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DoD Photo by Staff Sgt. Justin Holley

(This statement by National Commander Marty Conatser issued through the Washington Office, via Hanoi, while Commander Conatser is discussing POW/MIA issue with the government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam).

WASHINGTON, DC (November 29, 2007) Following the Army’s announcement yesterday that it must prepare for reduced operations at all Army bases due to a lack of appropriations necessary to perform its war-fighting and strategic functions, The American Legion called on Congress to immediately pass the Emergency Supplemental Funding needed to support the Global War on Terrorism.

“Exactly what part of 'emergency' does Congress not understand?” said Marty Conatser, national commander of The American Legion. “Congressional failure to appropriate the funds needed to prosecute the war threatens the safety of our soldiers, sailors and Marines who we, as a nation, have placed in Harm’s Way. It is time for the political posturing to end, and for Congress to do its duty. We must not play politics with the lives of our fighting men and women.”

The Army is essentially planning to shut down or minimize operations in its support structure and in other less prominent but important worldwide missions and tasks.

“We know our armed forces need assured funding to provide the logistics and training vital to the men and women on the front lines in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as for those stationed in 130 other countries around the world,” Conatser said.

Congress’ failure to fund our armed forces will also hurt our military families - the strength behind our armed forces.

“Lack of funds will close childcare facilities, close base schools, reduce base and military housing security and destroy the quality of life for the civilians who are carrying the greatest burden in this war -- military family members,” Conatser said. “We owe our service members and their families everything we’ve got!

“The American Legion calls on Congress to put partisan politics aside and unite behind our troops. While there may be many different opinions about the war being waged in Iraq, we cannot let the politics of the situation endanger the lives of our men and women at the front, nor can we allow our petty differences to further disrupt the lives of the families left behind. We urge Congress to authorize the supplemental funding needed without any further delay,” Conatser said.

The American Legion was founded in 1919 on the four pillars of strong national defense, veterans affairs, Americanism and patriotic youth programs. The Legion’s 2.7 million wartime veterans work for the betterment of their communities through more than 14,000 posts across the nation.

DoD Photo

In response to reports that the military was recouping enlistment bonuses from wounded soldiers, the Department of Defense issued the clarification below about its policy.
The American Legion will continue to monitor the situation to ensure that no servicemember is penalized for medical reasons.

Officials Explain Recoupment Policy for Wounded Troops

By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Nov. 26, 2007 – If you are wounded in combat and discharged as a result, you will not have to pay back your enlistment bonus, Defense Department officials said here today.
“Bonuses are not recouped simply for one's inability to complete an enlistment or re-enlistment agreement through no fault of the military member,” a policy statement said.

Pentagon officials re-stated their policy after a wounded soldier in Pennsylvania received a bill from the Army. Jordan Fox was a private first class in Baqouba, Iraq, when he was wounded in the explosion of an improvised explosive device. Fox suffered vision troubles in his right eye and suffered a back injury when the bomb went off in May.

Fox was medically discharged and went home to his town near Pittsburgh. The Army sent him a letter asking him to repay $2,800 of his $7,500 enlistment bonus. He received a second letter telling him the Army would charge interest if he didn't make a payment within 30 days.

“Department policy prohibits recoupment when it would be contrary to equity and good conscience, or would be contrary to the nation's interests,” according to the Defense Department policy statement. “Those circumstances include, for example, an inability to complete a service agreement because of illness, injury, disability, or other impairment that did not clearly result from misconduct.”

Department policy on recoupment also establishes that, to the maximum extent permitted by law, the secretaries of the military departments “shall remit or cancel any and all theater debt incurred by military members who were medically evacuated from a combat zone due to injury or illness, except in the event of clear misconduct.”

Army officials said Fox will not be required to pay back any enlistment money he received. “By all accounts, his case seems to be an isolated one,” Army officials said. Anyone who does have an issue can call the Wounded Soldier and Family Hotline at 1-800-984-8523.

RecruitMilitary, in cooperation with The American Legion, will host a career fair in Concord, N.C. on November 29.

Veterans and servicemembers from all branches of the military, the National Guard and reserves are encouraged to explore career opportunities with employers who recognize the value of their military experience. Spouses are also encouraged to attend the free event.

RecruitMilitary is also working in cooperation with HireVetsFirst, a unit of the Department of Labor, to help those who are ready to transition into civilian careers.

To prepare for the job fair, attendees can register at http://www.recruitmilitary.com/. Registrants should bring at least a dozen resume copies to the event, which will be held 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Lowe’s Motor Speedway on 5555 Concord Parkway South in Greater Charlotte.

RecruitMilitary and The American Legion will also host a job fair in Jacksonville, Fla., on Dec. 6. For a list of other upcoming career fairs visit http://www.recruitmilitary.com/employers/hiring_solution3b.asp

U.S. Army Photo by Staff Sgt. Samantha M. Stryker

By Samantha L. Quigley
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Nov. 19, 2007 - Since 6 a.m. Nov. 17, thousands of Americans across the country paused to text a message of gratitude to the nation’s servicemembers for their sacrifices through the “Giving Thanks” text messaging program.

“It already feels like a terrific, successful campaign, because from the thousands and thousands of messages that have come in already, we’re seeing that the American people really just want a chance to say ‘Thanks,’” said Allison Barber, deputy assistant secretary of defense for internal communication and public liaison, of the America Supports You initiative.

America Supports You is a Defense Department program connecting citizens and corporations with military personnel and their families serving at home and abroad.

The “Giving Thanks” text messaging initiative, which officially began at 6 a.m. Nov. 17, and ends at midnight PST, Nov. 22, already has received more than 40,000 messages of thanks, according to the tally board on the America Supports You Web site.

“I think we got off to a great start,” Barber said, adding that she thinks the desire to thank the troops will spread throughout the public in the coming days. “What you’ll see over the next several days is that more and more people will be looking at how to let Americans know how to text message and thank our troops.”

That phenomenon began over the weekend with talk of the “Giving Thanks” program at sporting events, on nationwide radio programs and even a Sunday news show. Tim Russert, host of “Meet the Press” encouraged his viewers to text their support to the troops during yesterday’s program.

“During this week of Thanksgiving, let our troops know we’re thinking about them through the Pentagon’s America Supports You program,” Russert said. “You can send your message of thanks by texting to 89279.”

All of the messages received express the sender’s gratitude for the military and the sacrifices the servicemembers are making. Some messages are longer, others are much shorter but just as powerful, like the one from a supporter in Pennsylvania who wrote, “You are heroes of the heart.”

Each message like the one from Pennsylvania will receive a response thanking the sender for thinking of the troops this holiday season.

In response to the public outpouring of support, servicemembers have sent in statements of gratitude as well. Most, like the one from Rick, a Marine master sergeant stationed in Iraq, carry the same sentiment; the troops are glad to know they still have support back home.

