But I’m still about 4-6 weeks away from seeing a paycheque, and could use a helping hand to see me through.

Four months ago, I made the decision to start a not-for-profit media company, and since then I have incorporated that company, Invictus Bellator Media Corporation (IBMedia Corp.), federally as a not-for-profit company and extra-provincially in the Province of Alberta. I have developed a logo, which I unveiled yesterday on Facebook, and am now working on finalizing the business plan that I will present to potential partners and sponsors when looking to acquire funding.

None of this would have been possible without the help and assistance peovided by Veteran’s House Charity

https://veteranshouse.ca/

The fact of the matter is that none of this would be happening right now if not for the incredible guidance and mentorship of Stephen Beardwood and the charity organization he founded, Veteran’s House Charity. I had a vision and plan, and they were exactly who I needed to help me make it a reality. It is not a fairly well known charity at this point, but in the days, weeks, and months to come you will be hearing a lot more about what this incredible organization is all about and what it does.

Latest developments

I have been asked to prepare a Research Project Proposal by a potential client/partner that would see IBMedia conduct a survey of a group of Canadian Forces veterans, in order to obtain some vital long-term data that will be of vital importance to medical researchers. I will be releasing more details later on once an official deal has been made.

I am also going to be offering paid memberships in IBMedia. Now I said earlier that there would never be anything behind a paywall on IBMedia, and there won’t be. All stories and information will still be available for free, but there will be additional benefits that will come with a paid membership.

Membership Level Price Benefits

Founder’s Club – $50 or more per month

• Early access to and discounts on all promotional items.
• Exclusive “Master Class” sessions.
• A special monthly podcast for members only.
• Special early access to stories before they are published.
• Learn the tricks and secrets behind effective online research.
• Your name memorialized on the “Founder’s Club” wall.
• Entry into the monthly promotional item giveaway.

Tier 1 – $25 per month

• A 25% discount on promotional items.
• Access to the monthly members podcast.
• Special access to stories before they are published.
• Entry into the monthly promotional item giveaway.

Tier 2 – $10 per month

• A 10% discount on promotional items.
• Exclusive access to bonus extras.
• Special early access to stories before they are published.
• Entry into the monthly promotional item giveaway.

No membership

• You can still access all of the news and information available on ibmediacorp.com for free, it will never be hidden behind a paywall.

These memberships do not come with voting rights in the corporation.

Special Offer

I am now close to being able to start collecting a paycheque, I’m thinking maybe in the next 4-6 weeks though I wish it were much sooner. I have been able to get by as I have progressed through this incredible journey on the road to starting IBMedia, but I’m going to need a little bit of help to see me through to that point. So, I’m asking for your donations to help me make it there.

This isn’t an open-ended request, and I am anticipating that I will need about $3,000 to cover expenses over this period. If you would be willing to help me out with a financial donation for me personally, in any amount, I would be willing to give you membership in the IBMedia Founder’s Club. This means that for a one-time donation of as little as $5, you would get the same great benefits that would normally come at $50 per month.

Every day, I will be posting the number and amount of donations that I have received, and I will make an announcement when the goal has been met in order to end this fundraiser. So, if you are able to and are so inclined, please hit the PayPal button and enter a donation amount. Know that any amount that you can give would be so very greatly appreciated, and will be going a long way towards helping people around the globe.

Lead counsel in the Canadian mefloquine mass tort action.

Paul Miller from the firm Howie, Sacks, & Henry talks with Marj about the latest developments in the action against the Government of Canada. Although there have been setbacks, these were to be expected, Paul and the team at HSH are continuing to press forward and will keep on fighting.

This is something that I forgot to mention in the earlier announcement. Although the business plan for IBMedia is not yet complete, I thought that I would share with you the standards and ethics under which it will pledge to operate.

IBMC shall abide by the standards set out in the Global Charter of Ethics for Journalists, which was adopted by the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) on 12 June 2019. 

Global Charter of Ethics for Journalists 

https://www.ifj.org/who/rules-and-policy/global-charter-of-ethics-for-journalists.html

Invictus Bellator Media Corporation Business Plan (Provisional)

The next exciting adventure begins.

Two years ago I began work on the story that would change the course of my life, giving me the sense of purpose that comes with knowing what it is that you were meant to do with your life. As I began to talk with Canadian veterans and their families, it became clear to me that they were in desperate need of a voice. So, I dedicated myself to helping my brothers and sisters from other mothers and misters in what ever way that I could, by advocating for them and telling their stories when they needed to be told.

There was still important information that needed to be shared with many of them, information that could have life altering, perhaps even life SAVING consequences for those who hear it. I had seen it for myself and I felt compelled to act, knowing that I would be helping to bring people back from the brink and offer them some hope. I had a conversation with Marj Matchee one day, one of many that we’ve had over these many months now, and I told her that it seemed like we would almost need to make our own media to carry these stories, since they weren’t being covered the way that they should have been.

