NEW vA POLL ON PAPERLESS CLAIMS

Posted on August 23, 2012 by asknod

Humorous? Yes, but I’m still dying to know your feelings on this seminal topic. As usual, no cookies, no tracking devices or salesmen knocking on your door. No VAOIG surveillance.  Chicago style, stuff the ballot box with dead Veteran’s votes permitted. In short-cheating permitted. vA does it. Why not? Comments welcome.

Posted in polls, VA BACKLOG | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments

NPR blogger: Great news boomers! You beat your IV drug addiction!

Posted on August 22, 2012 by Laura

Is NPR blogger, Alva Noe’s response to the recent CDC’s advisory for boomers to get tested, a joke or is he serious?

Noe says that boomers are “five times more likely than the population at large to carry the hepatitis C virus.” (Actually 4.5 times but what matter?)

“Why should that be? We don’t know exactly, but a big part of the story is drug use. Lots of baby boomers shared needles back in the 1970s and ’80s.”

Noe then reports that HCVers are sort of like scary aliens from outer space:

Here’s where it gets interesting. …the target group — those infected by hepatitis C — blend in and look like everybody else.

Then he sounds a bit tongue-in-cheek:

…But stop and think about it. This means the target group — a group presumably consisting in good measure of former drug users — looks like the rest of us. Not only are they alive, this implies, but they are no longer using drugs!

Before sounding like he’s bought into the propaganda and stereotype completely:

What makes this remarkable is that it seems to imply this large population of drug users never got addicted, or that, if they did, they beat their addictions. The bottom line: They used drugs then, but are not addicts now.

Boomers, don’t be ashamed of yourselves.  You’re winners!

“This is great news! And it seems to run counter to some pretty widely shared ideas that we have about drug use and addiction. … And the medical establishment insists that once an addict, always an addict. Addiction, after all, they say, is a chronic incurable disease of the brain.”

You were reckless IV users who have beaten the medical odds to sobriety:

Maybe things aren’t so bleak.

Not bleak because this proves that people can shoot up addicting drugs and not get addicted–just don’t share needles?  That concept makes you feel optimistic about life?

Alva Noe, what are you thinking?

Well,  there are some comments from angry veterans to this post.  Is Noe being intentionally insulting, naive, or does he really doubt the official government PR regarding HCV?  I’m clueless.

Ed. note:

I vote sarcastic. It does meet the flat earth test. You have to keep a straight face when you discuss it. Or… there’s an error in the logic. One in ten Vets has HCV -five times greater than the 1.8% in the civilian populace. One in five are from the Vietnam era. 67% of those were in Vietnam or the Indochinese Peninsula comprising Cambodia, Laos, and Thailand as well. If you want to include the whole EFTO, then add in the Philippines and Okinawa. Occam’s razor does not seem to apply here. Another school of thought says  many were drafted; they were the dregs of society and moral reprobates as well. Add one drug addict w/ HCV to the jetgun line and– wait. Scratch that. Jetguns are not the culprit. Junkies are.

npr friend or foe

Posted in Guest authors, HCV Health, Medical News, Nexus Information, Vietnam Disease Issues | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Obama hopes VA’s “new model” will eliminate VA claims backlog

Posted on August 22, 2012 by joeaveragevet

The VA apparently has a “new model” of claims processing, to ensure Veterans get priority processing.    Some Vets are just not buying this “upgrade” in processing.

First, lets look at the old model.  It was a fuel efficient claims system, getting about 10 miles per bale of hay.    Paper is used instead of computers, stuff gets lost or shredded..390,000 Vets are in a waiting list as of about January, 2009.

The “old” VA claims process model was slow, eco friendly, but not so Veteran friendly.

Shinseki, new on the job,  tried to upgrade this model with one of the “21st Century” VA.  This model only worked with certain groups of Veterans, and actually added more than a half million Veterans to the backlog:

This is supposedly the “upgraded model” which was supposed to “break the backlog by 2010” according to Shinseki. It failed miserably.

This brings us to Fall, 2012, with an election just around the corner.   Veterans are upset about the million man backlog, and the politicians’ inability to fix it.  “Something” has to be done before the election.     The VA is proud to announce their newest processing model which the VA promises will fix the backlog by 2015:

Introducing the VA new claim processing model expected to “save” the election.

Veterans are not buying it…it looks like they traded parts off the old models, and this jalopy is not expected to still be running in 2015.    Does this model come with a warranty?

Does anyone have a set of “jumper cables” to start this thing?

Posted in Guest authors, VA BACKLOG, vA news | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

DAV Defends the status quo of the VA

Posted on August 22, 2012 by joeaveragevet

The DAV boss, Jesinoski, is defending the Department of Veterans Affairs.   The obvious question is “why”?     Is he unaware that more than a half million MORE Veterans are waiting on their benefits now than just  3.5 years ago?   Ask Nod readers are aware of this, so why not the DAV?

