TheAgitator.com
VA Officials Seize Reporter’s Equipment
Thursday, April 9th, 2009David Schultz, a reporter for the NPR affiliate WAMU in D.C., had his microphone, headphones, and a digital recorder seized by police and PR reps from the Veterans Administration when he interviewed veteran Tommy Canady at a public town hall meeting in D.C. yesterday.
Canady was attempting to tell Schultz about the poor treatment he says he’s been getting from the VA hospital. VA officials claim Schultz didn’t identify himself as a reporter, failed to obtain a VA-approved waiver before speaking with Canady, was both exploiting Canady and violating Canady’s right to medical privacy.
After the police confiscated Schultz’s equipment, Canady gave Schultz his phone number and asked him to call him, which according to Schultz only further angered VA officials at the event.
Canady gave a different account of the incident than the VA when Schultz’s report aired today.
“It makes me mad, because I’m grown, and I’ll talk to whoever I want to. You know what I mean? And it makes me feel like you have something to hide. That you’re worried that something might get out that you don’t want to get out. I think it’s un-American. I really do.”
One VA official told Schultz he would not be prosecuted if he voluntarily left the public event. Which sounds a lot like a threat to prosecute him if he stayed. The VA still hasn’t returned Schultz’s equipment.
And still people call for more government.
This is all the more interesting considering that Obama wants to make wounded vets start paying for their own healthcare with their private insurance. If there is ONE group of people in this country who deserve free/socialized medicine, it’s the military. Not that the quality is that great (unless you’re a politician), but that a different subject.
As a Resident that has cross-cover requirements at a local VA I will tell you this doesn’t surprise me. When an adverse event occurs with a patient, nurses and VA staff run to their computers to make sure they have crossed and dotted all of the bureaucratic t’s and i’s then they go see what they can do for the patient. They cannot be fire for poor patient management, only for improper paperwork
“If there is ONE group of people in this country who deserve free/socialized medicine, it’s the military.”
Yes but…
A good portion of VA patients are receiving care for non-service connected disabilities. I have done coronary artery bypass grafts on individuals that were discharged after basic training 20+ years ago for inability to cope and have since claimed PTSD with alcoholism for which they receive a VA disability rating. Once in the system they can capitalize on a significant amount of unrelated care for which they have no service related issues. I write not only as a 9 year active duty Vet myself, but a vet with service connected Kidney failure from a parasite contracted in French Guiana. Some of these “Vets” should be making a much larger co-pay for their care. I will also tell you that I do not get any of my care from that Death trap referred to as a “Hospital”.
I’d bet dimes to dollars there were reporters interviewing other vets, and had no consent form, but were not harassed. The difference being the other vets were giving good reviews about the VA, or at least feigning it in front of the bulls.
As someoe who works with an occassional Vet and seeks information from their respective VA doctors, you do not need a release to speak to a Vet. The release is signe dby the Vet so you can speak to their doctor. That caim by the VA, or that this reporter was violating the Vet’s rights, is patently absurd because it’s the information beongs to the Vet and he can share with whomever he wants. Very dissappointing.
DJB,
I’m also a 9+ year vet with service-connected disabilities. I am rated at 70% for a plethora of ailments and have received care for something that is not service-connected. However, I am entitled by law to receive treatment for non-service-connected problems because I am more than 50% disabled. I don’t take advantage of it (I’m talking about a physical every year and medication for my high triglycerides, BTW), but I’m entitled to it.
Now, I would have no problem at all with the VA charging my private health insurance for whatever they can get out of them and then crediting me the difference (so that it is still free to me and other veterans). Why not? It wouldn’t cost the veterans one dime but it would save taxpayer money. It would be as if they went to any other doctor except that there is no out-of-pocket expense. That way we get the veterans the care they have earned and everyone wins (except the Insurance Agencies, of course).
Wow, that’s smart. Go threaten the reporter from the station that probably half of the congress and policy makers in DC listen to on their daily commute. THAT surely won’t have any repercussions.
“A good portion of VA patients are receiving care for non-service connected disabilities.”
Yeah, it’s basically a scam for a lot of people getting out of the service. You never want to accuse someone of faking or exaggerating a medical condition, but I knew more than one individual (a whole lot more) who were meticulously planning how they were going to get X amount of disability after their service, yet who never seemed inconvienanced by the so called “disability” before they started transition planning.