Rick wrote, “I’d like to thank everyone back home for their continued show of support for those of us deployed around the world. It means a lot knowing that we’re not alone over here in Iraq.”

Barber said her goal is to give everyone in the country who has the ability to send text messages the opportunity to send in a message like the supporter from Pennsylvania.

“That’s a pretty big goal,” she said. “If we can find and maximize every opportunity to invite people to text our troops, and to have them invite their friends (to do the same), that’ll be success for us.”

Major mobile wireless providers, including AT&T, Verizon, Sprint Nextel, and T-Mobile, will provide access to the Giving Thanks program.

Photo by Jeff Stoffer

By Jeff Stoffer

"The San Juan VAMC is an active medical center that is aging and in need of significant upgrades to ensure that patients receive care in a safe and efficient health-care environment."

Capital Asset Realignment for Enhanced Services (CARES) decision issued May 7, 2004, by former VA Secretary Anthony Principi

San Juan, Puerto Rico, proves that when given a chance chaos will eventually assume form. In the rum-buzzed downtown resort area of this swirling 16th-century Caribbean capital, tourists from around the world take their chances crossing traffic-choked streets, shuffling in flip-flops among casinos, hotels, restaurants, beaches and cockfights, oddly prohibited from smoking within 200 feet of any public entrance. Feral cats prowl shadowy alleys and parking lots. Condom World can be found next door to a cardiology clinic. Families with children in sandy bathing suits and floral shirts travel the same sidewalks as bronzed temptresses who pass out business cards promoting their various services.

The richly historical island itself is a near-perfect rectangle, 100 miles wide and 50 miles deep, a much-contested strategic outpost during early European exploration of the West Indies. It is also a place whose identity today stands at a three-way impasse between those who want Puerto Rico to be the 51st U.S. state, those who want it to break away completely, and those who are happy with the way things are: conveniently vague, as a U.S. commonwealth nearer to Venezuela than Florida, where cultures are marbled into a bilingual concoction of color, flavor, sound and motion that is, distinctly, Puerto Rican.

Amid all this, a health-care system operated by one of America's most multilayered bureaucracies, the Department of Veterans Affairs, serves more than 67,000 unique patients a year from a total veteran population of more than 153,000. The San Juan VA Medical Center, built in the middle of the Vietnam War, is the flagship of the Caribbean Health Care System, which also includes five community-based outpatient clinics - two on Puerto Rico and three on other islands. Despite its unique disposition in a tropical paradise, the system is challenged by most of the familiar issues confronting VA hospitals everywhere else: rapid patient growth, long appointment waiting times, nursing shortages, lagging services for women and mental health, outdated infrastructure and the sheer distance between hospitals and the veterans they serve.

"You missed one," says Dr. Rafael E. Ramirez, director of the San Juan VA Medical Center. "Parking ... We are short by about 1,000 parking spaces."

"It's the biggest problem facing the VA," says veteran Juan Pablo Gonzalez, who complains that he must arrive at the hospital a full two hours ahead of his appointments in order to find parking. Once, as time was running out, the 20-year patient of the facility says he was forced to leave his car on the outer edge of an undesignated area. He came back to a $100 ticket, a handsome sum in a VA market where, Ramirez says, "the income per-capita is half of that of the lowest state in the union. So that will give you an idea. Many of our patients who are not service-connected qualify for treatment here based on the fact that they are below the poverty level. This is the only place they have. This is their health insurance."

Some veterans say they must come to the hospital at 4 or 5 in the morning to find parking for 8 a.m. appointments. "The care here is excellent," says Emillio Cortes, a World War II veteran. "The problem is the parking."

It was a problem that worsened last summer, American Legion Department of Puerto Rico Adjutant Michael Quilles said, when one veteran, in a fit of anger, set fire to his own car inside the parking structure. Flames spread to other cars, and the damages closed down the entire structure for more than 45 days.

"We have a parking committee that works overtime," Ramirez says. "And no one is happy. It's a challenge."

In all fairness to VA, the entire city of San Juan has a parking problem. However, the San Juan VA Medical Center is now undergoing a major reconstruction program authorized by the department's Capital Asset Realignment for Enhanced Services (CARES) decision of 2004.

The potential for dramatic and deeply needed improvements appeared at hand when San Juan was mentioned in the same breath as Denver, Orlando and Las Vegas in terms of serious construction needs. In the time of CARES, the San Juan facility was in such urgent need of upgrades - seismic-structural issues, asbestos abatement, the ventilation system, patient privacy problems, handicap accessibility and, of course, parking - that it ranked No. 1 among all VA hospitals for physical deficiencies.

"We are in dire need of space in this medical center," Ramirez said during a site visit by American Legion Past National Commander Ronald F. Conley and members of the National Veterans Affairs & Rehabilitation staff last spring. "The CARES people made a survey and determined, based on workload, that we were short by about 600,000 square feet. It's a very difficult balancing act. We are up to our perimeter. The only way we can grow is to grow up."

A new, seismically correct bed tower for the San Juan VA Medical Center was among former VA Secretary Anthony Principi's highest priorities when he announced the CARES decision more than three years ago. VA pooled $46 million in funding that was previously authorized to seismically strengthen the building with another $25 million from a reserve account to get the project off the drawing board in April 2006. Now well under way, it is estimated to cost $85 million and is scheduled to be finished in summer 2009.

However, say Quilles and many veterans who attended a town-hall meeting during the Legion site visit, the project falls short of solving the space squeeze, easing the parking problem and fulfilling unmet clinical needs in such areas as mental health and women's care.

"What they are doing is they are building a new hospital in the same place, with 315 beds," Quilles says. "We used to have 325 beds. Nothing is gained, and we lose more parking."

Puerto Rico's American Legion National Executive Committeeman, Carlos Orria-Medina, is concerned that VA is going to find itself in an endless cycle of building and rebuilding the San Juan medical center. "When they finish this construction, the rest of the building will be old. They let the old part of the building get too old. We deserve a new hospital."

Ramirez says the new 315-bed tower can only be seen as the first step in a long march toward a big-enough San Juan VA Medical Center. "If we get Phase I but not Phase II, we're lost," Ramirez says. "This (construction project) is only a bed tower, exclusively a bed tower, not a hospital." A second phase, which would add clinical space and a new administration building, is estimated to cost $156 million. Phase II is not funded.

Meanwhile, veteran demand continues to grow and evolve. The individual patient load in the San Juan system climbed from 61,000 in 2000 to 64,000 in 2003, and to 67,932 in 2006, with no end in sight. A spike in the number of veterans from Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom - 4,779 unique veteran patients from OIF and OEF used the system in 2006 - has amplified the facility's need for new and different services.

"We are planning a full women's clinic," says Mary Lou Sanchez, women's health-care director at the medical center. "We hope it could be 2009 or 2010. In the meantime, we are planning a temporary clinic on the first floor."