Bob Filner is not defending the VA status quo.     Instead, he has heard one too many VA promises to “break the backlog”.

DAV’s attack on Filner is unwarranted, given the dismal record of the VA.  I am happy to see Filner “not put up” with VA’s repeated broken promises to “fix the claims backlog”.

However, Filner does not deserve being let off the hook either.  After being Chairman  of the committe on Veterans Affairs for many years, only now that he is running for mayor of San Diego does he endorse professor Linda Bilmes suggestion to fix the VA (by approving Vets claims and then auditing them, the way the IRS does tax returns)?   Why didn’t he use his power to help Vets when he was in office?

But back to the DAV.  DAV has taken “anti Veteran” positions before.  One example is the DAV opposed to allowing Veterans to get their own attorney against the VA. Big Mistake.

Vets got their attorneys anyway, and these attorney’s have made more progress for Veterans than has Congress.   Cushman is just one example of lawyers helping Vets, where the VA is going to have a harder time illegally altering Vets documents and denying due process in the future.   The laws that Congress has passed of late have been “weak”, with no real substance.  If Congress has passed such “good” pro Veteran legislation, how come Veterans’ wait for benefits is the longest in history?

Remember, there is no REQUIREMENT that a Vet get an attorney to assist him with his claim, but that the Veteran is now allowed attorney representation, should the Veteran see fit and get fed up enough with the VA to get help.  The Vets who do hire attorneys are often the ones whose VSO failed them.   Some Vets have applied for benefits and been in appeals for decades..and are still waiting!  Other Vets could not outlast the courts and perished waiting on their benefits.

Even worse than the DAV taking a position against Vets on attorney representation is the DAV habit of “looking the other way” with the VA.  For example, where was the DAV in the 2008 Shreddergate fiasco, and why wasn’t the DAV complaining about the VA shredding Vets’ documents years earlier?  They had to have known the VA was doing this…there just could not be that many pieces of Veterans evidence come up missing without them knowing about it.   Not in 41 out of 57 Regional Offices, where shredding was found to have occurred.

And, why isn’t the DAV screaming for more shredder bin inspections?  Is the DAV buying the VA’s story that they have fixed the problem and no more shredder bin inspections are necessary?  I am not.

Posted in Guest authors, VSOs | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

STARDUST RADIO REPEAT SEPTEMBER 2

Posted on August 21, 2012 by asknod

Mark your calendars for September 2nd. Rick Townsend has graciously agreed to have me back on for a whole hour of claims talk and an explanation of some of the controversial things in my new book. That’s 1900 hrs EDT or 1600 hrs PDT on the Left Coast. Same Bat Time. Same Bat channel. Stardust Radio‘s Firebase Adrian on the Internet. Some of you said you had trouble locating it last week. Here’s the info.

For those of you in Yorba Linda, that’s 4 PM Sunday but you won’t find it on AM-just the c-box.

 

Posted in All about Veterans, Stardust Radio, Veterans Law | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

MOST WONDERFUL TIME OF THE YEAR

Posted on August 21, 2012 by asknod

Everybody seems to think Christmas is it. Not around here. This is the Food TV channel. I get up at six and begin the daily grind but this is the reward. All the preparation is rewarded. I feel like Squirrel Nutkin. I can’t convey the joy. Who needs to unwrap presents? I’m going to be unwrapping corn soon.

Remember the tomato house?

Inmate Escapee

My new Water(melon)world

And the answer is no, Bob. It costs too much to send watermelons to Battle Creek overnight.

Posted in Food for the soul | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

FOOTLOCKER 72–HANOI JANE’S GUN

Posted on August 21, 2012 by asknod

Remember that immortal picture from 1972 of Hanoi Janey hangin’ in the ‘hood with the Haiphong dudes. It might have been Hanoi but that’s immaterial. Look at the gun she was sitting on.

There aren’t a whole lot of of guys left alive who know this but the M-1 37 mm Antiaircraft Gun was given in great quantities to Britain, the USSR and others during  World War 2. The Soviets really admired this weapon and copied it almost to a T for export right down to the ammunition. Notice Miz Jane and the ammo in front of her.

 

The Russians gave a lot of the WW2 Lend Lease surplus to the CHICOMs including a gazillion rounds of ammo. You may remember this weapon from the movie 1941 with John Belushi. One of the characters tried to take out a Japanese Sub with it and took out his house instead. Yep. Same gun.