Yep, officialdom is definitely becoming more hostile to those who facilitate public scrutiny. They don’t like people constantly pointing out that they’re unscrupulous assholes. They don’t see that as a reason not to be unscrupulous assholes, though. They just see it as a reason to suppress the exposure.
Despite any lofty rhetorical soundbites, all tax funded organizations view the taxpayer as a slow witted annoyance who should just shut the fuck up and sign the check. People with cameras and microphones are just trouble-makers. History doesn’t just hint at this, it shouts it out with a megaphone.
Chance,
I, too, saw many people planning on getting X percentage but, of them all, hardly any one of them got more than 10 or 20%, which doesn’t entitle you to any non-service connected disability treatment.
Also, it isn’t easy to get your disabilities validated. It took me over 3 years and 4 appeals to get them to finally give me my current rating (all due to lost paperwork, BTW. They are very inefficient). In order to show SC disability, there must be documented proof in your service medical records and then it must be validated by an independent examiner (some doctors contracted out by VA to examine you and verify your claim). I was poked, prodded, flexed, bent, and crunched in more ways than I had ever before during those examinations. It’s not that easy to get a rating now.
@#9: Dave, I think my condo association treats the people living there like the government treats taxpayers, and you’re spot on. We are nothing more than the serfs working to provide for thier lifestyles and pet projects.
Nando, you’re undoubtedly right that it isn’t easy, and those who weren’t deseving likely got little to nothing for their trouble. Even if they weren’t sucessful, the attempt itself bothered me. It was always a pet peeve of mine that so many fellow soldiers who tended to lean conservative, were quick to criticize the welfare state, and who decried socialism in its many forms apparently had no qualms trying to take money from the taxpayer that they really didn’t deserve, even in the abstract. On the other hand, I guess if you dangle a carrot in front of someone you can’t complain if they bite into it though. I’m sure not giving back my GI Bill benefits after all, despite what I consider a fairly generous salary for my tour.
Chance,
I hear that! I haven’t used my GI Bill benefits yet, but I plan on it soon. I got my B.S. while on active duty so it was all paid for with Tuition Assistance. Now I’m going to use my GI Bill for my M.S. or M.B.A., if I can just get off my lazy ass and start applying to schools, LOL.
Well, the nerve of that reporter, talking to that vet without getting permission from his owner first. He deserved what he got.
*eyeroll*
The funniest part is that the VA claimed that talking to the patient would compromise the patient’s privacy! Of course, they then got to listen to everything that the patient shared, privately, with the reporter.
Waiver? We don’t need no stinkin waiver!
I’m going to completely thread-jack this but I have to brag about my kid.
They had D.A.R.E. day the other day at school and the campus cop has his talk to the kids time.
The cop was talking about finding some powder on the ground and and snorting it. So my daughter asked if he really thought a kid was actually going to snort something they found on the ground.
The next was a hypothetical problem if the kid had a headache and took N for it. The headache did not go away, what should they do. One kid said call their mom. He replied that the kid could not reach their parents. So someone else said ask a neighbor. So he said the RIGHT answer was to call a doctor.
My daughter’s question was “Do you really think a 12 year old is going to call their Doctor and not just tough it out until they get in contact with their parents?”
Apparently to both questions the cop did not have an answer.
There were a couple other times my daughter called out something stupid the cop said but those were the main ones.
Nando, you’re missing the big picture here. Obama has an agenda. He WANTS the private healthcare system to fail so he can push socialized medicine (just like he wants the economy to fail so he can socialize companies). THAT’s the main reason he’s saying “let their insurance pay for it first”. I think it’s a bit of a slap in the face that he’ll save an estimated 540 million a year doing this yet has no problem spending money on other things – like sending 900 million to Hamas. And when North Korea just launched a long range missle … hey, let’s slash big military programs and nix an aircraft carrier?
I thought this guy was Jimmy Carter 2.0, but he’s turning out to be much worse … and it’s just the first 100 days.
