VFW-PAC, you suck

Incidentally I have to say I disagree with the PACs action based solely on the fact that the opponent was a former respected officer. I would think this would be a pro-veteran candidate. Take back the PAC!

The top five insurance companies in 2009, made an average of 12 billion dollars … in profits, that is right, after paying everybody and the lights and water and ads to tell us not to believe in health care and R&D they made 12 billion which is 50 percent higher than in 2008. That was a record. I don’t begrudge them the profits, this is a capitalistic environment. Hell yea make some money. Just don’t expect me to believe you made all that money as a favor to me. I remember when medical care was affordable. We had the best healthcare in the world then. And it didn’t cost a tenth of what it does now. The housing industry was trashed by the lenders. In their quest for profits they were only focused on the short term loan sales end of the market. These are the predictable results of such short sighted actions. The three people I know who got hit in this did not get their loans because of the democrats. They got them because they “could” get them because lenders were pushing the loans out the door as fast as possible. One guy had three houses he was trying to flip for a quick profit and got caught at the wrong time. Not because of the democrats. I recently spoke to an older doctor who told me that when he was a med student he lived in his car. His fellow students were in similar circumstances because the education was expensive and took all of their time. Consequently, he told me, most of the students wanted to be doctors to have a career helping people, and they were vetted out because it was so hard. Now he says the students drive Lexus and BMW and live in posh apartments because they can get loans due to the fact that they are “going” to make massive amounts of money because of the way the system is now set up. He said that many of the med students are becoming doctors based on the pay alone and lack the actual… Read more »

“The top five insurance companies in 2009, made an average of 12 billion dollars … in profits, that is right, after paying everybody and the lights and water and ads to tell us not to believe in health care and R&D they made 12 billion which is 50 percent higher than in 2008. That was a record. I don’t begrudge them the profits, this is a capitalistic environment. Hell yea make some money. Just don’t expect me to believe you made all that money as a favor to me.”
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As I said, the “record profits” were not any higher than any other industry. In fact, the health insurance industry’s profit margin was ranked in the 80s of all industries. The “record profits” cry is just a talking point of the Left and does nothing to fix the issues with health care costs. The health insurance companies are not the problem.

And yes, I believe they did make that money as a favor to you and me and everyone else. Their profit goes back into R&D, which has made amazing advances in technology and medicine, treatments and cures over the the decades.

Profits are after R&D
and a 50 percent increase in profits is not a talking point it is a freakin miracle.

I’ll make you a deal, NonCombatent. You point me to facts which show that the insurance industry’s profits are the primary cause of rising healthcare costs and I’ll look up the details of how their profit is spent regarding R&D.

I guess my contention is actually that the “historical level” of costs involved with health care rose precipitously along side the now intimate relationship between insurance companies and hospitals/doctors. The huge increase occurred about 25 years ago. The level has remained fairly stable considering inflation and what have you for the last say 25. It would do me good to check that out. In truth I am stating this from info I haven’t looked at in 10 or so years myself. Gut check ehhh. Alright your on.

@mtngrandpa, et al: Like I’ve stated before, cancelling one’s membership is NOT the answer!! If we want to effect change in the VFW & it’s PAC, it MUST come from within!! To abandon an organization because they screwed up is just like rats abandoning a sinking ship!!

I’ve heard stories of how the Viet Nam vets were treated by the older VFW members. It’s now apparent as to how much those old WWII & Korea vets has adversely affected the VFW. Those folks are now dying off, as is the membership of the VFW. What I will say is to hang in there. Why, you may ask?? Because it’s time for the Viet Nam and younger Vets to take the helm. My Post is run by two Viet Nam Vets and two Desert Storm Vets. We are trying very hard to recruit the younger war vets that have returned or are returning from the war front in Iraq & Afghanistan. You didn’t desert when you were in the military, did you?? Please, please……. don’t desert the VFW now. Let’s FIX this problem instead of killing the oldest and most viable veteran’s organization!! We can’t FIX the problem if we aren’t involved!!

Sorry, messed up the HTML above. Here is the proper link:
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The GOP has been suggesting these solutions for decades now, only to be blocked every step of the way by Democrats.

Mr Wolf,

When Carl Levin & Harry Reid led the charge with Speaker Pelosi in tow, to defund Our Troops in a war zone, did you:

A)Speak out against it and rally Veterans and Citizens to vote against them?
B)Tear up your passport and renounce your citizenship?
C)Sit silent?
D)Quit paying taxes and burn your ID cards?

Burning your membership card is the same. Just as your birth gave you American citizenship, so too did your presence on the battlefield earn you a right to VFW membership. Just as citizenship earns you a vote in the Congressional elections, even a right to run for office, so to does your membership in the organization, even a right to run for office, but if you renounce either, then you have given up your rights to a say in it.

Money? The only financial interest you hurt is that of your local post. If you think your post is that bad, you can transfer your life membership to any post of your choosing, where National sends money for your membership there.