While out sightseeing on the edge of the Plain of Jars one day in late August of 1970,  outside L-108 Muong Souy near the intersection of Route 7 (black and white line) and Route 71,

I happened upon a bunch of these near a truck park that got nuked several days earlier. The Pathet Lao had abandoned ship and left a lot things lying about.

I suspect it was reloaded several times because it had multiple pinning marks at the collar. Of more concern was the headstamp.

Nothing like having your own ammo shot back at you twenty five years later. If you got tagged by one of these in an O-1 or a PC-6, that was all she wrote. If you want a closer look, click on the picture to magnify.

In a harbinger of beating swords into plowshares, some of the Hmong Ta-hann (Army troops) made really fancy opium bongs out of these. Portable, watertight, and indestructible. You should have seen their Hibachis made out of Budweiser beer cans.

Posted in From the footlocker | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Horse Trading

Posted on August 21, 2012 by joeaveragevet

I will see your “tinnitus 10%” and raise your 30% PTSD.  Are you “all in”?

Whose money is the VA gambling with?  The Veteran’s?  Is this what they call “Liars Poker”?

I have heard of this before where the VA rater/rep get together and “negotiate a deal”, often involving the Veteran foregoing appellate review.

I wonder if this Veteran’s “horse the VA sold him” was lame.

Notice the Vet says, if he accepts the deal, the VA “would be very likely they would approve my year old claim for TDIU (but no guarantees) and have that done in two weeks.”   This sounds very much like a promise that the “horse won’t be lame”.

Does anyone else see the irony of this?

The Veteran either is entitled to his benefits, or he is not!

Now, I am not saying that the Veteran negotiating is always a bad thing for Vets.   I certainly understand the Vet’s predicament..he has waited years, and needs his benefits now!   I just hate to see the VA taking advantage because the poor Vet can not hold on any longer.

Why does the Vet have to gamble with the VA for a negotiated settlement that is “already his”?

 

Editor’s note.

This phenomenon, known as a fig newton of the imagination, happens far more than you think. It’s early etiology is POA disease, usually after coming in contact with an infected source like a VSO. After several years the disease blossoms and rewards you with all manner of surprises. In the event it goes to DC, it can sit on the VSO’s desk there for a year for no reason. VSOs who argue before the Judges’ minions give away much and take little in remuneration. A TDIU is like driving on one of those spare tires that says “Do not go over 35 mph. Proceed with caution to nearest maintenance available.” It’s a panacea in lieu of P&T. Factoid: How many Vets are P&T? 375,000 (approx). How many on TDIU? About 1 million (approx). That’s out of about 3.3 million.  P&T is the gold standard. TDIU is bronze- like third place. You get to stand on the podium. Beware of VSOs bearing Form 21-22s.

VA Motto: “We can see a greenhorn a mile off”.

Posted in Complaints Department, Guest authors, Gulf War Issues, PTSD, vARO Decisions | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

FDA puts hold on HCV drug testing at Idenix

Posted on August 20, 2012 by Laura

This news may be of interest to those who are waiting for HCV treatments that are less toxic than current ones and effective in achieving SVR in more patients.  This action is related to the Bristol-Myers post made previously.

Pipeline Setback at Idenix

BMS R & D setback casts shadow on other Hep C contenders

 

Posted in Guest authors, HCV Health, Medical News | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

VA appeals on hold? Is Obama trying to “catch up” the claims backlog before the election?

Posted on August 20, 2012 by joeaveragevet

This one is apparently controversial, but at least one Vet indicates their Veteran Service Officer told them the VA has put all appeals on hold.     Some have speculated that the president wants to “catch up” on the backlog to improve his re election chances.

What we do know is so far, the current administration has not improved the VA claims backlog in spite of promises to reduce the backlog.     In fact, the VA claims backlog has grown worse, even much worse, since 2009.  According to the Monday Morning Workload Reports,   the VA claims  backlog on Jan. 5, 2009 was  390,190.   However,  As of August, 2012, that backlog has grown to a whopping 903,661, more than TWICE as bad as before.

But Wait, there’s More!

The BVA website is apparently down, and some have speculated the reason for this is because the 2012 BVA decisions were unavailable on the site and Vets have complained.

Since BVA decisions are posted electronically, it would not be a surprise if the VA could not do decisions if their computer system is down.

While the VBN site owner denies that VA appeals are on hold in ONE post, on another VBN post also suggesting VA appeals have been put on hold, the VBN site owner was silent.

While it is unclear if the BVA website is down because of a “computer glitch” or if it is a

“delay for the sake of politics“, one thing is clear:   The Veteran is the loser, and 513,471 MORE Veterans are are now in the long waiting line for benefits than just 3.5 years ago.

It does not appear to help by delaying appeals, so that the VA’s “initial numbers” will look good.

Posted in BvA Decisions, Guest authors, VA BACKLOG | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments