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Richard L. Eubank, Commander-in-Chief, Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States
Chairmen Miller and Murray, Ranking Members Filner and Burr, Members of the Senate and House Veterans Affairs Committees, Distinguished Comrades of the VFW and our Auxiliaries, and special guests, it is my honor to be here today to represent the 2.1 million men and women of the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States and our Auxiliaries.
Madam and Mister Chairmen, first, congratulations on your selections to chair the Veterans Affairs Committees. The VFW looks forward to working with you in the 112th Congress. Secondly, thank you for holding this hearing today to discuss VFW's legislative priorities and goals. It is my hope that together we can find solutions to problems that impede the Department of Veterans Affairs from completely fulfilling their sacred promise "to care for him who shall have borne the battle."
I would like to take a moment to recognize the service and thank two great veterans' advocates. First, Senator Akaka, your 30 plus years of service in the House and Senate, your deep knowledge of veterans' issues and your compassion for your fellow veterans have truly made you a statesman. Without your leadership the VFW would still be asking for Advanced Appropriations, caregiver assistance and countless other benefits improvements. You are not just a member of the Greatest Generation; you are a shining example of what that term means.
Second, thank you to Senator Jim Webb for his hard work in the United States Senate. You have truly lived up to our Marine Corps motto: "Always Faithful." Your contributions have and will continue to improve the lives of veterans and their families for years to come. We will miss both of your passionate and insightful voices for all service members, their families and veterans on this Committee, and your knowledge of world events in the U.S. Senate. We look forward to continuing to work with you both throughout the 112th Congress.
The most critical issues facing VA are:
- Implementing the new caregiver law
- Ensuring accessible, top-notch healthcare
- Fixing the process that caused the disability claims backlog
- Ensuring our wounded veterans have the best transition assistance possible
- Providing the resources and services needed to help homeless veterans
- Ensuring meaningful steps are taken to reduce veteran suicides
As Congress begins the task of reining in spending and reducing an ever-increasing federal deficit, it is important to remember there is a tremendous cost of war, most especially on those men and women who fight it. And that the consequences of defending America do not end when the last bullet is fired.
Every day we read of the ever-mounting toll a decade of war has taken on the less than one percent of our nation who volunteered to defend our country in parts of the world that most Americans could not find on a map before September 11, 2001.
Thousands dead, tens of thousands wounded, and hundreds of thousands more who came home to unemployment, broken families, and memories that will be there for the rest of their lives. Suicides are at record highs in the military and in the veteran's community. PTSD, TBI, substance abuse… the list of ailments and challenges our veterans face is a long one, and it goes hand-in-hand with a decade of serving faithfully in two wars on the other side of the globe. In no uncertain terms, the VFW believes the aftermath of war on service members and their families must be recognized as a cost of war.
I come before you today asking that you only do what is right for the only true heroes left in America. They were there for all of us when we needed them. All they ask in return is for you to do the same.
We as a Nation put them in harm's way, exposed them to diseases, toxins and terrors that may stay with them forever. The cost of war is not just building tanks, planes and ships. It isn't just training men and women to fight; nor to take them to war and consider their well-being as a mere afterthought.
The cost of war includes the treatment of diseases and injuries incurred while serving in uniform. It is compensation to replace lost earnings capacity and quality of life, caused by those disabilities. It is to help each man and woman transition from military to civilian life, recognizing that they put their youth and their lives on hold while they fought for you and me. And it is to take care of their wives, husbands and children when they don't come home at all.
VFW will stand with you if there is redundant or poorly spent funding on programs that do not work, because every spent dollar represents precious resources missing the mark in assisting our veterans. But we are also here to tell you that it is imperative that VA be fully funded to care for our injured and ill veterans and their surviving dependents. For VA to fulfill these and other urgent needs for our veterans, the VFW, in partnership with our other three Independent Budget co-authors, requests a discretionary budget of $65.4 billion.
- $55 billion to support VHA
- $3.3 billion for IT
- $2.7 billion for major and minor construction
- $2.3 billion for VBA
Without this level of funding, VA will fall short of providing the level of care and access to services the VFW and the American people expect. President Obama's budget submission requests an overall funding increase, but falls short of the levels we believe necessary to provide for the health and well-being of our veterans. We appreciate his commitment, but strongly believe that more needs to be done.
The VFW has particular concern that a handful of pivotal initiatives will not receive adequate funding to meet the challenge under the President's proposal. The VA construction budget for Fiscal Year 2012 stands at $1.27 billion – nearly $480 million below last year's levels, and less than half of what we recommend as part of the Independent Budget. The proposed budget would actually reduce prosthetic and medical research by $70 million dollars. Information Technology would receive a slightly higher amount by about $14 million, but only after being flat-lined last year. We are recommending an increase of approximately $156 million to ensure the changes we all hope VA can achieve through technology can be met. These programs are too important to our veterans and too strategic for the future of VA to be relegated to second or third-tier priorities, and we strongly urge you to take an impartial look at the unfinished business and future plans of these and other programs to provide a more appropriate level of funding.
The reforms that began less than two decades ago have long since shown what innovation, technology, creativity, professionalism and modern medicine can do for veterans. Yet the VA of today remains a contradiction. It provides world-class health care to millions of veterans, but the Veterans Benefits Administration – which is the key to all things VA – has not evolved for the better.
As with any large medical system, some problems exist— sometimes serious problems. The Veterans Health Administration's goal must continue to be to ensure quality care. When problems develop, VA must ensure that the causes are identified and remediated quickly and completely, and they must hold responsible persons accountable. VA must also notify veterans immediately and provide them with their treatment options in instances of negligent care.
While the VA health care system is a 21st century health care system delivering world-class care to America's veterans, the Veterans Benefits Administration continues to struggle with the greatest workload in over 50 years and the worst quality in decades.
As of January 31, 2011, the number of pending compensation and pension, education and appeals cases totaled nearly 1.1 million, up 32.6 percent in just one year.
We certainly understand that incoming work has been increasing at a rate of 10 percent per year for the past several years. That fact alone would stress any organization, public or private.
We know that in times of economic turmoil, claims increase significantly while veterans and their families search out alternate sources of support. It is a certainty that the Great Recession has delivered great blows to the economy and especially to veterans.
We also acknowledge that Secretary Shinseki's decision to grant new presumptions under the Agent Orange Act produced nearly 200,000 new claims virtually overnight. The fact that he made the right decision under the law doesn't reduce its impact in VA regional offices.
I would like to thank Secretary Shinseki for his courage and steadfastness in this regard. His determination to do what was right for veterans has earned him our admiration and gratitude. Thank you, Secretary Shinseki.
The seeds of the processing problems in VBA were sewn decades ago. In our view, they stem from several problems.
First, inadequate staffing over the 1980s and 1990s allowed production to degrade, so that over time the backlog grew significantly. Untimely budgets and Continuing Resolutions are not recent innovations of Congress. Agencies react to budget uncertainty by instituting hiring freezes. Some years most regional offices couldn't hire anyone. In others, they were only able to hire limited personnel at the end of the fiscal year. As a consequence, VA managers were forced to promote sometimes marginally qualified individuals to fill long-vacant positions. In addition, these barriers ensured that systematic workforce augmentation and development was impossible.
Further, increased staffing levels frequently lagged workload increases by a year or more. VBA managers were unable to plan adequately while they were forced to focus solely on the every-mounting workload -- imploring overtaxed workers to greater production while turning a blind eye to quality and appeals. The genesis of the huge appeals backlog we see today is found in the local management decisions of 10 and 20 years ago to divert appeals staff to only reducing the backlog. These same decisions are driving the same increase in pending appeals today, and missed opportunities to streamline and automate processes with new technologies have compounded the problem. A quick and full-fledged integration of electronic medical records and other solutions may have saved untold time and money for the VA and for veterans. We urge this gathered assembly to use its oversight authority to ensure a robust and successful transition to a VA that deftly uses cutting-edge IT solutions to better serve our veterans.
Second, the political leaders of VA, OMB and Administrations of both parties were unwilling, for budget reasons, to address the IT and staffing requirements of VBA.
So let's look at the results of these decisions.
The backlog sits at 1.1 million compensation and pension, education and appeals claims. When talking about the backlog, VA routinely only refers to disability ratings work. However, there are many other claims in process, and it's all done by the same people who develop and decide ratings cases.
The VA reported error rate stands at a dismal 16 percent, and the Office of the Inspector General reports higher error rates on certain disabilities, such as TBI, PTSD and diabetes. Nationally, one of every six decisions is wrong. These are substantive decisions which deal with money that should have gone to veterans.
But that's not the half of it. I ask the VA: Why do you dislike Maryland veterans so much? If you have the bad luck to have your claim decided in Baltimore, you stand a one-in-three chance of receiving a wrong decision. The last data available to us shows that decisions in Baltimore were wrong 32 percent of the time.
On the other hand, if your claim is decided in Milwaukee or Fort Harrison, your claim will be correct 92 percent of the time.
Please don't misunderstand: The VFW is not entirely pleased that the best VA offices make a mistake "only" one in twelve times, because anything beyond a zero error rate has a negative impact on veterans.
The real question is why these vast differences exist between regional offices? Is it management? Training? We hope that your committees will undertake the necessary oversight to ensure that VBA determines the reasons for these variances and moves to correct them.
Either that or move the processing of claims from Baltimore to Milwaukee.
The VFW is working with VBA to help them find solutions to achieve greater efficiencies and quality in processing claims. Our goal is always to help VA improve claims processing without harming veterans…to achieve win-win solutions for both.
