Military Veterans

“These are men whose minds the Dead have ravished” Theater of War / The Philoctetes Project

by Peter Meineck

Arion 17.2  Spring/Summer 2009

Unsung Heroes: Developing a better understanding of the emotional support needs of Service families

by Matt Fossey

Armed Forces families must be better supported to deal with the emotional and psychological impact of deployment,... more Armed Forces families must be better supported to deal with the emotional and psychological impact of deployment, according to a report released today by Centre for Mental Health.
The report, Unsung Heroes, also calls for urgent research into alcohol misuse, domestic violence and the impact of mental health problems on the partners and children of Service personnel and veterans.
The report, which is supported by The Royal British Legion and the veteran’s mental health charity Combat Stress, argues that while progress is being made to address the psychological needs of Service personnel and veterans themselves, the practical and emotional impact on their partners and children must also be taken into consideration.
Unsung Heroes examines the services already in place for families and identifies areas where more evidence, about both the need for services to support families and the effectiveness of these services is needed.
Sean Duggan, chief executive at Centre for Mental Health said today: “Our most pressing concern is the paucity of UK research into the emotional needs of armed forces families on the ‘home front’; which may mean that the needs of many families are going unmet.
“There is a very substantial body of research that highlights concern about the levels of alcohol use within the UK Armed Forces, yet little evidence about the impact of alcohol misuse on their families. It’s vital that this kind of research is undertaken as soon as possible and that we evaluate the existing support to ensure that Service families get the help they need.”
Sue Freeth, Director of Health and Welfare at the Royal British Legion said: “The Royal British Legion welcomes this latest research which is vital in being able to meet the needs of in-service and ex-serving personnel, but also their families. These findings are supported by our own case work experience. Ensuring families receive joined up information, advice care, and support so they do not experience any disadvantage is vital.”
Peter Poole, Director of Strategy, Policy & Performance at Combat Stress said: “Combat Stress specialises in working with Veterans with mental health problems – providing crucial treatment, supporting the Veteran in his or her recovery and helping them return to normal life. The report recognises the vital role that families can play in aiding their loved one’s treatment and recovery from mental ill-health and in providing a stable home environment for Serving personnel between deployments.”

Going AWOL: Alternative Responses to PTSD Stigma in the U.S. Military

by Field Notes: A Journal of Collegiate Anthropology

By Katinka Hooyer

Published in Field Notes: A Journal of Collegiate Anthropology 4(1): 106-128. (May 2012)
Copyright ©2012 by Field Notes: A Journal of Collegiate Anthropology

The psychiatric costs of war have contributed to an ‘epidemic of suicide’ linked to PTSD among United States military... more The psychiatric costs of war have contributed to an ‘epidemic of suicide’ linked to PTSD among United States military service personnel. Current research identifies ‘self-stigma as the barrier to care’ and dominant thinking surrounding interventions focuses on overcoming self- stigma to obtain mental health services. The research and programming is grounded in leading social- cognitive and behavioral models that focus on individual interactions. This descriptive analysis of high-profile AWOL cases provides a counter-narrative to this predominant biomedical discourse. In these cases, soldiers chance increased stigmatization through risking dishonorable discharge in their pursuit of care. The question emerges, is lack of help-seeking taking place due to self-stigmatizing or due to broader structural elements that restrict choices? And more critically, are dominant theories of health behavior that focus on individual choice relevant in contexts where there is limited autonomy? Preliminary ethnographic research with veterans and active duty soldiers in addition to content analysis of online military blogs and investigative news reports explore these questions. Anthropological models are introduced to provide a more fixed consideration of structural influences on individuals’ actions and to offer an alternative approach to intervention.

Exchange of Sacrifices: Symbolizing an Unpopular War in Post-Soviet Russia.

by Serguei Alex. Oushakine (Сергей Ушакин)

In: Fighting Words and Images: Representing War across the Disciplines. Ed. by Elena V. Baraban, Stephan Jaeger, and Adam Muller. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2012, pp. 185-208.

Telling Their Stories: Using Outreach to Create Biographies of Alumni Veterans

by Jason Speck

Journal for the Society of North Carolina Archivists, Volume 9, Number 2, Spring 2012, pp 2-19.  Soon to be available via EBSCOHost.

When a donor demanded that one of its treasures be returned, the University of Maryland Archives could have become... more When a donor demanded that one of its treasures be returned, the University of Maryland Archives could have become territorial or defensive.  Instead, the Archives used the request as an opportunity to work more closely with that donor, recognizing that what the donor really wanted was enhanced access.  Out of this potentially difficult situation came the creation of a new student internship program, one which has received widespread positive publicity for its work in creating biographies of alumni veterans who perished in service to their country.  These biographies will eventually serve as the foundation for a website that will provide the access that the donor desires.  This new form of outreach has also benefitted the Archives by raising its profile on campus.