A sluggish response? No, National responded very quick for this kind of organization. Have they done all they need to do? No. There is a need for more action, within days, not months, but the VFW is a representative democracy, just as is the Nation. It operates according to rules, designed to prevent partisanship, rules that must be followed to ensure the response to the wrongful actions taken are not partisan in nature.

If you don’t like the current leadership, get involved, run for office, but the VFW is not a dictatorship and does not have executive directors self-appointed for life.

Mr. Wolf,

I attempted to explain it. This is something that must be voted on by the MEMBERSHIP. I haven’t had time to research whether or not it can be done at some sort of emergency meeting, yet. At our regular Post meetings, there are many things that are required to wait until the next monthly meeting, even if it comes up after that night’s meeting, like during dinner. National is no different, except that they only have meetings once a year. That is WHY it will have to wait until next August. So, the way I see it is that you want the VFW to compromise its by-laws and just singlehandedly dissolve the PAC?? I that right?? If so, that’s just not the RIGHT way to handle things.

With all due respect, if you want to bail, then go ahead and do it. There WILL be somebody to handle this situation, me, being one of them. I’m just a lowly Post Quartermaster, but I DO intend on being at the National meeting next year. Somehow, some way, I WILL be there. Who knows, by then, I may even be the Post Commander. Elections are next April and the pro-tem is seated in June.

This situation has caused quite the disturbance within the VFW. The members HAVE noticed and they don’t tend to forget. Hell, we have members at the Post that I belong to that haven’t forgotten the poor leadership and rampant theft that was three and four years ago. I seriously doubt that the members are going to forget about this in less than a year.

What this all boils down to is either lead, follow or get the hell out of the way!! I intend on leading, even if it’s from such a diminutive position as mine.

“Pull the ‘base’ out of any structure, the top collapses..”
Mr. Wolf

And that seems to be your real motive. Damn the torpedoes, you want the VFW doors shuttered. This event is just the excuse? Your individual demands to avoid the continuation of your call for erosion of the membership were beyond the legal authority of the leadership.

And despite the fact that the leadership has responded, quicker than I would expect, you’ve not published that response, nor allowed them time to act further. The National Leadership has stated that further immediate action is needed, but correctly stated that permanent action to prevent further problems cannot occur until the membership has a chance to weigh in.

The membership is outraged at the actions of the PAC. The leadership has stated their opposition to the actions of the PAC. Veterans that are not members have weighed in. You can be assured that your bully pulpit has allowed you to damage a century old+ Veterans Organization, but when you do renounce your membership, you will no longer have a right to challenge its direction. I doubt that will stop you from voicing it.

But even as I agree with your outrage over the endorsements, I find your vindictive desire to destroy the organization, rather than take back what is ours, misguided at best.

Rather than helping to unite Veterans in a brotherhood born in combat, you have chosen to fragment Veterans in partisanship. Rather than lead, you’ve chosen to desert. Rather than consider changes within the rules, you’ve called for the rules to be ignored and your dictates enacted.

Perhaps you hope some other organization will step in and buy the real estate represented by the thousands of VFW Posts around the nation as they shutter their doors, locking out the gathering of Veterans? That won’t happen.

Thor-

The local level will notice the drop sooner, and the impact of fewer dues and membership fees. National has apparently taken the stand that ‘we can wait’.

No, they can’t.

Again, the only thing they are willing to do is ‘study’ it. A true leadership will act decisively NOW- not implement some decision later. As Patton said- A good plan violently executed now is better than a perfect plan executed later. If the bylaws prevent the National Commander from acting, then the PAC leader needs to voluntarily step down, and all of those in this process need to resign. Where is the difficulty in this?

I’ll tell you where it is- they don’t represent veterans, or their needs, any more… they represent themselves.

No, Mr. Wolf, the VFW is not a partisan organization, ran by an all-powerful executive, capable of tossing out members on a whim, nor even of overriding independent but associated commissions it doesn’t like. It does not “support the current administration.” The list of endorsements made by the PAC includes incumbents on both sides of the aisle. Like it or not, the National Commander is elected by the membership and must act within the rules of the charter. That is a slower process than your demands allow, but you didn’t run for National Commander, did you? Did you run for any office during all of this time that you’ve had a beef with the organization? Or is it simpler for you to simply use your bully pulpit to tear down an 111 year old organization, to complain instead of seeking out and implementing solutions? Do you really think that because your voice is louder than other members, echoing across various well-read websites, that you should have the right to force the resignation of an elected leader of it? Do you realize that he has been in office for a period of weeks? For every member of your positions that you convince to mutiny, to desert an important organization, you strengthen the vote of those that oppose your positions. In the end, your efforts will weaken the VFW. Your voice is that loud. But it will survive your rants, your personal vindictiveness, for whatever caused your fervor. And if your voice is effective enough, it may well create an organization, centuries old, with a partisan streak for your opponent. Your demands were unappeaseable. The National Leadership has no authority to comply to them. It recognized your points and agreed that the endorsements were wrong. It is working towards fixing the problem and frankly we don’t know if they will do some of that before the elections, but we do know that at the very earliest point available, they will bring it to the membership, as only the membership can disband what it created. But the VFW must remain party independent, even… Read more »

“It is working towards fixing the problem and frankly we don’t know if they will do some of that before the elections, but we do know that at the very earliest point available, they will bring it to the membership, as only the membership can disband what it created.”
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How does the VFW leadership “work towards fixing the problem” when the problem is… the VFW leadership? That’s like having a corrupt organization investigate its own corruption. And then, amazingly enough, they come out with a report that says “we’re not corrupt!”