At the town-hall meeting in San Juan, female veterans expressed frustration over a lack of services for them at the medical center, especially in the emergency room after 5 p.m. Legion officials listened to complaints that psychological programs are geared toward men only and that the facility lacks female doctors, therapists and service officers to help them.

Hospital officials say they are trying to improve public perceptions of their women's services. "At this moment we have like 1,500 female veterans accessing the system," Sanchez says. "With the younger population, the ones from Iraq and Afghanistan, there's about 160 or 170. We want more women to come in because we know there are more women out there. The number has been increasing slowly, year by year."

Veterans at the meeting also grumbled about the time it takes to see specialists at the San Juan VA - sometimes three to five months for an appointment. "For an eye exam, I wait two years," Quilles says. "For everything, you have lines."

Army veteran Osvaldo Gonzalez says he has been coming to the San Juan VA Medical Center for 28 years. "I have no objection to the care," he says. "It's excellent. But it's the waiting and the space. This is a small hospital for 150,000 veterans. We need a new one."

That thought, given the amount of work needed at the current location, was on the table when the CARES Commission visited Puerto Rico in July 2003. Commission members were presented an idea from the U.S. Army commander at Fort Buchanan, who proposed a combined VA-DoD facility on the post. The cost to VA would be about $400 million. Another DoD partnership option would have sent the VA medical center to the Roosevelt Roads Naval Hospital, on a soon-closing Navy base about 90 minutes from San Juan.

"There is a declining DoD presence on the island that could leave (the VA medical center) as the only backup for all medical services in the island," the CARES Commission site-visit report stated. "It could also be an opportunity for DoD collaboration on a large scale."

The San Juan VA Medical Center is the local DoD and civil-defense backup, as is the case with most VA facilities of similar size, in the event of natural disaster. "We're right in the middle of hurricane alley," Ramirez explains. "Every time there is a near miss, which is frequent, we have to be ready."

"Everything we saw as a problem when we visited San Juan in 2003 has multiplied," says Conley, who dedicated most of his year as American Legion national commander to inspection of VA health-care facilities and the launch of the Legion's "System Worth Saving" task force. "Now there are new veterans arriving every day from the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the need has grown and changed tremendously since CARES. We could easily anticipate this, and we did. We were at war, and VA kept looking at the veteran population, the patient population, and estimating that it was going to decline. Well, it didn't, certainly not in San Juan. So they have a construction project nearly finished that, once it's done, won't cut it for the number of patients it's supposed to see."

Conley, who was asked by 2006-2007 National Commander Paul A. Morin to revisit the San Juan facility last spring, said it's a credit to the patient-care staff that the Caribbean VA Health Care System is commonly regarded as the highest quality available in the entire region. However, he added, "if you cannot park there, or you miss an appointment you spent three months waiting for, that quality of care doesn't do you much good. Then it's an access issue. CARES was supposed to solve the access issue, the infrastructure issue, but by the time the money and construction came around, everything changed, and at least in this case, it wasn't enough."

In that sense, VA - and CARES in particular, which was described as a roadmap to the 21st century of VA health care - has proven that there's a flipside to the theory. It's that, if given a chance, form also can eventually assume chaos.

Jeff Stoffer is managing editor of The American Legion Magazine.

U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Manuel Robert

The leader of the nation’s largest veterans organization called on Congress to pass another Iraq funding bill without the political provisions passed by the House yesterday.

The House of Representatives passed a $50 billion Iraq war-funding bill that would require the president to start bringing home troops within 30 days and bar certain interrogation techniques. The bill passed 218-203.

“The White House has already said it would veto the bill, so Congress needs to get on with the business of funding our troops without playing political ‘Gotcha,’” said National Commander Marty Conatser. “I have been to Iraq, visited the troops and met with Gen. Petraeus. They are doing an outstanding job and making great progress in rooting out terrorism. Congress authorized the mission, now it needs to continue to fund it.”

Conatser pointed out that The American Legion unanimously re-affirmed Resolution 169 at its last national convention. “Resolution 169 reminds people that supporting the troops means supporting their mission. You don’t support the troops by denying the funds they need to do their job. Like the resolution states, ‘the global war on terrorism is a just war, aimed at protecting the very foundations of freedom-loving people everywhere.’”

“Unfortunately, this war is still very much in progress. If certain people in the legislative branch are bound and determined to lose it, I’m sure they’ll be able to, but it won’t be lost by us,” Army Sergeant 1st Class Jack Robison recently told The American Legion from Anbar Province. “While they point fingers and manipulate public opinion in our name, we are doing what we came here to do: fight and win.”

The American Legion was founded in 1919 on the four pillars of a strong national security, veterans affairs, Americanism, and patriotic youth programs. The Legion’s 2.7 million wartime veterans work for the betterment of their communities through more than 14,000 posts across the nation.

By Marty Conatser

Members of Congress returned to their home states and districts throughout America last weekend to pay tribute to the men and women who have served our nation in uniform. They stood among aging veterans whose blood was spilled across the shores of Iwo Jima and Omaha Beach. They looked into the eyes of men who nearly froze to death at the Chosin Reservoir. They stood behind podiums at war memorials across the land and addressed crowds of men and women - some in wheelchairs, some with post-traumatic stress disorder or traumatic brain injury - who left part of themselves forever in the jungles and deserts of places like Vietnam, Grenada, Beirut, Afghanistan and Iraq.

These top elected officials brought good news to the veterans they represent. But the news came with a catch.

First, the good news. Both houses of Congress overwhelmingly passed the greatest budget increase in history for the Department of Veterans Affairs last summer. The Senate vote was 92-1. The House vote was 409-2. The appropriations committees in both houses gave the budget a green light, and President Bush said he would sign it, even though the $87.7 billion total commitment exceeded his own request for VA by $3.6 billion. Congress did pass a continuing resolution that allows VA to operate on the 2007 budget and they did add $2.9 billion. This is good news, however, a clean appropriations bill would have been the right thing to do.

The 2008 fiscal budget year began Oct. 1, and this historic VA budget was still tangled up in Washington, not yet signed, by Veterans Day. A top congressional leader personally promised me that the funding measure would be passed by then. But it wasn’t. And so, as elected officials spoke of their legislative accomplishments before hometown veteran constituents, VA doctors, nurses and administrators everywhere were once again trying to figure out how to treat a growing number of patients with a stagnant amount of resources.

Long-awaited construction projects at VA hospitals remain tabled. Waiting times for appointments continue to expand. VA hospitals in over-burdened communities are turning away veterans and sending them elsewhere. Greatly needed mental-health counselors are not yet hired. Undecided VA benefits claims continue to balloon, to nearly half a million. This is all because of the failure of Congress to pass the 2008 budget.

What’s holding it up? Honestly, that’s what The American Legion and veterans across this country would like to know. Since the VA budget breezed through Congress last summer, with a promise of support from the White House, there have been efforts to latch other, unrelated spending measures to it, creating one big omnibus bill. Why an omnibus bill? Because while Congress added the much-needed $3.6 billion, the administration has said that the money needs to be offset from another appropriations bill.

