Along the same lines as the Rush Limbaugh quote, I've been vocal to my Senators about the current status of Concurrent Receipt. As of now, only those retired VETS who are considered 50% or more disabled by the Veterans Administration will be paid their full retainer along with their VA benefits. Otherwise, th VA benefits are deducted from the retainer. And on top of that, this plan won't be fully implemented until 2010. Phasing it in over time. Crap, by the time it's in place fully, alot of those eligible may be dead.

The best part of this is, FEDERAL employees who happen to be retired vets get FULL concurrent receipt. Now you tell me, what's fair. I've emailed my senators and congressmen to ask them their take and how they feel and I get the generated response emails basically saying thaey've done all they can in this area and the prospects of concurrent receipt for all appear likely dead.

So, fellow retired vets, get on your horse, or your keyboard, and bang your congressional monkey. Let them know that they CAN BE REPLACED. Hit them where it hurts the most. At the ballot box.

Best wishes all.

HS

More then at the Ballot boxes... "Squeeky wheel gets the grease"

herfsnipe, SteveR from the forum is very knowledgeble on the VA and servicemembers/Vets... and I'm working on getting there... you left out allot in your post above... a Ret. Veteran Servicemember has to prove his ailments are service connected before the VA will even look at him... (whereas an elected official does not) there is allot of red tape to get through all of this
but if your Assigned Unit disqualifies you as service connected, that member has a right to appeal at their own expense... many many servicemembers do not have the financial abilities to appeal, each member is granted a MEB,(medical evaluation board) or PEB (physical evaluation board) to determen weather that member is fit to remain in service and also if this is a service connected ailment... many guard and reserve soldiers do not acctually get this proper MEB/PEB and are wrongfully routed out of the system and left to fend for themselves... thus they need to find assistance to get through the VA's red tape... I think this is where SteveR is helping folks? not for sure because we've only communicated through the BB's

http://somd.com/news/headlines/articles/1544.shtml 

But it's a giant wheel once your out of service with a disability... the funding for the VA comes from the set asside Defense budget every year the big budget is then divided up Army,Navy,Air Force, Marines, Pentagon, from there I am not sure but out of this the promissed VA amounts come from one of the above (I'm not sure if these services rotate in the cost to cover the VA or how it's done?) the Army this year is where the funds are to come from... now comes the
"ThreadJack On"
This years budget and swarn through congress to fund was a program for GWS (Gulf War Syndrom) and a vaccine healthcare system set up besides the VA funding to help in the study as to why these soldiers are coming down with it (GWS) Vaccine Treatment Center Funding in Question Again
http://www.nti.org/d_newswire/issues/2005_1_4.html#7DB83BD2 

I wont post the whole article, but the link above has it all...

the bottom line the money's promised set asside is coming up short to fund this... why?
This is only my Personal Opinion...
because it comes out of the whole defense budget and the military (Pentagon) doesn't want to use up funding for something else to assist soldiers who are no good to them any longer...

"Threadjack Off"

Great Thread Herf!!!!
Hog

^ bumped for Rick to Read and then write his Elected officials also...

Hog