To that end, we monitor the many pilot projects and experiments undertaken by VBA over the past 18 months. We provide VBA officials with critical assessments where necessary and public encouragement where we can. In the past year, we have participated in a growing collaboration between VA, VFW and other VSOs to ensure that the programs under development address the needs of veterans.
Appeals increased from 183,000 to nearly 228,000 in past year. Most appeals are still sitting in regional offices awaiting action. We have had reports from many offices that Decision Review Officers -- those who handle appeals in the regional offices-- have been redirected to work on the backlog. As a consequence, we should expect the backlog of appeals to increase substantially this year. Again, we ask your committees to perform oversight in this area.
As the nation's largest integrated health care provider, the Veterans Health Administration has four primary missions. They are:
- Providing health care and services to America's sick and disabled veterans;
- Training and educating doctors, nurses and other health care professionals;
- Conducting world-class research of medical issues including prosthetics, and;
- Serving as the nation's primary health care backup in times of war or domestic emergency.
VHA's primary mission is the care of ill or injured veterans. VA anticipates veteran enrollment to grow to around 8.5 million veterans in FY 2011, and more than 6 million of them will receive some type of care this year. This number has doubled over the last decade and will continue to rise. The increase is due to both improved access as VA has shifted focus from being an inpatient provider into more of an outpatient provider, as well as the aging veteran population and the influx of our newest war veterans, especially female veterans.
According to VA statistics from the fourth quarter of 2010, more than 625,000 Iraq and Afghanistan veterans have sought VA care out of a pool of around 1.25 million. The VFW and the Independent Budget expect this number to continue to increasing, and we must not fail to provide the care they have earned.
The VFW strongly believes in timely access to quality health care. Achieving the proper balance between access, efficiency and quality is the goal to which we must all apply ourselves. In that regard, the VFW supports VA's efforts to allow more Category 8 veterans access to VA healthcare, while recognizing the need to make sure any additional workload does not overwhelm a VA facility's capacity to provide timely and quality care. We ask Congress to provide robust oversight of the expansion of VA services to ensure disabled veterans continue to receive their due care, in a timely manner.
Accordingly, as part of the Independent Budget, the VFW recommends a funding level of $55 billion for total medical care, an increase of $3.4 billion over the FY 2011 operating budget level currently provided by P. L. 111-322, the Continuing Resolution. Additionally, the Administration recommended an advance appropriation for FY 2012 of approximately $50.6 billion in discretionary funding for VA medical care. When combined with the $3.7 billion Administration projection for medical care collections, the total available operating budget recommended for FY 2012 is approximately $54.3 billion. Full funding will be absolutely necessary for VA to successfully provide care to an increasing number of veterans while continuing to maintain high quality and access standards.
We must also meet the long-term care needs of our veterans. VA has formed an ongoing partnership with state governments and their State Veterans Nursing Home programs. Yet it is essential that Congress and VA recognize that veterans often need a level of care greater than what the Medicare reimbursement rate provides, and we cannot allow procedural hurdles or budgetary considerations to result in inadequate care for veterans availing themselves of our state nursing homes.
VFW also believes that VA needs to better articulate its Long-Term Care Strategic Plan to allow Congress, the VFW, other VSO's, and the public a better look at the proposals. Long-term care will continue to be a challenge, and we firmly believe success will require cooperation and transparency.
We will continue to work with VA on this and other issues, as we have to educate the veteran community on changes to PTSD and Agent Orange claims, the introduction and subsequent changes to the Post-9/11 GI Bill, and other improvements made in recent years.
Veterans with specialized needs and those living in rural or remote areas must also receive greater attention from Congress. Telemedicine provides opportunities to save money, provide better health outcomes, and improve customer satisfaction. While VFW recognizes the limitations of broadband and mobile infrastructure in many rural areas, we strongly believe VA should be a leader in developing practical telemedicine options that would benefit veterans and the larger medical community.
Women Veterans Health Care: The number of women serving in uniform far exceeds any previous conflict, and today, they play an extraordinary role in Iraq and Afghanistan — roles that expose them to the risk of combat, serious injury and death. There are approximately 214,000 women serving in the military today, with more entering military service every year. Of those who have served, VA estimates that more than 40 percent have already enrolled for health care, a percentage that is expected to nearly double in the next 20 years. VA and Congress have made progress expanding female health care services, but more needs to be done.
VA must provide gender-specific and primary health care services tailored to women in all its medical facilities and Community-Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOCs). They must acknowledge that women are serving in combat and take the lead on researching the effects of combat experiences on the female veteran population. Improving training and certification of mental health care providers, as well as comprehensive programs for the treatment of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Military Sexual Trauma (MST) is critical as the numbers of women using VA increases.
With those increases in mind, Congress enacted Public Law 111-163, which calls for a report on barriers to care encountered by women veterans. VFW asks that the report be thorough and include data that examines current programs provided by VA, to include progress in the treatment for PTSD, MST, substance abuse and mental illness, as well as the availability of obstetric and gynecological care. The study must also collect data on waiting times, demographics, geographic distances and other barriers to care.
One of the largest hurdles VA faces is outreach to women veterans. Many women veterans do not know they can use VA care and services, or that VA regional offices have women veteran coordinators to help guide them through the benefit process.
Properly serving women veterans will take a cultural change within the VA, which for half a century functioned with a "one size fits all" mentality. The VA must tailor its programs and services to the specific needs of women veterans by offering them counseling and reintegration services, and to provide sensitivity training for claims processors and women veteran coordinators.
A recent report by VA's Office of Inspector General entitled, "Review of Combat Stress in Women Veterans Receiving VA Health Care and Disability Benefits" (Report Number 10-01640-45, 12/16/2010), found that higher proportions of female veterans were receiving disability benefits for mental health conditions but the numbers were proportionally lower for PTSD and TBI than their male counterparts. VBA denied female disability claims for PTSD more often, unless MST was a factor. We believe that this highlights the critical need for implementing successful training measures that align mental health ratings between men and women. It also demands that VHA and VBA train its claims adjudicators, health care professionals, and patient coordinators on issues facing women veterans, to include military sexual trauma, substance abuse, PTSD, TBI and suicide prevention.
Congress must provide continued oversight on all the programs and services provided to women veterans. Improving the health care services VA provides to women veterans, especially those serving in OIF/OEF must be a priority.
More than 42,000 service members have been wounded in action since the current conflicts began nearly a decade ago. This does not take into account those service members who are suffering from mild TBI, PTSD, or were exposed to harmful environmental toxins, or the invisible psychological wounds of war that may not manifest themselves for years. We must realize and account for the hundreds of thousands of veterans who never needed a corpsman or medic's assistance on the battlefield or went to sick call while in garrison, but in the months and years after their service could suffer from the demands that training and fighting wars has on the body and mind.
Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI): Explosive blasts from roadside bombs and other Improvised Explosive Devices are a leading cause of injury and fatality among the men and women of our armed forces. Veterans who suffer Traumatic Brain Injuries or other cognitive impairments are often left in a precarious situation, as the effects can be both severe and not immediately obvious. While recognizing that active-duty policy decisions fall under the jurisdiction of the Armed Services committees, the VFW strongly encourages this committee to do what is in its power to highlight the need for pre-deployment cognitive screenings for all members of the military being sent into harm's way. We believe it necessary to achieve a baseline by which to measure the effects of IEDs and other battlefield concussive conditions that lead to brain injuries. The ability to gauge changes resulting from injuries is impossible without having such a baseline, which also inhibits proper and more precise treatment.
VA must also continue its research into the effects of TBI on the brain. Research has made clear that undiagnosed cognitive or psychosocial conditions are far more debilitating than physical injuries, particularly with regard to employability. The follow-on effects of undiagnosed TBI can lead to a lifetime of unreached potential, and VA must work hard to ensure that effective treatments are readily available to help veterans avoid idleness. Veterans want to be useful and productive members of society after their military service is over, regardless of their physical condition. VA must help veterans affected with a brain injury achieve that goal by thoroughly evaluating all potential methods of care, such as Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy and acupuncture, and incorporate those that prove to be effective into treatment regimens.
Centers of Excellence: Many of the events that are causing TBI on the battlefield are also leaving our service members with serious auditory and vision impairments, of which the sheer number of such cases is alarming. For example, over 750,000 Iraq and Afghanistan veterans have suffered a measurable hearing impairment-- an average of about 75,000 each year. Estimates from the Defense Centers of Excellence (DCoE) assume a 10-15% larger cohort for tinnitus, or ringing in the ears. The DCoE also estimates that around half of those suffering with TBI have also experienced some level of vision impairment. While these afflictions are obviously pervasive, they may not be getting the attention they deserve.
The VFW is concerned that Congressional intent behind creating the DCoE system is not being realized. It seems that a pronounced lack of funding, and a possible lack of cooperation from VA, is resulting in a lack of progress and a diminished contribution. We hope your respective committees will work to ensure the best possible outcomes for our service members suffering with the problems these centers were created to address.
Mental Health: We are thankful for VA's increased commitment to mental health concerns, and for the role Congress has played through funding, oversight, enhanced programs, and the focus on outreach. This growing commitment has been shown through increased budgets and also by new efforts to address the stigma associated with seeking help. Though VA and the civilian medical community are no longer willing to sit idly by and allow those who need assistance to be dissuaded from seeking it from fear of social repercussions in the community, we are just beginning the hard work of ending the social stigma associated with mental health. We have also seen progress in the military where leaders are speaking out and informing their fellow service members that it is ok to seek mental health assistance. While we firmly believe Congress must continue to provide the necessary financial resources to ensure that all who seek help receive the best care anywhere, we believe this effort to reduce stigma is equally as important, and we ask VA and DOD to continue their efforts to address this issue.
