Manns Medium

I attended a VA workshop yesterday, Saturday, April 16, 2016 at the regional VA Office in Chicago to help with a pilot program that is designed to help ease and lower the high number of appeals for disability and discovered that the number one reason that these agencies appear not to be working is not just the policies and procedures but mostly importantly the personnel. The policies and procedures are normally handed down by those in charge but these policies and procedures are composed by the input of those in the position to help shape them.  If the opinions and experience of those who served are not voiced as passionately as they should and those expounding those views are not willing or able to demand better treatment of veterans, then the voices with no experience except what they were told or paid to say wins out.  This is the gist of what is happening right now.  That Veteran Service Officers (VSO) who are supposed to be the veteran’s representative does litt...

With all of this recent discovery of the trials and tribulations that veterans have to endure daily just to get those benefits that they were promised and those that they earned, one would think that this was just a flux accident and that these occurrences are not as common as many have claimed.  Those that think that way would be gravely mistaken.  For years now, promises made to those who were willing to get up their very lives to keep this country safe have been reigned upon by so many. It is nice to sometimes hear people say to you that they appreciate your service but because of the numerous obstacles and hurdles you have to overcome just to get those benefits you earned makes that saying mute.  It’s not that we are ungrateful for the sentiment but we would like to see more accomplish to make our returning journey home a little bit more easier to make that sentiment mean what those who say it think it does. Maybe the best way to explain this and how it should be...