Last night I watched the Cspan2, the hearing on the Iraq War- to bring our Troops home. Sen. Tom Coburn a R- Oklohoma, a cancer survivor Questioned Americas Moral Obligations to the Iraq people. By stating that We have a "moral obligation" to clean up the mess we made in Iraq.
As he repeated "What we do know"
I sat there and wondered if SEN. Tom Coburn KNEW WHAT MESS WE HAVE MADE IN OUR OWN BACK YARDS? Has he not looked out the WINDOW?
We have a Moral obligation to clean up that mess we have made here as well and we are not doing it.
The American people have spoke! Fix it or end it!
What we do know Sen . Tom Coburn, is that we can't not afford medical treatment for our Americans coming home broken! Try debating the health-care issues, WE as Americans have an obligations FIRST to those who need help after fighting this WAR. Soldiers and Civilians who come home injured and suffering with PTSD. Our obligations belong to the families who have lost loved ones in Iraq. That is our obligation! As you are suppose to work for us, the Americans who voted you into office!
Another question I would like to ask you Sen. Coburn, is What is the impact on our soldiers and contractors? What are you doing to help them? What are your obligations???
Sen. Coburn, you said you were a missionary in Iraq at one time, where you made friendships with Iraqies. I invite you to sit down with our homeless, many who are soldiers and contractors, who have come home damaged from this WAR IN IRAQ and not able to work.
Maybe you can take some notes from Sen. Tom Harkin a D-Iowa Who said, "Learn from the past" Remember Vietnam! USA Today wrote last week that 71% of AMERICANS voted to bring our soldiers HOME! We have more contractors in Iraq then Military, with 50% of Military being National Guard & Reservist.
"PHILIBUSTER" 60%VOTE?,Yet Americans have already voted!
LET THEM VOTE and do the jobs we hired them to do for us and as Americans have asked you to do! Why WON"T YOU LET THEM Speak & VOTE for the American people?
Talk about Obstruction of the American Justice system!
Try ADDRESSING THIS!
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Thursday, June 21, 2007
KBR a Head Hunter not employer?
Now why can't contractors file for Texas Un-employement again? Here is what is out there for KBR jobs contacts.
Recruiters in Houston that specialize in jobs in Iraq?..look at the email address, is this not false advertisement
SERVICE EMPLOYERS INTERNATIONAL, Inc. a foreign entity located in the Cayman Island and with an office in Dubai.
Ryan Mitchell.@kbr.com
Ramona Hennington.@kbr.com
Nayeem Chowdhury.@kbr.com
Barbara Gallagher.@kbr.com
Jim Wilkes.@kbr.com
Lawrence Kopecky.@kbr.com
Quin Davis.@kbr.com
Tony Hughes.@kbr.com
Rachel Little.@kbr.com
SERVICE EMPLOYERS INTERNATIONAL, Inc. a foreign entity located in the Cayman Island and with an office in Dubai.
Ryan Mitchell.@kbr.com
Ramona Hennington.@kbr.com
Nayeem Chowdhury.@kbr.com
Barbara Gallagher.@kbr.com
Jim Wilkes.@kbr.com
Lawrence Kopecky.@kbr.com
Quin Davis.@kbr.com
Tony Hughes.@kbr.com
Rachel Little.@kbr.com
Click the link to see all of Halliburton's Subsidaries (subsidiary - an assistant subject to the authority or control of another)
Please understand when going to sites like these: JobLines
You never know who your applying for, you just might end up working for some foreign company who doesn't have to abide by American Work Force Law when injured, and know that the DBA (Defense Base Act) is fought by many of the Insurer's, don't be fool or mislead to believe that if you are injured you are automatically covered by it.
Please understand when going to sites like these: JobLines
You never know who your applying for, you just might end up working for some foreign company who doesn't have to abide by American Work Force Law when injured, and know that the DBA (Defense Base Act) is fought by many of the Insurer's, don't be fool or mislead to believe that if you are injured you are automatically covered by it.
Go and read the court cases (OALJ site)
One DBA (Defense Bast Act)Attorney sent me record of a pending case, they guy was injured on Feb.02, 2006 after almost daily battling with the Insurer, two of the injured guys doctors and 2 of the Insurer co. doctors agreeing the guy needed surgery. The insurer still fought, and denied his surgery. Finally a little over a year for the injured contractor, one suffering with not just back injuries, but loss of Bladder control finally was able to have his surgery on May 23,2007
If you read the KBR Employee's Hand book under "Sick Leave" it kinda makes you wonder why these guys are so frustrated. 1st these guys are not fighting KBR, they work for SEII, view the documents by double clicking. I have all of this handbook in PDF files which I can't load on the blog, but it makes you really wonder who are the American Contractors truely working for? Is this misleading or what? Many contractors state that KBR says SEII is the payroll, but until you are injured do you truely understand for whom you worked for.
