By Debbie Gregory.

By Debbie Gregory.

The prototype of military recruits is changing. Not long ago, Armed Forces recruiting offices used to be filled with young Americans who were either trying to make a U-turn from the wrong path, trying to better their meager career prospects, and of course, those answering their patriotic call to duty.  There was a time, when “getting in” was a given, and the main issue was what MOS or Rate you would get. But that was then. Many recruits, who would have skated into the military in previous eras, would not meet the entrance qualifications of the military today.

After more than twelve years of constant war, the branches of the U.S. military are getting leaner… in terms of both force size and the sizes of individual recruits. Today’s candidates must meet very strict requirements before they are allowed entry into the Armed Forces. While every branch has its own specific standards, there are general minimum requirements that recruits must meet.

These minimum requirements include: having completed a high school education, a clean criminal record, no serious medical problems (including asthma, major surgeries and other afflictions), not having tattoos on areas of the body that can be seen while in uniform (all tattoos screened for gang affiliation), and meeting the height and weight standards for their branch. Recruiters estimate that more than 70% of Americans in the acceptable enlistment age range would be not qualify under the new standards.

But “No” doesn’t always mean no. Most of those turned away by recruiters are told that they don’t meet the height and weight standards. These young men and women are able to take it upon themselves to lose weight and get in shape. Some individual recruiters will even help those candidates with their weight loss. Once within standards, they are welcome to come back, and many do. Even those with criminal records can petition for waivers, depending on the type of crime and their history of behavior since their arrest. But with the overall size of the military shrinking, competition for spots on the team are making exceptions and waivers rare.

Many Americans feel that the military should not deny able-bodied Americans their right to serve their country. But like it or not, believe it or not, serving in the U.S. military is a privilege, NOT a right. Raising the basic standards and minimum requirements raises the bar for interested candidates. The military is now seeking quality over quantity, in terms of recruitment. Overall, it will make for a superior fighting force that will be comprised of only the best, brightest and strongest candidates that our nation has to offer.

By Debbie Gregory.

Last week, a football game was played in New Jersey. Two teams of heroes took the field and played their hearts out. All of the proceeds from the game went to the Military Benefit Association, and an FDNY 9/11 charity. It’s probably not the football game that you were thinking of. There were no big TV deals for this game. No one, not even the charities, made millions of dollars from it. But for all involved, especially the players, it may as well have been the Super Bowl.

On January 29^th, the Richard J. Codey Arena in West Orange New Jersey hosted the Wounded Warriors Amputee Football Team (WWAFT) vs. a team of 9/11 First Responders in a charity flag football game. The WWAFT is made up of players who are either current or former members of the U.S. military, who lost at least one limb as result of their service, and now use a prosthetic device to engage in everyday life activities. The team hopes that by playing these charity football games, they will inspire their fans and other Veterans by showcasing their perseverance.

Their opponents for the game were of equal bravery and grit. The squad was made up of members of the NYFD and NJFD, who were the first responders to the attacks on September 11, 2001.

The Wounded Warrior team was undefeated going into the game, having previously beaten teams of retired players from the Washington Redskins and Green Bay Packers.

More than 2,000 spectators were watching in the stands. Also in attendance were several former NFL stars,  including Jim Burt, Vince Papale, Phil McConkey, Rocky Bleier, and ESPN’s Kenny Mane. The final score was 32-14 in favor of the WWAFT. While they are still undefeated on the scoreboard, their mission was also victorious yet again. When events take place for the benefit of Veterans and public servants such as fireman and policeman, everybody wins.

Please visit the Wounded Warrior Amputee Football Team’s website to find out more about their charity, see pictures of their games, and buy apparel.

By Debbie Gregory.

Women are seeing expanding roles in all branches of the U.S. Military. Recently, the Army announced that 33,000 combat positions would be made available for female soldiers beginning in April. According to the VA, female Veterans account for approximately 10% of the Veteran population, and is expected to double in the next few decades. With the growing population of female officers and enlisted soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines, the U.S. military has been actively restructuring its organizational composition, and rethinking its stances on policy in order to accommodate its modern, dual-gendered fighting force.

While the military is making strides towards gender equality among its ranks, the Veteran community is still trying to catch up. Veteran resources, including the VA, have a long history of providing service to a community that has historically consisted primarily of men. But even with women becoming a larger part of the Veteran population, Veteran resources are not always designed for or made readily available to female Veterans.

Female Veterans from the Desert Storm and the Post-9/11 eras are using their VA healthcare benefits more than women from other eras. Today’s female Veterans have among the highest percentages of VA health services utilization rates. Female Veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan have had the highest use of mental health care benefits by population percentage.

Still, there are stories about Veterans benefits and organizations that female Veterans are having a harder time utilizing than their male comrades. There are even stories of Veterans organizations sending membership info to the husbands of female Veterans!

With women making up 10% of the entire Veteran population, that means that are well over 2 million female Veterans today. The VA has vowed to end homelessness among Veterans. The population of homeless Veterans is estimated to be between 50,000 and 70,000, with female Veterans accounting for about 8%, or between 4,000 and 5,600 women.

By Debbie Gregory.

A plan is moving forward to sell 24 Apache AH-64E helicopters to the government of Iraq. The deal, worth more than $6 billion, will include spare parts, maintenance and training on how to fly and operate the helicopters. The maintenance and training aspects of the deal will require a handful of Americans to deploy to Iraq.

This deal is just one of a string of transactions that the U.S. government has recently negotiated with the Iraqi government, led by Prime Minister Nouri al-Malaki. Previous deals includes sending 75 AGM-114 Hellfire missiles and approximately 100-200 U.S. troops as part of the Office of Security Cooperation-Iraq (OSC-I). Another deal will involve sending Iraq another 100 Hellfire Missiles, as well as 10 ScanEagle Unmanned Arial Vehicles (also known as UAVs or drones). This sale will put the total invoice of U.S. arms to Iraq above the $20 billion mark.

The sale of arms to Iraq is the U.S. government’s way of assisting Iraq’s government, without sending U.S. forces to fight for them. The Shia-led Iraqi government has been struggling with the Sunni militant group Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), which has ties to Al Qaeda in both Iraq and Syria.

ISIL has been leading a separatist revolt in Iraq’s Anbar province, a primarily Sunni populated region of the country. Last year, ISIL managed to overtake the cities of Ramadi and Fallujah. Iraqi government forces are still struggling to completely clear Ramadi of militants before focusing on Fallujah.

On January 3rd of this year, ISIL declared Fallujah to be an independent Islamic state. The popular belief is that ISIL isn’t the only militant group that is fighting the Iraqi government’s forces in Fallujah. Several Sunni militias opposed to the current government of Iraq are fighting against government forces, and among each other.

In November, 2013, Prime Minister Nouri al-Malaki asked the U.S. to help his government take back their cities. The U.S. has vowed to come to the aid of Iraq. However, lawmakers are reluctant to send ground forces back into Iraq. So instead, we’re selling them arms.