Military Romance Novel Co-Authors to Give Away a Kindle Fire on July 1st

(This is a guest post by Bonnie Bartel Latino.)

YOUR GIFT TO ME, a new military romance novel by Bonnie Bartel Latino and Bob Vale, shares the subtle but central theme of the transformative powers of love and laughter to triumph over grief found in TOP GUN and STEEL MAGNOLIAS.

The male and female co-authors are a unique collaboration. Bonnie and Bob met online in 1996 in CompuServe's military forum. Although they have never met in person, their CompuServe correspondence evolved into a professional writing team that has lasted for over a decade.

The ability to seamlessly blend their individual points of view results in a single captivating voice with broad appeal. YOUR GIFT TO ME, their debut novel, is the culmination of that collaboration.

An award-winning writer and former freelance columnist for Stars and Stripes newspaper in Europe, Bonnie is a correspondent for the Mobile (AL) Press-Register Living Arts book page. She lives in Atmore, Alabama, with her husband, retired Air Force Colonel Tom Latino.

Bob Vale is an award-winning graphic designer, writer, and photographer. He founded and is president of Graphic Word, a full-service creative agency on the East Coast. He and his wife Janice live in New Jersey.

Bonnie and Bob are members of the Military Writers Society of America.

Brief synopsis: Nearly a decade after Emily Meade’s husband died in a fiery Special Operations helicopter crash in the 1991 Gulf War, she moves to Hawaii, clinging to her vow never to get involved with another man committed to a dangerous profession … until she meets charismatic F-16 pilot, Colonel Ted Foley.

However, he is assigned to a fighter wing that recently lost two pilots in unexplained air crashes.

Lowering her emotional barriers, Emily discovers a man who makes the ordinary feel sublime. Healing in shared confidences solidifies their relationship. As she becomes the vivacious woman she was before her husband’s death devastated her spirit, her fears resurface. Ted’s squadron suffers another F-16 crash.

Emily must find a path through her emotional minefields or risk never discovering that she's rejecting the only type of man to whom she is genuinely attracted, a man whose life could be in danger!

Kindle Fire Give Away: To promote the launch of their novel, the authors will give away a Kindle Fire to one lucky reader on July 1. Entering is as simple as sending a brief email about YOUR GIFT TO ME to 10 friends. Easy contest details may be found at www.yourgifttome.net/blog
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the fiction books MRS. LIEUTENANT and CIA FALL GUY as well as the co-author of the technothriller LT. COMMANDER MOLLIE SANDERS. Click here to read about her books on her Amazon author page.

Phyllis is also the co-founder of the marketing consulting company Miller Mosaic LLC, which builds websites for clients and works with them to use online marketing. Read her posts at the company's online marketing blog.

Compelling Documentary “The Invisible War” Deals With Rape in the U.S. Military

The documentary “The Invisible War” shown at Sundance 2012 is a powerful film about the high incidence of rape in the U.S. military -- rape that often goes unchallenged and unpunished.

While there are numerous chilling statistics in this compelling documentary, for me perhaps the most disturbing statement is this:

Women who have been raped in the military have a PTSD rate higher than men who've been in combat.

According to the article “Military Rape Documentary ‘Invisible War’ Leads to Policy Changes Before Its Opening” by Steve Pond in thewrap.com:

In April, Secretary of Defense Panetta viewed the film -- and two days later, according to [documentary producer Amy] Ziering, he held a press conference to announce changes in the military's policy toward the prosecution of rapes.

But while the filmmakers welcome the change, both Ziering and [director Kirby] Dick say it isn't enough. “By moving the decision up but leaving it in the chain of command, a lot of the problems that you get at the unit commander level still exist,” Dick said.

As many of you know, in the last four years I have written extensively about PTSD suffered by our military personnel. Given that the attacks on these women (and men) were perpetuated in many cases by personnel in their own units, the sense of betrayal can make the PTSD even more overwhelming.

Read the entire thewrap.com story now -- and then consider how you might help right this terrible wrong.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the technothriller LT. COMMANDER MOLLIE SANDERS. Phyllis is the co-founder of the marketing consulting company Miller Mosaic LLC. Click here to visit Phyllis' Amazon author page.

Solomon's Justice, PTSD, Suicides, and CIA FALL GUY

Author Theodore Knell, who spent 22 years as a British Special Forces soldier, has written a compelling post about my proposed TV drama project “Solomon’s Justice.”

Theo’s post begins:

As a nation we routinely ask our military to do things that only the bravest few of us would dare to do, to see things that no one should have to see, and to watch their friends, colleagues and innocent men, women and children die in horrific circumstances. Then we ask them to live with the consequences for the rest of their lives.

Why are we then surprised when the lives of these very courageous souls begin to unravel?

The morning after this post appeared The Wall Street Journal carried this news blurb in the front-page “What’s News” section:

Suicides among U.S. troops are surging, averaging nearly one per day this year, the fastest pace since America began a decade of war.”