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
United States House of Representatives
6/19/2007
Working in a War Zone: Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in Civilians Returning from Iraq
Subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia
The Honorable Gary L. Ackerman, The Honorable George M. Staples, Laurence G. Brown, M.D, Mr. Steve Kashkett
Webcast: WATCH
Working in a War Zone: Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in Civilians Returning from Iraq
Subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia
The Honorable Gary L. Ackerman, The Honorable George M. Staples, Laurence G. Brown, M.D, Mr. Steve Kashkett
Webcast: WATCH
Preston Wheeler Recovery Video.....Coming Soon!
Who's looking after our American Contractors working in the WAR ZONE???
Remember the Preston Wheeler Ambush? Well I have the Recovery Video taken 4 days later...
Again the town was to be cleared, no Insurgents, no civilians, no Iraqi Police, he said they were told that they would have excellent security during the recovery to include Air, Armor and Infantry.....suppose to be a safe recovery for the contractors, but instead from what I'm hearing from the person who helped shoot the recovery video, it didn't happen...Instead within 10 minutes of going in... to recovery the trucks, they were ROCKED by teenage boys and men. Iraqi Police and civilians were everywhere...After the 3rd convoy truck went in to recover...Mortars started landing 70 meters away from where they were staged at. Above are photos from that recovery that day, 4 days later after many civilians lives were lost.
Did it need to happen?
Many of the contractors who survived this ambush are still fighting in the courts for medical.....suffering from PTSD. Many can not get the help they need to recover...
Also word is on the streets that KBR is hiring a huge amount of TCN's (Third Country Nationals) who do not speak english. Being a convoy commander with TCN's, can be kind of hard, especially during an insurgent attack....How do you translate for one who doesn't speak english to "MOVE OUT OF THE KILL ZONE?" Instead you get a bunch of non english speaking convoy drivers stopping when being fired upon by insurgents!
This bringing back to mind....."Who's looking after the contractors working in the Iraq War Zone?"
Corporate Accountability and Priority to the Families
Top photos is of Bodies of Blackwater Victims Being Returned to the USA
2nd photo is of the wifes who were left behind and fighting for their rights!
THEY DIED FOR THEIR COUNTRY
NOW THEIR ESTATES ARE BEING SUED FOR $10 MILLION!
The 4 men brutally murdered (American security contractors who were burned, beaten, dragged through the streets of Fallujah and their decapitated bodies hung from a bridge over the Euphrates River on March 31, 2004) while working for Blackwater were retired military personnel. The men signed on with Blackwater and were dead 2 weeks later. They were killed during their very first mission. Why? Because Blackwater did not provide them with the necessary and promised weapons, vehicles, support and information to be able to successfully perform their jobs.
(AGain I ask who's looking out for the little man?) Where are the IN HOUSE EMPLOYEE ASSISTANCE PROGRAM'S to help these family and other contractors who are injured and survive these attacks?)
These men died for their country. All their families wanted were answers as to how they died. Instead of giving answers, Blackwater did the inthinkable: They filed suit against the victims' families for $10 million.
Without your help, Blackwater - with its huge war chest and political connections at the highest levels - will succeed in avoiding accountability and destroying 4 innocent families. Please don't let this happen.
Blackwater has spent millions of dollars and hired at least five different law firms to fight the families, rather than meeting and addressing what should be blackwater's top priority - the safety and well being of the mothers, wives and children left behind.
Blackwater has said it will not pay one red cent to assist or console the surviving families.
Monday, June 18, 2007
War, red tape haunt civilian workers...
double click photo to enlarge
An analysis finds a pattern of blocked claims for psychological injuries sustained by contract employees in Iraq and Afghanistan.
By T. Christian Miller, Times Staff Writer
Click the Title above to read entire story!
Lesson Learned?
I read this story and was amazed that how we are re-living Vietnam all over again.
Did we not know that PTSD was going to be part of the major medical claims brought on by contractors who were going into a war zone for work. After Vietnam I just don't see how this was not part of the CORPORATIONS In-house Employee Assistance Programs for contractors going to Iraq.
AIG uses Pharmacological doctors to Evalute PTSD in contractors!
In fighting claims, the insurance companies have relied on doctors with questionable expertise, according to court records and claimants' attorneys.
In one case, an insurance company psychiatrist who specialized in pharmacological research broadly dismissed psychology as "baloney." In another, a psychologist hired by insurance giant American International Group, or AIG, for his supposed expertise in PTSD had seen only 10 to 15 cases in a decade of practice.
The companies have disputed some cases in which their own doctors determined that workers were suffering psychological damage, court records show.
"Two psychologists diagnosed him with post-traumatic stress disorder. As a veteran, Thompson was able to see doctors at the local VA hospital, who also diagnosed him as suffering from PTSD."
"But a doctor hired at
The same doctor (Dr.Griffith)making $250 an hour, who's career was in pharmacological research that told the courts that, "a lot" of psychology was "baloney."
