March 21, 2014
1. Sinclair reprimanded, fined; case likely to reignite battle over military
justice.
2. Midshipman in Naval Academy sex case not guilty.
3. US, Europe sanctions target Putin's inner circle.
4. Bold attacks raise security fears as Afghan election nears.
5. Defense Department Announces Comprehensive Awards Review.
6. Veterans' unemployment edges down but still high.
7. What’s in Veterans Affairs’ $164 Billion Budget.
8. Don’t cut funding to veterans.
9. VA-DoD common records system may still be possible.
10. Veterans: Lawmakers need to address suicide issue.
11. PTSD Education Available On-Line.
12. Is Surviving Enough for Post-9/111 Veterans?
13. Study: High rate of emotions in vets with mild brain injury.
14. Veterans get free relief through alternative medicine.
15. The Martial Plan: How Student Veterans Adjust to D.C. Colleges.
16. Colorado Springs center to manage VA business verification.
17. NY audit faults referrals for veterans’ benefits.
18. Healing: Can We Treat Moral Wounds?
19. Governor Cuomo Holds First New York Veterans and Military Families.
20. Lack of Resources, Modern Amenities At Rocky Hill Veterans Home.
21. Hiring Our Heroes Job Fair March 26th.
22. VA / VSO-MSO Hearings as March 21, 2014:
23. Today in History:
March 21, 2014
1. Sinclair reprimanded, fined; case likely to reignite battle over military
justice. An Army general who once faced life in prison for sexual misconduct
with a subordinate ended up with a fine and a reprimand, a verdict that surprised
military justice watchers and left unanswered many questions about the role of
command influence in criminal cases.
2. Midshipman in Naval Academy sex case not guilty. A former Navy football
player was found not guilty of sexually assaulting a fellow midshipman at an offcampus party nearly two years ago.
3. US, Europe sanctions target Putin's inner circle. Seeking to intensify
pressure on Russia, President Barack Obama on Thursday expanded U.S.
economic sanctions against Moscow over its actions in Ukraine, targeting
President Vladimir Putin's chief of staff and 19 other individuals as well as a
Russian bank that provides them support.
4. Bold attacks raise security fears as Afghan election nears. Violence erupted
in two major cities in eastern Afghanistan on Thursday, heightening security fears
nearly two weeks before national elections that the Taliban have vowed to
disrupt.
5. Defense Department Announces Comprehensive Awards Review. The
Department of Defense announced today that a comprehensive review of its
military decorations and awards program will be conducted, which will
incorporate lessons learned over the past 13 years of combat. The department's
review will focus on …
6. Veterans' unemployment edges down but still high. The Detroit News ...
The statistics cover veterans who served on active duty in the U.S. armed forces
at any time ... The youngest veterans, aged 18-24, had an extremely high jobless
rate, 21.4 ... The annual report was compiled by the Labor Department with the
help of the Department of Veterans Affairs.
7. What’s in Veterans Affairs’ $164 Billion Budget. Hyperlink to Article The New
York Times: The secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs, Eric K.
Shinseki, last week, outlined President Obama’s 2015 budget for the department
before hearings of the House and Senate veterans affairs committees, calling for
total spending of $163.9 billion, a 6.5 percent increase from last year.
March 21, 2014
8. Don’t cut funding to veterans. Hyperlink to Article The Clarion-Ledger:
Almost 5.5M veterans received care in VA health care facilities in 2008, yet we
know that the VA is understaffed and incapable of handling all the ailing
veterans, especially the many with (1) mental illnesses and (2) injuries and
conditions that will need a lifetime of treatment.
9. VA-DoD common records system may still be possible. Hyperlink to Article
Army Times: After being jilted again and again by the Pentagon in pursuit of a
common digital health records system, the Veterans Affairs Department is hoping
a new makeover will finally get its own system noticed — and perhaps get
defense officials to commit to a long-term relationship after all.
10.
Veterans: Lawmakers need to address suicide issue. Hyperlink to
Article KGTV-TV (Video): A federal report shows that a veteran commits suicide
every 65 seconds. The alarming number is prompting members of Iraq and
Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA) to storm Capitol Hill next week in an
attempt to increase awareness among lawmakers.
11.
PTSD Education Available On-Line. Hyperlink to Article KHGI-TV
(Video): Going through trauma does not mean you'll experience Post–Traumatic
Stress Disorder but PTSD is real and being educated is the first step toward
prevention.
12.
Is Surviving Enough for Post-9/111 Veterans? Hyperlink to Article The
Huffington Post: For those recovering from a TBI, they face a long road toward
recovery and rehabilitation. They have survived, but how will they relearn to
thrive?
13.
Study: High rate of emotions in vets with mild brain injury. Hyperlink
to Article USA Today: A survey of several hundred veterans with mild brain
injury, most coming in combat and from exposure to blast, shows that 60%
reported suffering a neurological condition that involves exaggerated emotional
responses such as crying or laughing.
14.
Veterans get free relief through alternative medicine. Hyperlink to
Article The Fort Collins Coloradoan: Nearly 100 veterans have found relief
through Healing Warriors Program, a Northern Colorado nonprofit that provides
free and reduced-cost alternative medicine treatments.