Addressing these issues early can make a world of difference for veterans and their families. The manifestations of mental health challenges – marital and family strife, joblessness, homelessness, substance abuse, and suicide – are often chronic problems that become apparent only over time, while destroying lives and costing untold time and money. Yet the VA Office of Inspector General determined that the integration of mental health services into VA primary care is lagging, even while the VA's new care treatment paradigm—the Patient-Aligned Care Team – is designed to include a mental health counselor in the overall team effort. The GAO also recently found that VA is not reporting workload or spending data for mental health services in a thorough and satisfactory manner. This leaves Congress and the public with insufficient measures of the true scope and cost of services rendered, and we hope that your committees will stress with VA the importance of a full accounting for all mental health expenditures.
The most recent data available from the VA shows that more than half of all OIF/OEF patients treated by VA have suffered some mental trauma, and about a fourth of them have been specifically diagnosed with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. These numbers are staggering in their own right, and our efforts to address the problem should be spared no expense.
However, as we seek to provide the best possible care for our newest war veterans, we cannot forget the men and women who have served in previous conflicts. No matter where, when or in what capacity they served, all who are sent in harm's way are forever changed by their experience. We must fully resolve to bring new advancements to bear in the lives of veterans of previous conflicts that still struggle with PTSD or other mental health challenges. We must address barriers to quality, accessible care.
To do so, Congress must not shrink back from its commitment to the men and women who have received psychological injuries while bearing the brunt of war. We must continue to train mental health counselors to meet the demand of our veterans, a problem made more challenging by the short supply of these professionals even in the civilian sector. Pilot programs such as the Mobile Vet Centers have put the need on display, and are helping fill the void. We have also seen VA step up and play a constructive role in training doctors and nurses for the larger community. With past successes in mind, VFW suggests a pilot program to study the feasibility of working with hospitals and universities to train and mature the next generation of mental health counselors. We believe the urgent need warrants such a study, and we are confident that veterans and all Americans would benefit greatly from such a partnership.
We also believe that VA staff at all levels must be constantly trained to identify warning signs, and be attuned to mental health concerns, as part of a response to eliminate missed opportunities to diagnose mental health challenges. Providing this quality of care at facilities such as Community-Based Outpatient Clinics and Vet Centers, in addition to the VA Medical Centers, will help VA to detect and address mental health concerns.
Suicide: By its very nature, suicide among military personnel, veterans, and their families presents perhaps the most serious challenge to VA, the Department of Defense and the Nation. While we all hope and pray that 2011 will be a year of progress in our efforts to eliminate the prevalence of suicide among members of the military and the veteran community, the tide has turned for the worst in recent years. The year 2008 was the first year on record that the suicide rate among Army ranks exceeded that of their civilian cohorts. In 2009, we lost more military members to suicide than in combat, and that total rose even higher in 2010.
These dangers are especially poignant for the men and women serving in the National Guard and Reserves, who usually do not have ready access to military treatment facilities that active-duty service members enjoy and depend upon.
The President's remarks on January 24th, which unveiled the Administration's new direction in supporting military families, stressed the importance of a total force approach. The VFW couldn't agree more, and we support legislation such as that championed by Congressman Holt to provide enhanced observation for members of the Guard and Reserve. However, we are dismayed that manpower concerns have seemingly blocked this legislation in recent years, particularly as we believe that a biannual phone interview – the main thrust of Congressman Holt's legislation – is still woefully inadequate for the daunting task at hand. Congress must understand the urgency of this situation and address it with real and meaningful solutions.
The VFW believes that service members deserve a one-on-one evaluation with a mental health professional before deploying and then again at post-deployment at intervals experts believe best-suited to identify both immediate and delayed reactions to the stressors of war and reintegration.
Beyond legislative initiatives to combat suicides, DoD and VA must identify programs that are showing success in communities around our Nation and supporting them where they already exist and expand them to areas where there is a need. With an average of 18 veterans committing suicide every day, to do anything less is failure.
Caregivers: The VFW greatly appreciates the work of both the House and Senate VA Committees in passing Public Law 111-163, commonly known as the caregiver bill. This landmark piece of legislation provides a monthly stipend, respite care, mental and medical health care, and secures necessary training and certifications required for caregivers to meet the specific needs of their loved ones. It also requires the VA to conduct a veterans' suicide study in coordination with other federal agencies. At its heart, this legislation acknowledges the fact that a traumatically wounded veterans' family is ideally situated to care for them, and turns that hope into a reality for many. Caregivers of all generations of veterans carry a great burden, and we must recognize the vital role they have and continue to play by affording them the common-sense benefit this bill promises.
In recent months, VA has endured public criticism for missing the first deadline for issuing proposed regulations, in addition to being months late in delivering a report required by Congress. However, recent and aggressive steps forward make clear VA's attention to this matter from the very beginning. Last week, VA submitted an Interim Final Rule to the Office of Management and Budget to bring about a swift conclusion to the rulemaking process. Like VA, we believe the circumstances warrant the use of this expedited process. Veterans of all wars have earned equal standing for the purpose of healthcare and benefits from VA, and we strongly believe their caregivers deserve the same recognition. We ask Congress to support and oversee a timely and fair implementation of P.L. 111-163.
Burn Pits: Open air burn pits have caused major health concerns to service members. A recent study produced by the U.S. Army Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine stated that adverse health risks are unlikely, but numerous specialists and experts, notably Lt. Col. Darrin L. Curtis, PhD, who took part in the Army study, have exposed various faults and shortcomings, which undermine the validity of the study.
Particulate matter, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, volatile organic compounds and dioxins – the destructive compound found in Agent Orange-- and other harmful materials are all present in burn pits, creating clouds of hazardous chemical compounds. Every time a service member breathes they inhale poisonous and noxious fumes. Ten pounds of trash a day from a household burn barrel can produce as much pollution as a modern incinerator burning 400,000 pounds of trash a day. I absolutely understand the utility of burn pits, but there has to be a better and safer way.
We also believe that DoD is failing to incorporate cutting-edge medical science into its screening methods. A health study conducted by Vanderbilt University on OIF/OEF veterans determined that only by performing a lung biopsy were patients able to be properly diagnosed with constrictive bronchiolitis which is likely caused from being exposed to toxic smoke fumes. This makes spirometry tests void, as they are insensitive and may not detect the illness affecting those who were exposed to burn pits.
We also believe there needs to be an OEF/OIF registry to identify possible toxic exposure victims for future studies and treatment. Our experience with Agent Orange has illustrated well how medical science provides future solutions to problems being created today. It also makes clear that better tracking of exposure can tailor our efforts to provide the best possible solution. We urge Congress to ensure that DoD and VA have reliable information with respect to who has been and will be exposed to burn pit contaminants in Iraq and Afghanistan.
After years of sacrifice, putting their lives on hold, reintegrating back to civilian life is full of challenges. Through expansion and improvements to existing programs, Congress must continue to work to reduce health care, educational and employment barriers facing veterans. We believe that one of the most pressing objectives to ensure a seamless transition lies within the DoD/VA Interagency Program Office charged with achieving interoperability for records between the agencies. While we understand the huge challenges to standardize, prioritize, and decide the specific level of interoperability for different kinds of records, we still conclude that this process is lagging primarily because of the military's inability to fully wan itself off paper medical records.
Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment: First, VA must conduct a work measurement study to identify proper staffing levels and critical skills and competency needs that are truly necessary to provide quality assistance for veterans within the VR&E program. VA must also increase oversight of VR&E service contracts to ensure quality services are provided, and that reimbursement is at an appropriate level. VFW believes that VA should provide a clearer picture of success rates in the survey and performance data to ensure proper funding and training levels can be achieved. Currently, veterans who are only using VR&E for employment services do not receive monthly a living stipend while seeking employment, but veterans using VR&E more comprehensively receive living stipends for up to two months past the completion of their rehabilitation plan. VFW believes these incentives should be realigned to more fairly assist veterans regardless of the services they are receiving. It is also important to extend success tracking from 60 days to the end of the veteran's probationary period. This will provide better assurances that veterans are succeeding in their new career. Lastly, VR&E should develop and distribute satisfaction surveys for all veterans who utilize the program. The VFW strongly supports Vocational Rehab for life, as any time restrictions on utilizing such an important program prevent independence and an enhanced quality of life for veterans.
Education: Improvements to Chapter 33, the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill of Rights, have fulfilled most of VFW's requests for improving and expanding the benefit. However, there was a cost to some veterans. Removal of the interval payments, reducing the payment amount for some private institution tuition, and providing only a portion of the living stipend for online learners has either reduced the benefit or fails to provide parity for many veterans. Veterans enrolled in college assumed these benefits would be in place for their entire academic career. Now they are not, which places them in a difficult financial situation. VFW believes that Congress and VA should examine grandfathering veterans who had these payments removed. With all of these new changes to educational benefits, Congressional oversight of implementation is critical.
Education benefits for surviving spouses and children continue to erode as the cost of education continues to increase. The average cost to attend a four-year public university has reached $14,256 per year. In 2003, the last increase for Chapter 35 benefits, the average cost of a four-year degree was $10,674. While Chapter 35 benefits have remained the same, the cost of education has increased by 33 percent. To restore the value of this benefit, an increase to $1048 per month is in order.