UPDATE-Thursday, Jun. 14, 2007
(Overwhelmed by the number of soldiers returning from war with mental problems, the Army is planning to hire at least 25% more psychiatrists, psychologists and social workers.)
I sure would love to know who is FAKING or which is really BALONEY?
WHO'S LOOKING OUT For THE CONTRACTORS?
Where is OSHA or for that fact...THE UNION? I know in America this would never be allowed, OSHA would have shut the war down by now and the Union would have went on strike!
Is there anyone out there trying to help these Contractors when INJURED?
Who walks them through the DBA Process?
Do they know the DBA EVEN exsist?
Do they or their families know where or how to file a LS203?
Did you know there is a statue of Limations on filing?
Do contractors have to file a claim to be accounted for with the DOL (Department of Labor)
Again one must ask how many contractors have NOT been counted, those who have not filed a claim due to the KBR waiver??? Sign the waiver and get your medal?
***Excerpt from the KBR release waiver:
Paragraph 9. Release: I agree that in consideration for the application for a Defense of Freedom Medal on my behalf that on behalf of myself, my heirs, executors, administrators, assigns and successors, I hereby release, acquit and discharge and do hereby release, acquit and discharge KBR, all KBR employees, the Military and any of their representatives (in both their official and individual capacities), collectively and individually, with respect to and from any and all claims and any and all causes of action, of any kind of character, whether now known or unknown, I may have against any of them which exist as of the date of this authorization and all claims or causes of action arising from or related to this authorization or the use or disclosure of the information or Protected Information described in section 1 above by any of the aforementioned parties. This release also applies to any claims brought by any person or agency or class action under which I may have a right or benefit.
I guess my question would be, "how many Defense of Freedom Medals have been giving out to injured contractors?"
Have these contractors been counted and did they file?
Click the link below to go and read the court cases filed by contractors
http://www.oalj.dol.gov/ for KBR employee contractors you must type in Service Employers to find the case, as the department of Texas Workers Comp state that KBR is no more then a head hunter for SEII who is a foreign entity located in the Cayman Islands. And you can do this with any company.
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Priority 8 VETS (Most whom are Contractors)
Did they see it coming?????
Then- January 24, 2003
WASHINGTON, DC — The Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA), Anthony Principi, has announced that health care enrollment for new Priority Group 8 veterans will be suspended for one year (News Release, January 17, 2003).
Entire story -
New Priority 8 Veterans Not Eligible for VA Health Care
WASHINGTON, DC — January 24, 2003 — The Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA), Anthony Principi, has announced that health care enrollment for new Priority Group 8 veterans will be suspended for one year (News Release, January 17, 2003). Priority Group 8 veterans are those veterans with no service–connected disabilities and with incomes above a threshold amount that is based on geographic location.
The decision applies only to Priority Group 8 veterans who did not enroll for VA health care benefits by January 17, 2003, and not to those who are already receiving VA health care. It also does not apply to veterans in other priority categories.
A Plan for Veterans Who Receive Medicare
The VA and the Department of Health and Human Services are working on ways to give elderly Priority Group 8 veterans access to a “VA+Choice Medicare” plan. The plan calls for the VA to participate as a Medicare+Choice provider. Eligible veterans would be able to use their Medicare benefits to obtain care from the VA.
Legislation to Fund VA Health Care
The VA is unable to provide all enrolled veterans with health care services because of the increased number of veterans seeking care, according to Mr. Principi. More than half of all new enrollees have been in Priority Group 8. Also, the demand for VA health care is expected to continue.
The veterans’ organization, Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), believes that the solution to the health care problem lies in “proper funding” (VFW Washington Weekly, January 21, 2003). Along with other veterans’ groups such as the American Legion and Disabled American Veterans, the VFW supports legislation that would provide mandatory funding for all enrolled users of the VA health care system.
Senator Tim Johnson (D–SD) has introduced the Veterans Health Care Funding Guarantee Act (S.B. 50), which ties veterans’ health care funding levels to medical inflation and the number of veterans using the system each year. The VFW believes that the bill would end annual battles over veterans’ appropriations and greatly improve access to care for all veterans.
Here we are today?
ArmyTimes.com says...
Bill calls for all vets to get VA care
By Rick Maze - Staff writer
Posted : Thursday Apr 19, 2007 15:05:45 EDT
A key senator has joined forces with a New Jersey congressman in trying to re-open enrollment for veterans’ medical care to veterans with moderate incomes and no service-connected disabilities.
The bill, introduced in the House and Senate, would restore eligibility to veterans’ health care to about 242,000 people.
Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., a member of the Senate veterans’ affairs and appropriations committees, has joined Rep. Steve Rothman, D-N.J., in sponsoring the Honor Our Commitment to Veterans Act, which would reverse a Bush adminisatration decision fouir years ago to bar new enrollments in the VA health plan for those in Priority 8, the lowest category on VA’s health care priority list.
