We Are All Very Anxious

Six Theses on Anxiety and Why It is Effectively Preventing Militancy, and One Possible Strategy for Overcoming It. 

Institute for Precarious Consciousness

Veterans Deserve Better

U.S. Senate Republicans blocked legislation on Thursday that would have expanded federal healthcare and education programs for veterans, saying the $24 billion bill would bust the budget.Even though the legislation cleared a procedural vote on Tuesday by a 99-0 vote, the measure quickly got bogged down in partisan fighting. [...] Daily Kos

The Longest Wars in American History

Afghanistan

The conflict in Afghanistan has been running for more than 12 years, since American troops entered the country in 2001. The U.S. began its anti-terror military operations Oct. 7, 2001, about one month after the Sept. 11 attacks. Obama had planned for all troops to be out of Afghanistan by Dec. 31, 2014 -- marking more than 13 years of military there -- though a draft accord leaves as many as 10,000 American troops in Afghanistan indefinitely. Tampa Bay Times

Iraq Wars I & II

Iraq War, also called Second Persian Gulf War,  (2003–11), conflict in Iraq that consisted of two phases. The first of these was a brief, conventionally fought war in March–April 2003, in which a combined force of troops from the United States andGreat Britain (with smaller contingents from several other countries) invaded Iraq and rapidly defeated Iraqi military and paramilitary forces. It was followed by a longer second phase in which a U.S.-led occupation of Iraq was opposed by an insurgency. After violence began to decline in 2007, the United States gradually reduced its military presence in Iraq, formally completing its withdrawal in December 2011. Encyclopedia Britannica

 According to Info Please, there were about 21.5 million US military veterans in 2012, of that number about 1.6 million are women. 3.6 million of our veterans have a service connected disability. We owe it to them to provide the promised benefits for their military service. Our politicians in Washington need to stop the political gamesmanship and do the right thing.