Out of all the responses I  have received to ASVEI only one person  has responded negatively.  She claims a life of selfless service to others and spirituality but refuses to support  those who purchased her right to choose with their very lives. I wish to thank her for reminding  me of WHY ASVEI exists...those who are not  part of the solution are part of the problem.

Sometimes I wonder if there are any patriots out there...the kind who speak up when they KNOW something is wrong.  I created ASVEI as a response to  a growing wave of companies being willing to sacrifice veterans and their families to the god of  profit. I believe that during tough economic times EVERYONE has to willing to make some sacrifices, and that includes companies as well as  citizens. When I  saw a young kid with a purple heart and two tours of service unable to get even a helpers job in a multi-billion dollar refinery expansion  project, I knew it was time  to speak  up..and  I did.  He now has a job and I now have a mission...to help  other veterans and their families improve their quality of life  through employment.  Will you help?  Please  contact ASVEI at 409-499-9425.  YOU ARE AN AMERICAN PATRIOT..ACT LIKE  IT!

 Yesterday I had to fight my wife's company.   Neither of us liked it, but we both knew it was the right thing to do. The company was  wrong and something had  to be done about it.  As the founder of ASVEI, I can not bow down to fear  when  addressing an issue and my wife knows  that.  She is a good woman and her work at the company allows  her to stand on her own merits.  I was assured by the Human Resources department that she would  not be retaliated against in any way, and  I  presented my grievance to the company and we reached an amiable agreement.  Changes were made and the right thing was done.  However, in our unofficial conversation I did mention to someone in authority that my son is 6' 8"  and weighs  256 lbs., built like a WWF wrestler, and loves his mama more than kids love choclate chip cookies.   I think he got the message...

A good friend just pointed something out to me:  ASVEI has a goal in  2010 of contacting 5000 employers and securing employment for a minimum of 1000 veterans. If we are successful, the return to the veterans community is  approximately  $25,000,000.00 for an  investment of approximately $100,000.00. That is a reward ratio of around $250.00 for each dollar invested in ASVEI.  Is  that a good deal for America's veterans and their families or what?

Today I received a telephone call from Bob Klein from the corporate offices of Harley-Davidson. I believe Bob was sincere when he stated to me that the company did not approve of the treatment received by one young veteran at COWBOY HARLEY-DAVIDSON here in Beaumont, Texas.  For those of you who are not familiar with the story..the facts are simple.  A young veteran returned from the war and was attempting to find employment in the motorcycle industry.  Specifically, he wanted to be a H-D mechanic.  The dealership was approached with the idea of providing the veteran with some "hands-on" training as a mechanic..and the answer was that it was not possible due to the fact that their mechanics were paid by commission and therefore could not slow down to train someone.  Given the prosperity obvious at this particular dealership--that action left a bad taste in several veterans mouths.  The fact that a multi-million dollar a year dealership could not find even a part-time job for an unemployed veteran was particularly distasteful and hard to swallow.  At ASVEI, we support the view that in tough economic times businesses must forego ultimate profits and do the right thing.....even if it means losing a little profit to supply a job.  The fact that it is wartime and the person involved was a vet further complicates the situation.  We did an online survey to which 143 veterans responded.  All but one favored a boycott on H-D products in order to protest the dealership's action and serve notice on other businesses that veterans are demanding fair treatment in recovering from the financial hardships many veterans and their families suffer due to their service to the country. ENOUGH IS ENOUGH...and American businesses must shoulder their fair share  of the economic burden many veterans bear. Bob is forwarding a letter to me in support of ASVEI and ALL VETERANS....and we thank him for his support.  As a final note, another dealership (Japanese) has offered a job....and we thank them for their support.  But  COWBOY-HARLEY..TAKE NOTICE..you are going to lose some sales due to this treatment...so maybe there is justice in this world.

By Susan J. Williams, Associate State Director, AARP-Texas

As Kwanzaa quickly approaches, the principle that we are currently most focused on is ujima, collective work and responsibility. In other words, the goal is “to build and maintain our community together and make our brother's and sister's problems our own and to solve them together.”