Priority 8 includes veterans who either have no service-connected disability or a zero percent disability rating, with incomes above a threshold based on family size. The thresholds range from $27,790 for a veteran with no dependents to $38,948 for a veteran with four dependents, with an additional $1,866 in income to allow for each additional dependent.
The enrollment ban took effect on Jan. 17, 2003, and was done to cut costs (And only last 1 year). VA officials said that most of the veterans who are in Priority 8 either have or could get other medical coverage.
“When it comes to veterans' healthcare, caveats and exceptions are not acceptable,” Murray said.
Her bill, S 1147, is similar to a measure introduced in January by Rothman, a member of the House Appropriations Committee who has been trying to get enrollment reopened for Priority 8 veterans since 2004. “My legislation demands that the federal government fully fund VA health care services so that no veteran in need is turned away,” Rothman said.
Rothman’s bill, HR 463, has 37 cosponsors. Murray didn’t have any original cosponsors for her bill.
Both bills take the same approach by requiring the VA to allow enrollment for any veteran who applies, which would terminate the enrollment freeze.
The cost of restoring the eligibility of Priority 8 veterans for VA health care is a matter of some dispute. Murray’s office estimates it would cost $519 million to provide coverage today and $2.3 billion to provide coverage through 2012.
Murray said the Bush administration cut off enrollment for new Priority 8 veterans in the face of budgetary problems and growing backlogs for patients when there were other options. “Instead of confronting the VA’s shortfall head on by asking for the resources necessary to address them, this administration cut off care to veterans of modest means,” she said.
Rothman said the enrollment ban is particularly hard on people in high-cost areas, like the New Jersey counties he represents. That is because they generally earn more money, making them more likely to exceed the income thresholds — but their cost of living is higher as well.
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2007/04/military_veterancare_eligibility_070419w/
Military Law Review Concerning Military Contractors
The link is to a Military Law Review done in 1995 by the U.S. Army. It states that Military Contractors (in the war zones) have exactly the same rights and obligations as active duty personnel!
According to this review, Contractors can be armed because they are "legal" targets for the enemy.
This is a MUST READ for all Contractors working in Iraq and Afghanistan, under the LOGCAP Contracts.
It even names "LOGCAP" in the review. It includes everyone working under it's contracts.
I'll warn you now, this Military Law Review is long. It's 310 pages! It's in PDF format. You won't be able to see it unless you have Adobe Reader 6.0 or later. You can download it for free here : http://www.adobe.com/products/reader/ . They now have Reader 8.0!
If you're going to Iraq or Afghanistan, you need to read this and share it with your friends and family.
Good Luck! Be Well and May God Bless!!
According to this review, Contractors can be armed because they are "legal" targets for the enemy.
This is a MUST READ for all Contractors working in Iraq and Afghanistan, under the LOGCAP Contracts.
It even names "LOGCAP" in the review. It includes everyone working under it's contracts.
I'll warn you now, this Military Law Review is long. It's 310 pages! It's in PDF format. You won't be able to see it unless you have Adobe Reader 6.0 or later. You can download it for free here : http://www.adobe.com/products/reader/ . They now have Reader 8.0!
If you're going to Iraq or Afghanistan, you need to read this and share it with your friends and family.
Good Luck! Be Well and May God Bless!!
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
The battle scars of a private war
US: The battle scars of a private war
by T. Christian Miller, L A Times
February 12th, 2007
HOUSTON - On a cold, overcast day here Friday, nine families came together in a hushed hotel ballroom to receive one of the nation's most prestigious civilian honors. Executives in dark blue suits shifted uncomfortably as an Army major general in battle fatigues awarded posthumous Defense of Freedom medals to the families' loved ones, all contractors killed while working in Iraq.But this was no public recognition of sacrifice. The event was held in secret, with guards to keep out the media. The Army even refused to release the names of those it was honoring. The nation's gratitude was delivered behind closed doors.A thousand miles to the north, a day later, a group of contractors got together on their own dime in a gritty cinder-block VFW hall beside a freeway in Knoxville, Tenn. This time, there were neither medals nor executives. Instead, there weresudsy beers, loud music and the camaraderie of men and women who swappedwar stories of public indifference, bureaucratic ineptitude and corporate incompetence. "This is what we've got. This is our party," said Jana Crowder, the wife of a contractor. She organized the conference, which drew a few dozen people, from as far as South Dakota and Maine.The contrasting events signal the issues that surround a new and largely invisible kind of pseudo-veteran: the thousands of contractors who have been injured, some fatally, working in Iraq for the U.S. government.Nearly 125,000 contractors are now at work in Iraq supporting roughly 135,000 troops, according to the most recent military figures. The ratio is far higher than for any previous U.S. conflict, military analysts say.More than 750 contractors have been killed in Iraq, according to Department of Labor statistics, and almost 8,000 injured. The figures include Americans, Iraqis and other nationalities employed under U.S. government contracts.Contractors' surviving relatives