In this questionable strategy, America’s sick, disabled and benefits-deserving veterans - from the “greatest generation” of World War II to the “newest greatest generation” of the global war on terrorism - would be asked to carry on their backs the financial burdens of other federal programs that have nothing to do with the ongoing cost of war, or with the debt a grateful nation owes to those who put their lives on the line for it.

This holdup must end now. The past-due VA appropriations bill for 2008 must be dislodged immediately, on its own, with nothing more clinging to its back than appreciation, respect and dignity for the men and women our nation honors on Veterans Day.

DoD Photo

The American Legion welcomes the findings of an Institute of Medicine (IOM) report on Deployment Related Stress scheduled to be released on Nov 14.

“In view of the serious and widespread impact of stress on the health of military personnel who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan, this focus on the health effects of stress is timely and important, “ said Marty Conatser, national commander of the 2.7 million-member American Legion. “However, it is equally important to distinguish between current deployments and the 1991 Gulf War.”

The environmental conditions of the 1991 Gulf War were different from other wars, including current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. Troops serving in the current Iraq war have been subject to long deployments, and many have experienced serious injuries and psychological trauma. A significant number have been affected by long-term psychological problems, most prominently post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

In contrast, the 1991 Gulf War was brief—just 100 hours of ground fighting—with remarkably few casualties. Most troops were not in combat areas and did not experience serious trauma. As a result, relatively few were affected by PTSD or other psychiatric conditions.

The 1991 Gulf War gave rise to a different type of health problem, however. About 25 percent of Gulf War veterans have been affected by the condition known as Gulf War veterans’ illness. It is a complex of multiple physical symptoms—typically including chronic headaches, memory problems, widespread pain, and other abnormalities—that cannot be explained by familiar diagnoses. This condition appears to be unique to Gulf War service; it has not been documented in studies of veterans who served in Bosnia or the current Iraq War.

Consistent findings from multiple research studies indicate that Gulf War illness is not the result of combat or psychological factors, as some have stated. Evidence points, instead, to hazardous substances encountered by troops during the 1991 Gulf War. These include, most prominently, a group of chemical neurotoxins to which many veterans were exposed.

According to Dr. Lea Steele, Scientific Director of the federal Research Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans’ Illnesses, “In years past, it was common for government officials and healthcare providers to speculate that Gulf War veterans’ illness was caused by stress. This view has not been supported by the many studies that have now assessed Gulf War veterans’ illness in relation to events of the 1991 Gulf War. Our committee’s detailed review of these studies found no connection between combat and Gulf War veterans’ illness, and that Gulf War veterans’ illness was not caused by psychological stress. We do know that in some situations, psychological trauma and stress can cause long-term problems. But the data are very clear that this does not explain Gulf War veterans’ illness.”

The American Legion was founded in 1919 on the four pillars of a strong national security, veterans affairs, Americanism, and patriotic youth programs. The Legion’s 2.7 million wartime veterans work for the betterment of their communities through more than 14,000 posts across the nation.

Photo by James V. Carroll

A new generation of leaders came to Indianapolis from 28 departments (states) of The American Legion. The 48 students of the National American Legion College honed their leadership, team building, communications and mentoring skills to pass the intensive course. They received diplomas from National Commander Marty Conatser during a ceremony held here this morning.

Members of the class completed the five-day crash course of the nation’s largest veterans organization that saw them lay a solid foundation for Legion post revitalization in a variety of geographical settings to include a rural area, the inner city, suburban communities and a metropolitan area. They were also provided the instruction and tools to construct resolutions for American Legion activities at their respective posts for presentation at a mock district meeting.

The students also toured the local VA hospital and had the opportunity to interface with some of the veterans receiving medical attention.

The National American Legion College is designed to reinforce a volunteer’s leadership, management and communication skills. The result is young members of The American Legion prepared to lead the nation’s largest wartime veterans organization on the local and state level. The importance of mentorship for both other members and special groups in the community was a central point to several of the activities for the class.

“You had a lot thrown at you in a short period of time,” American Legion National Commander Marty Conatser told the graduating class. “Now is the time to go back to your communities, share what you learned and make a difference.”

Mentors for the 2007 National American Legion College included Oscar Coward of Post 191 in Columbia, S.C.; James M. Rohan of Post 333 in Sun Prairie, Wis.; Jeanette Rae of Post 16 in Fallon, Nev.; Jin Kong of Post 484 in Cincinnati; and Bill Sloan of Post 67 in Sheridan, Ind.

By Marty Conatser, National Commander of The American Legion

As leader of the world’s largest veterans organization, I often have the privilege of meeting some important people. No, I am not referring to our elected officials, business leaders or celebrities. I am speaking of the members of the U.S. military.

Can any CEO or distinguished Ivy League graduate truly claim to be under more pressure than the 21-year-old squad leader walking a patrol in Baghdad? Do they really have more responsibility than the young commander of a nuclear-powered submarine? Do they have as much on the line as the mechanic fixing a $2 billion Stealth bomber?

“Nothing in our lives will ever be as important as this,” said Lt.Col Henry Mucci, in the 2005 true-to-life film “The Great Raid.” He makes the statement prior to leading the rescue of more than 500 American prisoners of war held by the Japanese. While Mucci’s mission was spectacularly successful, America is blessed because millions of men and women realized - and still realize - that nothing in their lives is as important as defending this nation. For many veterans, it was important enough to endure long separations from their families, miss the births of their children, freeze in sub-zero temperatures, bake in wild jungles, lose limbs, and, far too often, lose their lives.

Sadly, their deeds are frequently unappreciated.

In an essay early this year, Army Sergeant Eddie Jeffers wrote, “Even thousands of miles away, in Ramadi, Iraq, the cries and screams and complaints of the ungrateful reach me. In a year, I will be thrust back into society from a life and mentality that doesn’t fit your average man. And then, I will be alone. And then, I will walk down the streets of America, and see the yellow ribbon stickers on the cars of the same people who compare our President to Hitler.”

Unfortunately, Sergeant Jeffers won’t get to walk down the streets of America in a year. On Sept. 19th, he was killed in Iraq. He was 23.

This brave hero is not the only veteran who has heard the screams and complaints of the ungrateful. When Congress refuses to pass mandatory funding for VA health care, veterans are disrespected. When heroes are denied access to VA facilities, veterans are disrespected. When schools tell the military to keep its recruiters away, veterans are disrespected. When a wartime Army general is called a traitor, veterans are disrespected. When military and veterans funding bills are held up because of political squabbling, veterans are disrespected.

Fortunately, when a soldier walks into an American Legion post, he is given the thanks of a grateful organization. If we put soldiers in boots, and we put those boots in harm’s way, The American Legion family knows it must support them in every way.

