They are Cpl. Robert L. Mason of Parkersburg, W.Va.; and Pfc. Joseph K. Meyer Jr., of Wahpeton, N.D., both U.S. Army. Both men will be buried Saturday. Mason will be buried in Belpre, Ohio, and Meyer will be buried in Wahpeton.

Representatives from the Army met with the next-of-kin of these men to explain the recovery and identification process, and to coordinate interment with military honors on behalf of the Secretary of the Army.

Mason was assigned to B Company, 32^nd Infantry Regiment, and Meyer was assigned to K Company, 31^st Infantry Regiment. Both were attached to the 31^st Regimental Combat Team (RCT), 7^th Infantry Division. The team was engaged against the Chinese People's Volunteer Forces near the Chosin Reservoir, North Korea, from late November to early December, 1950. Both men died as result of intense enemy fire, and their bodies were not recovered at the time.

Thompson and Rehberg Fight for Veterans Unknowingly Exposed to Toxic Tests in 60s and 70s

WASHINGTON (May 1, 2008) - Congressmen Mike Thompson (D-CA) and Denny Rehberg (R-MT) introduced legislation that would provide healthcare to veterans who were unknowingly subjected to biological and chemical weapons tests conducted in the 1960s and 70s. 

The existence of these tests, known as Project 112, including Project SHAD, was denied by the Department of Defense (DoD), despite reports from participating veterans that they were being stricken with unusual diseases.  The DoD now acknowledges that the tests took place, but the Veterans Administration (VA) will not provide these veterans with health benefits and compensation for their diseases.  The Thompson-Rehberg legislation would require the VA to assume the toxins used in the weapons tests caused injury to the veterans, making them eligible for medical benefits and/or compensation for their conditions. 

"For ten years, I've been fighting to get the government to acknowledge that these extremely dangerous tests made some of our brave veterans sick and even caused some of their deaths," said Thompson.  "These men risked their lives for their country, and in return, their government treated them like guinea pigs and has for years turned its back on them.  This legislation will make sure they don't have to wait any longer for the help they need and deserve."

Every Monday, Walter Berry travels to Jefferson Barracks Veterans Hospital to cope with a 26-day portion of his life from 63 years ago.

Berry was an 18-year-old buck private in the U.S. Marine Corps when his first combat experience came on Feb. 19, 1945. He was in the first assault wave on Iwo Jima.

"When the ramp went down and we scampered out, oh, the firing was ferocious. Japanese artillery shells and mortar rounds, machine guns were firing, guys were falling, guys were yelling for corpsmen. And I fell behind this leg that had been blown off at the hip. It still had the shoe on it.

"And I hunkered down behind it, and it wasn't very big, but I stayed there."

He said Lt. Howard "Smiley" Johnson, who played pro football for the Green Bay Packers, came up to see if Berry was OK. Then Johnson went over to check Berry's two tent mates.

A mortar round came in and killed all three.

ONLEY -- Mark Williams got the idea one Sunday morning in October.

He was watching TV, a report about a North Carolina town sending its veterans to see the war memorials in Washington, D.C.

"I told my wife we could certainly do that here - they don't care more about their vets than we do," Williams said last week.

So he asked his friends and neighbors to help send Eastern Shore vets on the same kind of trip. Donations poured in - checks and doughnuts and artwork and music and fried chicken and flags. And veterans signed up - 10 and then 12 and then 20 and then 40 and then 90 - until on Sunday morning they met at the Four Corners Plaza on U.S. 13 for a bus ride to the nation's capital, and realized just how much one man can do.

Arguments began on Monday in a class-action lawsuit against the Department of Veterans Affairs that alleges the agency is unequipped to provide medical services to treat the mental health problems of soldiers returning from the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, the New York Times reports. The lawsuit was filed by two groups, the Veterans for Common Sense and the Veterans United for Truth, in a federal court in San Francisco (MacFarquhar, New York Times, 4/22).

Lawyers for the two veterans groups said that staff shortages, long waits, inadequate care and an adversarial appeals process for denied care have created an "epidemic of suicides" among veterans. The lawsuit also says that VA is ignoring or delaying treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder for as many as 750,000 veterans of the wars (Rosenblatt, Bloomberg/Philadelphia Inquirer, 4/22). The lawsuit does not seek damages but instead wants the court to force VA to improve care for veterans, especially those with PTSD and other mental health issues (Chong, Los Angles Times, 4/22).

Daniel Bensing of the Department of Justice said that VA has been providing care for mental health and that its budget for such conditions was increased from $3.2 billion to $3.5 billion last year. In addition, VA added 3,700 mental health professionals and began a suicide hotline for veterans, he said (Bloomberg/Philadelphia Inquirer, 4/22). Richard Lepley, another member of the defense from DOJ, said that claims have increased 25% in recent years to 838,000. The defense said that the increase is attributed to head injuries that have been a signature issue of the Afghanistan and Iraq wars, and Vietnam veterans who are seeking care for conditions associated with aging. Lepley said VA is falling short of its goal to address claims within 125 days, adding that the agency is answering them closer to 180 to 185 days. However, he said the added staff and other programs should help the problem (New York Times, 4/22).

ATTENTION AMERICA!

It has been brought to my attention that there are a group of US Marines based from Great Lakes Naval Base, now deployed in Iraq, who are not getting any mail. Not a note, not a love letter, not a care package has been received by them.

Retired Marine and dear friend Marty Smith has been in communication with Col. Curt Ames, USMC, and according to Col. Ames' contact in Iraq, these Marines never get any mail. I was asked to "drum up some business"

for these outstanding Americans. I know that from past requests like this one, many of you have stepped up beyond anyone's imagination and delivered "big time" to our heroes overseas.

Well ... I am asking for support again. Their names are ...

They are all at the same address; just write their name above the below address.

Danna Palmer < This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it >