The Veterans Project.org

On December 18, 2007, Private John Needham sent high-ranking Army officers a “Formal Notification of War Atrocities and Crimes Committed by Personnel, B Company, 2-12, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division in Iraq.” Nobody has been disciplined. John died in 2010 from complications related to his medical care. His father, Michael Needham, is now speaking out.

The November 12 episode of 48 Hours Mystery mentioned a letter U.S. Army Private John Needham sent to high-ranking military officials in which allegations of various war crimes are detailed. The program focused on only one of those incidents, and included only one of several photographs that John had submitted with his letter to substantiate his accusations. CBS chose to blur the image “because it’s so graphic.” Here is John’s letter with that image and additional photographic evidence, all of which is completely uncensored. WARNING: The images are very disturbing, as are John’s allegations:

 
December 18, 2007

To: Mr. Randy Waddle, Assistant Inspector General, Ft Carson, Colorado
CC: LTC John Shawkins, Inspector General, Ft Carson, Colorado
Major General Mark Graham, Commanding Officer, Ft Carson, Colorado
Major Haytham Faraj, USMC, Camp Pendleton, California
Lt General Stanley Greene, US Army Inspector General

Subject: Formal Notification of War Atrocities and Crimes Committed by
Personnel, B Company, 2-12, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry
Division in Iraq

Dear Mr. Waddle

My name is John Needham. I am a member of Bravo Company, 2nd Battalion, 2nd Infantry division, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, (BCo,2-12INF,2BCT,2ID . I deployed with my unit to Iraq from October 2006 until October 2007 when I was medically evacuated for physical and mental injuries that I suffered during my deployment. The purpose of my letter is to report what I believe to be war crimes and violation of the laws of armed conflict that I personally witnesses while deployed in Iraq.

Upon arriving in Iraq in October of 2006 my unit was assigned to the ¼ Cavalry unit at Camp Prosperity. In March of 2007 I was sent back to my unit, B Company 2-12 at Camp Falcon. It was at Camp Falcon that I observed and was forced to participate in ugly and inhumane acts against the Iraqi citizens in our area of responsibilities. Below I list some of the incidents that took place.

In March of 2007, I witnessed SSG Platt shoot and wound an Iraqi national without cause of provocation. The Staff Sergeant said that he suspected the Iraqi be a “trigger” man. We had not been attacked and we found no evidence on the man to support the suspicion. As the Iraqi lay bleeding on the ground, PVT Smith requested to administer first aid to the Iraqi. SSgt Platt said no and “let him bleed out.” When SSG Platt walked away, Pvt Smith and PVT Mullins went to the Iraqi, dragged him to an alley, and applied first aid. They then drove him to the cache for further treatment.

In June of 2007 1SG Spry caused an Iraqi male to be stopped, questioned, detained, and killed. We had no evidence that the Iraqi was an insurgent or terrorist. In any event when we stopped he did not pose a threat. Although I did not personally witness the killing, I did observe 1sg Spry dismembering the body and parading of it while it was tied to the hood of a Humvee around the Muhalla neighborhood while the interpreter blared out warnings in Arabic over the loud speaker. I have a photo that shows 1SG Spry removing the victim’s brains.

On another occasion an Iraqi male was stopped by a team led by Sgt Rogers as he walked down an alleyway. The Iraqi was detained and questioned then with his hands tied behind his back, SGT Rogers skinned his face.

1ST Spry shot a young Iraqi teenager who was about 16 years old. The shooting was unprovoked and the Iraqi posed no threat to the unit. He was merely riding his bicycle past an ambush site. When I arrived on the scene I observed 1SGT Spry along with SSG Platt dismember the boy’s body.

In August of 2007, I responded to radio call from SGT Rogers reporting that he had just shot an Iraqi who was trying to enter through a hole that the platoon had blown in a wall to allow them observation of the area during a security patrol. When I arrived, I saw a one armed man who was still alive lying on a barricade. The man was about 30 years old. He had an old Ruger pistol hanging from his thumb. It was obvious to me that the pistol was placed there because of the way it hung from his thumb. The Iraqi was still alive when I arrived. I saw SGT Rogers shoot him twice in the back with hollow point bullets. The Iraqi was still moving. I was asking why they shot him again when I heard Sgt Hoskins say “he’s moving, he’s still alive.” SPEC Hoskins then moved to the Iraqi and shot him in the back of the head. SSG Platt and SGT Rogers were visibly excited about the kill. I saw them pull the Iraqi’s brains out as they placed him in the body bag. CPT Kirsey must have learned something about this incident because he was very upset and admonished the NCOs involved.

