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In a conversation today with Lt. Gen. William Caldwell, the head of the Army's Combined Arms Center in Leavenworth, Kans., we learned that the Army is getting all Wiki on us. Basically Caldwell is embracing the Web 2.0 phenomenon of making reference material available online in an easily updatable fashion by creating so-called Wiki pages based on the popular Wikipedia online reference source.

Date / Length: 7/14/2009 10:30 PM UTC - 30 min Description: h:34685 s:607634 Lindy Kyzer, strategist with the Army's Online and Social Media Division, will join us to discuss how the U.S. Army is implementing social media to better tell the Army Story.

"The VA's position on PTSD-combat links is untenable, though. Critics such as independent journalist Ilona Meagher, who edits the online journal PTSD Combat: Winning the War Within, argue that the government willfully ignores PTSD issues, which leads to troubling results such as increased troop suicides. "

"Ilona Meagher, the author of "Moving a Nation to Care: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and America's Returning Troops," maintains a detailed online list of resources for veterans seeking help with PTSD. In the past, she has featured the warrior poets. "Everybody coping with PTSD needs an outlet, some way to express themselves," she said during a telephone interview from Chicago. "This is one powerful way to not only to help the veterans cope, but to make the public at large aware of this serious problem.""

PTSDcombat.blogspot.com (Ilona Meagher, author of Moving a Nation to Care: PTSD and America's Returning Troops, has created an "online journal" for vets returning to civilian life.)

A real thrill tonight to have a turn as a guest poster for the Netroots For The Troops [on facebook] series over at Daily Kos. NFTT is a collaborative of online bloggers who came together at last years' Netroots Nation Convention, having collected donations and purchased needed care package items in advance, to pack boxes and ship them to soldiers serving in Afghanistan and Iraq. By all accounts, it was a smashing success. So why mess with success?

Military families throughout TRICARE's west region now have a new way to learn about their health care benefits through the movies. ... "TRICARE 2 You" video topics, which run an average of three minutes in a prime-time news format, include explanations of TRICARE plan options, how to access specialty care, behavioral health resources, pharmacy options and newborn enrollment, among others. "We wanted to do whatever it takes to help our beneficiaries maximize use of their TRICARE benefit and avoid out-of-pocket costs," said David J. McIntyre, president and CEO of TriWest Healthcare Alliance. "This is especially useful for service members, particularly those in the National Guard and Reserve who live or work in rural areas without convenient access to military base resources," he said. Produced by TriWest, in partnership with TRICARE Regional Office-West, the videos are housed in the company's new "TRICARE 2 You Online Library" at www.triwest.com/T2U.

What is the Naval Institute Blog? An independent online forum where you can express thoughtful, productive ideas, insights and opinions on issues affecting our Nation's defense. We're not the Navy nor any government agency.

"Ilona became a devoted advocate for military personnel and their families. She is the editor of the online jounral PTSD Combat: Winning the War Within and earliest force behind the ePluribus Media PTSD Timeline, a comprehensive database of press- and independently-reported OEF/OIF PTSD-related incidents. She has received national recognition for her work, everywhere from FOX News to The New York Times to the US House Veterans' Affairs Committee. Her blog is crucial for anyone who has a professional interest in helping soldiers and families, and an excellent resource for news about veterans' issues."

"Some top notch educational combat trauma and PTSD programming is available online. Here are a few, specifically aiming their education at the patient/counselor level."

Duckworth told senators yesterday that: "To become a 21st-century organization, the DVA (Department of Veterans Affairs) will have to change some past methods. It's no longer enough to hand out brochures at demobilization ceremonies. We must develop social networking strategies, use nontraditional outlets such as blogs, and employ the wide variety of new media available to get the message of available benefits to our veterans."

"Historians will likely remember Operation Iraqi Freedom as iWar v1.0. The Web has done more than quicken reporting from the battlefield; it has made war interactive. Al-Qaeda militants, conservative bloggers, peace activists, Iraqi civilians and the U.S. military all use the Internet to distribute their versions of the truth. They often engage in e-mail debates, but more often sink to slurs and threats when challenging an opposing point of view. U.S. soldiers return from battle to their rooms or tents, boot up their laptops and log on to let their friends and family know they've made it through another day. If their base is large enough, the Internet service provider offers broadband, and they can make a video call home, watch news reports on the war or post their own versions of life in Iraq to their blogs. "I blog for the same reasons soldiers wrote letters and diaries during previous wars: to communicate with family and friends, (and) to maintain an honest record of our daily existence," wrote 1st Lt. Matt Gallagher, in response to an e-mail about his blog http://kaboomwarjournal.blogspot.com. "Blogging is simply a 21st century tool for a new generation of soldiers to utilize.""