My husband is a Vietnam Vet and fought for 30 years to get his disability raised from 10%. He was finally approved a couple of years ago for 100% disability. We would appeal and then appeal again and still couldn’t get through the system. After all these years, we found out the veteran’s service officer that was handling his case was a person that knew my hubby and had a grudge against him….and his file would just be tossed to the side. Once this VA officer retired my husband was able to be approved for his much needed care.
My husband was on the front lines, going into tunnels, hand-to-hand combat, etc and is the most highly decorated veteran in the SW portion of our state. He put his life on the line more than once for our country but had to fight again just to get the benefits he deserved.
I know there are vets out there that abuse the system, but there are many more that need the treatment they receive from the va and earned that privilege.
I wonder what the va was trying to hide in Mr. Kennedy’s case?
Regarding DARE.
“Apparently to both questions the cop did not have an answer.”
DARE-Cops don’t come to schools with answers or with knowledge. They come with FEAR.
The whole DARE M.O. is based on fear.
Drugs, “narcotics” as they wrongly call most drugs, is the new
Boogey man. Don’t expect answers, expect your daughter to sit out in the rain for actually thinking.
Let me see? Some Hitchens Christian bashing, some Bush 43 bashing, some Steve King/Larry Craig humor (not funny), a little pro gay marriage and some news on a former gay porn star! Glad I checked in today. STOP calling yourself anything other than a lefty!!!!!!!!
Lee, that’s pretty sweet, and definitely worth bragging about.
Paul, feel free to go back to Free Republic then, where you can bash gays and worship Jayzus all you want.
James D, why do you think members of the military deserve free/socialized medicine?
Hey, how about the photographer’s rights? That equipment was stolen. No legal grounds to take it. The reporter should seek to have theft charges, perhaps 4th Amendment violation, against the individuals and organizations at the free, public, event.
My husband was on the front lines, going into tunnels, hand-to-hand combat, etc and is the most highly decorated veteran in the SW portion of our state. He put his life on the line more than once for our country but had to fight again just to get the benefits he deserved.
With respect for your husband’s courage and sacrifice, I don’t think it’s accurate to characterize fighting in Vietnam as doing something “for our country.” If he was disabled on the job, I think he deserves compensation, as would anyone who was injured on the job. I didn’t face the draft during the Vietnam conflict, so I’m not in a position to judge those who had to make a choice whether to serve or resist, but the fact that your husband was fighting in the U.S. forces doesn’t change the fact that he was fighting a war of aggression that killed thousands of Vietnamese fighting to defend their home against foreign invaders.
[...] And finally, reader James D, from the comments section: [...]
parse, the fact you are asking means it’s not even worth having a discussion with you about it.
The military is the ONLY place that doesn’t make me wince when I think my taxes are going to pay for it.
A good point to illustrate in a debate about socializing medicine is to point to the VA as an example of what socialized medicine would be in the US.
It would end the debate for anyone who has one iota of knowledge or had any dealings with the VA.
Parse, those aren’t very handsome sentiments. The military doesn’t set policy in America, civil government does. Sheri’s husband did what was required of him by that government, which is all we should expect of a soldier. If you want the military to decide who they won’t fight, you’d better be ready for them to decide who they will.
Yizmo,
I am the only person I know that actually failed DARE. It was because I refused to write some stupid-ass essay on why drugs were bad. I didn’t have a political agenda in primary school, but I knew there wasn’t a real grade involved, and I was lazy.
If the cops teaching DARE can’t even convince (scare) me to write an essay, how the hell are they going to convice (scare) me to not use drugs?
“He put his life on the line more than once for our country.”
I believe Parse is pointing out that there is (or should be) room to debate the difference between actually defending a country and being sent on assinine and murderous tasks.
Handsome sentiments or not, the opportunity for debate should exist. Was the task really for the country or for politics? The two are not the same.
Are you really implying that Sheri’s husband was engaging in a murderous task–i.e. was a murder? Really?
Yes, it isn’t the same as standing along the U.S. border and repelling invaders there, but still he was (most likely) forced into a situation he didn’t want by his country and suffered for it. We may look back at those events and regret them, but we should still help out the men who went (were forced to go?) and sacrificed.
Yes, I agree. By the same token you don’t have to be a dick about it either. I’m sure many of the men who are now suffering the after effects of having fought in Vietnam, at the time, would have rather been back home doing what most 18, 19 and 20 year olds did then.
