A "Short Shrift" Update.

The other day I wrote a piece outlining the injustice done to our Minnesota National Guard Red Bulls with regard to their benefits rightfully due them resultant of their service in Iraq. Specifically, despite serving a full 22-month combat-related tour in Iraq, they were deliberately shorted a few hours so as to avoid paying them full benefits.

I have done some caterwalling to legislators and have done some investigating regarding the matter, and at the very least, appeared to have ruffled a few feathers.

I did have a chance to speak with Representative Bob Dettmer, who informed me that he will be travelling to D.C. within a week, and that the subject will be high on his agenda as he communicates with federal lawmakers. He was very cordial, and being in the Reserves himself and having a son who just got back from Iraq a couple of weeks ago, understood what an injustice this was. Representative Dettmer directed me to contact the Minnesota Department of Veteran's Affairs, who then gave me the number of Col. Eric Ahlmess, who heads the Federal Department of Veterans Affairs here in Minnesota.

Colonel Ahlmess stated that he was aware of the situation, and was trying everything in his power to rectify it. He characterized the difficulty as resting with the upper eschelons at the Pentagon, and that to rectify anything with them is an uphill battle, at best. At the very least, he was able to relate that there was a good chance that he would obtain a ruling, hopefully by the end of this week, that would make it indeed possible for soldiers to later switch to the Mongomery GI bill, if they chose the lesser "National Guard" benefits package earlier. This would be a huge step in the right direction, as this option would not be possible under current conditions.

As a representative of the Minnesota State Vetarans Affairs office stated, it was indeed a travesty that these brave men and women would be left with a lesser level of benefits via "clever accounting" that would short them of these benefits by matter of only 24 hours.

Rest assured that this issue is far from over. I will continue to update you here and at True North as this story develops.