Not only must we support the veteran but we must also support their families, as we demonstrate through The American Legion Legacy Fund, which provides scholarships to the children of heroes like Sgt. Eddie Jeffers. We also show our support through the Family Support Network, Temporary Financial Assistance and the National Emergency Fund, just to name a few. We welcome home our wounded servicemembers with our Heroes to Hometowns program, which eases their transition to civilian society.

We are committed to finding good jobs for Sgt. Jeffer’s comrades by hosting career fairs and urging Congress to maintain a strong veterans preference program for federal employment. Companies understand that it’s smart business to hire veterans, and when members of the Guard and Reserves deploy, it is America’s business to ensure that their civilian careers do not suffer.

We must not forget the unique needs of women veterans. Women are major contributors to our military presence in Iraq and Afghanistan and many have given their lives in the War on Terror. VA must be prepared to adequately treat the special needs of our female veterans.

It is tragic that the men and women who allow us to be safe in our homes are often without homes themselves when they shed their uniforms. An estimated 23 percent of America’s homeless are veterans. Of these homeless Americans, 89 percent were honorably discharged and 47 percent served during the Vietnam War. Too often today’s tattered citizen of the street was yesterday’s toast-of-the-town in a crisp uniform with rows of shining medals.

But all is not grim. When my predecessor, Past National Commander Paul Morin, asked Americans to donate $50,000 so wounded warriors at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany could receive comfort items, The American Legion family and its friends responded in a big way – raising more than $300,000 for these heroes.

Moreover, the quality of health care provided at most VA centers is consistently rated among the best in the world. Communities across our great country have recognized the value of military service, honoring heroes and their families with Blue Star salutes. And the American GI consistently tops public opinion polls and surveys as the most respected person in America.

Just as Colonel Mucci said “Nothing in our lives will ever be this important” – likewise, nothing on a person’s lifetime resume¢ should trump past military service.

Pride in ones’ military service is a bond shared by nearly all who have served. This pride is on display on every obituary page in the country, where military service – regardless of how many decades have passed and subsequent achievements reached – is mentioned with the death notice of nearly every deceased veteran.

Although the successful businessman may have closed multi-million dollar deals and raised a wonderful family, what single accomplishment tops the decisive actions he took during the siege of Khe Sanh which saved the lives of several of his fellow Marines?

Fewer than 10 percent of Americans can claim the title “veteran.” And while Veterans Day is Nov. 11, we should thank our veterans everyday. It’s the least a grateful nation can do.

Chaplain Lt. Col. Douglas A. Etter confronts the difficulties of life after a combat tour in Iraq.

Since Sept. 11, 2001, more than 17,000 of Pennsylvania's National Guard soldiers and airmen have been deployed as a result of the global war on terror. Currently, we have 805 soldiers and airmen deployed in 15 different countries, as well as along the Arizona border. More than 5,500 of these sons and daughters of the Pennsylvania Guard have been involved in direct combat.

I am one of that number.

I served with the 1st Battalion 110th Infantry, 2nd Brigade 28th Infantry Division, under the control of the 2nd Marine Division. We were stationed in the heart of the al-Anbar province 55 miles west of Baghdad in one of the most dangerous places in the world. Our forward operating base was located on a former Iraqi Air Force base halfway between Fallujah and Ramadi. Fallujah is a name I am certain you all recognize because of the heroic battle waged there by members of the U.S. Marine Corps. Ramadi is the capital of al-Anbar province and a stronghold for enemy combatants. It was, and remains, an area filled with Saddam loyalists and Baathist party members. The name of our particular FOB is Habbaniyah. Earlier units called it Camp Manhattan. There, we worked cooperatively with members of the Marine Corps, Navy and Air Force in numerous joint operations. As you might expect in a high-intensity combat environment, inter-service rivalry melted away, and we lived, worked, ate, slept, trained and fought together as a cohesive band of brothers, Americans one and all.

We conducted combat operations and had contact with the enemy on a daily basis. As a result, we now personally know the thunderous earth-shaking of rocket and mortar attacks. We experienced the forceful blasts of improvised explosive devices during mounted patrols in our up-armored vehicles, and during dismounted patrols or walking within the cities and villages for which we provided security. We experienced the single deadly accuracy of enemy snipers and we stood toe-to-toe with enemy combatants in multiple gun battles. The explosive power of RPGs were commonplace, and booby traps of all shapes, sorts and sizes were regular discoveries.

Nevertheless, in spite of all this, we experienced great success. We oversaw two national elections, stood up an Iraqi Army brigade to whom we turned over battle space, recruited and trained Iraqi police officers, destroyed enemy arms and munitions, and neutralized, captured or killed enemy combatants.

Our success did not come without cost.

My battalion lost 13 soldiers and two Marines. I held some of those boys in my arms as their lives slipped away, like Spc. Mark Melcher from Pittsburgh. Mark was a Mellon Bank employee who was felled by an enemy sniper's bullet just 28 days after he joined us as a replacement. I kissed him and more than one of those boys on the forehead after making the sign of the cross there. We awarded 61 Purple Hearts, the military's award for being wounded by enemy combatants. Some of those wounds were horrific; all of them, I suspect, were life-changing.

Overall, our brigade lost 83 soldiers, sailors and Marines. One was one of my best friends, Lt. Col. Michael McLaughlin. Mike was the highest-ranking officer killed in action from the 28th Infantry Division since World War II. He died on a cool but sunny Thursday afternoon in January when a single pellet from the vest of a suicide bomber struck him in the back of the head. A Marine dog handler and his trusted K9 died at the same time. So did about 40 Iraqis applying to become police officers. The news noted all of that, but what it failed to tell the American public was after the mess was cleaned up and the human carnage was addressed, those Iraqi police recruits - more than 1,000 of them - got back into line in the hopes of bringing law and order to their land.

For those of us who have tasted it, the experience of combat is unlike anything we knew before or will experience again. And it's not simply the fighting, the fear, sweat, blood, smells, noise, exhaustion, strain and pain; it's also the everyday little routines of living.

For the first five and a half months I was there, my shower consisted of a plastic bag above my head and a plastic bin at my feet. All of my needs for a bathroom were met by a lightweight plastic Porta-John that was sweltering in the summer and freezing in the winter. Our area of operation had highs in July and August of 135 and lows in January of 29. We ate semi-warm, bland food that was cooked on another FOB and brought to our base, where we dined in an old Iraqi truck garage. Most of the time the food tasted like metal. I gave haircuts to all the officers, and my assistant cut mine. Our laundry was boiled or we washed it ourselves, and I heated my shaving water in a coffee pot each morning.

Please do not misunderstand me. I am neither complaining nor bragging. I am simply reporting to you the truth of our reality. I left home on Jan. 3, 2005, and returned on June 21, 2006. It was the worst and the best 18 months of my life. But it was not easy. It was hard. Very hard.

So was the transition home.

For 18 months, I was surrounded by men with guns. When I came home, I felt vulnerable without them, even in church.