I have seen and heard 1SGT Spry brag about killing dogs. He kept a running count. At last count I remember he was boasting of having killed 80 dogs.

On many occasions I observed SGT Temples, SSG Platt and SGT Rogers beat and abuse Iraqi teenagers, some as young as 14, without cause. They would walk into a house near areas where they suspected we had received sniper fire, then detain and beat the kids.

I have photos that support my allegations. I also have numerous other photos on a laptop PC that the unit illegally seized from me. I have requested its return but they have refused.

My experiences have taken a terrible toll on me. I suffer from PTSD and depression. I had no way to stop the ugly actions of my unit. When I refused to participate they began to abuse and harass me. I am still in treatment at the Balboa Naval hospital. I respectfully request that you investigate these matters, that you protect my safety by reassigning me to a different unit that is not located at Fort Carson, that you return my PC or, at least, seize it to protect the evidence on it, and that you issue a military protective order to prohibit the offending members of my unit from harassing, retaliating, or contacting me.

I have some photographs and some supporting documentation to these allegations.

Respectfully,

PFC John Needham
US Army

 
John’s father, Michael Needham, will read the above letter at a special Human Rights Day event in Los Angeles on December 10. Click here for info.

I’ll never forget the first time I saw John Wiley Needham. It was at Denver International Airport in late 2007. John, a private in the Army, was wearing camouflage clothing, toting his backpack and helmet over his shoulder. His father, Mike Needham, told me that John, a fun-loving champion surfer from Southern California, was called “Needhammer.” He was tough, built like an NFL quarterback. Yet he seemed nothing like these descriptions when I first set eyes on him, limping through the baggage claim, slouching. He avoided making eye contact with anyone.

Tomorrow night at 10:00 PM ET/PT on CBS-TV, Troy Roberts reports on the case of Private John Needham— a decorated soldier who was Medivac-ed from Iraq and later diagnosed with traumatic brain injury (TBI) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Investigators say John beat his 19-year-old girlfriend to death with his bare hands—and while John took responsibility for her death, he remembered little of the incident, recognizing only that something inside him snapped. 48 Hours Mystery explores the killing of Jacque Villagomez, as well as whether John’s TBI and PTSD may have played a role in her death.

By January 1st, American troops are scheduled to be withdrawn from Iraq. Many will come home with profound physical and mental health issues. You’ll hear from Private John Needham, describing the physical and psychological impact that combat had on him; his father, who describes how the horrors of war ravaged his son’s mind and body; and Dr. Richard Friedman, a professor of Psychiatry at Weill Cornell Medical College, who speaks to the permanent impact TBI can have on a person.

This program will highlight a document that reveals allegations of war crimes that Private Needham brought against his unit, and will expose how the United States Army handled his plea for help.

With an estimated 107,000 homeless vets in the U.S., Dr. Sanjay Gupta explores their daily struggles and the legal battle over a plan to help them, on CNN Presents tonight at 8 p.m. ET/PT. Click here for a text report. Click here for info about a public forum about homeless veterans in Los Angeles today from 4 to 6 PM.

Ron Kovic salutes Bruce Springsteen at Kennedy Center Honors.

It was a rocky week for a group of mostly liberal Los Angeles activists who recently formed a coalition in support of veterans. The group met last month at San Gennaro Cafe, a restaurant owned by Jay Handal who identifies himself as a Republican (when asked). Handal is a great guy whom I’ve known for years from eating in his establishments (one of which, unfortunately, is now defunct). He chairs the West Los Angeles Neighborhood Council, and steadfastly stands by veterans while some of his Brentwood neighbors usurp Veterans Administration land for their recreational and commercial use.

The assemblage was hastily arranged, with no specific mission articulated, but as one of the attendees I was struck by everyone’s sincere enthusiasm about helping veterans. It’s becoming increasingly clear that many folks who are concerned about the plight of veterans, but who haven’t actively worked on their behalf previously, are now energized by the ACLU lawsuit filed against the Veterans Administration for failing to provide care and housing to disabled veterans. This nascent coalition exemplifies the upswing, and could lead it.