Employment: Unemployment rates for the Nation continue to be unacceptably high, but veterans have been hit especially hard. Last month unemployment for veterans was at 15 percent. VFW believes it is necessary to broaden the tax credit beyond recently separated veterans to encompass all veterans. Encourage employers to put veterans at the top of their hiring list by increasing the tax credit to $2,400 for hiring any veteran and $4,800 for hiring a disabled veteran. We should also continue to encourage the entrepreneurial spirit that many veterans possess. This can be done by enforcing the three-percent rule contract set aside and increasing Small Business Administration funding for new Veterans Business Development Centers. These centers will provide veterans with necessary training, business planning, networking, and access to capital.
The VFW also sees a pressing need to better educate corporate America about the skills and professionalism veterans bring to the workplace. Far too often corporate America sees our fighting men and women as ill-suited for productivity in the civilian workforce. The reality is that the cultural divide between the military community and the rest of society has led to misconceptions that are preventing companies from securing the best possible workforce. The men and women who wear our nation's colors gain unparalleled leadership and team-oriented skills, while securing world-class training and experience that broadly apply across all sectors of the economy, but we must also realize these Americans need jobs. We must all do more to let corporate America know they are missing out on exemplary employees who have what it takes to meet and exceed all expectations. These Americans are an underutilized resource who is job ready. We must do more.
Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act: Since September 11, 2001, the Department of Defense has called 800,000 National Guard and Reserve troops to active duty. It is also reported by the National Guard Bureau that 75 percent of Guard members have deployed, and that 25 percent have deployed more than twice. Although, the agencies that are tasked with investigating USERRA violations have greatly improved their timeliness in processing claims, there is still a distinct disconnect between employers and activated Guard and Reserve members. Many service members and employers don't fully understand their USERRA responsibilities, and service members can unknowingly waive their USERRA rights by signing binding, pre-dispute arbitration contracts upon employment. There are currently different requirements in veteran notification of rights depending on the employer. To better educate veterans, an outline of USERRA regulations should be given to Guard and Reserve members when they receive their activation orders. To protect their rights to civil trial, pre-dispute binding arbitration agreements with employers must have a USERRA exemption. Also, USERRA process rights must be the same for the Department of Justice and the Office of Special Counsel to ensure government employees are receiving the same treatment as civilian employees. And for employers who willfully violate USERRA, harsher penalties must be put in place, to include fines and removal from government contract procurement data bases. We need to do all we can to protect a warrior's employment.
Veterans Homelessness: We know that homelessness among veterans is a top priority for the President, Secretary Shinseki and the leadership of other federal agencies. VFW greatly appreciates their goal to eliminate veteran homelessness by 2015. The official VA and HUD estimate of roughly 136,000 veterans spending at least one night in a shelter in 2009 is an improvement that took time, talent and resources. The VFW fully supports this worthy program. VA has undergone a culture shift and has several new projects coming online, including rapid rehousing for those who lose their homes, methods to prevent eviction through temporary assistance payments, and enhanced case management. VA has also started to discard the notion that a veteran needs to be drug or alcohol free before housing assistance can be rendered. While no one wants a veteran shackled by the bonds of drug or alcohol addiction, we believe a constructive step to assist veterans who want help is to give them the stability of a roof over their heads, eliminating transience in their lives, and helping them begin the process of starting over from the ground up.
VA has also increasingly recognized that this problem cannot be fixed without partnerships. Therefore, we believe their evolving approach, which stresses cooperation with local governments and nonprofit agencies, is a positive development. VFW both encourages this development and wants to help. By assigning case managers who are also responsible for vocational needs, VA is attempting to address the vocational needs of homeless veterans. VA must continue to play the lead for this effort to be successful. However, we cannot forget that the causes of homelessness are unique to the individual, and that local pressures are different in every town, city and state in America. With that in mind, we urge VA to continue this work with a firm understanding that this problem can't be solved from Washington, D.C., alone. VA must increasingly evaluate and improve its strategy of local involvement and cooperation to fully address homelessness among our veterans.
Because these and other challenges often go hand-in-hand, we are following the change in strategy to address homelessness among veterans very closely, and we encourage Congress to play a constructive role by supporting Secretary Shinseki's efforts through proper oversight and through your active involvement in your home states and congressional districts. .
The VFW is pleased with the improved transparency of VA's new method of assessing their long-term capital infrastructure -- the Strategic Capital Investment Plan (SCIP). SCIP is intended to identify capital acquisition needs, ranging from non-recurring maintenance and leasing to minor and major construction projects to close the currently identified performance gaps. SCIP reflects VA's philosophy of constructing and maintaining its own inventory of buildings, as well as leasing where it makes sense and partnering with medical schools, to provide the highest quality of care in the most cost effective manner.
The President requested just $1.151 billion for major construction in FY 2012, which is well below the $2.786 billion called for in the Independent Budget (IB). In total, the Administration's $1.618 billion request for major and minor construction is $278 million below the FY 2010 appropriated amount, and $461 million less than the IB recommendation.
VA has started adopting a new model of health care delivery, the Health Care Center Facility leasing program, as a way to address some of VA's capital infrastructure problems, including utilizing build to suit facilities that meet current safety codes, provide better geographic placement, and improves patient safety. While it has many advantages, we believe it could have an adverse affect on VA's overall system of care, which includes biomedical research and development programs, and VA's renowned graduate medical education and health professional programs. VA's longstanding partnerships and affiliations with nearly every medical university in the nation must remain viable.
For years VA has been faced with a rapidly aging infrastructure – many buildings are more than 60 years old. Although Congress has funded a significant number of new facilities in recent years, the vast majority of aging buildings have not been properly funded to trigger key maintenance requirements. We are concerned that there is not enough FY 2012 funding for the many construction projects VA needs to undertake to care for its aging infrastructure. VA also continues to be faced with challenges with respect to many non-recurring maintenance projects. Left unfunded for several years, many of these projects have now created safety issues for veterans and VA employees.
VA has begun a patient-centered reformation and transformation of the way it delivers care. How VA manages its infrastructure must also be a priority now and into the future. We urge Congress to review the construction budget carefully, and to take into consideration the benefits of improving VA infrastructure. Failure to properly fund this area simply means that facilities will require more and more maintenance just to keep the doors open. Further, lack of funding holds VA back from providing state-of-art care to all of America's veterans. We believe that both strong oversight and sufficient funding by Congress are critical to the ongoing task of providing the "best care in the world" for veterans.
At a time when VA is expending tremendous resources to treat veterans across all generations for injuries both serious and long-term in nature, we must not lose sight of the need to move beyond treating injuries and ailments. The search to find cures for the conditions that plague our veterans, and the relentless push to incorporate cutting-edge technologies to replace limbs and enhance the quality of life for them, is a noble and worthy goal that we must not allow to diminish, even in these trying economic times.
Continuing our focus on medical research makes sense on a number of different levels. First and foremost, it unquestionably enhances the quality of life of our veterans. Two, administering a permanent cure rather than treating an illness or condition is more effective and less expensive in the long run. Third, advances made by VA expand the body of medical knowledge as a whole, thereby helping all Americans live better and more productive lives.
While we recognize and are pleased with the ancillary benefits of such research for those outside VA, we agree with Secretary Shinseki that our veterans must be the sole focus of this research. Their needs are too unique and pressing for VA research and development to lose focus, and we urge you to support VA as they advance the science of caring for veterans.
One specific area of scientific endeavor that we strongly believe merits further exploration is Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatment. The VA is on the periphery of this issue, yet the Congress and veteran service organizations have continually pressed for a thorough evaluation of this treatment. The research suggests this technology could lead to breakthroughs in treating Traumatic Brain Injuries and other serious conditions, so we urge you to support it, and to impress upon VA the need to conduct whatever research is necessary to evaluate the potential of new or existing technology as a treatment tool.
In other areas of research, VA has made impressive gains. They completed research that gives credence to the benefits of chiropractic care, and organized teams of investigators from government agencies, academia, and the private sector working to cure spinal cord injury. They made advancements in the science of adult stem cells, funded and assisted studies on substance abuse, and discovered that veterans diagnosed with a mental health condition – especially PTSD – tend to also have more physical ailments. And an internal study they conducted found that 15 percent of women who received care from VA between 2001 and 2007 had also, unfortunately, reported military sexual trauma.
This list is just a small sample of the good work coming from VHA's Office of Research and Development. Veterans would not receive the care and support they currently depend upon if it were not for the advancements they are making. The funds they receive bring return on investment, and we fully support their efforts to improve the lives of both our veterans and society as a whole.
It is no secret that VA struggled to transition into a 21st century organization. Leveraging technology to automate services and streamline processes represents key opportunities to squeeze more productivity and eliminate unnecessary expenses without diminishing the services provided to our veterans. This is true for the whole of government. However, we believe VA has a particular responsibility to steward available resources to the absolute best of its ability. The importance of the task at hand deserves every effort to ensure funds allocated to VA directly benefit our nation's veterans. Yet the GAO routinely reports that shortcomings within VA results in missed opportunities and underperforming contracts with technology companies. In the last six months alone, VA has reported on needed improvements in education claims processing and DoD/VA collaboration – issues that touch the lives of millions of veterans at an important transition in their lives. With that in mind, VFW has been disconcerted at the lack of measurable progress in addressing a handful of pressing matters related to information access and security.
We have reason to believe that they have finally turned a corner. The VA instituted the Project Management and Accountability System in 2009 to address extremely low achievement rates in deploying IT solutions. So far the results are promising, as VA recently reported a jump from 30 percent to an 80 percent success rate. As a result of these acquisition reforms, VA is projecting a $355 million savings in the President's budget. We are optimistic that these savings will be realized, and that they are just the beginning of what VA can save through this and other meaningful changes. While this kind of vision and leadership is needed to maximize time and money, VA must do more. Leadership and all staff must be held accountable for their own action or inaction, and we believe Congress must ensure exemplary progress and status reporting throughout the many IT projects within VA.
