Army Life

Apart from my posts written from Iraq, this blog has been mainly introspective and nostalgic in nature; a look back at the good old days. The two posts dealing with the GI Bill were a departure for the norm. It felt great to step outside my own experiences and help other veterans who needed the right information directly from the right source. I spent the next few months burying myself in homework and working part time before Brandon came to me with some news: the Department of Veterans Affairs was expanding its new media reach, and it needed someone to helm a forthcoming blog.I took Brandon up on his offer after much deliberation. I still had school to finish, but it was rather unsatisfying. I missed the challenges of the Army. I missed having a mission.

 

Today I announce a new mission: the launch of VA's blog. It's called VAntage Point, and its purpose is simple: to transform the mode of communication between veterans and VA. The main column will be written by staff writers: myself and Lauren Bailey, the Special Assistant to the Chief Technology Officer. Brandon is the editor, and will occasionally chime in when not covering my drafts in red ink. We are set to tackle issues affecting veterans, with emphasis on getting the right information to the right veteran at the right time. The exciting part for everyone involved is the Guest Post column. Anyone can submit a post on a topic concerning veterans, and it will be published as long as it's coherent and competently argued.

We're not just looking for fluff pieces either. If you had a bad experience with a VA doctor or couldn't get through on a help line, we want to hear about it. We're looking for a cross section of guest writers - anyone from a student struggling with reintegration to a VA surgeon to a Vietnam veteran and everyone in between. For the first time in the history of the Department of Veterans Affairs, ideas and communication will flow two ways.
Over the past six months, the Army has assessed its strengths and weaknesses as well as key attributes of the profession and the professional. Each of the attributes was assessed at the individual (commissioned officer, warrant officer, noncommissioned officer, Soldier and civilian), unit, and institutional levels. The review included two centrally developed and managed Army surveys (distributed by the Army Research Institute), Profession of Arms focus groups (i.e., sensing sessions organized by cohort), PoA forums (i.e., professional seminars, conferences, and symposia), dialog captured from discussions on major Army professional blogs and forums, historical reviews, and a “red team” assessment conducted by Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) to assess what could create damage to the profession.