Army veteran Robert Rosebrock, who demonstrates every Sunday afternoon outside the Los Angeles VA with members of his Old Veterans Guard and Veterans Revolution, was at the meeting, and was noticeably pleased by the newfound show of support. He took a particular shine to Ron Kovic, who offered the evening’s most inspirational words when he spoke movingly about his experiences over the years fighting for veterans. Although it was a discussion – not a formal presentation – I almost stood up and cheered when Kovic explained why the VA controversy is the story of our times.

Legendary activist Ron Pitzer, who’s been organizing fearlessly and successfully on behalf of veterans for four decades, was also in attendance. As Gerald Nicosia points out in Home to War: A History of the Vietnam Veterans Movement, the unassuming Pitzer was a key player in that era, and my impression is that he’s still a very important, behind-the-scenes asset.

The consensus established at the meeting was that the coalition’s initial effort would be to help increase attendance at the weekly rallies, and Kovic agreed to appear on August 14.

This week some tensions erupted between the coalition and fiercely independent Rosebrock, whose group members seem to consist primarily of conservatives. Given the history of non-cooperation between the two camps, it’s not surprising that things got bumpy. But underneath the differences is a shared interest in the welfare of veterans, and with a great unifier like Kovic onboard, the potential for expanding the movement remains promising.

Tomorrow’s demonstration runs from 1 to 4 PM, with Kovic and possibly others scheduled to speak at 2. Click here for a map of the location.

Thanks to KPFK’s Lila Garrett for interviewing me on her show this morning and for continuing to cover the epic battle in Los Angles to return land donated to military veterans that the Veterans Administration has been strangely and illegally using instead for commercial purposes. Lila, who’s fiercely antiwar, pressed me on and off the air as to why The Veterans Project isn’t a peace group. I told her (ever so lovingly) it would be like firefighters who are supposed to be focused on putting out a fire stopping to argue about politics. We’re here to serve all veterans, not influence war policy.

Lila Garrett (KPFK-Los Angeles) interview with Jeff Norman

Congressman Bob Filner, ranking member (and former chairman) of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, was also a guest on Lila’s show. He encouraged progressives in Los Angeles to rally around efforts to rectify the VA land grab as “a symbol of everything we should stand for as Democrats…You have to start around a clear, usually local issue, and expand it in quantum leaps to the national scene.”

He’s right, and I’m sure the congressman would be welcome to speak – as he said he would – at one of the weekly demonstrations held outside the West Los Angeles VA campus on Sunday afternoons, including August 14 when Ron Kovic will be there to show his support. But it’s a nonpartisan fight, and progressives who show up wanting to sing “Kumbaya” should be ready to do it in harmony with at least a few conservatives.

Veterans’ advocate Robert Rosebrock, who’s been leading the Sunday demonstrations for over three years, told me this morning: “It’s not a Democratic or Republican issue. It’s an American responsibility.”

We’ve all heard the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results, yet those seeking work continue to send out résumés even though employers nowadays seldom grant an interview in response. The solution – or at least a potential solution – is to start a business. That’s easier said than done, of course, but there are special opportunities available to veterans which shouldn’t be ignored. Tomorrow on my Blog Talk Radio show, I’ll be interviewing a man who knows and is eager to share all the ins and outs of entrepreneurialism. That man is Army veteran Louis Nevitt, and he’s also the brand new Director of Business Development for The Veterans Project. Veterans are invited to call in with questions about how to start or grow a business. Click here to listen/call in at 10 AM PDT/1 PM EDT.

A CBS News investigation of the VA scandal in Los Angeles:

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Southern California recently made big news when it filed suit against the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for failing to provide military veterans with housing and care to which they are entitled at the VA’s West Los Angeles campus. Another lawsuit, which the ACLU previously filed (and won) on behalf of Vietnam veteran/activist Robert Rosebrock, has received much less attention. But it was Rosebrock’s case – and dogged protests – which led to the newer suit.

For over three years now, Rosebrock has organized a weekly demonstration outside the VA’s West Los Angeles gates. His argument – that the VA is misusing land which was donated exclusively for the care and permanent housing of disabled veterans – is a key part of the ACLU’s complaint. The earlier suit was a response to the VA police having violated Rosebrock’s First Amendment rights when it cited him for hanging the United States flag upside down (the sign of distress) on a VA fence. It is indeed illegal to hang any sign on VA property without permission, but the police objected only to the manner in which the flag was displayed. It was that selective enforcement of the law which ran afoul of the First Amendment.

