Organization's fundraising letter raises ire of activist for veterans

EDITOR'S NOTE: A recent letter from the president of Vietnam Veterans of America, soliciting donations, struck the wrong chord with Richard Phenneger, president of Kootenai County-based Veterans Services Transparency. Phenneger, a crusader for veterans and their relatives who suffer from the devastating effects of Agent Orange, shared with The Press his response.

Both letters follow.

Dear VVA Member,

Who really does care about the scandal at the V.A.?

As you know, the long waiting lists, for doctor appointments and the overwhelming backlog of disability claims are not "news" to VVA.

VVA has long been frustrated by the inability of the V.A. bureaucracy to reform itself. This has now been compounded by employees who would lie about the delivery of services for their own benefit .

Over the years, we've brought our concerns to the attention of leadership of the V.A. and to our elected members of Congress. We get the usual lip-service about new systems and procedures, reorganizations, and promises to improve.

Well, the realities of the situation have finally come to light to the shock and profound disappointment of all patriotic Americans.

Some VVA members have lost faith in the V.A. system ... are you one of them?

VVA now believes that the V.A. truly does want to solve the problems that have been plaguing the system for decades. And VVA is certainly well-positioned - especially with our expertise about the issues facing Vietnam veterans - to help the V.A. leadership finally begin the necessary transformation.

But the help of VVA members is essential - as soon as possible. Honestly, I'm not sure we will ever get an opportunity like the one before us to secure the timely and professional V. A. healthcare our fellow veterans NEED and DESERVE.

Could you please support your organization today by sending the most generous gift possible today?

You may even have first-hand experience with the long waiting lists and false record-keeping at your local V.A. hospital or clinic.

You understand that veterans need more than a few Congressional hearings and eloquent promises. It is time for decisive action and continued public pressure (if you would like to read VVA's statements on these issues, go to www.vva.org).

Without a doubt, I know you really care about this deplorable scandal. Please help VVA be part of the solution to this national crisis by sending your gift today. Thank you.

The possibility that veterans may have died waiting for V.A. care is beyond belief ... you can help!

Sincerely,

John Rowan

National President

P.S. By popular request, I've enclosed our annual "summer" address labels - without any obligation, of course. Thank you for doing your part to deep this V.A. scandal on the front pages of the newspapers. With your help - our fellow veterans will get the medical attention they earned. God bless.

Richard Phenneger's response:

John Rowan

National President

Vietnam Veterans of America

8719 Colesville Road, Suite 100

Silver Springs, MD 20910

Dear President Rowan,

I am in receipt of your recent letter to all Vietnam Veterans of America ("VVA") members. The content of your letter, which lacked a true Plan of Action, was shocking. It was an insult to every Vietnam Veteran.

On January 16, 2013 I was awarded an Honorary Life Membership in the VVA immediately following the presentation of my publication "Legacies of War - Agent Orange." I was humbled and honored by this award. I also presented a copy of the May 5, 1990 "Report to Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs on the Association Between Adverse Health Effects and Exposure to Agent Orange," authored by Admiral E.R. Zumwalt, Jr. Seventy copies of each publication were given to the VVA leadership.

The Admiral's report had been classified, "Not for Publication and Release to the General Public." Many VVA members appeared somewhat stunned by the Admiral's charges of cover-up and manipulation of data to hide the disastrous impact of Agent Orange on the health of millions of our veterans who served in Vietnam and were exposed to Agent Orange. In the 24 years since the Admiral's report was delivered to the Secretary of the DVA, not one of the Admiral's listed facts, including testimony by independent scientists, has been challenged with any credibility. This stunning result shouts that the Admiral's facts are true.

Reliable independent sources have confirmed that the VVA has had a copy of the Admiral's Report since 1990. Why has the VVA leadership allowed the DVA to continue its crushing malfeasance and resulting devastation of Vietnam Veteran families? Why have you not demanded that the Vietnam Veterans Epidemiological Study ordered by Congress be completed? Where were you in 2003 when the DVA again refused to follow Congressional orders to have the Institute of Medicine complete the Study? Where were you in 2010 when the IOM publicly reported that the Study needed to be completed? You know, or should have known, that the Study, if completed, would prove the devastating impact of the DVA's fraudulent cover-up. Why do you think the DVA continues to refuse to complete the Study?

Based on your continued failure to act, I continued my research and published "FORGOTTEN - Our Innocent Children Born & Being Born with Deformities - Caused by their fathers' exposure to Agent Orange during the Vietnam War." You have been sent at least two copies of "FORGOTTEN." The research is easy to follow. Still, no comment, no action by the VVA. How can you possibly suggest that the DVA, after 45 years of cover-up, falsification of documents and malfeasance that has caused the early death of hundreds of thousands of Vietnam Veterans, and has resulted in untold thousands of deformed children being fathered by Vietnam Veterans exposed to Agent Orange, is suddenly ready to stop lying and do its job? Did not last May prove the opposite?

You say that the ". . . realities of the situation have finally come to light to the shock and profound disappointment of all patriotic Americans." You have the Admiral's study and a copy of "FORGOTTEN," but you still say that the DVA's duplicitous conduct has ". . finally come to light. . ." To whom, the VVA? Maybe it is surprising to you, but it is not surprising to the millions of veterans (including our Vietnam Veterans) who wrote blank checks for a value up to and including the sacrifice of their lives to protect our very precious way of life.

Nowhere in your letter do you outline a plan. You simply ask for contributions so that ". . . our fellow veterans will get the medical attention they earned." Are you starting a new medical program? What will you do with the money? What are you doing now to address the cause of the devastating illnesses and birth defects from which our Vietnam Veterans and their families are suffering? Is your relationship with the VA blinding you to the facts? Have you become a part of the problem rather than the solution? I sincerely hope not.

The VVA "Faces of Agent Orange" is well done. The Ford Foundation's recommendations are meaningful, but are not a comprehensive plan that addresses the core problem: "Getting the Vietnam Veterans Epidemiological Study completed." Without the Study, the Ford Foundation's five points will become as meaningless as other DVA Agent Orange programs.

The publication "FORGOTTEN" identifies the truth and outlines a three-step plan, the first step being the completion of the Vietnam Veteran Epidemiological Study by totally independent scientists, with private money and "no strings attached." Our Vietnam Veterans, all of our veterans, deserve nothing less. Let's get it done!

Sincerely,

RICHARD PHENNEGER

Honorary Life Member of the VVA

President

Veterans Services Transparency