March 21, 2014
15.
The Martial Plan: How Student Veterans Adjust to D.C. Colleges.
Hyperlink to Article Washington City Paper: To make private schools financially
feasible for vets, the VA created the Yellow Ribbon Program, in which the federal
government and participating universities match funds on a set number of grants.
16.
Colorado Springs center to manage VA business verification.
Hyperlink to Article The Gazette: The Colorado Procurement Technical
Assistance Center, which is based in Colorado Springs, has been selected by the
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to help eligible veterans and servicedisabled veterans get their businesses verified — a requirement for landing
federal contracts.
NY audit faults referrals for veterans’ benefits. Hyperlink to Article
Wall Street Journal (AP): New York auditors say poor coordination of health
benefits for military veterans by local social services departments and the state
health department has resulted in many veterans placed in the state's Medicaid
program rather than federal programs.
17.
18.
Healing: Can We Treat Moral Wounds? Hyperlink to Article The
Huffington Post: Therapists and researchers are recognizing more cases of
service members like Grimes-Watson who are returning from war with moral
injuries, wounds caused by blows to their moral foundation, damaging their
sense of right and wrong and often leaving them with traumatic grief.
19.
Governor Cuomo Holds First New York Veterans and Military
Families. LongIsland.com He was joined by U.S. Department of Veterans
Affairs Assistant Secretary for Public and ...
20.
Lack of Resources, Modern Amenities At Rocky Hill Veterans Home.
Hyperlink to Article WTIC-TV (Video): Some units have no air conditioning,
there are four people to a room and not one building is handicap accessible at
the state veterans home located in Rocky Hill.
21.
Hiring Our Heroes Job Fair March 26th. K2 Radio ... of the Employer
Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR), the U.S. Department of Veterans
Affairs, The American Legion, NBC News and others.
March 21, 2014
22.
VA / VSO-MSO Hearings as March 21, 2014:
 March 25, 2014. SAC-MILCON-VA FY15 Budget Hearing.
 March 25, 2014. HVAC, Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity will hold a
hearing on Veterans Affairs Bills.
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H.R. 2942 — A bill to amend Title 38, United States Code, to reestablish
the Professional Certification and Licensure Advisory Committee of the
Department of Veterans Affairs.
H.R. 3056 — A bill to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out a
pilot program on the provision of outreach and support services to
veterans pursuing higher education under the Post 9/11 Educational
Assistance Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs.
H.R. 3614 — A bill to amend Title 38, United States Code, to improve the
recognition by states of skills learned in the military by a Veteran when
issuing licenses and credentials.
H.R. 4031 — Department of Veterans Affairs Management Accountability
Act of 2014.
H.R. 4037 — A bill to amend Title 38, United States Code, to make certain
improvements in the laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans
Affairs relating to training and rehabilitation for Veterans with serviceconnected disabilities, and for other purposes.
H.R. 4038 — A bill to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to make
certain improvements in the information technology of the Veterans
Benefits Administration of the Department of Veterans Affairs to process
claims more efficiently, and for other purposes.
H.R. 4147 — Student Veterans IT Upgrade Act.
H.R. 4150 — Veterans Employment and Training Service Longitudinal
Study Act of 2014.
H.R. 4151 — Veterans Education Survey Act of 2014.
 March 25, 2014. HVAC O&I will hold legislative hearing with issues related to
construction, health, and other matters.
 HR 3593 – Mandating arrangement with US Army Corps of Engineers for
three major construction projects
 Draft bill – informed consent for pychotropic drugs
 Draft bill – oversight of contracts with service-disabled veteran owned
small businesses
 Draft bill –Gulf War Illness
 Draft bill –Improve information security by implementing actions to
improve transparency and governance
 Draft bill –Biological implant protocol and procurement
 March 26, 2014. House Veterans’ Affairs Committee and Senate Veterans
Affairs Committee will hold a joint hearing to receive the legislative presentations
of The American Legion.
March 21, 2014
 March 26, 2014: HVAC DAMA will hold a Legislative Hearing on bills related to
NCA and VBA.
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HR 2018 – Honor Those Who Served Act
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HR 2088 – Centers for Excellence
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HR 2119 – Veterans Access to Speedy Review (Video Hearing)
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HR 2529 – Veterans Spouse Equal Treatment Act
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HR 3671 – NCA Medallion Bill
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HR 3876 – Burial with Dignity Act
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HR 4095 – Annual COLA
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HR 4102 – Require Payment for Accrued Benefits to Veterans Estate
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HR 4141 – Expand Enhanced Use Leases to Cemeteries
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HR 4191 – Quicker Veterans Benefits Delivery Act (REVISED)
 March 27, 2014. HAC-MILCON-VA FY15 Budget Hearing.
 March 27, 2014. HVAC Health intends to hold a Legislative Hearing on health
related bills.