The small article insides include the information that there were 146 suicides in the first 148 days of this year. “That is 17% more than at the same point last year and 24% ahead of the 2010 pace.”

I met Theo via the Internet when his nonfiction book FROM THE CORNERS OF A WOUNDED MIND was published. It is an amazing story written in narrative and poetry of the effects of PTSD brought on by the experiences our soldiers must endure to protect us.

Visit (and “like”) his Facebook Page for his upcoming book A HELL FOR HEROES — www.facebook.com/AHellForHeroes

Then read his entire post in connection with my proposed “Solomon’s Justice” project.

And consider what you can do to help active duty military personnel and veterans survive and thrive despite being damaged mentally and physically by their service. Perhaps you know someone who would be interested in furthering the “Solomon’s Justice” project. If so, email me at pzmiller@millermosaicllc.com

P.S. Read the lovely publication announcement of my novel CIA FALL GUY on Mary Elliot Raynor's military retro blog.

© 2012 Miller Mosaic LLC

Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of fiction and nonfiction books. Her newest fiction book is CIA FALL GUY (on Kindle Select at http://amzn.to/L38eiP ) — the idea for which came from a May 1972 bombing of the U.S. Army’s Officers Club in Frankfurt, Germany. (Read the blog post about this bombing.)

Memorial Day, PTSD and Solomon's Justice

(Reprinted from www.PhyllisZimblerMiller.com)

I finished the first draft of the TV drama script for my proposed project “Solomon’s Justice” just before the Memorial Day weekend in the U.S. began.

The script channels the information and true stories I have heard in the four years in which I have been active online (BlogTalkRadio, websites, blog posts, etc.) supporting U.S. troops, their families and veterans, including focusing on Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

The May 26-27 Wall Street Journal carried the front-page article “One Taliban Bullet, Two Lives Lost” by Michael M. Phillips:

On Jan. 18, about halfway through his first combat tour and shortly before a scheduled home leave, the 27-year-old soldier sat in his room at an Army base in the snowy mountains near the Pakistan border. He held a 9mm pistol, the weapon medics carry to protect their patients in battle. He put the muzzle to his head and pulled the trigger.

He left behind a two-word note. "I'm sorry," it said.

For many in the military, some of the toughest blows aren't from battle but its aftermath. In the field and at home, many troops wrestle with depression, trauma, anxiety and substance abuse. Sometimes, combat veterans struggle to overcome the guilt of outliving their friends.

The article is a compelling story of one medic’s desperate attempt to save the life of a fellow soldier shot in a Taliban ambush -- and of that medic’s suicide four months later.

As the Journal article reported, “self-inflicted deaths among active-duty Army personnel [21.8 per 100,000] … surpass[ed] the civilian rate in the U.S. for the first time in 2008.”

The May 24 Pasadena Weekly carried the article “Warrior Justice: State courts ease up to help war veterans in trouble readjust to life at home” by Logan Nakyanzi Pollard:

Started in Buffalo, NY, in 2008, veterans’ courts have been established in several states around the country, including California, which has nine such courts statewide, most located in Southern California.

There are approximately 23.4 million veterans, 1.7 million of whom served in Iraq or Afghanistan. As much as one-third of the nation’s homeless population has served in the armed forces, according to estimates from the US Department of Veterans Affairs. Nearly half of all homeless vets suffer from some sort of mental illness, and 75 percent struggle with substance abuse.

But, unfortunately, many vets don’t know they have that option available to them, says Judge Michael Tynan, who presides over the veterans’ court established in the Los Angeles County Superior Court system.

According to this article, Judge Tynan is seeing many vets from earlier wars such as Vietnam rather than vets from Iraq and Afghanistan.From what I have learned about PTSD, this may not be as surprising as it at first seems because PTSD can take a long time to manifest itself.  (See info on PTSD and post about my visit to Judge Tynan’s veterans court.)

The proposed TV drama “Solomon’s Justice” is a long shot.  But it is one possible way to help spread the word about the veterans court option as well as encourage the establishment of more such courts.

And there is much more that needs to be done to better understand PTSD and how to reduce its effects in combat veterans.    

© 2012 Miller Mosaic, LLC

Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of nonfiction and fiction books, including the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT.  

DoD’s DIB CS/IA Voluntary Program Now Open to More DIB Companies

On a DoDLive Bloggers Roundtable today, Eric Rosenbach, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Cyber Policy, and Richard Hale, Deputy Chief Information Officer for Cybersecurity, spoke about the four-year-old program launched to better protect DOD data in Defense Industrial Base (DIB) companies.

Until now this voluntary program has been capped at 36 companies, and there are currently 36 companies participating. 

The program has now opened for other DIB companies, who can learn about the requirements at http://dibnet.dod.mil/

As the website says:

DoD’s DIB CS/IA program is a voluntary program to enhance and supplement DIB participants’ capabilities to safeguard DoD information that resides on, or transits, DIB unclassified information systems.

