Training | Make Peace Not War

Voicing Your Opinion on Military Operations

There is an old saying: “Opinions are like noses, everyone has one.” This is true of any subject, including military operations, and no two are going to be alike. You may have strong feelings about the War in Iraq or other military operations that our American service personnel are involved in right now, but aren’t quite sure how to go about voicing them. Thanks to austinagainstwar.org, you have a forum for letting others know how you feel. You can speak your mind about either your support or opposition; we want to hear both sides.

No matter where you stand, however, the fact remains that our service personnel need support. Many of them are returning from Iraq and other places—some with injuries you can see; others with injuries that aren’t so evident. Some may be having trouble getting the proper treatment for these injuries, while others may know about treatment options but may not know how to go about taking advantage of them.

This is where you can come in. You can help returning veterans take advantage of the programs offered by various government administrations. austinagainstwar.org can provide information on these and how to get in touch with them.

If you do help someone find the treatment needed and you can, take it one step further. Offer to help that person get to and from the treatment site. If you can’t do that, ask if you can help with family situations such as child care or meal preparation so that a family member can be free to provide the transportation and support.

Filed Under: Operation Freedom, Training Tagged With: Iraq, Military operation, United States

Applying For Veteran Benefits

When someone is a veteran, this will mean that they were previously within the military and served the nation in this capacity. When the person has finished serving, or if they are injured, they can be discharged as a veteran. Since they have served the country in this capacity, they can then have access to various services called veteran’s benefits.

These benefits can be a variety of services such as medical care, education or even a pension. Within the United States, the benefit system for veterans is administered by the federal body known as the United States Department of Veteran Affairs. This is the federal body that all veterans must make an application with in other to receive any veteran benefits. The situation or process is not difficult as long as you have the necessary documentation.

The Department of Veteran Affairs will only issue benefits to those veterans that were actively serving. Thus you would need to prove that you actively served within the military. Someone serving in the Navy will qualify also. Proof that the person did serve within the last five years is one of the main requirements to qualify for benefits for the government.

A veteran should also be able to show that they finished their active service. This could be as a result of the period of service ending, or the person being discharged. Normally we think of someone being discharged for medical reasons, but it is also possible to be discharged for family reasons that they need to resolve.

To qualify for benefits, the veteran would just need to show why they are no longer serving within the military. After getting the necessary proof, it is just a matter of going to the local veteran’s office, applying online or giving them the office a call to place in your application. You will just need to answer the appropriate questions to see if you qualify.

Filed Under: Training Tagged With: Veteran

Why should we make peace?

: Image via Wikipedia

If you have kept up with the news, it is a fact that soldiers are dying daily due to the war in Iraq. You might believe that soldiers are meant to be tough. It surely is a shocker to learn that the number of soldiers who are dying in the war is on the rise. Regardless, the chance for the soldiers to die in a war is 100 percent higher than the civilians. The truth is that the war has not really been solving any problems at all. Remember the lyrics of the song, “War”, by Ugly Rumors? “War, what is it good for? Absolutely Nothing …” completely describes the situation.

Although all the damages and losses from the war in Iraq have brought to everyone’s attention, the situation does not stop or ban the military branches from playing their recruiting advertisements on television. As a result, plenty of soldiers who are newly recruited can look forward to get killed in Iraq very soon. No wonder organization like the United for Peace and Justice exists in order to spread out the anti-war message to everyone. The UFPJ holds different kinds of events to promote peace such as: protests, educational events, vigil, legislative action, etc. all over the world.

You might get an impression that most of the veterans are in a much better position than the soldiers in Iraq. No one can deny that the veterans are totally done and over with the war. However, many of them are suffering from PTSD. It is a non-curable mental disorder which can last for months, or maybe for years to come. Besides having PTSD, what happen to those veterans who have prosthesis due to severe injury? They will have a much harder time getting over with PTSD when looking at their prosthesis.

