Gov. Mike Easley has proclaimed April the “Month of the Military Child” in recognition of the thousands of children of military parents in North Carolina who also sacrifice during times of extended deployments. Overseas deployments since 2001 have put additional stress on military families, including the more than one million children in America who have at least one parent currently serving on active duty.

“These children are a source of pride and honor to us all,” said Easley. “It is only fitting that we take time to celebrate their spirit and let our men and women in uniform know that while they are taking care of us, we are taking care of their children.”

Kara Hollingsworth of Fayetteville counts the true cost of the Iraq War in moments.

Thousands of moments have come and gone since President George W. Bush declared war in 2003 against Iraq.

That same year, Hollingsworth’s husband was deployed to Iraq. He returned again in 2005 and has also been sent to Afghanistan.

“Our soldiers and their families sacrifice precious moments with family and friends that are given to them only once in this lifetime,” said Hollingsworth, a 28-year-old mother of two.

“Many of those moments have been sacrificed in my home in the past five years,” Hollingsworth said. “They were given willingly, even if painfully.”

Hollingsworth made a pact with herself that she wouldn’t let her two girls, ages 7 and almost 2, see her cry. Instead, she channels her considerable energy as president of the Cumberland County chapter of the Young Democrats.

“I am a Democrat because I believe that an injustice done to any American is an injustice done to me,” Hollingsworth said. “Being in the military is about that same service to others.”

Bradley Brooks, Associated Press

BAGHDAD (AP) — The number of wounded soldiers has become a hallmark of the nearly 5-year-old Iraq war, pointing to both the use of roadside bombs as the extremists' weapon of choice and advances in battlefield medicine to save lives.

About 15 soldiers are wounded for every fatality, compared with 2.6 per death in Vietnam and 2.8 in Korea.

But with those saved soldiers comes a financial price — one veterans groups and others claim the government is unwilling to pay.

Those critics also say that the tens of thousands of soldiers wounded in Iraq are part of a political numbers game, one they say undermines the medical system meant to care for them.

The most frequently cited figure is the 29,320 soldiers wounded in action in Iraq as of Thursday. But there have been 31,325 others treated for non-combat injuries and illness as of March 1.

"The Pentagon keeps two sets of books," said Linda Bilmes, a professor at Harvard and an expert on budgeting and public finance whose newly published book, "The Three Trillion Dollar War," was co-authored with Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz.

Rep. Brad Miller (NC-13) returned to Washington today after visiting with U.S. troops in Afghanistan and Iraq.

News of the trip, which began January 8, was strictly embargoed until the Congressman and other members of the congressional delegation reached Kuwait earlier yesterday. This is Rep. Miller’s third trip to Iraq.

"I met with a number of soldiers from North Carolina deployed in both Iraq and Afghanistan. Whatever our views on the wisdom of our nation’s policy in Iraq, our men and women in uniform have served admirably there and deserve our thanks for their service,” Miller said. "They are good at what they do."

Miller says improved equipment and technology was noticable in both Iraq and Afghanistan for U.S. forces. Military vehicles have been redesigned to deflect some of the force of roadside bombs, for instance.

Congressman Miller met North Carolina soldiers from Henderson, Smithfield, Apex, Morganton, Charlotte and Fayetteville. "There is no doubt that repeated deployments are taking a toll on military families."

The Congressman also met with Gen. David Petraeus, Commander, Multi-National Forces Iraq and Ryan Crocker, U.S. Ambassador to Iraq.

Congressman David Price (D-NC) today participated in a press conference unveiling a new Human Right First report on the government’s management and supervision of private contractors in the war zone.

The report – entitled “Private Contractors at War: Ending the Culture of Impunity" – calls upon Congress to enact Price’s legislation (H.R. 2740) to ensure that all war contractors are held accountable under the U.S. criminal code. The group also urges the Justice Department to use its current authority to investigate and prosecute cases of potential contractor abuse that have been documented in the media.

“The Human Rights First report is a milestone, a clarion call for immediate action to address a problem that has plagued the U.S. missions in Iraq and Afghanistan from the start,” Price said in a speech this morning. “I sincerely hope that the Senate will act soon and that the Administration will cooperate with our efforts [to pass my contractor accountability legislation].”

Gov. Mike Easley today urged North Carolinians to remember our state and nation’s veterans and their families this holiday season, especially those residents in N.C. State Veterans Nursing Homes. One way to do this is to send cards, wish-list gifts or donations to help residents.

“As we recall those we are thankful for during this holiday season, we are particularly grateful for the selfless service of our veterans,” Easley said. “To thank them and respect the sacrifices made by their families, we should do all we can to honor and support our veterans.”

Citizens, organizations and businesses can send cards and make holiday donations to provide cheer to residents at the state veterans nursing homes in Fayetteville and Salisbury. A monetary contribution will be used to give a resident a gift personally selected for them by staff.

The two homes have a wish list for those who would like to contribute specific items. Needs at the sites include magazine racks; sweatpants and sweatshirts (sizes large or extra large); socks; lotion or aftershave; and DVDs or games.

Faye Fiore, Los Angeles Times

A majority disapprove of the president's handling of the war in Iraq and are more in line with the views of the general public.

Families with ties to the military, long a reliable source of support for wartime presidents, disapprove of President Bush and his handling of the war in Iraq, with a majority concluding the invasion was not worth it, a Los Angeles Times/Bloomberg poll has found.

The views of the military community, which includes active-duty service members, veterans and their family members, mirror those of the overall adult population, a sign that the strong military endorsement that the administration often pointed to has dwindled in the war's fifth year.

Nearly six out of every 10 military families disapprove of Bush's job performance and the way he has run the war, rating him only slightly better than the general population does.

U.S. Representative Mike McIntyre, a senior member of the Armed Services Committee, has just returned from Afghanistan, Africa, and Europe where he met with military commanders and several heads of state to discuss matters of national security and to express thanks to U.S. troops serving abroad.

“With so many of our troops being away from home during this holiday season, it is important to show them our appreciation for their sacrifice and service,” McIntyre stated after visiting troops from all branches of the nation’s armed forces in Afghanistan and Southwest Asia.

In Afghanistan, McIntyre met with General Dan McNeill to discuss progress being made to suppress the Taliban. McNeill, a former commander at Ft. Bragg and a native of Duplin County, is serving as the Commander of the International Security Assistance Forces for NATO in Afghanistan.

Elizabeth Dole is AWOL when it comes to providing benefits to veterans.

In a recent campaign stop in Reidsville, Dole said that veterans issues were “near and dear” to her heart.

Would her heart be in Washington DC or North Carolina?

Dole voted 16 times against the 750,000 veterans living in North Carolina.

“It is pure hypocrisy for Sen. Dole to look veterans in the eye, act like she cares about them, and then return to Washington to vote against them,” said NCDP Chair Jerry Meek.

“In vote after vote, Dole had an opportunity to honor the sacrifices the military and their families make daily. Instead she did nothing.”