Although Santa Monica City Councilmember Bobby Shriver and a few others have been screaming about the VA’s malfeasance for some time, Rosebrock’s arrest seems to have been the tipping point. With the ACLU fighting for his free speech rights, it was inevitable that the subject of Rosebrock’s protest would finally garner the recognition it deserves.

Likewise, now that the FBI is investigating a homicide which was apparently committed on VA property last month, the hope is that federal authorities will also investigate shady land use deals the VA made with various corporate entities. Because those privileged businesses provide veterans with no services, it seems inexplicable that they are operating on the West Los Angeles campus. Activists have for years been asking the VA to disclose the terms of its lease agreements, and to provide an accounting of how income has been allocated. That the flow of money remains shrouded in mystery, suggests VA officials might be the recipients of kickbacks from leaseholders. After all, one would be hard-pressed to find more valuable real estate anywhere in the United States.

Just as Rosebrock’s case prompted the ACLU to challenge the VA anew, the FBI should realize the VA’s failure to discover a decomposing corpse is symptomatic of a larger problem. Most people nowadays think of the FBI as a counter-terrorism force, but the agency receives substantial funding for combating public corruption and white-collar crime. Rep. Henry Waxman, Sen. Barbara Boxer, Sen. Dianne Feinstein and their congressional colleagues have all failed to hold the VA accountable for its misuse of land that was donated for housing veterans. In the meanwhile, an estimated 20,000 homeless veterans languish on the streets of Greater Los Angeles.

The time has come for the Department of Justice (DOJ) to launch a major investigation. While the FBI is in the midst of probing a homicide that VA police couldn’t even detect let alone investigate, the DOJ’s top crime-fighting agency should also find out who got paid to make sweetheart deals with tenants who do nothing for veterans.

This article was also published by The Huffington Post.

Laura Meckler reported in yesterday’s Wall Street Journal that the White House and Congress are thinking about selling unused portions of land at the West Los Angeles VA campus to commercial developers, even though the property was donated to the government for the permanent housing and care of disabled veterans:

“White House and congressional negotiators, hunting for savings in the federal budget, recently came upon a juicy target: a 387-acre tract of land in the heart of ritzy West Los Angeles. It could be worth billions… According to officials familiar with the talks, the White House suggested the government could raise $12 billion by selling unneeded federal land, with as much as $5 billion coming from this one Los Angeles property. “Sell it,’ said Rep. Eric Cantor, the No. 2 House Republican, adding that any business would do the same. No one in the room, from either party, disagreed…The Los Angeles land was donated to the government in 1888 to serve disabled veterans returning from the Civil War…The VA uses only a slice of the property and much of it remains open space. The neighboring University of California Los Angeles and the tony Brentwood School rent space for baseball fields. There’s a golf course and botanical garden. Other sections are leased to film studios, a Marriott laundry facility and a pair of theaters…Last month, the government faced another challenge to the property. The American Civil Liberties Union, acting on behalf of veterans, filed a lawsuit in California federal court to force the VA to use the campus to aid mentally disabled homeless veterans… County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky, whose district includes the land in question doubted the land would be worth as much as the federal government thinks, because it isn’t zoned for commercial development, and likely would never be. He maintains it’s illegal to use it for anything but service to veterans.”

Full story

Writer-producer-director Steve Skrovan (Everybody Loves Raymond, An Unreasonable Man) just agreed to join our already impressive roster of mentors who generously provide advice and/or training to veterans who are seeking a career in the media or entertainment professions. I appeared as the “Man in Line” in a 1993 episode of Seinfeld that Steve co-wrote. I got into a conversation with George about whether it was the ticket holders or ticket buyers line, and I was less than helpful. Although it was brief, Seinfeld aficionados regularly tell me they recall the scene. Thanks to Steve, I have a Seinfeld moment I’ll always cherish.

[To coincide with the show’s final episode in 1998, I was asked by Total TV to write an article about my Seinfeld experience. Click here to read it.]

Our other mentors include author Katie Arnoldi (Point Dume), writer-producer Scott Carter (Real Time With Bill Maher), musician Tom Morello and producer Andy Lassner (Ellen).