On a more positive note, we are appreciative of VA's efforts to ensure Post-9/11 GI Bill payments came on time, and recognize that even if VA began these payments on a rocky start, they have absorbed the blows and it has ultimately been a success story. We also believe that other changes being made at VA will help usher in more IT successes, and we ask Congress to provide the necessary oversight to help keep VA on their current path toward success.
VA Home Loan: VA's successful home loan program is an essential benefit that provides eligible service members and veterans the ability to obtain a home loan without a down payment. These guaranteed loans also protect lenders from loss if for some reason the loan is not repaid. VFW thanks Congress for passing legislation that waives the home loan fee for service-connected veterans called to active duty, and increases maximum loan rates so that the current benefit matches federal housing rates, and is adjusted in high cost areas.
The same cannot be said, however, about VA's adaptive grants and insurance programs. Both programs provide essential benefits to today's service members and veterans, but the value of the benefits have deteriorated substantially over time.
Adaptive Grants: This benefit allows modifications to homes and automobiles to help seriously disabled veterans to regain independence and mobility — a key quality of life factor and readjustment and recuperation aid. Unfortunately, the value of these programs has eroded as rates have not kept pace with current costs in the housing market or the automobile industry. The VFW asks Congress to increase rates to coincide with private sector costs, and to provide automatic annual adjustments, as needed. We would also like to see a grant for adaptation of a second home. Veteran housing needs change with time and circumstances. What may have worked 10 years ago may not work now. A change in disability may require a home to be configured differently, or the house may have become too large as children age. We believe these evolving requirements merit a second grant to cover the costs of adaptations.
VA Insurance Programs: VA insurance programs were designed to provide coverage to veterans and service members who may have difficulty obtaining affordable coverage in the private sector due to service-connected disabilities. The Service Disabled Veterans Insurance (SDVI) program must be updated to reflect changes in modern medicine, and its benefits must be based on current mortality tables. SDVI premiums are no longer competitive with private industry, and therefore no longer provide the intended benefit for eligible veterans.
Last year Congressauthorized an increase in the supplemental insurance available to SDVI that eligible veterans must pay for in order to obtain coverage. Under the current schedule, many service-disabled veterans will not be able to afford the maximum coverage amount. VFW urges Congress to lower the premium schedule for SDVI insurance and increase the maximum coverage amount to $50,000.
Traumatic Injury Insurance: The passage of Traumatic Injury Protection under the Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance (TSGLI) program was a major VFW victory. Severely wounded veterans and their families have benefited greatly from the extra coverage; however, TSGLI does not apply to those who were severely wounded prior to the program's implementation date of Dec. 1, 2005. To properly acknowledge all who have served and sacrificed in the current conflicts, the VFW strongly supports grandfathering TSGLI eligibility back to the beginning of the war, Sept. 11, 2001.
TRICARE: The TRICARE program has afforded active-duty military personnel, retirees, and their families a high-quality benefit that we believe keeps faith with the unique service they have provided to the nation. We strongly oppose the increases in the President's FY 2012 budget.
Concurrent Receipt: The VFW supports legislation for the full concurrent receipt of military retirement pay and VA disability compensation without offset, and regardless of the rating percentage.
In 2004, Congress passed legislation that gradually phased in by 2014 the full current receipt of military retirement pay and VA disability compensation without offset, but only for those 20-year or more retirees who have 50-percent or higher disability ratings. Excluded were those service-connected disabled military retirees with VA ratings of 40 percent and below, and Chapter 61 retirees, who were medically retired with less than 20 years, regardless of VA disability rating.
All veterans should be entitled to receive full disability compensation concurrently with their military retirement pay, regardless of the nature of the disability (i.e., combat-related vs. noncombat-related disabilities, the number of years of service, degree of disability, etc.).
Survivor Benefit Plan-Death Indemnity Compensation: The VFW calls on Congress to repeal the "Widow's Tax." Congress for years has promised military spouse survivors that they would repeal the dollar-for-dollar offset that plagues the military Survivor's Benefit Plan (SBP), a purchased insurance that pays a percentage of military retiree pay to surviving spouses. Unfortunately, the "Widow's Tax" requires survivors of active duty or retirees who die from service-connected causes to forfeit a dollar of their SBP annuity for every dollar they receive from VA's Death Indemnity Compensation (DIC) program.
Survivors grieve enough. All should receive SBP and DIC without offset.
The War on Terrorism has greatly increased the demands of those serving on active duty and in the Guard and Reserve. As a result, active military and Reserve Component members are deploying at an alarming rate to fight the present day war on terror at home and abroad. More than one third of today's troops have served at least two tours of duty in Iraq of Afghanistan.
The VFW is committed to improving the quality of life for all active military and Reserve Component members and their families. The VFW is increasing its efforts to provide Guard and Reserve members with benefits and entitlements equal to their participation and contribution in today's conflicts. We will help ensure that our men and women in uniform receive the most modern equipment, best training and resources they need to succeed, and we will continue to urge Congress to provide critical support services for the family members of those serving.
The VFW firmly believes in taking care of the people who accomplish the mission, and although most of the below issues fall under the purview of your respective Armed Services Committees, each of you has a personal stake and a vote to ensure a strong and viable military. We view the following bullets as essential to ensuring a high-quality, all-volunteer military:
- Servicemen and women deserve base pay equity to their private-sector workers.
- Benefits and entitlements must keep pace with inflation.
- Increased funding is necessary to upgrade or replace military family housing, recreation and work facilities, and equipment worn out after almost 10 years of war.
- Congress must lower the retirement pay age from 60 to 55 for all Reserve Component members. At the very least, Congress must make retroactive to Sept. 11, 2001, the FY 2008 defense budget provision that allows Reserve Component members to receive retirement pay earlier than age 60 by three months for every 90 days served on active duty in support of a contingency operation.
The VFW has an unwavering commitment for the nation to obtain the fullest possible accounting for all warriors still missing and unaccounted-for. This is the most sacred of missions, and none of our members will truly rest until we know the whereabouts of everyone who did not return home from war.
Recent changes to the law now require the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC) to identify 200 missing servicemen annually by 2015. This rule change, which did not come with increases in personnel or funding, cannot diminish the work that is currently being done in Southeast Asia, Russia, Eastern Europe and the Korean Peninsula. Shifting resources elsewhere will only make current work more complicated. Witnesses will be harder to find, and acidic soil conditions will continue to destroy the remains that are left. We urge full funding for the JPAC, as well as the Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office. VFW wholly supports the U.S.-Russia Joint Commission on POW/MIAs and we ask Congress to fully fund and staff the commission.
Mr. Chairmen, I thank you again for the honor to present the VFW's priorities to you. I would be happy to answer any questions that you or the members of your Committees may have.


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James Blake
News about James Blake, including commentary and archival articles published in The New York Times.
Highlights From the Archives
Coming of Age: A Calmer Blake Controls His Game
After enduring a broken neck, his father's death and a stress-induced case of shingles, James Blake brings a clarity of purpose to tonight's match with Andre Agassi.September 7, 2005 sportsNews
A Baseline Recovery
James Blake may no longer be talked about as the next great American tennis hope. But that he is back playing at all is a remarkable rally.August 28, 2005 magazineNews
TENNIS; Blake Is Standing Tall on His Own
In between the last scraped knee and first razor nick, after Hot Wheels and before car dates, James Blake faced the awkward age of 13 each day by pulling on a pair of jeans, four sizes too big. No other pants would fit around the bulky back brace that began at his armpits and ended below the waist. No shirt was baggy enough to camouflage the condition that made him different from the other freshmen roaming the halls at Fairfield (Conn.) High School.August 18, 2002 sportsNews
Tennis Pro by Way of Fairfield
THE first ripples that James Blake was headed toward a nationally-recognized tennis career came when he was a youngster in Fairfield. ''My parents enrolled my older brother, Tom, and myself in the Harlem Junior Tennis League when I was 3 or 4,'' said Blake, 22, a member of the United States Davis Cup team.March 17, 2002 News
James Blake Wins Britain's Mercury Prize
Mr. Blake won the award for his album "Overgrown."
October 31, 2013, Thursday
Russian Players Stay Out of Debate Over New Law
Russian players at this year's United States Open largely avoided outspoken stands on the new Russian law that effectively forbids public displays of support for gay rights.
September 7, 2013, Saturday
Unusual Group of American Men Remain at Wimbledon
There are three American men left in the draw, but probably not the three tennis fans would expect.
June 27, 2013, Thursday
Matches to Watch at Wimbledon on Day 4
The top half of the draws takes to the courts on Thursday, and many are hoping that sanity will prevail.
June 26, 2013, Wednesday
Changes in the American Rankings
The first round is over, and already there are changes afoot in the rankings of the top 18 American men.
June 25, 2013, Tuesday
His Headlining Days Behind Him, Blake Still Enjoys the Tennis
James Blake lost in the first round of the Eastbourne grass court tournament, but at 33, he is happy to still be playing at all.
June 18, 2013, Tuesday
Blake Is Reflective After First-Round Loss
After winning only eight games in 88 minutes on Sunday, James Blake peered into the past and pondered the future as he absorbed his loss in the first round of the French Open.
May 27, 2013, Monday
Ousted in First Round, Blake Reflects
James Blake peered into the past and pondered the future as he absorbed his first-round loss at the French Open.
