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Veterans Review and Appeal Bd: pressure to reject claims, spying, junkets (MERGED)

Nemo888 said:
I was a medic in when the NVC was introduced. It was brought in for one reason only. To save money. The costs looking after vets under the old system were going to exceed the cost of prosecuting the entire war.  This was unacceptable to the bean counters who luckily have no conscience or morals. The program has been incredibly successful in their view. If only we would just shut up.


Change doesn't happen without advocates pushing for change.  While politicians played a role changes were made to keep vocal minority in the legion appeased.  Good politics isn't always good policy.  When the NVC came in a whole bunch of programs were strenghtened at the loss of indexed monthly pensions.  I feel it was the Legion that really threw us under the bus as they fully supported and pushed it the NVC. It probably would not have been changed so drastically if they hadn't of supported it, considering again the bad optics that would play out in the media of a government trying to screw around with vets. They didn't give a flying fuck that anyone hurt after 2006 wasn't as well covered, as 99.9% of them were grandfathered under the old system.

A good example is MCpl Franklin who gets an index monthly pension for the rest of his life because he was injured before the NVC. A friend of mine injured in 06, has essentially the same injury and got a lump sum payment. Fairly substantial, but in no way shape or form will it ever monetarily match what MCpl Franklin gets over his lifetime. The Legion can go screw themselves. I hope they fade away into the night...
 
We have now seen the pendulum arrive at a new extreme.  In the past , we had guys collecting DVA pensions for injuries that were neither debilitating nor even an impediment to progressing in their career.  Now, we have a single payment to buy-off guys with debilitating injuries that make continued service impossible.  I think we need to find a middle ground.
 
Teager said:
So why not do it right the first time around instead of taking the gamble risk every time?
Because if it's in the courts, the gov't doesn't have to pay the extra money needed for the solutions until the courts say they do.  So while the Info-machine talks about how much wounded vets are respected (or at least respected by the private sector, anyway), the government lawyers come up with all sorts of arguments why the system should stay the way it is - recent case in point

Teager said:
Also it can take away votes for that government party that is in charge when they refuse to make change. If they did make good changes it could also work in their favour for more votes.
As someone waaaaaaay smarter than me has said here, support for the Canadian military across Canada is a mile wide and an inch deep - if there were a lot of votes to get this way, it would happen.
 
If I may weigh in here.

I was severely wounded, in 1994, under the "Old" charter, and therefore collect a pension.  But let me state this.  I had to fight for the last 19 years to get to a level, that deserves the damage from the wounds I incurred, and I am still fighting.  I had to stare down into the belly of the beast, and claw and scrape, and justify for every percentage!

The old system may have seemed "excellent" but they would give you pittance, if anything, and make you fight for more.  All I say is, careful what you ask for folks.  The percentages I see be given now, would never have happened before, believe me.

dileas

tess
 
MJP said:
I feel it was the Legion that really threw us under the bus as they fully supported and pushed it the NVC. It probably would not have been changed so drastically if they hadn't of supported it, considering again the bad optics that would play out in the media of a government trying to screw around with vets............ The Legion can go screw themselves. I hope they fade away into the night...

I agree wholeheartedly.  The modern legion is a services club, with fewer and fewer members actually having any military service at all.  They certainly don't speak for me.
 
Two good points here:

1.  Middle ground needs to be found.  The NVC added a lot of benefits on to what was simply a monthly payout and as my hombre the 48th has pointed out, that wasn't always the greatest.  Just as many perceive the NVC as a way for the "system" to wash its hands of an injured vet, the old "here's your $376 a month, now go away please" wasn't much better.  Some of the benefits are really useful and are put in place for good reason and there needs to be a middle ground.

2.  I think the Legion wheels vets in on bridge night to validate itself.  It's no different than a local Rotary club but it uses a veneer of (mostly nonexistent) service and fancy medals to position itself on a different level.  They certainly don't speak for me either.
 
Infanteer said:
1.  Middle ground needs to be found.  The NVC added a lot of benefits on to what was simply a monthly payout and as my hombre the 48th has pointed out, that wasn't always the greatest.  Just as many perceive the NVC as a way for the "system" to wash its hands of an injured vet, the old "here's your $376 a month, now go away please" wasn't much better.  Some of the benefits are really useful and are put in place for good reason and there needs to be a middle ground.
Good point - shame it seems to have to go to litigation to reinforce problems with the NVC (as opposed to them who says it's their great idea saying, "maybe it needs some tweaking").

Infanteer said:
2.  I think the Legion wheels vets in on bridge night to validate itself.  It's no different than a local Rotary club but it uses a veneer of (mostly nonexistent) service and fancy medals to position itself on a different level.  They certainly don't speak for me either.
Sadly, they seem to have a lot of traction re:  being seen as "the voice of the vet".
 
Infanteer said:
I think the Legion wheels vets in on bridge night to validate itself.  It's no different than a local Rotary club but it uses a veneer of (mostly nonexistent) service and fancy medals to position itself on a different level.  They certainly don't speak for me either.

Welcome to my world.  ::)

Basically you've nailed it. No matter how much the high command may state they want/need change and welcome the modern vets. The general consensus, at least I feel, among the leadership at lower ( Branch, Zone, District) is that they like things just as they are. They don't want change especially if it means "new vets" with actual leadership and management skills coming in and usurping their privileged postions ( see Dunning Krueger for a model of how Leadership often works at this level in the RCL).

Changes to the NVC is just lip service to the RCL , the older generation of vets aren't affected by it and they're not complaining to the new Leadership of the Legion about anything as long as the beer is cold and cheap and they get wheeled out now and then for a dog and pony show.

Now excuse me I need to get back to the Legion and discuss our latest plan to rearrange the deck chairs.  8)
 
For those that are interested:

http://www.vrab-tacra.gc.ca/Employment-Emploi/Apply-Devenir-eng.cfm

VRAB is still looking.
 
The latest from the vets 'budman:
The country's veterans ombudsman is disappointed the federal government has not extended legal assistance to ex-soldiers who find themselves battling for benefits in front of the Federal Court.

Guy Parent, as part of his review of the Veterans Review and Appeal Board, recommended that Ottawa allow lawyers in the pension advocates branch to continue to represent former members whose cases end up in the courts.

The suggestion was made as part of a review of the appeal board that was conducted in the spring of 2012.

Almost three years on, Parent says the Conservative government has made good progress implementing some of his other recommendations, but the important question of legal representation remains outstanding.

In a letter to the ombudsman before he was replaced, former veterans affairs minister Julian Fantino said resources are better spent at the earlier stages of appeal in order to "get the right decisions at the earliest possible time."

But Parent says the federally appointed lawyers at the pension advocate branch know the particulars of individual cases and it doesn't make sense to see them drop out of the process just as the veteran reaches the most complicated legal ground ....
 
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