At long last, my poetry has paid off—not with literary acclaim, but cold, hard cash from a stranger on Tumblr. Who needs a Pulitzer when I have weekly direct deposits and a man who says he’s seen battle? That’s right, folks, I’m retiring to a life of luxury, sipping bargain-bin champagne while my benefactor spins tales of his heroic deeds in my DMs. Dreams really do come true. /s
W.J. Astore
Responses from Readers
I was going through old notes and came across emails written to me from 2009 in response to an article I wrote for TomDispatch about militarism in America and its many dangers. (When I tell readers that I often learn as much from them as they do from me, I mean it.)
Juxtaposing these two flags creates a stark contradiction, given the Ukrainian Ultranationalists’ oppressive policies toward LGBTQ+ communities.
Related:
Protesters tee off against Trump and Musk in “Hands Off!” rallies across the U.S.
Gallery: Thousands of protesters gather on State Street, at Capitol to protest Trump administration
How Musk Sold Out America’s Veterans – OpEd
Former service members around the country already feel the repercussions, which include cuts to transportation programs for disabled veterans, reduced telephone support for caregivers, and the postponement or cancellation of suicide prevention trainings.
Other veterans report the cancellation of therapy groups and longer wait times for appointments as well as disruptions to medical studies, including a clinical trial on a new medication with the potential to treat cancers of the mouth and throat. Some facilities eliminated staff members especially trained or certified to perform certain roles, delaying the requisition and delivery of medical supplies.
As always happens amid Musk’s ham-handed raids, the cuts at the VA commenced without the slightest foresight or sense. Among many other examples, officials summarily canceled hundreds of contracts with outside providers, only to immediately scale back the reckless decision after realizing they needed the help performing essential work like physician recruitment and burial services.
Kaldahl, who receives hearing aids, eye care, and other services from the VA, has to travel to larger cities, such as Superior, Wisconsin, or Minneapolis, to receive care unavailable at a clinic near his home.
Dems Demand Pete Hegseth Halt ‘Orwellian Book Purges’ In Military Schools
After DoDEA last month directed its schools to pull lessons from its curriculum related to immigration, gender and sexuality, the schools responded with things like book bans, a portrait of former first lady Michelle Obama being removed, a Harriet Tubman poster being pulled down, rainbows being taken down in kindergarten classrooms and bans on school clubs for LGBTQ+ students and girls in STEM.
Ironically, Vice President JD Vance’s memoir, “Hillbilly Elegy,” was also banned. 😹😹😹
Elon Musk’s Cruel Cuts Expose What MAGA Really Thinks of Veterans
Key takeaways:
- 60 percent of the 16 million Americans who have served in the military supported Donald Trump, and 55 percent believed his policies would benefit veterans, but many veterans have been fired due to massive cuts by Trump and Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency.
- Nearly 6,000 veterans have already lost their jobs due to the cuts, and an estimated 100,000 veterans could be out of work when all is said and done, with around 36,000 disabled veterans facing unemployment and difficulty in finding private-sector jobs.
- The federal government plays a critical role for veterans, providing professional opportunities and support for those transitioning from military to civilian life, but the mass firing of federal workers, including many veterans, will have devastating effects on communities and individuals across the country.
House narrowly passes budget resolution containing $100B for defense
The House budget resolution would add about $3 trillion to the deficit in a decade while mandating deep cuts that threaten to significantly shrink Medicaid and food programs for low-income people. It also calls for the debt limit to be raised by $4 trillion.
Democrats decried the blueprint as a “betrayal of the middle class.”
Rep. Mark Takano of California, the top Democrat on the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, said the plan would harm 9 million veterans that rely on Medicaid for health insurance coverage and more than 1 million veterans who use the SNAP food assistance program, formerly known as food stamps.
He said the Republican budget blueprint would also “take a chainsaw” to the Department of Veterans Affairs. The resolution does not specify exact cuts, but it mandates committees find $2 trillion in total spending reductions to finance tax cuts or reduce the amount of the tax cuts.
Previously:
Speak Up Before VA Health Care Is Gutted #Project2025
Donald Trump’s Next Diversity Target: People With Disabilities
DOGE Sets Its Sights on Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid
While controversy swirls around last week’s mass firing of 1,000 Department of Veterans Affairs’ employees, a far greater threat to veterans’ health care is going completely unnoticed. Powerful leaders in Congress have quietly unveiled their plan to gut VA-delivered care, wrapped in the misleadingly titled “Veterans’ ACCESS Act.” If veterans don’t act fast, they will lose the VA health care system they know and depend on.
The bill appears innocuous enough, with aspirations of accountability. But don’t be fooled. Hidden in its depths like a ticking time bomb is a provision intended to dismantle the integrated VA health care system faster than you can say “privatization.”
…
Follow the money, which will hemorrhage from the VA to the private sector. The likely outcome is that the VA will close its inpatient services and instead become a sprawling assortment of outpatient clinics. If that sounds familiar, it is the plan laid out in the Project 2025 playbook. Veterans are being hoodwinked that the VA facilities they rely on won’t be impacted. Don’t buy it for a second.
Previously:
What’s in Store for VA Disability Benefits with New Office of Management and Budget Chief?
Read More »What’s in Store for VA Disability Benefits with New Office of Management and Budget Chief?
Vought, confirmed Thursday in a 53-47 Senate vote, spearheaded a 2023 report by the Center for Renewing America think tank that called for reducing VA disability compensation for veterans who reach Social Security retirement age and eliminating unemployability benefits for these veterans as well.
The report also proposed cutting disability compensation to veterans with ratings lower than 30% and dropping disability compensation for veterans whose health conditions aren’t directly related to military duty.
Read More »
Ms. Cat’s Chronicles 
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