African-Americans in Texas face a health care and affordability crisis today and solving it demands that we all work together.

The number of citizens without health insurance in Texas is at a critical level, and members of the African American community are disproportionately affected. More than 25% of the non-elderly African-American population in Texas is uninsured, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. This equates to more than 600,000 people who are living without the security of health insurance.

The community is also afflicted by preventable diseases that can be turned around through education and early intervention. Nearly 1 in 5 births among African-Americans in Texas are pre-term, more than 50% higher than for other races. The death rates from cancer, diabetes, heart disease, strokes and other related diseases in this state are also significantly higher than for other groups. One in 47 African American men in Dallas is infected with HIV/AIDS.

Affordable, quality healthcare is hard to come by. In fact, less than 50% of African-Americans in Texas receive health insurance from their employers. The rest must do without or find insurance through another source, which can be very expensive.

These are among the reasons why AARP started the Divided We Fail movement. Divided We Fail is a non-partisan effort to engage the American people, businesses, non-profit organizations and elected officials in finding bipartisan solutions to ensure affordable, quality health care and long-term financial security—for all of us. There are countless stories of individuals who have struggled to afford to stay healthy, a right that should be available to all Texans. These people are living proof that these problems are pressing concerns. Find more information about Divided We Fail online at http://www.dividedwefail.org.

The Texas office of AARP, one of the core Divided We Fail partners, is proud to be a silver sponsor of Dallas’ 18th annual KwanzaaFest- HealthFest. We are part of an event which hopes to provide more than 20,000 health screenings to help improve the overall health of the Dallas area African-American community. We hope you’ll join us on Saturday, Dec. 13, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and on Sunday, Dec. 14, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. in the Automobile Building at Fair Park. Stop by our booth and sign a Divided We Fail pledge and add your voice to the millions of Americans who believe that we as a country can practice ujima and find common-sense solutions to the health care crisis and lifetime financial security.

Transitions
 
Since the year Seventeen eighty-nine
When George Washington was sworn in
There was the promise of America
That was finally, about to begin.

Wise men wrote our Constitution
And declared, our Independence
They said, all people were equal
With those words, not given license.

We were a young, fledgling Nation
Trying to figure the right way
To control our new Democracy
Which, we still struggle with, today.

We opened wide, freedom’s door
And asked all oppressed to come
But still, we had so many things
Which were unfinished, left undone.

The Women, who were our backbone
Were not allowed a say, to vote
Relegated to the home and kids
With no rights, a sad, historic note.

Not until, Nineteen and twenty
Did they finally win the fight
To that promise from America
Where we claimed, all, had that right.

We allowed people to own people
And turned a blind eye, to that blight
And it took our terrible, Civil War
To make us, finally, see the light.

Those freed by Lincoln’s Proclamations
In Eighteen sixty-two and sixty-three
Soon learned, freedom was a state of mind
And found, they still weren’t, truly, free.

The States still had their own laws
And many said, there was no way
To allow Blacks in the voting booth
To register, or to have their say.

Forty-five years after the Women
There was finally Federal legislation
That guaranteed all would have a voice
As to who, and how we ran our Nation.

Equal Rights for all Americans
Is still an imperfect, process
Sometimes, it seems we backtrack
As the rich get more, the poor get less.

We now have a Black Man running
And a Woman, for number two
Some said, it would never happen
But, change, is what Americans do.

This Great Experiment of Democracy
Has surely come, a long, long, way
But, if we don’t protect those Freedoms
We can’t afford the price, we’ll pay.

Our Country is at a crossroads
And only History books, will tell
If we had the will, up to the task
And, if we really, did it, well!

It’s an honor and our solemn duty
To cast our vote for our belief
And party lines aren’t always true
And may cause us pain and grief.

Our two party system worked awhile
But, has caused so much division
Not always, the best for the People
And, it’s time for some, revision.

Vote, for what, you know is right
Even, if some say you’re wrong
Like it was, in our beginning
When we were young, proud, and strong.