and wounded contractors have many of the same problems as military members and their families, including searing grief, difficult recoveries and unanswered questions.But the contractors' status as private employees on a public mission has created an uncertain future, where surviving a bullet in the head does not mean a lifetime of care and where a local bar becomes the closest thing to a veteran's hospital.All contractors working overseas are supposed to be covered by federal workers' compensation. Under the system, contracting companies purchase insurance to cover workers' injuries, lost wages and, in the case of death, benefits to survivors.Though the system has worked smoothly in some cases, many contractors have found themselves fighting for medical care and psychological counseling in a civilian healthcare system. Contractors with head wounds and fist-sized holes in their sides have had to fly back to the U.S. on commercial jets for medical care.For support, they have only a homemade system of sympathy, patched together through websites and e-mail.Many of the injured are blue-collar Americans, cops and truckers and oil rig hands who saw Iraq as a way to make some money and support the war. They are scattered across the U.S., isolated from those who suffered similar experiences.Few contractors expect to be treated like returning soldiers. They are quick to acknowledge that they were paid better and could quit when they wanted.But many served side by side with American troops, lived in the same harsh conditions, and braved mortar fire and roadside bombs without the protection of armored vehicles or weapons. They are frustrated at the difficulty they have encountered in getting help for their troubles.Some contractors have seen their efforts in Iraq dismissed by friends and neighbors as the product of greed."There's no support," said Art Faust, 56, a former trucker for KBR, a Halliburton subsidiary now being spun off into a separate company. Faust, of Porter, Texas, has been trying to get psychological treatment after being caught in an ambush in which three other truckers and a soldier were killed. "It's just like someone hit the delete button."The Houston medal ceremony, jointly sponsored by KBR and the Department of Defense, underscored the meshing of the American military with contractors. KBR holds the single largest contract in Iraq, with 50,000 workers supplying food, fuel and mail to the military. The contractors work alongside soldiers, helping rebuild the country and providing private security guards to diplomats and senior U.S. officials.All told, the Pentagon has awarded 119 contractors the Defense of Freedom medal, which is considered the civilian equivalent of a Purple Heart. Of those, 95 have gone to KBR employees, according to KBR officials. The officials declined to provide names or access to the event, citing privacy concerns. The Times was given access by family members who received the award.Bruce A. Stanski, a KBR executive vice president, told the families that the KBR workers were "true heroes." "We at KBR will never forget those who lost their lives carrying out their critical work. They work side by side with our soldiers, providing them with the bare necessities and the comforts of home."Maj. Gen. Jerome Johnson, head of the Army's Sustainment Command, which oversees the KBR contract, spoke for nearly half an hour before presenting the families with the medal, created after the Sept. 11 attacks to honor civilians working for the Defense Department.Johnson, who strode across a low riser decorated with U.S. and KBR flags, compared the KBR workers to soldiers and said their work was vital to the U.S. cause in Iraq. Meanwhile, Ray Charles' "America the Beautiful" played. "Some of your loved ones may not have been wearing a uniform, at least not now, but they were American soldiers," he said, alluding to the many contractors in Iraq who are military veterans.Afterward, several families said they appreciated the effort by KBR and the military to recognize their loved ones. But they expressed dismay at the lack of communication over the circumstances of the deaths. For many families, the only explanations came from news accounts and recollections of fellow drivers. Lloyd Dagit's son Keven was killed in the ambush that trapped Faust in September 2005. "KBR has never come and said, 'Here's what happened,' " Dagit said. He continued: "They may say he was part of their family. That means we're part of their family."Most of the people who gathered the following day in Knoxville were also truckers who had worked for KBR. In the dim light of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1733, they commiserated around low, round tables. Faded red, white and blue streamers hung from the ceiling. Gray-haired Vietnam veterans drank at the bar. A local band blasted Stevie Wonder's "Superstition."Unable to access local veterans' hospitals, some of the men took a class in post-traumatic stress in a small room beside the bar. Several had been diagnosed with the disorder but had been unable to get steady treatment.Driver Robert Rowe, 46, of Ohio, was shot in the knee in August 2004 while hauling ice for KBR in a convoy near Baghdad. Army medics treated him, and he flew home with his knee oozing blood under thick bandages. He is still battling KBR's insurer, American International Group Inc., to get workers' compensation. He lives out of his truck and friends' homes, unable to afford his old apartment.AIG did not respond to a request for comment Sunday, but it has maintained that 90% of claims by Iraq contractors have been paid without dispute. "I look at that flag now, and I say, 'What the hell does that represent anymore?' " said Rowe, who served in the military before going to Iraq for KBR. Halliburton
by T. Christian Miller, L A Times
February 12th, 2007
