sham "gas tax holiday," I really hope that Obama will hit this from an environmental point of view. Clinton and McCain are encouraging us to drive more this summer without regard for the effects on the environment. Obama must make it clear that Americans must CONSERVE more gas this summer, not consume more gas. Not to mention that everyone wins since conservation will allow Americans to keep more of their hard-earned money than suspending the federal gas tax will.

Posted at May 3, 2008 6:00 PM in response to Obama: you can do it tomorrow on Russert