For 18 months, I suffered the indignities and depravities of military life in a combat environment with a core of friends. When I came home, I felt lonely without them, even when surrounded by family or other friends.

For 18 months, I kept a constant watch on my surroundings and the people around me. When I returned home, I could not break the habit and remained hyper-vigilant outside the walls of my home.

For 18 months, I studied every piece of garbage or discarded junk along the road. When I came home, I couldn't stop. Riding in the passenger seat always made me nervous when someone would drive over a piece of trash.

For 18 months as a leader of soldiers, I had to keep my emotions in check. I couldn't let the men see me down, sad or afraid. When I came home, people told me I was distant and withdrawn.

For 18 months, I shared common goals and values with others upon whom I depended literally for my life. When I came home, I found dishonesty, hypocrisy and malevolence in people who claimed to be my friends and share common values.

For 18 months, I had no choice about what to wear, what to eat, what to do or when to sleep. When I came home, I was overwhelmed by choices, sometimes to the point that I was unable to make decisions.

For 18 months, I dealt with issues that were literally life and death, eternal in scope. When I returned home, I found people worried about things whose matter is of no significant consequence at all. None. And yet, they worried. They really worried about these things.

I still don't understand why some people worry about the things they do. But let me tell you about what soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines were worrying about just one month before we returned home. Let me tell you where their hearts and minds were. Let me read to you from a single letter (below), the last letter I wrote home. The letter has a title: "Quiet Conversations."

We, the current generation of America's warriors, are the recipients of an enormous outpouring of support. We received more care packages and assistance from folks here in the United States than I could have ever imagined or hoped for. Our generation has access to resources unimaginable even 16 years ago. It is not perfect, and it is not where we ought to be, but it is far better than at any time in our nation's history.

So thank you. Thank you for your time. Thank you for your unwavering support of America's military personnel. May God bless you, those whom you love and the United States of America.

Quiet Conversations

Many times clergy participate in quiet conversations. Sometimes the tones are soft because someone is inviting us into a private space in their being, a place generally reserved for no one but themselves. At other times, the voices are hushed because the person is revealing some past hurt or sin. They may be embarrassed. They may not want to revisit the experience again but something inside their soul pushes them to uncover what has been buried for so long. Sometimes there are whispers because people inwardly recognize the sacred and holy dimension of what they are about to share, regardless of their religious affections, or lack thereof. Voices and eyes often drop lower because they cannot bring themselves to make contact more directly or intimately. Whatever the case may be, I have had many quiet conversations.

Some of these conversations are one-sided. Sometimes there's no need for me to speak. I must only listen ... with my heart as well as my head. At times, these conversations center on the hard and difficult questions of life. Many of these are the "why" questions. At other times, the hushed voices ask the "how" questions, the questions seeking advice more than answers. And sometimes, no answers or advice are expected at all; rather, all the other may want is to be heard, to be truly heard and understood. Maybe for the first time.

I have had quiet conversations with all sorts of people ... those with rank and power and those who have been pushed to the periphery, the wealthy and the poor, the educated and the ignorant, men and women, adults, teens and even children. These conversations take place in a variety of locations: kitchens, living rooms, family rooms, hospitals, offices, church pews, sidewalks, barracks, public parks, restaurants, inside cars, over hoods or fences, in funeral homes, on back porches and serene docks with the water gently lapping against the weathered lumber where the boats are tied.

I am sure you have had these, too. They are not the exclusive realm of the clergy. They happen between friends from school, among family members making weighty decisions in the presence of strangers wearing hospital scrubs and between lovers resting safely in one another's arms. Fathers and sons have these conversations when they venture into the woods for sport, and mothers and daughters follow suit when they share an afternoon together. Coworkers may have these conversations at the office or some place where they have retreated in order to relax. And more than one church member has had a conversation like this in the parking lot following a committee meeting. The sanctuary is not the only place where souls are touched.

Whatever the case may be, the common thread that runs through all of these quiet conversations is that they are deeply personal, revealing and honest. The masks which most of us wear are removed for the conversation. The barriers which protect hearts are lowered, and the soul surrenders itself in a vulnerable act of trust to those present. And it's obvious, or at least it should be obvious, that those thus engaged are standing on holy ground.

Many of the quiet conversations I am having these days center on the subject of fear or anxiety. The fear is not combat. We are now the seasoned veterans of our battle space. We have been engaged in this struggle for a longer time than any other American force in our AO (area of operations). The fear of going outside the wire has greatly diminished for many of us who do so on a regular basis. Fear is an expected part of what we shoulder, but like the weight of our body armor, we have grown so accustomed to it we almost don't notice it anymore.

No, these quiet conversations that are so honest and heartfelt demonstrate another oxymoron of our experience. We have been gone for 17 months. We have one more to go. Most of the soldiers with whom I talk cannot wait to leave this place and return home ... and yet, that's exactly where the dilemma comes. As excited as we are to go home, many are equally afraid.

And they don't know why. It doesn't make sense or at least that's what they tell me, in tones so hushed one would think they are in confession. Perhaps they are. They certainly are confused and anxious and embarrassed. They are not sure how they will be received when we get home. They are afraid they won't fit back into their family or circle of friends and they are privately nervous about what long-term effects this experience will have on them, physically, emotionally and spiritually.

At least active-duty units return together to the same place and begin training all over again. They are not separated from one another. They live together on a base and continue to socialize and work together. They remain Army. We, however, who have carried weapons every day for a year and a half, who have drawn the blood of strangers and who have shed our own ... we who have laid in ambush for the enemy, watched him through the grasses and then cut him down so that our homes, families and nation would be safer, are now going to be asked to put aside our weapons, our sense of security, to leave one another behind and return to the life of a civilian where most of you have no idea what we have endured or suffered. And how could you? Even the soldiers who have remained on the FOB, the ones who did not have to go outside the wire, even they are anxious about what it will be like to be normal again. How does one even define normal after all this?

So, I too worry.

I worry about them. How will they take these 18 months and make sense of them? Who will translate for them what has taken place, in ways that those who remained home can understand and appreciate the noble sacrifice, the disciplined commitment and the honor carried by these citizen soldiers? We still have much to contribute to our society and the world at large. I have not talked to one person who thinks America owes us anything. What we have done, we have done freely and without compulsion. We do not expect reward or recognition.

What we do expect, however, what we want, what we crave ... but what so many may be afraid to say, is your patience, understanding and support. Please recognize that while this deployment has been difficult, the readjustment and reintegration into the lives we left behind will also be difficult. Without you, we will not be able to do it. We need your help. We can't do it alone. We are counting on you.

So please, if on some peaceful evening as the sun is melting on the distant horizon or during some fierce afternoon thunderstorm with the rain pouring down and the thunder cracking, if you find us sitting alone, don't be alarmed. If we linger a little while in the pew Sunday morning after the service is over, or if you find us sitting outside in the car alone or in some room in the house, join us. Sit with us. We may say nothing at all, or we may say a great deal, maybe more than you'll want to hear.

