Tis the Season

Robert L. Hanafin, Major, U.S. Air Force-Retired
Veterans Today Staff Writer
December 06, 2008

Way back in May 2006, the editor of Veterans Today posted this concern about the growing number of Support Our Troop and Veterans organizations that crawled out of the woodwork to benefit and viewed as a need to well, “Support Our Troops,” given that the vast majority of Americans were (and are) either apathetic or did not really care about something they could not relate to – Our Troops.

Charities' costs sap aid for vets

I did a review of local media surrounding Dayton, Ohio to see what Support Our Troops or Veterans benefits or fund raisers were on-going and surprisingly found very few going into the Christmas Season. That said, I did find links to various How to Support Our Troops This Season links but none for Veterans per se.

What I found was commendable but partisan politically biased. In other words only troops and military families that endorsed an organization's political views (blindly supported President Bush) warranted support - plain and simple. Most advice was being filtered through America Supports You.mil which is the "official" Pentagon sponsored propaganda apparatus that screens troop related charities and fund raising efforts based solely on political ideology. America Supports You.mil is a brain child of former Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld and a carry over to the Bush and Obama’s Secretary of Defense Gates that will most likely continue for part of the Obama administration. It remains to be seen if leaders of America Supports You.mil have as close a relationship including meetings with President Obama as they had with President Bush.

Point is that AmericaSupportsBush.mil IS NOT constitutionally regulated nor monitored by Congress (it is an arm of the Executive Branch), and AmericaSupportsBush.mil IS NOT a watch dog philantropic organizaton or group. In essense who is the Watch Dog over America Supports You.mil when it screens troop and military fund raisers????

Anyway, I posted this comment and concern on our local media network and a Letter to the Editor of several Dayton, Ohio area newspapers. "Being a veteran who served during both Vietnam and the Gulf War, and having a child who served in Bosnia and Iraq, I'm all for these various efforts to Support Our Troops that have climbed out of the woodwork since 911 and escalated since 2003. However, I also have some concern about the potential for scam artists and charlatans that either pocket more than goes to their stated Support Our Troops Mission or just as bad pay out more in administrative costs and overhead (advertisement and recruitment) than goes to our veterans and troops. That said, those of us in the Veteran and Military Family community have heard the many nightmare stories of Fake Veterans who claim military service but have none, or have served but elaborate their combat experience. Great efforts go to exposing Fake Vets; books have been written on how to expose fake veterans, websites are dedicated to exposing fake veterans, should not the same extent of effort go to exposing potential scams or incompetent management of Support Our Troop fund raising. I suggest that umbrella organizations like America Supports You.mil post guidance and advice on how donators can avoid being scammed or ensured they are donating to an organization or group that the bulk of funds raised goes to our troops and veterans. America Supports You.mil as an OFFICIAL Pentagon sponsored organization is not a fund raising watch dog organization. Are there watch dog organizations that monitor the growth of Support Our Troops efforts, including the Pentagon's America Supports You.mil to ensure unscrupulous scam artists are not taking advantage of America's patriotic spirit to sincerely Support Our Troops?"