May 26, 2013, Sunday
Young Tops Blake in Surprising Qualifying Match
The first time James Blake played his fellow American Donald Young was in Arthur Ashe Stadium. On Friday they faced off in a second-round qualifying match at the Australian Open in front of few fans.
January 11, 2013, Friday
What to Watch on Saturday
Highlight matches at the United States Open include Sloane Stephens vs. Ana Ivanovic and Jack Sock vs. Nicolas Almagro.
September 1, 2012, Saturday
Rss Feeds On James Blake
Subscribe to an RSS feed on this topic. What is RSS?
Get Alerts On James Blake
Receive My Alerts e-mails on topics covered on this page.More Alerts >>


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text:
1. Madara had mutliple Uzumaki's that he was doing this to and Nagato was the "lucky" one.
2. Like Zero said, Madara knew the eyes would be strong that he gave to Nagato.
3. All Uchiha eyes are capable of the sharingan, but not all Uchiha's are capable of awakening them. So, Nagato just needed any pair of unawoken sharingan eyes to awaken them as rinnegan.
I can't say which is stronger, EMS or rinnegan, but I think madara's objective was to combine the two and I think he just did it. He took his rinnegan from Nagato and put them in his own Uchiha bloodline head and got what you see on his mask.
I don't know what his plans are for Sasuke's EMS, it might be jyuubi ressurection related or perhaps that eyepattern with the rinnegan and three sharingans inside it is possible and he wants that. Shit gets confusing real quick for me.
Also, about the spiritual and physical stuff. The eyes carrying the spiritual energies makes sense to me, but I don't wanna think they carry all of a person's spiritual energy. Itachi knew Naruto was an Uzumaki, so (I think) he literally meant it when he told Naruto that he "gave him some of his power". He gave him Uchiha spiritual power. Naruto now has Senju and Uchiha in him. That's a whole nother can of worms though. I only wanted to figure out how to make a rinnegan and where Madara's mask design came from.
My brain's frying so imma stop now.
uchiha+senju=rinnegan. this is wrong! proof? danzou.. madara..
madara said "they were mine to begin with". so??
remember this, about sasuke:
"i like to stock good eyes" or something.. believe me, he thinks that sasuke's eyes belong to him right now.
if you dont know wich is stronger, read part 2 again and again.
to awaken a rinnegan, you need to be chosen by god and you will destroy the world or find piece. nagato found piece, naruto. however madara is also destroying the world... so he could've been the chosen one to begin with. then, he later found that..(after fighting with hashirama. and rinnegan gave him hashirama's power)
madara could've been the chosen one to awaken the rinnegan. it makes sense..
you dont need uchiha+senju+etc to awaken the rinnegan.. the rinnegan itself will give you those powers. this also explain why madara was so weak. he lost those powers (rinnegan) ro better put, he gave them. so, why madara is so close to sharingan and why he gave rinnegan to nagato?
-he is an uchiha.(selfish,arrogant, proud of it etc) he loves sharingan, he is so proud of it (since sharingan is his own kekkei genkai)
-he needs gedo mazo..and gedo mazo will suck your life force away.. so.. why not use somebody that has huge life force and can easely be influenced? (an uzumaki)
i am just making theories that are based on some facts and logic to mess up with your heads and have fun. this is a manga.. the best ever, but only a manga..
he was unable to move.. so there is no need to use MS jutsus since his body was f+cked. in the flashback he was just too young and naive. but after the dead of his best friend and feeling guilty and full of hate..hum.. deja vu xD
okey this is getting annoying...I getting annoying too....
We have the Sage...he was all of the 6 paths....Hasirama and Madara were the 1st and the 2nd of those 6 paths...and Nagato was 3rd path...is that right?
if it is, how the hell would Nagato have all 6 paths(powers)?
he didn't have makuton....he had rinnegan, okey, but didn't have Susano
aaahhh, this is making me want to stop reading Naruto...if Kishi doesn't explain this, there will be a war, and since I am a Serb(we usually start all wars ), I will be the one firing the first shot
Ona sanja da sam oprao ruke,
Da sam obrijan, da sam lep.
Toplo je na jastuku,
u polusnu.
Mirise na dorucak.
Prijatan glas iz druge sobe se javlja,
Kaze da je pocelo.
Kaze da je pocelo.
Here, go read the sleepyfans version, you'll get a better sense. Or better yet, go read the spoilers of chapter 510
Riku = six
Dou = path
Sennin = Sage
Rikudou Sennin = Sage of Six Paths
The six paths are Deva (God), Tiryagyoni (animal), Naraka (Hell, Preta (hungry ghost), Asura (Demon), and Manus (Human)
The rinnegan wielder who has full control over all these six paths is the 7th path, or the outer (Gedou) path.
Rinnegan = Senju + Uchiha, or Hashirama and Madara's powers, basically Rikudou's physical energies and spiritual energies
Hashirama and Madara being 1st and 2nd, and Nagato being 3rd, that's the translation that's confusing you.
It's actually Rikudou Sennin is the first Sage of Six paths. Uchiha Madara is the second Sage of Six paths (as he has both of Rikudou's physical/spiritual energies in his body), and Nagato is the 3rd Sage of Six Paths.
Basically Rikudou Sennin was the first Rikudou, Madara is the second Rikudou, Nagato is the 3rd Rikudou, they're sages who either wielded or have the potential to wield the rinnegan (as in Madara's case).
Mokuton and Mangekyou jutsus are the yohton and inton (either yin or yang) releases of the Gedou path, meaning the rinnegan wielder. Izanagi (and maybe Izanami in future) is the onmyoton release (meaning both yin and yang).
Basically the rinnegan gives full control over life and death. The rinnegan wielder has full control over all creation, that includes destruction.
Mokuton jutsus is derived from Rikudou's physical energies, and Mangekyou jutsus are derived from Rikudou's spiritual energies. They each represent life or death powers of the rinnegan, the two halves, yin and yang.
A bridge towards peace; the will of fire still endures!
Rokudaime Hokage, Rokudaime Rikudou Sennin Uzumaki Naruto
You are the KING of mangashare forum
okey, I have a question....who thinks here that RS is Kishs?
I do
Ona sanja da sam oprao ruke,
Da sam obrijan, da sam lep.
Toplo je na jastuku,
u polusnu.
Mirise na dorucak.
Prijatan glas iz druge sobe se javlja,
Kaze da je pocelo.
Kaze da je pocelo.
@ Paul and others who believe that he implanted an awoken Sharingan into Nagato;
- tell me; WHY nagato? How did Madara knew, that Nagato was the " One " for awakening Rinnegan? Why did he implanted HIS or someone else's sharingan into Nagato, when there were more Uzumaki's? Or why didn't he just implanted more sharingan eyes into Uzumaki's childs, for having more chance of someone awakening such doujutsu?
You think that he implanted his " own eyes " into Nagato, without even knowing if he could awaken it? His own EMS? What I'm trying to say is that; you're not gonna implant your own awaken EMS into a child, if you don't know that he could awaken it.. and the bigger question is; how WOULD he know it?
- Like I said in my previous post; The Heavens choose you for wielding such powerful doujutsu, the Rinnegan. And we still don't know for sure, if he has lost his EMS..
His wharping / phasing / dimension jutsu could be related to his EMS, who knows. But yea; we just have to wait..
... You're Dead 2 Me Now ...
To his credit, I think RS has a really very good grasp of Kishi's concepts, and is most likely correct in the questions raised herein.
I find that where I take a separate path in guessing/anticipating Kishi, I am often tripped by my own propensity to seek the most direct and literal interpretations. These propensities serve me well for things I truly understand, not always so well with Manga.
The Most Direct Literal interpretation of Madara's repeated statements is that the Eyes are really his and he Really gave them to Nagato. Why is that so impossible to believe in a Manga?
Where are Madara's EMS. Everytime we've seen him he has no EMS, whatever happened to them? Maybe he implanted them in Nagato. Again, if Nagato's Rinnegan were not from Madara's original EMS, then we have a pair of eyes sitting in a bottle, or lost and destroyed somewhere.
Also someone else already hinted that Madara can sense who has strong Chakra.
In any case, Madara has probably been keeping a close eye on the Uzumakis and he probably chose Nagato very well.
Even if you disagree, the other options suggested was that Madara implanted his spiritual energy into Nagato. Obviously he preselected Nagato here also. In my opinion, Nagato is far more likely to Evolve the Rinnegan with Madara's EMS (a surer bet), than with spiritual energies alone.
In the end, I may be totally wrong, but I don't really mind that. For now however, that's how I read it.
Last edited by paulbee; 09-26-2010 at 02:20 AM.
I am not perfect and I defy you to prove otherwise
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text:
September 26 2011 09:17PM
One of the many traditions here at the OilersNation.com interwebian website is the annual rite of picking the Goat and the Star for the upcoming season. What began as a way to blame an entirely awful season on a single undeserving player has evolved into a hilarious means of mocking one another to pass the time.
The season draws near - the goats need be named.
We have been picking goats for three seasons now and it has been a triumverate of mediocrity. Here has been the annual breakdown thus far, with links to the original article where available,
2008-09: Denis Grebeshkov
Picking Nikolai Khabilbulin in 2011 to be your goat is sort of like picking Lindsay Lohan to not win any major film awards this year. It is a foregone conclusion right out of the gate and its getting kinda sad to keep poking fun.
Ever since we heard that Khabibulin – already a quiet chap from all accounts – is embarrassed by his DUI, feels bad for all the bad press he has gotten and just wants to move on with his career – we feel as though picking on ol' Nikolai has lost its fun.