But what's important is that you'll share a quiet conversation with us.

And remember, you may not have to say anything at all. Your silent presence speaks volumes. It is a language we need to learn anew. It is the language of love.

U.S. Army Photo

BY Kristin Ellis

WASHINGTON (Army News Service, Nov. 1, 2007) -- During his first visit to Walter Reed Army Medical Center Oct. 24, the national commander of the American Legion discussed the transition of warriors from military to other medical care.

Martin F. Conatser, elected commander of the nation's largest veteran's organization Aug. 30, voiced his concern over the transition process for a Soldier from the Army to Veteran's Affairs.

North Atlantic Regional Medical Command and Walter Reed Commander Maj. Gen. Eric B. Schoomaker told Mr. Conatser that they share the same goal, "We want to keep it fluid and make sure there is never a loss of support."

"We use the term Warrior in Transition because whether you are ill or injured, you are in a major transition in your life," Maj. Gen. Schoolmaker said. "There, of course, is a distinction between a war injury and an illness... but to us, it doesn't matter if it's from an enemy or elsewhere - we'll take care of you."

Mr. Conatser explained his goal was to "get up to speed" on the improvements being made in outpatient care. The retired sergeant major toured the living accommodations for outpatients and received briefings from the Warrior Transition Brigade and the Physical Evaluation Board. He also visited with Soldiers and toured the Mologne House.

"It's veterans helping veterans. No matter what the injury this is probably the hardest time in their lives," Mr. Conatser said. "Many of us have shared the same experience and know the frustration that can come with it."

He explained that American Legion members - 2.7 million - and posts throughout the country are assisting Soldiers any way they can and will continue to do so. Walter Reed has a full-time American Legion veteran's advocate, Jerry Johnson, to assist Warriors in Transition any way he can. Mr. Conatser said he plans on monitoring and following up on the care but feels reassured by the visit.

"It looks like it's quality health care and the Soldiers here feel they are getting quality healthcare," he summed up.

With the advances in military medicine, there are Soldiers who would not have been able to remain on active duty before, but now have the opportunity to continue their military career. Maj. Gen. Schoomaker compared them to professional athletes, who know that the Warrior Ethos of "never quit" still applies.

(Kristin Ellis writes for the Stripe newspaper at Walter Reed.)

Photo by James V. Carrol

Indiana War Memorial
Indianapolis, Indiana

11:17 A.M. EDT

THE VICE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much, Marty. And let me thank all of you for that warm welcome. It's almost enough to make me want to run for office again. (Laughter.) Almost, almost. But I'm delighted to be here today. I want to thank Brigadier General Stewart Goodwin, the director of the Indiana War Memorials Commission, for hosting us today in this tremendous facility. I recognize my friend and former colleague, Congressman Mike Sodrel. And I've had the chance to speak, of course, to the American Legion gathering over the years, and it's always been a very special privilege.

I'm pleased, as well, to visit this great state of Indiana. On a recent visit here I went to Camp Atterbury, one of the finest military training facilities in the country. I remember it as a huge, enthusiastic crowd -- not because of me, but because we were joined by the Colts and the Pacers cheerleaders. (Laughter.) But as always, it's a pleasure to be in your state, and I bring all of you the respect and good wishes from our President, George W. Bush. (Applause.)

I want to thank the community leaders and other distinguished guests who've joined us today. And in particular, I want to thank the veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan who are here -- it's good to be with all of you, and we thank you for what you've done for all of us. (Applause.)

Marion County is a fine, hardworking, patriotic part of the country. The same can be said of the entire state, which has made so many historic contributions to the life of our nation. Abraham Lincoln spent his formative years here. Indiana's Governor William Henry Harrison was elected President. And of course, your state has produced five vice presidents and many current statesmen -- including a good friend of mine and fine public servant, Governor Mitch Daniels. (Applause.)

In every generation, citizens of Indiana have stepped forward to serve America in times of peace and times of war. This capital city is second only to Washington, D.C. in the number of memorials dedicated to military service. Construction of the Indiana War Memorial which we -- where -- in which we gather began some 80 ago, the cornerstone laid in person by General John J. Pershing. And standing at the very heart of Indianapolis is the Soldiers and Sailors Monument -- a reminder of the struggles of history and a symbol of Indiana values. The Hoosier State never forgets the bravery of those who heard duty's call, and bore the battle, and kept this country free.

Here and across America, the values of faith in God and pride in country are embodied in the members of the American Legion. The Legion and the Auxiliary provide a daily example of good citizenship, generosity and decency. You speak out for honorable principles, and you live by them. The American Legion serves the nation by leading on a range of important issues, such as health care and education, employment opportunities and homeland security, military readiness and the quality of life for service families. Members of the American Legion stand firm for protecting our country's flag and for defending the right of every American to pledge allegiance to one nation under God. (Applause.)

As most of you know, our nation has 125 national cemeteries operated by the VA. Burials conducted in those cemeteries should honor the wishes of the families, including those that relate to religious observances. And despite the confusing order that recently came out of the federal bureaucracy, I want you to know that honor guards at military funerals will give the 13-fold recitation at any service where the family requests it. (Applause.)

Members of the American Legion are voices of influence on public policy. President Bush and I hope we can count on your support for two Cabinet nominees, Judge Michael Mukasey for Attorney General, and General James Peake to head the Department of Veterans Affairs. These are outstanding public servants, and they deserve prompt confirmation by the United States Senate.

Congress is also long overdue in appropriating the money we need to care for veterans and to fund our military. It's time to pass these measures in clean, separate bills. That's Congress's job, and they should not waste any more time before they move those important measures to the President's desk. On these and other priorities, we need the clear thinking and common sense of the American Legion. And today I want to underscore the important work yet to be done in defense of this country, and the need to keep our focus on the war that we began fighting September 11th, 2001.

This struggle will, of course, concern America for the remainder of our administration, and well into the future. On 9/11 we suffered a heavy blow, right here at home, at the hands of extremists who plotted the attacks from outposts thousands of miles from our shores. Since that terrible morning, Americans have properly called this a war. For their part, the terrorists agree. The difference is that they began calling it a war a good many years before 9/11. And they've been waging that war with clear objectives, aggressive tactics, and a strategy they want to carry at any cost.

They've stated their objectives. The terrorists want to end all American and Western influence in the Middle East. Their goal in that region is to seize control of a country, so they have a base from which to launch attacks and to wage war against governments that do not meet their demands. Ultimately they seek to establish a totalitarian empire through the Middle East, and outward from there. They want to arm themselves with chemical, biological or even nuclear weapons; they want to destroy Israel; intimidate all Western countries; and to cause mass death here in the United States.

The tactics, of course, are familiar to all the world -- suicide attacks, car bombs, beheadings, messages of violence and hatred on the Internet, and the hijackings of 9/11. And the strategy is clear, as well: Through acts of stealth and murder and spectacular violence, they intend to frighten us and break our will -- to hit us again and again until we run away.