HOUSTON - On a cold, overcast day here Friday, nine families came together in a hushed hotel ballroom to receive one of the nation's most prestigious civilian honors. Executives in dark blue suits shifted uncomfortably as an Army major general in battle fatigues awarded posthumous Defense of Freedom medals to the families' loved ones, all contractors killed while working in Iraq.But this was no public recognition of sacrifice. The event was held in secret, with guards to keep out the media. The Army even refused to release the names of those it was honoring. The nation's gratitude was delivered behind closed doors.A thousand miles to the north, a day later, a group of contractors got together on their own dime in a gritty cinder-block VFW hall beside a freeway in Knoxville, Tenn. This time, there were neither medals nor executives. Instead, there weresudsy beers, loud music and the camaraderie of men and women who swappedwar stories of public indifference, bureaucratic ineptitude and corporate incompetence. "This is what we've got. This is our party," said Jana Crowder, the wife of a contractor. She organized the conference, which drew a few dozen people, from as far as South Dakota and Maine.The contrasting events signal the issues that surround a new and largely invisible kind of pseudo-veteran: the thousands of contractors who have been injured, some fatally, working in Iraq for the U.S. government.Nearly 125,000 contractors are now at work in Iraq supporting roughly 135,000 troops, according to the most recent military figures. The ratio is far higher than for any previous U.S. conflict, military analysts say.More than 750 contractors have been killed in Iraq, according to Department of Labor statistics, and almost 8,000 injured. The figures include Americans, Iraqis and other nationalities employed under U.S. government contracts.Contractors' surviving relatives and wounded contractors have many of the same problems as military members and their families, including searing grief, difficult recoveries and unanswered questions.But the contractors' status as private employees on a public mission has created an uncertain future, where surviving a bullet in the head does not mean a lifetime of care and where a local bar becomes the closest thing to a veteran's hospital.All contractors working overseas are supposed to be covered by federal workers' compensation. Under the system, contracting companies purchase insurance to cover workers' injuries, lost wages and, in the case of death, benefits to survivors.Though the system has worked smoothly in some cases, many contractors have found themselves fighting for medical care and psychological counseling in a civilian healthcare system. Contractors with head wounds and fist-sized holes in their sides have had to fly back to the U.S. on commercial jets for medical care.For support, they have only a homemade system of sympathy, patched together through websites and e-mail.Many of the injured are blue-collar Americans, cops and truckers and oil rig hands who saw Iraq as a way to make some money and support the war. They are scattered across the U.S., isolated from those who suffered similar experiences.Few contractors expect to be treated like returning soldiers. They are quick to acknowledge that they were paid better and could quit when they wanted.But many served side by side with American troops, lived in the same harsh conditions, and braved mortar fire and roadside bombs without the protection of armored vehicles or weapons. They are frustrated at the difficulty they have encountered in getting help for their troubles.Some contractors have seen their efforts in Iraq dismissed by friends and neighbors as the product of greed."There's no support," said Art Faust, 56, a former trucker for KBR, a Halliburton subsidiary now being spun off into a separate company. Faust, of Porter, Texas, has been trying to get psychological treatment after being caught in an ambush in which three other truckers and a soldier were killed. "It's just like someone hit the delete button."The Houston medal ceremony, jointly sponsored by KBR and the Department of Defense, underscored the meshing of the American military with contractors. KBR holds the single largest contract in Iraq, with 50,000 workers supplying food, fuel and mail to the military. The contractors work alongside soldiers, helping rebuild the country and providing private security guards to diplomats and senior U.S. officials.All told, the Pentagon has awarded 119 contractors the Defense of Freedom medal, which is considered the civilian equivalent of a Purple Heart. Of those, 95 have gone to KBR employees, according to KBR officials. The officials declined to provide names or access to the event, citing privacy concerns. The Times was given access by family members who received the award.Bruce A. Stanski, a KBR executive vice president, told the families that the KBR workers were "true heroes." "We at KBR will never forget those who lost their lives carrying out their critical work. They work side by side with our soldiers, providing them with the bare necessities and the comforts of home."Maj. Gen. Jerome Johnson, head of the Army's Sustainment Command, which oversees the KBR contract, spoke for nearly half an hour before presenting the families with the medal, created after the Sept. 11 attacks to honor civilians working for the Defense Department.Johnson, who strode across a low riser decorated with U.S. and KBR flags, compared the KBR workers to soldiers and said their work was vital to the U.S. cause in Iraq. Meanwhile, Ray Charles' "America the Beautiful" played. "Some of your loved ones may not have been wearing a uniform, at least not now, but they were American soldiers," he said, alluding to the many contractors in Iraq who are military veterans.Afterward, several families said they appreciated the effort by KBR and the military to recognize their loved ones. But they expressed dismay at the lack of communication over the