And so he gets a reprieve from the scorching pressure that is being our Goat for the year in the place of a far more deserving gato.
Khabibulin trashing may have lost its lustre, but mocking Tom Gilbert on the other hand – well that just suits us to a tee. He has no adversity to overcome, just a wallet that needs a helicopter to lift and a giant goat shaped target on his forehead.
Mark our words, if Gilbert plays with a healthy Ryan Whitney all season he will undoubtedly rack up a boat load of second assists. This of course won't be reflected in his season totals. Assists are assists. This will lead the uninitiated – and hopefully some NHL GMs – will think that Gilbert has returned to form and is a point getting machine.
This is false.
Softer than newly baked bread and sporting a shoe fetish Lady Gaga herself would admire, Tom Gilbert just ain't our cup of tea. If the 2011-12 season is going to see a single goal scored on the Edmonton Oilers or even a solitary loss blemish their record it is going to be Tom Gilbert's fault.
Believe that.
Who you picking in the 2011 Goat Sweepstakes?
Clearly the funniest photoshop contest entry to date in the history of OilersNation.com is going to win Photoshop III: What If? The winning entrant - Barmstrong - has set the all time bar for photoshop awesomeness to date. As a rich, rich reward he is entitled to a catered lunch for 10 from Oodle Noodle.
As usual we would like to thank our sponsor Oodle Noodle, the champion Barmstrong and everyone who entered. These things are the bomb and there will be another one soon.
Enjoy the delicousness!
September 27 2011, 12:45PM
No contest. Peckham.
Goat - Gagner
Hero - Eager
September 27 2011, 12:54PM
I'm picking Smid, mostly cause people are stupid and pronounce his name "Schmeed" but secondly cause he's gonna suck this year.
September 27 2011, 12:59PM
Dan Tencer...err oh wait, is Tom Gilbert already picked? Rats. I will go with Captain Crazy Eye!
September 27 2011, 01:12PM
Probably a popular pick, but Brule's going to be baaaaaaaaaad.
September 27 2011, 01:16PM
my goat has to be the anthem singer. dont care who you are you will never live up to paul. But seriously ill have to go with Cam Barker. Only because he stole the #13 before it was even cold.
September 27 2011, 01:24PM
Goats - those players on injured lists . Stars - How many can you name when we lift the Stanley Cup ?
September 27 2011, 01:38PM
My top three:
Khabibulin (aka the "Boozin Wall") for his inability to stop a beach ball, let alone a hockey puck, on most nights. Is he secretly being paid by Calgary or Vancouver for every goal he lets in? Or is he part of a former Soviet conspiracy to cripple one of Canada's hockey teams?
Horcoff for his points per game average when assessed against his insane, overpaid, no movement clause, dead weight contract. Leadership counts for a bit of a bump but he'd have to be Yzerman, Modano or Messier for the rest of his contract to justify the dollars...
Brule for his wandering around the ice like he'd dropped his keys to his Ferrari and the zamboni driver iced them into the playing surface. Honestly, waive him and let him be someone else's problem, even if it has to be Oklahoma's. He may be able to rebuild his game enough to be a useable/tradeable asset by the trade deadline. He's got a "top 6" pedigree; a "bottom 6" reputation; and, an AHL future.
By all accounts, all three of them are "honest to gosh nice guys" but all are (grossly)overpaid and the Oil needs to clear them from the decks.
September 27 2011, 01:44PM
My obvious goat is Khabibulin, and/or Gilbert strictly on principle.
My real goat is Tambellini or whoever is in charge of overplaying Khabibulin this year, thinking Gilbert is the cornerstone of our future D and thus not addressing it, and dithering on signing OR trading Hemsky until he's out with a shoulder injury in mid-January and we settle for a late 2nd-rounder for him at the deadline (or he subsequently walks in the off-season). . . . I'll try to stay positive now. Sorry!
September 27 2011, 02:15PM
Hall, Paajarvi, and Lander were all born in the year of the goat.. So that's lucky because it means they are all immune to goatness.
So my goat will be that rotten Czerwonka.
September 27 2011, 02:54PM
I hope no one takes this personally, as it is not directed at anyone in particular. It's more of a group dynamic.
I hate to be that stick in the mud, still I am not a big fan of the goat thing - I am beginning to think that it is one of the ways we as fans begin to run people out of town. It is a fun idea, and like many fun ideas it ends up being taken too seriously by some. As a result we tend to magnify (or even fabricate) every mistake and shortcoming in a players game for an entire season in an attempt to prove ourselves worthy 'goat-pickers.' Some of you are even really good at stating your arguments - so much so that many others jump on the band wagon, and the player is soon vilified around the city.
So if I have to play along:
Goat - CBC's Mark Lee - He would only have to be more interesting than Kevin Weekes to avoid this goat tag yet can't even pull that off. Sad. Really.
I'll play along for real in the next article.
September 27 2011, 03:05PM
You make a good point, I'm convinced. I'm going to change my goat to Mark Lee and hope enough of the others do so that we can finally run him out of town!!! :-)
Wait, that was your point right?
September 27 2011, 03:17PM
Holy Crap Wanye!!! That Paint goat is EPIC!!!!
Oh and My Goat is Gags, hope he proves me wrong.
September 27 2011, 03:19PM
Goat: Whitney (I hope I'm wrong because I love his game, but he will be hurt)
Star: Eberle
September 27 2011, 03:31PM
I actually think that by exposing the notion of a 'goat' that we do the opposite and ridicule the idiots around town who boo'd people like Poti and Arnott out of town.
September 27 2011, 03:41PM
I actually think that by exposing the notion of a 'goat' that we do the opposite and ridicule the idiots around town who boo'd people like Poti and Arnott out of town.
Whoa whoa whoa.
Arnott for sure, but Tom Poti was a blight on this city. He was Grebeshkov before Grebeshkov was Grebeshkov. If EVER there was a Goat for all to look back upon and agree that "Yes, this man is truly a Goat" then he would be Thomas Q. Poti.
Talk about an adventure in your own zone. The fact that he resurrected his career in Washington as a "solid defensive player" is proof that souls CAN be sold to the devil for impossible returns. How that plumber woke up every morning and had the audacity to wear an Oiler uniform knowing he could never be deserving of that honour is beyond me.
September 27 2011, 04:32PM
Second on Love Child`s pick of Tenser...
Khabby needs to play 25 games with a save % above .910 to escape goat status. I think if Chorney makes the team, hes being set up for goat duty. I think Barker could be there too. I hope the best for Brule, but it aint looking like a bed of roses so far him. And even if Jones hits 12-14 goals theres alot of hate for the guy and he might be in the goat category.
September 27 2011, 04:45PM
My Goat is....Barker.. Although I honestly hope I am completely wrong here and he turns it around in Edmonton.....Dear Barker: please make me eat my words.
My Star is Eberle: I think he may have the best season of all our forwards.
September 27 2011, 05:16PM
Goat - Whitney and Gagner Star - Hall and Eberle
September 27 2011, 05:30PM
This team has placed dead last 2 years in a row. It takes more than 1 goat to cause that.
If Renney is true to his word, then Khabibulin will not be a goat, as he will end up as backup (or sent down to OKC) if he plays badly.
Gilbert has always tried to play a no-risk, no-reward game where no one will notice him. No hits, no blocked shots, no pinching at the blue line... it's all designed to ensure he doesn't make any big mistakes that we can point out later. He should be a goat for doing nothing well and nothing poorly, but really he's just an overpaid no.5 getting too much ice time.
Omark is too inconsequential to this team to be a goat. He will surpass his goal output of last year (5 goals! hoorah!) and there will be enough of those fans who still view this team as a bunch of kindergartners to give Omark a gold star for being such a hard-working cutie-pie! Put down your sippy cuy Linus, it's nappy time.
I think this year's player-goat will be Horcoff. I like him, but he will inevitably lose some ice-time to the long queue of other centers on this team, and with that will come a drop in production which will look even worse in the face of his insane contract. Plus, he's team captain, so someone's got to answer for another year of missing the playoffs.
Personally, I think we should also goat Renney, but I'm assuming the question only applies to players.
September 27 2011, 06:11PM
Goat: Taylor Chorney, Alex Plante (if either of those guys make the team this year) maaaayyyyybbbee Gagner (if neither of those guys make the team) he legitimately must win some face offs this year Star: Eberle (I hope that Barker does well too but I also hoped that Foster would do well so I'm not about to risk my star pick again on 'hope')
So I tried to listen to the ched pregame. and.
I retract my Tencer for goat offering.... he is simply a douche.
Saw someone choosing Brule. Hahaha... ya he has a chance at being the goat in OKC perhaps. I say this as a guy who mistakenly chose Brule as star last year. Sad.
Goat: Eager. We'll like his panache, but not his useless penalties that cost us points. Not to mention... already injured? My god does the curse of Edmonton ever *(@#$*(@# end?
"Honorary" mention to Gagner - not convinced he's got enough to stick here. Hopefully good enough to get decent return on a trade. Damn Lowetide and his hoping for Gagner to have an 82 game season so we can really "see what he's got". That's like speaking the S word in the last few minutes of the third period.
Star: Hall. Kid's going to rip it up. He doesn't have a sophomore slump bone in his body. Too easy? Sure, picking the star should be.
September 27 2011, 08:19PM
goat= without a doubt Gagner hero = RNH
September 27 2011, 08:45PM
I'm torn for who shall be awarded the goat horns. Smid who can't score against the opposition, but continually fills his own net with pucks. Or Horcoff who is given quality ice time as well as his large contract and declining play frustrate many fans on any given night. How about each get one horn and have a unicorn battle for the honor.