It’s hard to imagine a finer or more talented group of humans. The only problem is we don’t yet have our own space, or the sort of state-of-the-art equipment that veterans deserve. So please consider contributing whatever you can afford, and soon we’ll be operating at full throttle. Donations are tax-deductible!

Harvard Law School professor Laurence Tribe, who is part of the dream team representing homeless veterans in their lawsuit against the Department of Veterans Affairs, appeared on Charlie Rose Monday night. Referring to the VA’s failure to provide housing to homeless veterans, and its mysterious rental agreements with corporate leaseholders, Tribe told Rose: “They’re not going to be able to keep this under the rug much longer.” Click here to watch the interview.

Thanks to Robert Corsini and his wife Lisa for hosting our fundraising party Saturday night at their beautiful home. Three compelling speakers helped us connect somewhat different stories, all of which involve allegations that the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) habitually deprives veterans of services to which they are entitled. CBS News sent a crew to shoot footage of Michael Needham for an upcoming 48 Hours episode about his son, John, who died after overdosing on drugs administered by a VA nurse. John, at the time, was staying at a relative’s home, but probably should have been an inpatient.

Mark Rosenbaum, Chief Counsel for the ACLU of Southern California, spoke about a recently filed lawsuit against the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, Eric Shinseki, and the Director of the Greater Los Angeles VA, Donna Beiter, for their failure to provide housing for homeless veterans at the West Los Angeles VA facility. Homelessness in the veteran population is a national scourge, but the situation in Los Angeles is unique because the original property owners who donated the land on which the VA campus now sits, stipulated that it was to be used exclusively for the care and permanent housing of disabled veterans. In apparent violation of the deed, the VA provides no permanent housing there, and leases about 30 percent of the property to various corporations and schools. Nobody knows how much the leaseholders pay, or where the money goes.

There has to be some reason – and probably not a good one – that the VA has been making secret land use deals with private enterprises. The VA itself describes the property as “one of the most valuable parcels of real estate in the western United States.” Although no incriminating evidence has yet surfaced, it’s fair to wonder if VA officials have been receiving kickbacks in exchange for making sweetheart deals.

Another possibility is that wealthy donors have threatened to withhold campaign contributions from Rep. Henry Waxman, Sen. Barbara Boxer and Sen. Dianne Feinstein if they don’t stay quiet about the scandal. Presumably, some of the donors have financial interests in the businesses that are operating on VA land, while others own adjacent property or live nearby and don’t want “their” neighborhood “invaded” by thousands of veterans.

Without making any specific accusations, Rosenbaum likened the situation to the land and water use disputes that were dramatized in Roman Polanski’s 1974 film, Chinatown.

The ACLU lawsuit has energized veterans’ advocates and made our goals more reachable. In addition to Rosenbaum, I’ve met several of the attorneys who are working on the case pro bono. They are all extremely proud to be lending their formidable talents to the cause, and their sense of outrage on behalf of veterans is a beautiful thing to behold. Likewise, their high level of confidence is quite heartening, and it’s always worth pointing out that the ACLU wins the majority of its cases.

Rick Reyes, a Marine veteran who had his own mortgage business but lost it (and his home) when the housing and finance markets collapsed, was our third speaker. He was never actually homeless, but Rick went undercover in a homeless shelter for five months to observe how veterans are treated there, and to figure out how services should be improved. He’s now in the initial stages of developing a plan to renovate and sell foreclosed homes. Click here to read a Q&A that former LA Weekly reporter John Seeley did with Rick last week.

This story was also published by The Huffington Post.

Rick Reyes, a 31-year-old Marine veteran from East LA’s Boyle Heights district, brings all the key perspectives to the table when he joins the discussion on the widespread and growing problem of homelessness among vets. First of all he’s a veteran himself – of Afghanistan (with the first battalion to set foot there in 2001) and Iraq (three years) – and came home with both physical injuries (though no wounds) and PTSD issues.

Second, he’s schooled in housing matters, with several years under his belt as a loan officer with a major player in the mortgage industry, then acquiring a real estate license and operating his own lending company. Last but not least, he brings the firsthand perspective of the homeless, having spent five months undercover at a Salvation Army shelter after his fixer-upper home in a South LA suburb was foreclosed on in 2009.

A lot of Rick’s knowledge came the hard way — learning the pitfalls of adjustable mortgages when he had to choose between food and timely payments; discovering the devious ways of banks when his home’s auction date was revealed to him while he thought the bank was in the process of “working things out” on a revised payment plan. “I saw how easy it is to end up homeless,” he says ruefully.

