Inside the VA, a guide through the inner workings of Dante’s Inferno

You thought they were fired – terminated for corruption, negligence, and theft. Guess what; they’re back and making bank. Diana Rubens is a director with a $181,497 annual salary, and Kimberly Graves is pulling in $173,949. Sharon Helman who went to Disneyland as veterans died on her watch is on her way to being reinstated, expect a bonus and compensation package for her efforts in scandal.

Way to ‘Wolf of Wall Street,’ your way up the chain – stealing half a million and falsifying personnel reports is seemingly the way to progress.

It also helps if you have U.S. Attorney General Lynch and President Barack Obama’s administration directly backing your evil-shenanigans.

This is your VA, The Department of Veterans Affairs at your service. A federal institution developed to provide care, health, and wellness, which nonetheless appears to have developed its customer and patient services, public image, and professional practices on Dante’s Inferno.

Still in the eighth circle, which bears the name of Malebolge [Evil Claws,] they look down from the bridge that passes over its fifth gulf, upon the barterers or public peculators. These are plunged in a lake of boiling pitch, and guarded by Demons, to whom Virgil, leaving Dante apart, presents himself; and license being obtained to pass onward, both pursue their way.

If you’re not familiar with the works of Dante Alighieri from Renaissance Florence; I won’t hold it against you, I have my own unique interests. In short, The Divine Comedy: Inferno is an antique yet relevant piece of literature that follows the physical descent into Hell of Dante, covering its many circles and misbegotten souls.

If you’ve ever heard someone reference a ‘Circle of Hell,’ that is a reference to Dante and the Inferno.

The Inferno is how I see the majority of federal facilities these days, as these public institutions operated in the most atrocious manner and we simply expect and accept; this is Divine Comedy. The VA is the eighth circle, and where Dante metaphorically told a story with a political theme in the episode.  The eighth circle is administrated by a demon named, Malebolge [Evil Claws,] an agile and capable beast whose personnel is comprised of the corrupt political officials and employees who were banished to damnation.

Bad Planning, Worse Execution

I don’t believe that my envisionment of the VA is exaggerated. In fact, many disagree with their own interpretations of the Veterans Administration yet the consensus is similar. The VA is a big broken machine and, it’s inherently staffed by the damned.

Albeit, the VA is just another circle in the pit, and is one of many broken federal systems designed to ‘help,’ citizens –Farm Subsides, Medicare, National Endowment for the Arts, Planned Parenthood, Social Security, Welfare, and etcetera. Barring personal opinions aside on each of these public-facing institutions; the fact of the matter remains is that they are there to provide a funded public service. Now, like the service or not, the staff should do their jobs in a professional and respectful manner as that is what they’re paid to do and what we pay taxes for; a functioning system to better the public.

The current government response has been the rich-guy response to problems, throw money at it until it goes away. There have been significant amounts spent on veterans, who don’t see the benefits of the boost with the exception of the construction of additional facilities, staffed with more of Evil Claw’s people.

The price is too damned high for foul service. In 2016, the VA received $167.4 billion, and has requested $182.3 billion for 2017 . . . VA executives must be buying private islands to flee to, in the event that we reach our limits of patience with these ass-clowns.

More is not always better, especially within a system designed to poach the veteran. In fact, many programs designed to benefit veterans simply line their pockets and provide the bare minimum or often nothing as all. The Department of Veterans Affairs in not alone in it’s fleecing of the veteran; the Wounded Warrior Project has also been ravenous with greed. Veterans are a big business and people want to help, they’ll pull out their checkbooks. Yet as kindhearted people who mean well fund first class lifestyles for non-profit organization staffers, Congress makes the same mistake with the VA.

Veteran Army Staff Sergeant and former public speaker for WWP, Erick Millette, who quit his position with this remark,

You’re using our injuries, our darkest days, our hardships, to make money. So you can have these big parties.

Meanwhile, the most noted person to resign over, Department of Veterans Affairs corruption was Veteran Army General and then Secretary of the VA, Eric K. Shinseki. His resignation was in response to the Phoenix, Arizona Sharon Helman scandal . . . who is on her way back to being reinstated.

A Triple-Tier Beast

 The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs structure principally operates within three major categories

• Medical care
• Benefits
• Burials and Memorials

Notwithstanding that, the medical system, is the most plague-ridden and pooling with corruption, deceptive practices, malpractice, and mismanagement. It is the medical system which has been marked by repetitive public scandal. While the benefits system, continues to flounder in its primary objective – processing claims.  As previously reported, a repetitious system that covers the asses of federal employees has blocked any willing politician from taking any direct action against the VA. Reports from veterans are overlooked, as are complaints from the public as is the case in most public concerns toward government institutions. We are forced to simply accept the system, and deal with it; because that’s the way it is and always has been. – Unacceptable!

