By Michael Schindler Congress is coming up against a hard, fixed deadline of Dec. 31 to make a decision on whether to extend the unemployment insurance benefit. If they don’t, some 5 million people will be without federal assistance in 2012. If they do, it will cost $44 billion to keep what is a lifeline…
By Elaine Mattson There are lists of “best books of the year” appearing all over already. And there will be more. From everyone. And… I get to do one this year! I picked my nine favorite books from this year. I know, most of the lists are 10, but most of those lists come from entire…
Edmonds resident Michael Schindler, founder of Operations Military Family and author of the weekly Edmonds Military Wire column that appears weekly on My Edmonds News, received an Amway Hero Award for Patriotism last weekend in Orlando, Florida. Here’s an award summary from the Amway Achieve magazine website: “Mike served his country by enlisting in the…
By Michael Schinder “We have a lack-of-skilled-labor problem.” At least that is what one expert in Washington, D.C. told me this past Friday. As we were discussing the issue of Veterans and jobs, the conversation digressed to the overall issue of employment in America…or lack thereof. According to this economist, whom I will not name…
By Michael Schindler As if the transition from active military service to civilian life doesn’t present enough challenges, it appears some for-profit schools are wooing vets in an effort to capture the big GI Bill money and then leaving the veteran ill-prepared for a civilian career. According to an investigation by the Senate Health, Education,…
By Michael Schindler Check out the following offers available to veterans in honor of Veterans Day, Nov. 11: Applebee’s – free meal on Nov. 11. Last year, Applebee’s served 1,024,000 free meals to military veterans and active servicemembers. Applebee’s is again offering a free meal to military veterans and active-duty service members, and there will…
By Elaine Mattson For some reason, our little corner of the world is chalk full of authors. Theories abound. My favorite has to do with the fact that while attempting to stay out of the rain, we have plenty of time for indoor activities. (Why so many of the books end up twisted, dark and…
By Michael Schindler The president recently announced that all U.S. troops will be withdrawn from Iraq by year-end. To some this is great news – especially for families back home. To others, the news is a bit alarming and shows more like a political move. But the reality is, after nearly nine years since entering…
By Michael Schindler “Three words. That’s all it took. I was writing a letter home to my mom when the call rang out across the American compound: ‘Get it on!’ And just like that, the course of my life changed forever.” Keni Thomas, Bronze Star for Valor recipient, now a U.S. military veteran-turned-country musician, gives…
By Michael Schindler Welcome to the 21st century. No question this time in history will be viewed much like the Great Depression — high employment, increasing homelessness, economic instability; there is a lot of “belt-tightening” and not just at our home fronts. The Department of Defense has been instructed to tighten its belt as well…
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By Michael Schindler If the bipartisan supercommittee is unable to reach a deal by Thanksgiving, what we now know as an “all volunteer” military could give way to the Vietnam-era draft. Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee Representative Buck McKeon recently claimed that if the bipartisan debt supercommittee is unable to reach a deal…
By Elaine Mattson Now that we have, at long last, had a bit of summer, I must admit that I am getting ready for fall. The top is back up on the Jeep, and it is starting to become noticeably darker, noticeably earlier. One of the best parts of fall is all the great books…
By Michael Schindler Uh-oh. The Obama administration is challenging a ruling by the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco that would allow veterans’ groups to go to court to seek an overhaul of the Department of Veterans Affairs’ procedures and timetables to speed health care to veterans. This decision has some vet…
By Michael Schindler Understanding the issues that face our first responders and military families can often be difficult for those who haven’t actually “lived it.” Coming soon to theaters is a movie, “Courageous,” that does a great job of bringing some of those issues to the forefront. “Courageous” takes a look into the lives of…
By Michael Schinder Army officials announced that beginning January 1, 2012, most soldiers will deploy for nine months, giving them more time at home between deployments. That being said, most augmentees and those with particular skills or in low-density skill sets and grades will remain on 12-month deployments. So what does this really mean? Those…
By Michael Schindler Over the years I have had a number of people ask me what are practical ways they can support our troops. Is it care packages? Calling cards? Letters? All of these are great. And our troops are often well thought of while deployed. So what happens when they get home? Unfortunately, for…
By Elaine Mattson A long-time customer, and a woman I have known since I was a kid (hi Mrs. Pince!), asked me what was the best book I had recently read. And it stumped me for a minute. I’ve been reading a lot of books this summer, and have liked a lot of them ……
The Army has a new threat – and unfortunately it is an ongoing one that seems to grow regardless of the resources they throw at it: service member suicides. In the month of July, the Army reported 32 suspected active duty and reservist suicides, the highest monthly toll on record. Of those 32, five took…
By Michael Schindler There are times I get emails from readers that cause me to pause for a moment – and the one I’m about to share did exactly that. Being over 40, I don’t count on Social Security as my retirement plan and I made that known to a few; I’m sure I also…
By Michael Schindler Okay, I know this will sound a bit funny – especially in light of all that is taking place in Congress right now – but the government has dedicated an office to help strengthen military families financially. Here’s the release: “A government office dedicated to protecting servicemembers and their families from financial…
By Michael Schindler For more than nine years, we have been engaged in conflict and war. The result: multiple deployments, marriage breakups, troop suicides, increases in domestic violence and military sexual trauma. There are also countless hidden injuries – PTSD, TBI and chronic pain. The flip side? No terrorist attacks on U.S. soil. So the…
By Elaine Mattson There has actually been an occasional day of summer. Hooray! So grab a book, and find a spot to relax and read and breathe in these summer days. Are you reading faster than your favorite author can write? Unless you are reading everything with James Patterson’s name on it (how _does_ he…
By Michael Schindler. Down to the wire. Are we going to raise the debt ceiling or are we going to default. That is the most pressing question for many in Congress. But if you are serving this country, the most immediate question is, “Will I get paid?” The answer is yes. On Wednesday, July 13,…
By Michael Schindler Some will undoubtedly say, “It’s about time…” and there is no question that services for women veterans have been lacking. Women veterans are one of the fastest-growing segments of the veteran population. Of the 22.7 million living veterans, more than 1.8 million are women. They comprise nearly 8 percent of the total…
By Michael Schindler Classified ads have never really been “classy.” Growing up I remember that people’s worn out or well-used goods were given real estate at the “back of” the newspaper. Jump a few years and the classified section graduated to Craiglist. Not classy – not flashy; but extremely effective. And the goods actually seemed…