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H.R. 183 – The Veterans Dog Training Therapy Act
H.R. 2527 – Veterans counseling and treatment for sexual trauma that
occurred during inactive duty training
H.R. 2661 – The Veterans Access to Timely Medical Appointments Act
H.R. 2974 – To provide for the eligibility for beneficiary travel for veterans
seeking treatment or care for military sexual trauma in specialized
outpatient or residential programs at facilities of the Department of
Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes
H.R. 3387 – The Classified Veterans Access to Care Act
H.R. 3508 – Qualifications of hearing aid specialists
H.R. 3180 – To include contracts and grants for residential care for
veterans in the exception to the requirement that the Federal Government
recover a portion of the value of certain projects (Kaptur)
H.R. 3831 – The Veterans Dialysis Pilot Program Review Act of 2014
(Roe)
H.R. 4198 – The Appropriate Care for Disabled Veterans Act
DRAFT – To authorize major medical facility projects for the Department
of Veterans Affairs for fiscal year 2014 and for other purposes. (VA FY14
Construction Package)
March 21, 2014
 April 2, 2014. HVAC, Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations will hold an
oversight hearing entitled, “VA & Human Tissue: Improvements Needed for
Veterans Safety.”
 April 3, 2014. House Veterans Affairs Committee will hold a second oversight
hearing on transparency at the Department of Veterans Affairs.
23.
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Today in History:
1556 – In Oxford, Archbishop of Canterbury Thomas Cranmer is burned at the
stake.
1788 – A fire in New Orleans leaves most of the town in ruins.
1801 – The Battle of Alexandria is fought between British and French forces near
the ruins of Nicopolis in Egypt.
1804 – Code Napoléon is adopted as French civil law.
1814 – Napoleonic Wars: Austrian forces repel French troops in the Battle of
Arcis-sur-Aube.
1821 – Greek War of Independence: First revolutionary act in the monastery of
Agia Lavra, Kalavryta.
1857 – An earthquake in Tokyo, Japan kills over 100,000.
1861 – Alexander Stephens gives the Cornerstone Speech
1913 – Over 360 are killed and 20,000 homes destroyed in the Great Dayton
Flood in Dayton, Ohio.
1918 – World War I: The first phase of the German Spring Offensive, Operation
Michael, begins.
1919 – The Hungarian Soviet Republic is established becoming the first
Communist government to be formed in Europe after the October Revolution in
Russia.
1921 – The New Economic Policy is implemented by the Bolshevik Party in
response to the economic failure as a result of War Communism.
1925 – The Butler Act prohibits the teaching of human evolution in Tennessee.
1925 – Syngman Rhee is removed from office after being impeached as the
President of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea.
1928 – Charles Lindbergh is presented with the Medal of Honor for the first solo
trans-Atlantic flight.
1933 – Construction of Dachau, the first Nazi concentration camp, is completed.
1935 – Shah of Iran Reza Shah Pahlavi formally asks the international
community to call Persia by its native name, Iran, meaning "Land of the Aryans".
1937 – Ponce Massacre: 18 people and a 7-year-old girl in Ponce, Puerto Rico,
are gunned down by a police squad acting under orders of US-appointed
Governor, Blanton C. Winship.
1943 – Wehrmacht officer Rudolf von Gersdorff plots to assassinate Adolf Hitler
by using a suicide bomb, but the plan falls through. Von Gersdorff is able to
defuse the bomb in time and avoid suspicion.
1945 – World War II: British troops liberate Mandalay, Burma.
1945 – World War II: Operation Carthage: Royal Air Force planes bomb Gestapo
headquarters in Copenhagen, Denmark. They also hit a school and 125 civilians
are killed.
March 21, 2014
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1945 – World War II: Bulgaria and the Soviet Union successfully complete their
defense of the north bank of the Drava River as the [Battle of the Transdanubian
Hills] concludes.
1946 – The Los Angeles Rams sign Kenny Washington, making him the first
African American player in the American football since 1933.
1952 – Alan Freed presents the Moondog Coronation Ball, the first rock and roll
concert, in Cleveland, Ohio.
1960 – Apartheid in South Africa: Massacre in Sharpeville, South Africa: Police
open fire on a group of unarmed black South African demonstrators, killing 69
and wounding 180.
1963 – Alcatraz, a federal penitentiary on an island in San Francisco Bay, closes.
1965 – Ranger program: NASA launches Ranger 9, the last in a series of
unmanned lunar space probes.
1965 – Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. leads 3,200 people on the start of the third and
finally successful civil rights march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama.
1968 – Battle of Karameh in Jordan between Israeli Defense Forces and Fatah.
1970 – The first Earth Day proclamation is issued by Mayor of San Francisco
Joseph Alioto.
1980 – US President Jimmy Carter announces a United States boycott of the
1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow to protest the Soviet war in Afghanistan.
1980 – Dallas aired its "A House Divided" episode which led to eight months of
international intrigue regarding Who shot J.R.?
1989 – Sports Illustrated reports allegations tying baseball player Pete Rose to
baseball gambling.
1990 – Namibia becomes independent after 75 years of South African rule.
1999 – Bertrand Piccard and Brian Jones become the first to circumnavigate the
Earth in a hot air balloon.
2000 – Pope John Paul II makes his first ever pontifical visit to Israel.