This program, and an expanded portion of the program started a year again that involve ISP providers, is an important component of keeping DoD information and companies' intellectual property secure from cyber attacks.

Check out the requirements now to see if your company qualifies -- http://dibnet.dod.mil/
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the technothriller LT. COMMANDER MOLLIE SANDERS. Phyllis is the co-founder of the online marketing consulting company Miller Mosaic LLC, which works with clients to utilize the Internet to attract more business. Visit her author Facebook Page at www.facebook.com/phylliszimblermillerauthor

Review of HBO Documentary "Wartorn 1861-2010"

CAUTION: There are very graphic scenes in this compelling HBO documentary.  These scenes may be too strong for people suffering from PTSD.
 
Although the HBO documentary "Wartorn 1861-2010" was first aired on HBO in November of 2010, I screened it now in connection with my proposed SOLOMON'S JUSTICE TV drama project.

The documentary traces PTSD back to the Civil War with compelling testimony in the letters home from a soldier. There is also footage from World War I and World II as well as Vietnam.

Perhaps the most graphic parts of the documentary are footage from Iraq and the stories of the veterans and families today living with the legacy of PTSD.

Actor and documentary exec producer James Gandolfini visited Walter Reed Hospital in Washington D.C. as well as army headquarters in Iraq to question what the military is doing to help military personnel dealing with PTSD.

While there are not a lot of answers in this documentary, for people who question that PTSD wounds are real, after watching this documentary there should be no uncertainty.

And for me, having just written a blog post about my visit to the Los Angeles County Veterans Court, it was particularly upsetting to see a young veteran sentenced to six years in prison for a felony committed under the influence of PTSD symptoms.

I believe that, if the young man had been sentenced by a veterans courts, he would not have received a six-year prison term.  Instead it would be hoped that he might have been sent to a residential treatment center for his PTSD-induced violence.

Hats off to James Gandolfini and HBO for tackling this very important subject.  
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is the author of the novel MRS. LIEUTENANT and the co-author of the ebook technothriller LT. COMMANDER MOLLIE SANDERS. Phyllis is also the co-founder of the marketing consulting company Miller Mosaic LLC

A Visit to Los Angeles County Veterans Court

I had been reading about experimental veterans courts throughout the United States – courts set up to deal with crimes committed by veterans suffering from service-related mental health problems.

After four years of writing online about PTSD, I was particularly interested in this recognition that untreated PTSD can lead to all kinds of anti-society behavior.

I did some research, and discovered that for 20 months Los Angeles County has had a veterans court modeled after other veterans courts.

Checking with the court clerk, I learned sessions were held Monday and Tuesday mornings in Department (courtroom) 42 of the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center.

I found the session I attended somewhat disorienting.  Although the courtroom opened at 8:30, the actual session did not begin until a few minutes after 10. 

And what I did not know until afterwards, when I did more research, was that Superior Court Judge Michael Tynan was handling cases from two different special courts simultaneously – the veterans court as well as another mental health-related court.

And what I suspected, but did not know until later, is that Judge Tynan had himself been in the military.  A Superior Court public affairs representative told me that Judge Tynan served as a Private First Class in the U.S. Army from 1958-1960.

One exchange between the judge and a handcuffed defendant new to Judge Tynan’s court went something like this:

Judge: What branch of the military?

Defendant: U.S. Navy

Judge: How many years did you serve?

Defendant: 5 1/2 years

Judge: Your rating?

Defendant: E5

Judge: Your job?

Defendant: Operator of satellite communications

Judge: Any combat?

Defendant: No land combatant as this was the Navy ... I received hazardous duty pay for being in a hazardous zone.

The judge later told the defendant that they were trying to get him into the Orange County VA program although they did not yet know if he were eligible.

After my visit, I spoke to the public defender assigned to the veterans court, who had been accompanied during the session by a social worker with the U.S. Veterans Affairs Department.

She explained to me that defendants must be referred from another court, and that the Los Angeles County Veterans Court is a collaborative court.  The DA participates in the decisions for defendants to be sent to the veterans court.

One thing I could tell during the session even without knowing this additional information is that Judge Tynan truly cared about the defendants appearing in front of him. 

This particularly impressed me because I had just read David Feige’s book INDEFENSIBLE: ONE MAN’S JOURNEY INTO THE INFERNO OF AMERICAN JUSTICE in which Feige describes how few of the judges in front of whom Feige represented clients seemed to care about the defendants.

I can only hope that these special veterans courts will be set up throughout all court systems in the U.S.  With more and more veterans of multiple deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan likely to exhibit symptoms of PTSD in the coming years, these courts will be particularly important for “paying back” our veterans for their service.

My experience visiting a session of the Los Angeles County Veterans Court will be used to inform my proposed project “Solmon’s Justice.”  See www.SolomonsJustice.com if you want to know about this project.