The best realistic repercussions in retribution of and criminal activities by VA employees for the public or veterans is one of the oldest politician moves in the book – decapitation. Time and again, we watched senior leaders resign or be flogged by congress while the offending employee walks free, as well as that employee’s first line of leadership. The VA secretary has been forced to resign or otherwise disposed of. In fact, in the past ten-years; there have been six, United States Secretaries of Veterans Affairs.

		Gordon H. Mansfield (acting)		October 1, 2007	December 20, 2007
		James B. Peake, Lt.Gen., USA (Ret.)		December 20, 2007	January 20, 2009
		Eric Shinseki, General, USA (Ret.)		January 20, 2009	May 30, 2014
		Sloan D. Gibson (Acting)		May 30, 2014	July 30, 2014
		Robert McDonald, Captain, USA		July 30, 2014	Present

Via Wikipedia

President Obama attempted a pass at VA reform, followed his same old route; by providing no action and lip service for the press, stating,

“I will not stand for it – not as commander-in-chief but also not as an American.”

Then he fired Shinseki in a standard political and press appeasement play, and walked away. In the meantime, the offending employees who were fired are being rehired.

How is VA Medical System Supposed to Work? 

Upon discharge, a veteran can initially-enroll in the VA phone internet, mail, or in-person at a VA facility . . .  Although, I had to apply at all, several times to be enrolled. I also had to undergo multiple physicals and examinations with varying results and diagnosis. My military medical records were completely dismissed, and I was treated as if I was a liar and crook who was wasting their time upon every examination – with the exception of the VA branch at the Landstuhl Hospital in Germany. Assumingly, the constant presence of the military may have influenced their behavior and practices in comparison to their Uniter States based colleagues.

Albeit, and as an example of one of my own many unfavorable encounters with the VA. My entire VA physical examination, which took three days at Landstuhl was not accepted by the VA in the US, because it was done in Germany . . . on a US military installation, no less. My stateside physical lasted twenty actual minutes, and six hours of wait time; excluding lab work. I was completely dismissed in the US, while in Germany my entire military record was examined and I was tested thoroughly and everything that happened within my time in service was tested and recorded. For instance, I once fractured my spine on active duty.

The injuries have of course, since healed – I also provided these records to the VA for proof. Yet, for two reasons the VA struck it from my record, one it has since healed – great work online medical degree quacks. Also and primarily, since I don’t act like a little bitch and wince at pain nor perform in exaggeration, my injury was dismissed. It’s not that I was seeking a settlement, but I wanted it recorded in the event of a follow-on complication.  The VA failed to even note it, or a host of other injuries and some of which I provided not only my military medical records, but photos. Again, the examining ‘doctor’ dismissed me and said,

Yeah we see photos all the time – but I don’t see an injury right now.”

Despite this, veterans are meant go through a series of physicals to validate their claims of current and historical injuries sustained while on active duty. The veterans’ claims are then sent to a review board that weighs the doctors findings and the financial information of the veteran to determine coverage. Yes, if a veteran makes too much money, is not visiting for an injury that was noted by an examining physician, or a host of other reasons – veterans must make a co-payment, or outright pay. The VA is not free, in many cases.  

The coverage process, along with the claims, compensation, and benefits process – is slow. It will also require several appeals, and a veteran cannot effectively appeal on their own, but must seek-out a third-party veterans organization such as the DAV to process their appeal.  Howbeit, the appeals process will most likely have to be repeated, taking years, and many of us, just say; fuck it, and fuck the scandalous federal employee assholes at the VA – and hope to one day have private insurance. 

I quit after four years of an upstream charge through a river of BS. Just as well, I do not have any interest in being reexamined by those quacks or playing phone tag with bureaucrats. Hell is on earth; just ask the VA or government for something to find it. Oddly, they are excellent at demanding anything, and immediately from any of us.

Dismissing Terrible Employees – Not at the VA

I went over many of the complications in this process in a previous article, but the dismissal proceedings can vary from within the appeals process of the employee. Even so, the dismissal proceedings often resulting in the employee not being punished at all, or fired and rehired with compensation for their time off, and a new-hire bonus.

Additionally, multiple political cards are played that somehow omit an employee’s negligence; these acts include alleged disability, gender, and race discrimination as a defense versus outright criminal neglect. And as we live in a time where these classes are hot points in politics and press – no one dares to counter these claims. Additionally, Title 5 of the United States Code outlines the role of government organization and employees who are protected by United States Code – federal employees, VA employees. They’re teflon employees – mafiosos.

We’ll pick up next on the problem with veterans – a uniform doesn’t make someone a hero or honest. As well as problems with management and hiring practices.

Read the previous article here.

Featured Image – Buck Clay