They've chosen this method because they believe it works, and because they believe the history of the late 20th century proves their point. During the 1980s and '90s, as terror networks began to wage attacks against Americans, we usually responded, if at all, with subpoenas, indictments and the occasional cruise missile.

Not surprisingly, the terrorists became more ambitious in their strikes against American interests, choosing bigger targets and racking up a higher body count. In Beirut in 1983, terrorists killed 241 of our servicemen -- thereafter, the U.S. withdrew from Lebanon. In Mogadishu in 1993, terrorists killed 19 Americans -- and thereafter, the U.S. withdrew from Somalia. This emboldened them still further, confirming their belief that they could strike America without paying a price -- and more than that, they concluded that by violence they could even change American policy. We had the bombing of the World Trade Center in New York in 1993; the attack on U.S. facilities in Riyadh in 1995; the murder of servicemen at Khobar Towers in 1996; the attack on our embassies in East Africa in 1998; and of course the attack on the USS Cole in 2000; and then finally on September 11th, the loss of nearly 3,000 American lives, here at home, in the space of a few hours.

In a violent world, the safety of distance was suddenly gone. And with grave new dangers directly in view, the strategic situation changed fundamentally. From the morning of 9/11, we have assumed, correctly, that more strikes would be attempted against us. So we've made enormous changes to harden the target and to better prepare the nation to face this kind of emergency.

But we cannot protect the nation, much less win a war, by simply bracing for another attack. The President made a decision to marshal all the elements of strategic power to confront the extremists, to deny them safe haven, and above all to deny them the means to wage catastrophic attacks against us. We've also made clear that in the post-9/11 era, regimes that harbor terror and defy the demands of the civilized world should be held to account.

One of the best weapons against terrorism is good intelligence -- information that helps us figure out the movements of the enemy, the extent of the network, the location of their cells, the plans they're making, the methods they use, and the targets they want to strike. Information of this kind is the hardest to obtain, but it's worth the effort in terms of the plots averted and the lives that are saved.

So our government has taken careful but urgent steps to monitor the communications of enemies at large, and to get information from the ones that we have apprehended. We've respected civil liberties and upheld the high standards of this great country. And because we've been focused, because we've refused to let down our guard, we've done -- gone more now than six years without another 9/11.

No one can promise that there won't be another attack; the terrorists hit us first, and they're hell-bent on doing it again. We know this because of their public declarations, and because of the intelligence that we've gathered through monitoring and, yes, through interrogation. There's been a good deal of misinformation about the CIA detainee program, and unfair comments have been made about America's intentions and the conduct of American intelligence officers. Many of the details are, understandably, classified. Yet the basic facts are these. A small number of high-value detainees have gone through the special program run by the CIA. This is different from Guantanamo Bay. It's very important to keep those separate. Guantanamo Bay's select captured terrorists are sent and interrogated by the Department of Defense according to the Army Field Manual.

The CIA program is different. It involves tougher customers -- men like Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the mastermind of 9/11 -- and it involves tougher interrogation. The procedures are designed to be safe, to be legal, and they are in full compliance with the nation's laws and treaty obligations. They've been carefully reviewed by the Department of Justice and are very carefully monitored. The program is run by highly trained professionals who understand their obligations under the law. And the program has uncovered a wealth of information that has foiled attacks against the United States; information that has on numerous occasions made all the difference between life and death.

The United States is a country that takes human rights seriously. We do not torture. We're proud of our country and what it stands for. We expect all who serve America to conduct themselves with honor. And we enforce those rules. Some years ago, when abuses were committed at Abu Ghraib prison -- again, a facility that had nothing to do with the detainee program run by the CIA -- the abuses that came to light rightfully outraged many people. The wrongdoers were arrested and prosecuted, and justice was demanded.

America is a fair and a decent country. President Bush has made it clear, both publicly and privately, that our duty to uphold the laws and standards of this nation admit no exceptions in wartime. As he put it, "We are in a fight for our principles, and our first responsibility is to live by them."

The war on terror is, after all, more than a contest of arms and more than a test of will. It is also a battle of ideas. To prevail in the long run, we have to remove the conditions that inspire such blind, prideful hatred that drove 19 men to get onto airplanes and to come kill us on 9/11. Many have noted that we're in a struggle for the "hearts and minds" of people in a troubled region of the world. That is true and it should give us confidence. Outside a small and cruel circle, it's hard to imagine anybody being won over, intellectually or emotionally, by random violence, the beheading of bound men, children's television programs that exalt suicide bombing, and the desecration of mosques. The extremists in the Middle East are not really trying to win the hearts and minds, but to paralyze them, to seize power by force, to keep power by intimidation, and to build an empire by fear.

We offer a nobler alternative. We know from history that when people live in freedom, when they have their rights respected and have real hope for the future, they will not be drawn in by ideologies that stir up hatred and incite violence. We know, as well, that when men and women are given the chance, most by far will choose to live in freedom. That is the cause we serve today in Afghanistan and Iraq -- helping the people of those two nations to achieve security, peace and the right to chart their own destiny. Both people face attack from violent extremists who want to end democratic progress and pull them back toward tyranny. We are helping them fight back because it's the right thing to do -- and because the outcome is vitally important to our own long-term security.

When historians look back on the especially difficult struggle in Iraq, I think they'll regard recent events in Anbar province to have been deeply significant to the broader effort. Local residents and tribal leaders -- Sunni Muslims -- are rising up against al Qaeda, sick of the violence, repulsed by the mindless brutality and the bullying of al Qaeda. Proud of their local traditions and culture, serious about their Islamic faith, the people of Anbar now see al Qaeda as the enemy, and they've worked with Iraqi and American forces to drive the terrorists out of their cities. It's still dangerous in the province. The terrorists recently killed one of the sheikhs who had been a leader in the fight against al Qaeda. But that fight goes on, and America's support will not waver.

Our new offensive strategy in Iraq -- led by General Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker and backed up by a surge in forces -- is producing good results. Even though we have more troops carrying out more perilous missions, our casualty rates are down. And while General Petraeus has made clear that al Qaeda remains a lethal enemy, many al Qaeda sanctuaries have been wiped out. Our military seized the initiative, and conditions in Iraq are getting better.

President Bush has made clear that America's word is good, and our nation will do its part to keep Iraq on the road to freedom, to security, and to progress. And we expect Iraq's national government to press hard in the work of national reconciliation, to match the kind of cooperation now taking place at local and provincial levels. We will continue, as well, our intensive effort to train Iraqi security forces, so that over time Iraqis can take the lead in protecting their own people. Progress has been uneven at times and the National Police still need improvement. But Iraq's army is becoming more capable. And because there's now a greater degree of cooperation from local populations, Iraqi forces are better able to keep the peace in areas that have been cleared of the