Either way, we will make, history
With the election, in November
Let’s hope we make the right choice
On a day, we will, want, to remember.


Del "Abe" Jones
08.31.2008
 

  I wrote this for the Honor Guard benefit at VFW Post 4641, in Dickson, TN.  If you have a VFW in your town please forward this on to them.  Honor Guards rarely get the thanks they deserve.
Thanks,
Abe

For Their Honor 

You’ll see them standing proudly
In the summer’s heat or cold
Their heads bowed in silent prayer
For the young Soldier, and the old. 

They will take the time away
Precious hours of their lives
To fold our Flag carefully
To present to loved one, kids and wives. 

Some people think they are paid
But no, it’s at their expense, too
So, when you see an Honor Guard
Just tell them, “Thanks, for all you do.” 

Del “Abe” Jones
06.06.2008

Three panelists. One moderator. Eighty-plus audience members, spanning three generations. Democrats, Republicans, Independents, and everyone in between gathered at St. Mary’s University in San Antonio on June 4 to bust myths, break gridlock, and find common ground. So what drew this diverse crowd to AARP’s Opinion Leaders Forum?

Cold, hard cash. Or, at least, talking about it.  

AARP sponsored the forum which focused on the future of financial security for Americans of all ages as part of Divided We Fail, a long-term, public outreach effort designed to find bi-partisan solutions to ensure affordable, quality health care and lifetime financial security for Americans of all ages. The topics of discussion included discussions on Social Security, personal savings in the wake of declining pension plans, and financial literacy.

Three lively panelists brought the heat. Lionel Sosa—founder of the largest Hispanic advertising agency in the U.S., sat side-by-side with Cindy Hounsell—an experienced pension attorney and president of the Women’s Institute for a Secure Retirement, and Dr. James Galbraith—an economics professor at the University of Texas and the former executive director of the U.S. Joint Economic Committee. Moderator Frank Morris, a member of AARP’s National Policy Council, facilitated a spirited discussion.

After a brief discussion on diminishing pensions, Morris broached the controversial topic of Social Security.

“When Social Security last needed a fix, Ronald Reagan sat down with…Tip O’Neill…and worked out a solution that increased taxes and trimmed benefits,” Morris said. “Do you think that kind of solution is possible today?”

Sosa feared the eventual decline of Social Security and doubted the program’s sustainability. “People are living longer today, and that costs more money and impacts Social Security,” he said.  No one projected we would live this long.”

But Galbraith noted the importance of the program will rise.

“Social Security will be even more important in the future than it is today…[and] it’s up to us to defend that great institution,” he said.

Americans’ attitudes toward savings was another key part of the discussion, with Morris asking: “The personal savings rate has fallen to the lowest levels since the Great Depression. What can be done to encourage more people to take control of their own financial futures?”

Sosa advocated a shift in cultural values. He theorized that it is American expectation—not the American dream—that has become impossible to maintain.

In 1946, he argued, the average American family hoped to own one car, a two-bedroom one-bathroom house, an icebox, and if they were very, very lucky, a washing machine. Now, he said, if Americans don’t have two cars and a three-bedroom home, they think they’re poor.

Again, both Galbraith and Hounsell countered his argument. Yes, they said, the American dream has changed. However, since Americans are working longer, harder hours, the panelists theorized that workers have appropriately increased their expectation for a higher standard of living. According to Galbraith, it is a lack of opportunity—not a lack of discipline—that prevents Americans from saving.

“Research shows that if people have extra income, they save it,” Galbraith said.

The culprit for a lack of savings, he claimed, was not necessarily American greed and consumerism. The panelists concurred that a broken health care system that fails to provide adequate coverage is a key factor.

By the end of the conversation, the panelists and the audience agreed that talking about financial security with neighbors and friends—even neighbors and friends with different opinions—will, eventually, help to inspire change. And the time for change is now.

“We’re always going to have differences of opinion and there will always be disagreements about specific policies and legislation,” Morris said. “But if today’s forum is any indication, there are people all across the political spectrum who are truly committed to making a difference and not leaving these problems for the next generation.”