circumstances of the deaths. For many families, the only explanations came from news accounts and recollections of fellow drivers. Lloyd Dagit's son Keven was killed in the ambush that trapped Faust in September 2005. "KBR has never come and said, 'Here's what happened,' " Dagit said. He continued: "They may say he was part of their family. That means we're part of their family."Most of the people who gathered the following day in Knoxville were also truckers who had worked for KBR. In the dim light of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1733, they commiserated around low, round tables. Faded red, white and blue streamers hung from the ceiling. Gray-haired Vietnam veterans drank at the bar. A local band blasted Stevie Wonder's "Superstition."Unable to access local veterans' hospitals, some of the men took a class in post-traumatic stress in a small room beside the bar. Several had been diagnosed with the disorder but had been unable to get steady treatment.Driver Robert Rowe, 46, of Ohio, was shot in the knee in August 2004 while hauling ice for KBR in a convoy near Baghdad. Army medics treated him, and he flew home with his knee oozing blood under thick bandages. He is still battling KBR's insurer, American International Group Inc., to get workers' compensation. He lives out of his truck and friends' homes, unable to afford his old apartment.AIG did not respond to a request for comment Sunday, but it has maintained that 90% of claims by Iraq contractors have been paid without dispute. "I look at that flag now, and I say, 'What the hell does that represent anymore?' " said Rowe, who served in the military before going to Iraq for KBR. Halliburton
Mother works to memorialize contractor son slain in Iraq
Mother works to memorialize contractor son slain in Iraq
THOMAS J. SHEERAN
Associated Press
BRATENAHL, Ohio - While the nation pauses on Memorial Day to honor its war dead, Donna Zovko works to keep alive the memory of her son, who was killed in Iraq while serving as a civilian contractor.
She wants him and other contractors to be remembered along with the fallen members of the nation's military.
"On my Jerry's headstone there's no `contractor'," said Donna Zovko, whose son, Jerko "Jerry" Zovko, 32, was killed in a March 31, 2004, ambush with three civilian colleagues in Fallujah. Their mutilated bodies were burned and two were hung from a bridge.
Jerry Zovko, an Army veteran, was working for Pentagon contractor Blackwater USA hauling food to American troops. His mother likes to think of him as a comrade in arms to U.S. troops even though he was working for a civilian contractor.
"How will Americans treat or remember my son as a contractor that was killed?" she asked. "It's their choice, but he was there to protect our freedom and to help the Iraqis. He was not there for the money."
Zovko has waged a high-profile campaign for tighter oversight of military contractors, appearing in a documentary film, "Iraq for Sale: the War Profiteers," and testifying before a congressional committee Feb. 7.
More than 3,400 members of the U.S. military have died since the start of the Iraq war in March 2003. More than 900 civilian employees of U.S. government contractors have been killed.
Donna Zovko sobbed occasionally during a recent interview on her high-rise balcony overlooking Lake Erie near Cleveland and said she rejects the suggestion that contractors in Iraq are only motivated by big paychecks.
"I prefer to think of him the way he told me," Zovko said. "That he was needed there and the skills that he learned in the military were needed and he went."
While the military takes care of its own, Zovko said, "In private contracting no one is responsible. They put it under the carpet and go on. It's not talked about. It's not answered to."
She understands the honors accorded military victims but hopes people remember the contributions made by those hired by the Pentagon to free soldiers and Marines for combat duty.
Zovko especially feels for civilian contractors without a military background like her son, who was buried with military honors at the Ohio Western Reserve National Center near Akron.
"My heart breaks for them because if it was 9/11 that moved those young men to go and become contractors and to go there with such a pure heart and a good will and lose their lives, their families cannot count on those companies that contracted their son," she said.
She blames contractors for thinking more about profits than the safety of their employees.
Blackwater has argued that it abided by its contractual obligations.
"The four men lost in Fallujah weigh heavily on the hearts of everyone at Blackwater and our sympathies remain with the families," the company told The Associated Press in an e-mail on Friday.
Blackwater does not release the names of those killed and memorializes its dead in private. At its headquarters in Moyock, N.C., the company engraves a stone in its memorial rock garden for each contractor killed while serving.
Nancy Taylor, who teaches future school counselors at John Carroll University in nearby University Heights, said Zovko's advocacy on military contractor oversight could bring attention to the issue of contractor deaths.
"As an American public, if we're not tuned into them, we need to be aware about them. That's something that Donna Zovko seems to be doing, making people aware of her son so that people can appreciate their efforts and support what they stood for," Taylor said.
"Anybody who has, in essence, been martyred certainly deserves the same respect as any other person, whether they had a uniform on or not."
Zovko's suggestion for remembering her son and the three killed with him, Scott Helvenston, Wesley Batalona, and Michael Teague, was to put their name on proposed legislation to increase oversight of military contractors.
She said it isn't hard emotionally visiting her son's grave, but is difficult leaving the cemetery.
