And as a career military man, a law enforcement professional, and former firefighter / EMT-A (my absolute favorite job, by the way…), I’ve seen a lot of people, in good and bad situations. My goal (and the goal of those I worked with) was to protect those in need, and serve (my community, my country, and those people that I could).  
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So, animal or human? I tend to like them both…especially animals. They tend to be more humane…

Endeavor to Persevere…
​By Jim Kuiken

Well, it’s that time.  I do a lot of things (just ask anyone…especially those “friends” who call me the Energizer Bunny…).  I write (books, blogs, articles, etc.), I work out, I help organizations (veteran / first responder) fundraise, I do speaking engagements (Leadership through adversity, building winning teams, etc.).  And I work on behalf of those who risk all, and suffer the consequences of their service for all of us.  (Military, Veterans, Law Enforcement, Firefighters, EMS, etc., and their families).

All of these things are in service to and recognition of those who serve and protect us.  That is where my life has brought me, and that is my purpose.

So a new year kicked off (I know, that was a blatant reference to last week’s post), and with the new year comes new and renewed effort to effect change.  This year, like last, I’m focusing hard on helping some of our Veterans – specifically those who were contaminated by toxic exposures through their service to this Nation, as well as those who are still fighting with the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to receive benefits they are entitled to…that they earned.

Last year I joined forces with Military Veterans Advocacy (MVA).  There are a LOT of Veteran Service Organizations (VSO’s) and other non-profit organizations that do everything from providing Service Dogs, to helping families of the fallen pay off their mortgage, suicide prevention, assisting with housing, and offering support in all sorts of ways.

MVA is a bit different.  Basically, they write draft Bills and push legislation with Congress, trying to make the Dept. of Veterans Affairs take care of our veterans.  To uphold the promise that was made to each of these servicemembers when they joined…that they would be taken care of if they suffered sickness, injury or death because of their service to the Nation.

When Bills don’t work, MVA takes them to court, and again, tries to make the VA do its job.

As an example, last year MVA drafted, supported and worked with many Representatives and Senators to pass H.R.299 - Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act of 2017, which was designed to RESTORE the presumptive exposure to Agent Orange benefits to those who served offshore during the Vietnam War…and who already had those benefits granted in the original bill in 1991, until they were stripped away by an administrative policy interpretation by the VA in 2002.

After HR-299 bill was passed in the House (382 – 0…yes, that’s right, by a unanimous, bi-partisan vote), it went to the Senate, where two (yes, just 2 out of 100) Senators put a “hold” on the bill in committee, effectively killing the bill.  And the VA vociferously opposed the bill the entire time.

So, again, we’re moving forward this year with a re-drafted bill to try to restore the benefit that was stripped away by the VA, and make sure the 90,000+ (still surviving, with many fading fast) veterans affected get what they earned – care for the illnesses they incurred because of their service to our nation, during war.

BUT, we’re doubling down!  Not only are we working on the Blue Water Vietnam Veterans bill to get their benefits back, we’re going after multiple Toxic Exposures for our Veterans!

Agent Orange / Herbicide exposure.  (Vietnam era, but in multiple locations where it was used and stored throughout the Pacific and other areas).

Gulf War exposures.  Radiological exposures.  Asbestos exposures.  Others…

And the big one that everyone’s talking about today – Burn Pits exposure, from Iraq and Afghanistan, and other areas (and times…because it’s not just a recent thing, we’ve had burn pits in many wars and areas in the past).

And court cases!  Besides individual benefit cases, MVA pursues cases that have wide-reaching impact (for classes and groups of veterans), in the Court of Veteran’s Appeals all the way up to the Supreme Court of the United States!

I applaud all those organizations that help or support our veterans and first responders.  Heck, I’m even developing a non-profit of my own to do just that.

But I’ve chosen to step up and take it to Congress and the Courts, to force the VA and the government to hold true to the promises that were made to our service men and women, and their families.  We’re not asking for handouts.  We (the servicemembers and veterans) paid our price up front.  They stepped up when many step away, and put themselves and their families on the line, and many of them are suffering and dying because of that sacrifice.

Going after the government is a lot like tilting at windmills…  But you can have an effect on government – and actually make it work!  You just have to not take no for an answer.

Sometimes, waiting for your benefits isn’t enough.  You have to “Endeavor to Persevere”.

Also, with my team in LA in the 90’s, when I was the Supervisory Special Agent in charge of “Special Investigations”.  We’d go out on gang enforcement, high-risk warrant entries, etc.  They (thinking I didn’t know…) called me the “Chihuahua”, because I never stopped, didn’t seem to notice that (almost everyone) was bigger than me, but still never backed down, etc.  Yeah…real funny…

​And there are false call signs and nicknames.  Let’s talk about “Mad Dog” Mattis.  That was NEVER General Mattis’ callsign or nickname.  That was a tag the media gave him, and that is so far from the truth as to be insulting.  He is NOT a mad dog…his actual nickname is “Warrior Monk”, because he is so well-read, thoughtful, educated, measured and deliberate in his every action. It is why his subordinates and “troops” all revere him. And yes, I call him General rather than Secretary, because General is so much more…