September 27 2011, 10:40PM
"Gilbert has always tried to play a no-risk, no-reward game where no one will notice him. No hits, no blocked shots, no pinching at the blue line..."
Not to instantly label myself as a stats guy, but aren't the stats guys defending Gilbert usually talking about how he leads the team in blocked shots?
September 28 2011, 07:35AM
My goat is Horcoff.
That guy is gonna whiff on more passes/shots from the slot than any other player this year.
Goat, Gilbert for sure...he is every year. Gotta go with Eberle for the star. Love that kid.
September 28 2011, 10:34AM
Are we allowed to pick Mark Lee? Cuz if we are, he is for sure...Douchiest douche of all the......
Alright, I'll say Sam Gagner, and Ill hope to hell I'm WRONG!
September 28 2011, 11:52AM
i'm gambling a bit here, but so are the Oilers, so ..
Goat: Cam Barker
this one is much easier ..
Star: Jordan Eberle
September 28 2011, 05:16PM
Goat: I'm going with the same guy I did last year. Whitney.
Some might say he wasn't a goat because he was the Oil's best player before he went down with an injury. The reason I said he was a goat wwas because I didn't think his surgically reconstructed body would hold up. It didn't, and although the numbers he put up during the time he played made him the teams MVP (apologies to Khabby) for that stretch, the guy he replaced put together a Norris nomination worthy campaign.
Same issues this year. I'll bet his games played are even lower.
September 28 2011, 05:35PM
My mistake and I stand corrected. Although the generous amounts of ice-time and his passive play probably elevate his blocked shot totals. If I was a spectator in my own end and the opposition was shooting at will on my net, I'd probably get hit by a few stray shots every night. Like I said, I'd like to goat Gilbert, but I don't think anyone notices him enough for him to earn that prize.
September 28 2011, 07:15PM
Whoa whoa whoa.
Arnott for sure, but Tom Poti was a blight on this city. He was Grebeshkov before Grebeshkov was Grebeshkov. If EVER there was a Goat for all to look back upon and agree that "Yes, this man is truly a Goat" then he would be Thomas Q. Poti.
Talk about an adventure in your own zone. The fact that he resurrected his career in Washington as a "solid defensive player" is proof that souls CAN be sold to the devil for impossible returns. How that plumber woke up every morning and had the audacity to wear an Oiler uniform knowing he could never be deserving of that honour is beyond me.
But so true.
September 28 2011, 08:13PM
Goat= Brule Gone by trade deadline for lack of physicality. Star = Cam Barker Will come on strong in the second half and get a three year contract.
September 28 2011, 09:53PM
GOAT - hate to say it but Peckham
HERO - Hall future Rocket Richard trophy winner
September 29 2011, 10:45AM
I actually think that by exposing the notion of a 'goat' that we do the opposite and ridicule the idiots around town who boo'd people like Poti and Arnott out of town.
I hope so Bookie (I can't do the upside down '!' thingy) as then we'd be ridiculing those people instead of giving them a soapbox to speak from. I will never argue that the concept of a goat list isn't a lot of fun and in theory brings a lot of potential for entertaining discussion.
The issue is how much misinformation is created by some just in an effort to be right. Simply look at how much misinformation and speculation is presented as fact in these comments alone - enough to skew some impartial observers opinions on players. Throw in a few with personal vendettas and some really crazy commenter's who shall remain nameless and the 'goat' exercise becomes something different than what was intended.
Just my opinion. I hope I am wrong
September 29 2011, 03:24PM
Well, it would be east to pick from a few players that ultimately would compete for the goat... i mean, Sutton is merely a harder hitting Strudwick, Smid can be a turn-over machine and visibly give up on plays, Horcoff is Horcoff (however does play reasonable well defensively), Barker was bought out for a reason and is on a short"ish" leash; however, he was an experiement definitely worth pursuing. As much as i love this player, and would ideally respect the Oilers organization for re-signing him to a long term contract, his hostory and this season specifically will be the reason he is the Goat of the 2011-2012 Oilers. HEMSKY. Playing in what will be less than 40 games total, all 29 other organizations will scare away from any sort of reasonable trade as he will not last a post-season if he is deemed ready to play that is. What should be a greater return then we got for Penner, will undoubtedly, turn out to be a negative. Tambs, who is always shy to make any trade, will then sign Hemmer to a contract he will never live up to as a member of the Edmonton Oilers. Yes he is a good player, but unfortunately, being made of glass in todays NHL does not bode well for such a player.
In short, Hemsky will be the Goat of the year because in a contract year, he will forseeably get injured, reduce his trade value drastically, and sign for a lot of money with the team, the only team, that would offer him such a contract. I blame Tambs and Lowe already cause we all know it will happen. Its not pessimism, its a mere glimpse into our not so distant future.
As for the Star.... it could just as easily be Hemsky if he stays healthy. But im not certain he can. So i will choose Omark as I truly believe he will fill in nicely for the injuries when they arise.
Seems like I forgot to get to this. I'm picking Ryan Whitney. Not because I don't like him but because if he ankle goes wonky, the season is doomed! DOOMED I SAY!


text:
Phil Kessel Suspended 3 Games
Jeff Veillette
September 24 2013 04:50PM
As we all know, Phil "Trill" Kessel took his beloved "hackey" a little too literally on Sunday, going full Lumberjack/Jedi on John Scott's completely oblivious ankles. We noticed it, the Sabres noticed it, and NHL Player Safety certainly did, suspending Kessel for the rest of the preseason.
Much like I said in my post yesterday, Kessel deserves supplemental discipline for what transpired. Was Scott right to jump him? No. Was Kessel defending himself with the first swing? Sure. But Kessel went back for a double and triple dip after two of his teammates had controlled Spott. It looked like one of the brawl scenes from The Rocket, without Sean Avery getting one punched for everybody's viewing pleasure.
No matter how much we all appreciate his abilities, no player should be allowed to use his stick as a weapon for the sake of it, adrenaline or not. The explanation given seems to allow for the first swing, which is something we were all thinking in our heads, but I was hoping wouldn't be said. Hopefully it doesn't leave room for precedent.
As for the length, Kessel is incredilby lucky to get three games. He misses no regular season time (he would've probably only played one more preseason game anyway), and continues his streak of not missing a meaningful game for the Leafs since he made his debut in November 2009. The issue this gives Kessel comes in the fact that he's now prone to being seen as a repeat offender. Seeing as he's been very stick and mouth happy this preseason, this will be a sign that he should cool his jets a bit.
Meanwhile, David Clarkson is appealing his 10 games for leaving the bench, and Sabres coach Ron Rolston has recieved a questionable (in my opinion) fine for "inappropriate player selection" by putting Scott on after the Devane fight.
What do you think? Did Kessel recieve too much? Not enough? Or was the rest of the preseason the right amount of discipline?
September 24 2013, 05:03PM
Interesting that the slashes in the Philly game were noted, too. No prior history in terms of discipline, but a recent demonstration of him doing a similar, if not exact same thing.
It was just right.
The suspension was long enough to maintain the message that slashing with violent intent is unacceptable but not so long that it hurts the Leafs.
I don't think this will deter Kessel from doing these slashes in the future though but then again I doubt he'll be in any more altercations like this.
I was actually really glad to see the news about Kessel's suspension with it being the optimal length and all :].
September 24 2013, 05:46PM
Im ok with this suspension. What gets me excited is that Kessel actually won a fight, never mind get in one.
I'm still mad about Clarkston being an idot, but I will take the fact that sportsnet reported that the dressing room was 'giddy' after the game. I think when it comes to this team coming together, it really helped.......but if the leafs go 2-8 to start the year, better hope that teambuilding can overcome a huge hole
September 24 2013, 07:07PM
Agree. A hockey team (or any team for that matter) is a funny thing. I know that there is no measure for team bond and friendship and closeness, but it matters. You hear athletes on great teams mention it all the time, that they "played for each other", etc. So while I don't think this fight guarantees a damn thing, I also wouldn't disregard it.
Clarkson appealing the suspension I just read. I think he has a case. He indeed jumped the boards, but only in a peacekeeper role. Never threw a punch did he? Only restrained a 6'8" monster who was going after a tiny player. Perhaps he can get the suspension down a few games, or maybe not. Worth a try.
Perfect amount.
September 24 2013, 07:38PM
I think the rule is pretty cut and dry. If anything an appeal right before the regular seasion would get a game or two under his belt as the process moves forward for him to play and get the team off to a good start. Thanks for agreeing though!!
I think the "Never threw a punch part" is irrelevant. The reason it specifies that the 1st player over the boards gets 10 games is bc it is a damn near miracle that more players on the Sabres didn't jump the boards too. I'm a Leafs fan, but this rule is there for a reason.
I'm not sure how I feel about the suspension. On the one hand, I'm glad Kessel wont miss any real games, on the other hand, what is Shanahan doing? Kassian gets 5 real games for an accidental slash while Kessel gets none for an intentional slash? I honestly don't get it, one showed malicious (albeit understandable, I'm not fighting Scott without a big stick or ideally a spear) intent while the other caused a bad injury. So Shanahan is punishing based on injury and not intention or the act itself? That seems like a recipe for inconsistency to me
This isn't a punishment. It is "take the rest of the preseason off and it won't even cost you a dime". Ridiculous decision by the league. Kessel should send the NHL a thank you card for giving him an excuse not to play in any more meaningless games.
Kessel deserves his three games. I think that instead of a fine, the sabres coach should have to play the Scott line first line minutes for three regular season games, then stuff like this would never happen. Guaranteed