"I know the way the casket was laid in the ground, if my Jerry's body was whole where his body would be and I can touch the ground where his heart would be. I pray and pray. You can never say enough prayers."
Associated Press writer Mike Baker in Raleigh, N.C., contributed to this report.
THOMAS J. SHEERAN
Associated Press
BRATENAHL, Ohio - While the nation pauses on Memorial Day to honor its war dead, Donna Zovko works to keep alive the memory of her son, who was killed in Iraq while serving as a civilian contractor.
She wants him and other contractors to be remembered along with the fallen members of the nation's military.
"On my Jerry's headstone there's no `contractor'," said Donna Zovko, whose son, Jerko "Jerry" Zovko, 32, was killed in a March 31, 2004, ambush with three civilian colleagues in Fallujah. Their mutilated bodies were burned and two were hung from a bridge.
Jerry Zovko, an Army veteran, was working for Pentagon contractor Blackwater USA hauling food to American troops. His mother likes to think of him as a comrade in arms to U.S. troops even though he was working for a civilian contractor.
"How will Americans treat or remember my son as a contractor that was killed?" she asked. "It's their choice, but he was there to protect our freedom and to help the Iraqis. He was not there for the money."
Zovko has waged a high-profile campaign for tighter oversight of military contractors, appearing in a documentary film, "Iraq for Sale: the War Profiteers," and testifying before a congressional committee Feb. 7.
More than 3,400 members of the U.S. military have died since the start of the Iraq war in March 2003. More than 900 civilian employees of U.S. government contractors have been killed.
Donna Zovko sobbed occasionally during a recent interview on her high-rise balcony overlooking Lake Erie near Cleveland and said she rejects the suggestion that contractors in Iraq are only motivated by big paychecks.
"I prefer to think of him the way he told me," Zovko said. "That he was needed there and the skills that he learned in the military were needed and he went."
While the military takes care of its own, Zovko said, "In private contracting no one is responsible. They put it under the carpet and go on. It's not talked about. It's not answered to."
She understands the honors accorded military victims but hopes people remember the contributions made by those hired by the Pentagon to free soldiers and Marines for combat duty.
Zovko especially feels for civilian contractors without a military background like her son, who was buried with military honors at the Ohio Western Reserve National Center near Akron.
"My heart breaks for them because if it was 9/11 that moved those young men to go and become contractors and to go there with such a pure heart and a good will and lose their lives, their families cannot count on those companies that contracted their son," she said.
She blames contractors for thinking more about profits than the safety of their employees.
Blackwater has argued that it abided by its contractual obligations.
"The four men lost in Fallujah weigh heavily on the hearts of everyone at Blackwater and our sympathies remain with the families," the company told The Associated Press in an e-mail on Friday.
Blackwater does not release the names of those killed and memorializes its dead in private. At its headquarters in Moyock, N.C., the company engraves a stone in its memorial rock garden for each contractor killed while serving.
Nancy Taylor, who teaches future school counselors at John Carroll University in nearby University Heights, said Zovko's advocacy on military contractor oversight could bring attention to the issue of contractor deaths.
"As an American public, if we're not tuned into them, we need to be aware about them. That's something that Donna Zovko seems to be doing, making people aware of her son so that people can appreciate their efforts and support what they stood for," Taylor said.
"Anybody who has, in essence, been martyred certainly deserves the same respect as any other person, whether they had a uniform on or not."
Zovko's suggestion for remembering her son and the three killed with him, Scott Helvenston, Wesley Batalona, and Michael Teague, was to put their name on proposed legislation to increase oversight of military contractors.
She said it isn't hard emotionally visiting her son's grave, but is difficult leaving the cemetery.
"I know the way the casket was laid in the ground, if my Jerry's body was whole where his body would be and I can touch the ground where his heart would be. I pray and pray. You can never say enough prayers."
Associated Press writer Mike Baker in Raleigh, N.C., contributed to this report.
Playing the number game!
500,000 Troops in Iraq in 1990 Gulf War?
Funny how we had 500,000 AMERICAN TROOPS in Iraq during Gulf War and now we have only 130,000 to 160,000 during Operation Iraqie Freedom, we've replaced the missing 380,000 troops with American Contractors?
Sending them into a WAR ZONE without proper protection?
Most contractors are ex military, who go now to support the only thing they ever knew how to do.....
Was it the Clinton Admin....downsizing our military?
OR
is it so they could cover up the numbers of American's being killed or injured on the FRONT LINES?
Funny how we had 500,000 AMERICAN TROOPS in Iraq during Gulf War and now we have only 130,000 to 160,000 during Operation Iraqie Freedom, we've replaced the missing 380,000 troops with American Contractors?
Sending them into a WAR ZONE without proper protection?
Most contractors are ex military, who go now to support the only thing they ever knew how to do.....
Was it the Clinton Admin....downsizing our military?
OR
is it so they could cover up the numbers of American's being killed or injured on the FRONT LINES?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