Two points:
Are you sure defending out country is not political? I’m not talking about Vietnam, Iraq, etc. but an actual war where the military was on the border repelling an enemy. Why is that not political. Seems like preserving not only our country in terms of our homes, streets, and the people inside, but also our institutions, some of which are political is, in the end political.
Second point: You seem to be implying that people in the military should judge which missions to follow. What if they decide to start setting their own missions and one of them is to put the military in charge. The military in the U.S. is subordinate to the civilian political government. As such, it makes the use of the military inherently political and possibly subject to abuse. It might very well be an evil we have to live with to keep the military subordinate to civilians vs. having the military deciding to take charge.
Yes, it isn’t the same as standing along the U.S. border and repelling invaders there, but still he was (most likely) forced into a situation he didn’t want by his country and suffered for it. We may look back at those events and regret them, but we should still help out the men who went (were forced to go?) and sacrificed.
Steve Verdon, it’s ironic that your point out that American troops weren’t standing by the U.S. border repelling invaders but fail to note that the Vietnamese were defending their homeland, and American soldiers were killing them for doing so.
I was careful to explain that I did think the veteran was entitled to treatment for any injuries he suffered during military service, and that I wasn’t in any position to pass judgment on his character, being both ignorant of his reason for serving (he may have been drafted, as you point out) and fortunately spared the burden of having to decide whether to serve in that conflict myself. Since, as PersonfromPorlock pointed out, “the military doesn’t set policy in America,” suggesting that service in Vietnam was not really a service “to the country” doesn’t constitute a judgment against those troops individually. They obeyed their government, and if you believe service to a government right or wrong should be honored, then it makes sense to praise them for a service to their country. I don’t believe that such obedience is necessarily honorable, and that is the point of my comment.
I think you can make such a point with respect and compassion for the victims on both sides of the war, and I tried to do so. If I failed, I apologize for remarks that might be taken to personally disparage Sheri’s husband or suggest that he doesn’t deserve medical treatment.
Parse,
If you’ll note my comment was in reply to Boyd’s comments. I don’t see what the point of killing Vietnamese has to do with, that is the militariy’s job–go to interesing places and kill people. It isn’t the Salvation Army.
I don’t follow your reasoning here. I look at the fact that the military is subordinate to the civilian governmnt as implying precisely the opposite. The civilian government ordered these men there and they went, thus it is service for one’s country. The fact that years later with the benefit of hindsight that says it was a mistake or wrong or whatever does not change that.
This isn’t a buffet. I’ll take some of this, but I want none of that. You get the whole deal when it comes to how our government works. You can take the anarcho-capitalist view of Cynical in CA if you prefer, but then you’d be hard pressed to even give praise to a soldier fighting on the border repelling invaders, IMO. That doesn’t strike me as your position. The voters had years to change the policy of our government in regards to Vietnam and they didn’t. In a way, those soldiers were representatives of the voters. We may regret it now, but that doesn’t change what actually happened.
that is the militariy’s job–go to interesing places and kill people.
Well, that’s where our difference lies. I don’t think that’s the military’s job. If I had to provide a similarly terse definition, I’d say the military’s job was to stay at home and protect people.
I think James D. just likes killing people more than helping them live. Hey, that’s one way to roll, I guess.
What a naive world-view Mel and parse … yeah, we just went to Vietnam to kill people for the fun of it … yeah, that’s it. Forget the 1 million plus South Vietnamese that were slaughtered because we ran away once the American evening news-watching public couldn’t stomach it anymore. Out of sight, out of mind. Thank God there weren’t news reporters at Normandy in 1944, we might have never won that war.
What a naive world-view Mel and parse … yeah, we just went to Vietnam to kill people for the fun of it
I don’t think most wars of aggression are fought “for the fun of it,” but and my opposition to them isn’t based on the impression that they are. And I don’t think a sincere concern for the welfare of the Vietnamese people was high on the list of motivations for America’s involvement in that conflict.
I wasn’t actually saying that anybody is fighting in wars for the fun of it. Just that you seem to be willing a make a lot more sacrifices to make people die than to make them keep living.