The Romanian Army Officer Lt. Alexandru Gheorghe (27 y.o.) Fights for Democracy Under the Weight of the Lingering Communist Era Tombstones

by Adrian Toader-Williams

Denigrating intellectuals and eliminating people that stands out against the ruling government for a public interest cause has deep roots in the old time human behavior tendency to hold power. Personally I have hard time to accept that during our days such concepts and practices are still generalized in the civilized countries. Remainders of the old communist and dictatorial regimes isolated tendencies are possible to linger around. We can aim towards a sustainable development only by reaffirming the democracy, the social contract and the fundamental law protecting the Human Rights. If not absolutely nothing makes sense. Full Article: http://ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-743320 Military Army NATO Romania Social Contract Human Rights Health Freedom Economy Economics Equilibrium TEKT Triangular Ecokinematics Theory Webcast Romania Retirement Law Education Security Sustainable Development Government Finances Banks Money Inflation Attribution

Denigrating intellectuals and eliminating people that stands out against the ruling government for a public interest... more Denigrating intellectuals and eliminating people that stands out against the ruling government for a public interest cause has deep roots in the old time human behavior tendency to hold power. Personally I have hard time to accept that during our days such concepts and practices are still generalized in the civilized countries. Remainders of the old communist and dictatorial regimes isolated tendencies are possible to linger around. We can aim towards a sustainable development only by reaffirming the democracy, the social contract and the fundamental law protecting the Human Rights. If not absolutely nothing makes sense. Full Article: http://ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-743320

"'Brave Words'": Rehabilitating the Veteran-Writer

by Liam Corley

Published in College English, 74.4 (March 2012)

The author, a college English professor, explains how his military service in Afghanistan left him having to... more The author, a college English professor, explains how his military service in Afghanistan left him having to reconsider his identity as a scholarly writer.

‘Act of Valor’: A Review and Commentary (Review)

by Jeff Emanuel

Review of "Act of Valor," directed by Mike McCoy and Scott Waugh (Bandito Brothers, 2012)

Supporting Student Veteran Success: Institutional Responses to the Post-9/11 GI Bill and the Influx of Student Veterans. WISCAPE Viewpoints.

by Bo McCready

ARTICLE - Russian military patriotic education: a control tool against the arbitrariness of veterans

by Elisabeth Sieca-Kozlowski

Les vétérans et les soldats actifs à Scupi et dans sa région. A paraître dans les Actes du Symposium international « Le livre, l’Europe, la Roumanie », Sinaia, Roumanie (20-22 septembre), « Structures guerrières et échanges entre peuples des Balkans ».

by Marija Stankovska-Tzamali

Communication dans le Symposium international « Le livre, l’Europe, la Roumanie », Sinaia, Roumanie (20-22 septembre), « Structures guerrières et échanges entre peuples des Balkans ».

Plusieurs monuments épigraphiques attestent la présence des vétérans dans la colonie de Scupi et confirment que cette... more Plusieurs monuments épigraphiques attestent la présence des vétérans dans la colonie de Scupi et confirment que cette ville était fondée comme une colonie des vétérans. Scupi qui se trouve aux confins méridionaux de la Mésie supérieure, sur la frontière avec la province de Macédoine avait accueilli pendant des périodes différentes, des détachements militaires des légions VIIe Claudia et IVe Flavia, stationnées toutes les deux au Nord de la Mésie supérieure, sur le Danube.
L’agglomération avoisinante, dans la région de Kumanovo, fut elle-aussi station d’un détachement des officiers subalternes. Leur présence, ainsi que celle des employés de la douane indique qu’ici furent installées des personnes qui participaient dans l’administration de l’exploitation des mines avoisinantes.
Cette communication, en s’appuyant sur les données archéologiques et épigraphiques, examinera le caractère des ces deux villes. Elle essayera également de présenter l’intégration des descendants des vétérans dans la vie politique de la cité ainsi que les liens établis entre les familles de Scupi et d’autres cités  de la province.

The Veterans in Scupi and its area

Several epigraphic monuments attest the presence of veterans in the Roman colony of Scupi and confirm that this city was founded as a colony of veterans.  Scupi, situated on the south of the Moesia Superior, near the frontier between this province and Macedonia, was a city where detachments from the legions VII Claudia and IV Flavia, both stationed on the Danube, were sent.
The nearby agglomeration, in the region of Kumanovo, also had a detachment of solders that were subaltern officers. These solders were sent here to participate in the administration of the nearby mines. The presence of the custom’s employees also speaks in favour of this theory.
This paper aims to examine the different character the two settlements taking into consideration the archaeological and epigraphic data. It will also try to follow the process of the integration of the veteran’s descendants in the city’s political life as well as the links between the families of Scupi and those from others cities in the province.

An Online Marketplace Serving Those Who Serve (9/13/10)

by Michael Russell

This article is was published as a guest blog post on the AFCEA (Armed Forces Communications & Electronics Association) official SignalScape blog and on GovLoop.com.