Filed Under: Training, Weapons Tagged With: Iraq, Iraq War, Posttraumatic stress disorder

Peace is The Answer

In a perfect world, everyone would love everyone, and there would be no conflict. Unfortunately, we do not live in a perfect world, and war does exist. We are fighting for peace and to protect our freedom. In the United States we have very dedicated men and women who are willing to put their lives on the line to do just that, protect us. Military families know all too well the effects of fighting for our freedom. They kiss their loved ones goodbye, and send them off to that unknown place, the war zone. They do not know when, or even if, they will see them again. There are many volunteer organizations to help these families cope. There are support groups to help them through the difficult times, when their loved ones are not with them, and they do not have any contact with them. There are organizations that allow these families to get together and at least, be with others who are experiencing the same sense of fear and uncertainty.

Hopefully, the soldiers will return, veterans of a war. This can be a very difficult time for both the soldier and his family. There are many organizations to help with this difficult time. There are Veterans’ hospitals all across the country to deal with physical injuries, which can range from not so serious, to loss of limbs, which require many surgeries and possibly prosthetic limbs. Another casualty of war can be the PTSD, or post traumatic stress disorder. Many of our brave have to relive the horror of seeing innocent people killed or the feeling of being threatened on a daily basis, in their minds. This disability requires ongoing psychiatric care and, wtih time and patience, hopefully a way back to their “life before war.”

Obviously peace is the answer, but until then at least we have organizations and efforts to help our soldiers cope with their experience.

Filed Under: Protests, Training, Volunteering Tagged With: Posttraumatic stress disorder, United States, Veteran

Support Military Families

Military families make huge sacrifices for their country. One of the most obvious and challenging sacrifices military families make is a deployment. When a family member is sent overseas into a war zone, such as Afghanistan, the whole family is affected.

It’s hard on children to know that mom or dad won’t be around for several months. It’s hard on spouses to go without the daily support of their husbands or wives. Of course there is also the inevitable worry about whether their family member will return home safely. Luckily, the vast majority of deployed service members do return safely, but that doesn’

t keep their family from worrying while they’re away.

We all want a peaceful world, and we can work towards the goal of a world without war, but the reality is that our military families need our support regardless of how we feel about war.

There are simple ways to show your support, such as merely saying paying for the meal of or saying thanks to a soldier in uniform. These are two simple actions and ones that will surely be appreciated.

However, soldiers aren’t the only ones sacrificing for our country and their families need help, as well. There are organizations you can donate to that help military families. For example, the Air Force Aid Society, a non-profit organization and the official charity of the U.S. Air Force, helps military families financially if help is needed.

The American Red Cross is another charitable organization that provides assistance to military families. They provide assistance to veterans, relay emergency information to military members anywhere in the world, and help in many other ways.

As we work towards a peaceful world, we sometimes need to provide help to the people who need it most, and many times those people can be found in our own neighborhood. Military families need the support of their country and it is a certainty that any help will be appreciated.

Filed Under: Casualties, Training Tagged With: Afghanistan, Family, Military

Get Involved- Make Peace Not War!

Get Involved- Make Peace Not War!When it comes to the peace that we experience in today’s world, many times it simply feels artificial. With war still fresh in our minds, constant fighting in our government entities and a consistent upheaval for our very basic rights it is no wonder that so many people tend to throw their arms up in frustration, giving up the thought that we will ever live in a truly peaceful environment. The truth is that if we all give up we can be certain that things will never change, so it’s extremely important to stay on the path of trying to make this world a better place.

There are numerous different ways that you can get involved in order to see progression in this world, all it takes is just a little bit of commitment and a little spare time. There are even plenty of things you can do from the comfort of your own home that can help us get one step closer to the peace most of us crave. For example, consider signing online petitions that you stand for! This is a very easy way to get involved without having to commit to much time or energy when you simply don’t have it.

On the other hand, if you are looking for more ways to get involved then you have many different options. Fundraising, passing out flyers, meeting with other like-minded individuals, wearing homemade shirts that spread your message, and teaching your children the importance of peace in the world are all basic yet effective ways to really make a difference. Joining clubs or groups that are dedicated to efforts on peace can yield you numerous other ideas as well. As long as you remember that every little effort you make adds up to something that is spectacular and powerful.

Filed Under: Protests, Training Tagged With: Activism and Peace Work, Human rights, Peace