Hearing about many vets in the same predicament, after discussing things with Jeff Norman of The Veterans Project, Rick decided to do a little field-work, checking into the Salvation Army shelter in the city of Bell, a gritty suburb in Southern Los Angeles. We talked to Rick about what he learned there about the problems and prospects of homeless vets:

Q. What’s your overall take on the shelter option as a solution for homeless vets?

A. In a lot of ways it’s the exact opposite of what the homeless vet needs for a successful transition back into society. You have bed checks, a 7 PM curfew — there’s no privacy, no dignity. It’s worse than being on base. And this is an environment shared with hardened criminals, drug users, the chronically ill — is that what we need, to be thrown in with felons?

Q. Are there some positive aspects to the program there?

A. There are some training programs that may help some. But the counselling — half the time they weren’t there, and I was in school, working toward a college degree. But they tried to persuade me to quit!

Q. You don’t think they give good direction for people.

A. Well, learning to run a forklift wasn’t the best strategy for me. But there’s a bigger problem — the strict guidelines they have, check-in every few hours etc. makes it hard for the people who really need the services most, the ones with stress problems or possible brain damage. If you have problems with memory or time, you really can’t make it in their “merit” system.

Q. Even the best of shelters are just a short-run, transitional solution, of course. What’s available for vets who need longer-term help?

A. Good question.The good news is there’s a VA housing program where you get a voucher for a year or two and, kinda like Section 8, you pay 30% of the rent out of your wages or disability payments and the VA pays the other 70%.

Q. The bad news?

A. The housing, like Section 8 rentals, isn’t in such desirable areas, so it’s not great for vets with families. But the real bad news is the program’s frozen — no new applicants, no new vouchers are being given out. And it was only in effect for a year or so.

Q. Great. I guess that makes the need for new initiatives all the more urgent then?

A. Yeah. So I’m trying to get businesspeople — in construction and development especially — interested in some private-public projects, maybe just as demonstrations of what could be done.

Q. What sort of housing would you like to see come out of that?

A. There’s a need for many different things — from hotel-type, two-to-a-room setups to more dorm-like housing for four, five or six, to family-type housing. Hopefully, we can work with some banks on foreclosed properties and see what supporters can do in supplying construction materials and labor, and see if we can’t come up with something that could be kind of a model.

To hear more about Rick’s experience and plans for addressing the housing needs of veterans, please join us this Saturday at a fundraising party for The Veterans Project.

Jeffrey Abelson produced and directed this video featuring three veterans who overcame daunting challenges with the help of Give an Hour, a lifesaving nonprofit that provides free and confidential mental health counseling nationwide for active duty personnel, veterans and their families. It’s punctuated by Bruce Springsteen performing “Land Of Hope And Dreams.”

Homeless Veterans: How We Can Help is scheduled on Tuesday night, January 25 at Historic AMVETS Post II, 10858 Culver Boulevard in Culver City. A panel discussion will be moderated by Keith Jeffreys (United States Veterans’ Artists Alliance) from 7 to 9 PM following the president’s State of the Union address, which will be shown on a big screen at 6 PM. Panelists and special guests include Ivan Mason (United States Veterans Initiative), Rachel Feldstein (New Directions), Kent Smith (Home For Good L.A.), Judith Broder (The Soldiers Project). Thomas Esparaza and William Daniels (Veterans Administration), Wendell Guillermo (National Veterans Foundation), Rick Reyes (The Veterans Project) and Los Angeles City Councilmember Bill Rosendahl. Presented by 4-Star Democratic Club and United States Veterans’ Artists Alliance. Co-sponsored by The Veterans Project and others. Click here for more info.

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Friday night’s lineup at Largo at the Coronet will bring together a journalist, a whistleblower and a singer/songwriter, and the results will be nothing less than riveting. In addition to the intellectual stimulation, a portion of the proceeds will benefit The Veterans Project.

Most Americans don’t think about PTSD, or even realize how many veterans struggle with it. So when talented filmmakers use their storytelling skills to edify a mass audience about this issue, the potential for a shift in public consciousness is enormous. HBO’s Wartorn 1861-2010 from executive producer James Gandolfini presents such an opportunity. It premieres Veterans Day at 9 PM. In the meanwhile, check out the trailer below.