It seems the problem is that the VFW is structured such that the VFW members have no say in the organization and the leadership acts on its own regarding politics.

You say “they will bring it to the membership”, but that is missing the point entirely. They should have brought it to the membership BEFORE they made any sort of endorsements.

Instead, they decided to play the ‘better to ask for forgiveness than permission’ game. The leadership unilaterally decides to endorse incumbent assholes, the membership calls them out on their bullshit and the leadership comes back and says “Oops! Sowie! Well, since we already made the endorsements, we’ll just have to wait until next year — AFTER the NOV elections, teehee! — to talk about it with all you irrelevant shlubs, er, members.”

That’s BS.

The VFW is simply acting like a corrupt union… the leadership has all the power to do what it wants irrespective of what the members want. They take the members’ money and then spend it how they want, instead of how the members want.

Is the VFW supposed to be an organization which represents its members or is it simply an organization that collects money, appoints leadership and then the leadership represents the VFW as they see fit, regardless of what the members want? Sounds more like the latter to me.

But the VFW Leadership cannot simply decree that the PAC is null and void. The membership created it and the membership must vote it out of existence. In order to prevent partisanship and to preserve the legal status of the VFW, the PAC is technically a separate entity. The PAC was created with rules to prevent partisanship, but has failed to prevent blind support for incumbents.” ========== So the members created a VFW-PAC, over which they apparently have no control? That makes no sense. The members of the VFW created a PAC that is supposed to represent the views of the members of the VFW, yet the members of the VFW have no input as to how the VFW-PAC supports political issues? Again, that makes no sense. For me, this is not an issue of partisanship. This is an issue of representation. The VFW-PAC does not represent the members of the VFW, as I would think it should. If a voter looks up a politician and sees that they have the endorsement of “VFW-PAC”, almost all voters would assume that meant that the members of the VFW — ie military members who have been deployed in foreign wars — support said politician. But that is not the case at all, considering none of the members of the VFW were even asked whom they support. “How to Run a Representative Organization for Dummies” would logically conclude that when an organization wants to provide a representative endorsement, it would take a vote from the members of its organization to find out whom they want to endorse BEFORE making said endorsement. One would think it would be pretty simple — if their annual meetings are in August and their endorsements come out in late SEPT/early OCT — to send out word to all VFW locals in JAN of an election year to ask their members whom they want to endorse. Then, at the annual AUG meeting, they can tally everything together and come to a decision on whom to endorse based on the wishes of the members. Then, in SEPT/OCT, put out the… Read more »

Michael, In a Representative Democracy, ie. Republic, we elect those who decide on the daily business that we don’t have time to fully investigate. I.e. we elect Representatives. Why, because pure democracy is cumbersome. The Poles, who have come closest to it, found that out the hard way in between WWI and WWII. We also set in place rules by which those Representatives operate, because dictatorships become overbearing, as the Russians and Germans found out. In today’s Veteran Organizations, we find the IVAW, IAVA, VVA, VFF, and WLF, which have self-appointed executives, that can act very swiftly but do not respond to the positions of any Veteran other than their self-appointed boards. All of these claim “non-partisanship,” yet the VFF is aligned with the Republicans and the IAVA is a tool of George Soros and aligned with the Democrats. (Even worse than the IAVA is its spinoff Vote Vets). Those Executive Directors can rule by decree and the choice is to take membership or leave. The American Legion and VFW elect their leaders and are constrained by their by-laws and charter, specifically to prevent abuse. Is your solution simple enough? Yes. It even makes sense, but it is not supported by the by laws and charter, which can’t be changed until the Convention, as per the by-laws and charter. To do otherwise would be like overriding the Constitution because we don’t like the way a few groups have abused Free Speech. Mr Wolf knows that, or should have known that. He also knows that the 2011 Convention will go on, whether he and every reader he has burns their membership card or not. If every conservative VFW member online were to follow his call for desertion, the VFW would still have the money to survive 2011, but only those that support the opposition would be there to vote. It would be ripe for the pickings of a George Soros type to add to his stables. How sad it would be if a Paul Rieckhoff type were to lead the VFW off the partisan cliff, with its 111 year history. Fortunately,… Read more »

Hey there, You have done an excellent job. I will certainly digg it and personally recommend to my friends. I’m sure they will be benefited from this web site.

One more reason the VFW will cease to exist in the near future…join the American Legion an/or AMVETS…much better organizations

Me,.a former VFW member

WTF is this Polish (gry online na pc download”)? Can someone tell me why this individual can’t sign on/communicate like the rest of us? I’m lost on this.

Forgive me for asking for clarification ( and exposing my ignorance), but what is it’s purpose?