Blake Hall is a man on a mission: to help U.S. military personnel use “Web 2.0” Internet technologies to help one... more Blake Hall is a man on a mission: to help U.S. military personnel use “Web 2.0” Internet technologies to help one another and themselves. Hall’s no stranger to demanding missions. A decorated former U.S. Army Captain and Airborne Ranger who led a scout platoon in Iraq, he relates how the first time he ever led a combat mission, his battalion commander laid his hand on his shoulder and said ominously, “Hall, don’t screw it up.” And based on the overwhelmingly positive, initial response to his and his co-founders’ new, veteran-owned web venture, TroopSwap.com, an online community and marketplace for active duty U.S. military, reservists, veterans and their families, that battalion commander would be more than proud.

Fresh from his powerful and moving Washington Post article that has attracted international attention, Blake Hall sat down with me to discuss TroopSwap.com at O’Reilly Media’s Government 2.0 Summit, the inspiring two-day mind-meld of technology and public policy innovators last week in Washington, D.C.

The HEROES Program: Child Support Enforcement Among Veterans of War

by Texas State PA Applied Research Projects

Whetsell, Travis A., "The HEROES Program: Child Support Enforcement Among Veterans of War" (2011). Applied Research Projects, Texas State University-San Marcos. Paper 370.
http://ecommons.txstate.edu/arp/370

Over the last century the system of child support in the United States has evolved into a massive sprawling... more Over the last century the system of child support in the United States has evolved into a massive sprawling bureaucracy, illustrative of modern American cooperative federalism. Within this system the federal government provides a firm legal basis and substantial funding for state child support agencies, while the states themselves are responsible for the implementation and enforcement of child support orders.

Recently, the federal government has assumed the role of promoting experimental programs in the states, which focus primarily on noncustodial parent compliance with child support enforcement. Through the Project to Avoid Increasing Delinquencies (PAID), the United States Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE) provided the Texas Office of the Attorney General (OAG) with a 1115 grant for a pilot child support program, known as the HEROES Program. This program is specifically designed to bring both active duty military members and veterans into compliance with their child support obligations, as well as assist the families of this group with their child support issues.

The purpose of this applied research project is to conduct a preliminary exploration and evaluation of the HEROES Program, utilizing a mixed methods case study approach, which targets archival records casework data and interview responses of key experts in and around the HEROES Program. Analysis of this data provides an early snapshot of (1) the veteran population under the outreach of the HEROES Program, (2) the relationships between the HEROES Program and other government entities with which it cooperates, and (3) the procedures and guidelines used to evaluate and expedite child support cases for the military population under its outreach.

The HEROES Program: Child Support Enforcement Among Veterans of War

by travis whetsell

Dragon's Breath #34

by David Tschanz

Dragon's Breath is the journal of the Dhahran Memorial Division, China Post 1, American Legion. Issues feature military history articles, usually out of the mainstream.

Features articles on the Living Statues on World War I and Smokey the Wonder Dog of World War II Features articles on the Living Statues on World War I and Smokey the Wonder Dog of World War II

Thomas Kühne, Review of Birgit Schwelling, Heimkehr – Erinnerung – Integration. Der Verband der Heimkehrer, die ehemaligen Kriegsgefangenen und die westdeutsche Nachkriegsgesellschaft (Paderborn, Schöningh, 2010), Historische Zeitschrift, vol. 293 (2011): 864-65.

by Thomas Kühne

Dragon's Breath #30

by David Tschanz

Dragon's Breath is the journal of the Dhahran Memorial Division, China Post 1, American Legion. Issues feature military history articles, usually out of the mainstream

Features part one of a "Pictorial History of China Post 1" Features part one of a "Pictorial History of China Post 1"

“‘Great Injustice’: Social Status and the Distribution of Pensions after the Civil War.”

by Russell Johnson

_Journal of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era_ 10 (April 2011): 137-160.

In recent years, historians have paid increased attention to the Civil War pension system created for Union army... more In recent years, historians have paid increased attention to the Civil War pension system created for Union army soldiers and their families. It has come to be seen as a milestone in the evolution of U.S. social policy. Despite the overall appearance of generosity and of unbiased treatment for applicants, however, individuals actually experienced the system very differently based on the social status of the soldier involved. Looking at pension legislation, its implementation, and nearly one thousand pension claim files, this article argues that three types of status discrimination appeared in the distribution of pensions: Pension laws paid larger amounts to officers and their families, the Pension Bureau used ability to perform manual labor to determine the level of disability regardless of the applicants’ true ability to earn a living, and claims based on the service of officers generally were decided more quickly and more favorably than those of enlisted men. Because military ranks reflected the soldiers’ civilian social position—most manual laborers served as enlisted men, for example—these biases meant that individuals of higher social status received significantly better treatment than those of lower civilian status.

Across the wire

by Matt Fossey

Commemorating a “suspended death”: Missing soldiers and national solidarity in Israel

by Danny Kaplan

Published in 2008 in American Ethnologist 35(3), 413-427.