So, almost two years after that conversation I decided that I would do just that. I would start my own media company to carry the message to military members and veterans in Canada and around the world.

Introducing, Invictus Bellator Media Corporation (IBMedia Corp.)

Last week, I received a federal certificate of incorporation for Invictus Bellator Media Corporation (IBMedia Corp.), a not-for-profit media company of which I am the Founder and President. It will offer news and information important to currently serving armed forces members, veterans, and their families and care-givers, in Canada and in countries around the world, with a particular focus on health & wellness issues and legal matters that are of importance to this segment of the population.

What it will offer.

IBMedia Corp. will offer news and information across multiple channels and platforms. It will produce original written, video, and audio content in the form of:

• articles,
• essays,
• podcasts,
• a variety of video productions (newsmagazines, documentaries)

These will all be posted on the website at http://www.ibmediacorp.com, and will also be available on social media via Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.

Although I will be contributing some of this content myself, I will also be looking to partner with freelance journalists and other contributors in order to provide greater coverage to more issues.

Potential partnerships also exist which will greatly enhance the ability of IBMedia to fundraise in a way unique within its market, and I have beem exploring a number of other partnership and sponsorship opportunities which I hope to be able to tell you about soon. Once deals are made and contracts are signed I will provide you with further information.

Apolitical.

IBMedia will be apolitical, and will neither support nor endorse any political party or entity in Canada or anywhere else. Soldiers, veterans, and their loved ones come in all shapes, sizes, & colors, and cross the political spectrum from left to right and everything in between. Our job is to help keep government accountable to the people, not to get involved in the politics.

To clarify something.

I have in the past made public statements in support of Western/Alberta separation that I must also address. My intent in starting the company was that it would be for the of benefit of ALL Canadian Armed Forces personnel and veterans, regardless of their location. To make distictions between those in the East and those in the West would be completely counter to what I am trying to achieve.

I support a strong and united Canada, and hope that workable solutions can be found to fix the problems facing Confederation, ensuring equal and fair treatment for all provinces and teritories.

Integral parts of a functioning democracy.

In order for a “free” and democratic society to function the way that it should, two things quite necessarily need to be in existence. The first is a free and independent press, the second is legislated and guaranteed protections for whistleblowers.

There are a great many people now who have a negative view of the corporate news media, believing it to be nothing more than a mouthpiece for commercial special interests. Having independent and not-for-profit sources of information serves two purposes. 1) It provides a sense of confidence that the news source is unbiased and beholden only to reporting the truth, not to shareholders, and 2) even assuming all news outlets were neutral and unbiased, there are still only so many stories that they will be capable of effectively covering, meaning that there is plenty of room for a larger number of the smaller independent companies. More coverage means a greater ability to maintain some of the checks and balances that are needed to make sure governments remain accountable to the people.

People who blow the whistle on governments or big corporations also need to know that they will have the benefit of some protections under the law, otherwise an environment exists wherein whistleblowers will fear coming forward to report any illegal or inappropriate activities on the part of the government, public service, or private industry. A lack of such protections can only further erode the public’s already lacklustre trust in these institutions.

A not-for-profit corporation, not a charity.

To be clear, IBMedia will be a not-for-profit corporation, not a charitable organization. The distiction being that the shareholders in a not-for-profit, of which I am one, are not entitiled to any profits from the business. These are to be invested back into the company and any donations are not eligible to receive a tax receipt.

Only the beginning.

It will be a little while before I can get things are fully up and running, but an important first step has been made. I am hoping to achive an ambitious schedule and have some original content published within the next three to four weeks, but I also know that this is going to take a little bit of time if I am going to do this right.

In the coming days, weeks, and months I will be making further announcements about the progress of IBMedia Corp. I hope that you will stay tuned and offer me your support and understanding as I embark on this next incredible adventure.

IBMedia Corp. Journalistic Standards

https://onecalgaryvoter.com/2021/02/24/ibmedia-corp-journalistic-standards/

I’ve been working on something big.

I haven’t written anything in the blog for a while and my presence online in social media has gone down as of late, but I haven’t gone away. I have been very busy working on a new and exciting major project, the details of which I will be announcing soon. It will allow me to not only continue the work that I began two years ago, but to expand upon it in a very significant way.

I will allow me to to tell more of the stories that are important to armed forces members, veterans, as well as their families and caregivers in Canada and around the world.

Project Wolf

As a way of honoring the esteemed Canadian World War Two veteran and veteran’s advocate, Wolf Wm Solkin, I have chosen to name this project after him. Project Wolf will be an endeavour that will have an impact worldwide, with the goal of saving or otherwise improving the quality of life of veterans and armed forces personnel everywhere.

I will be releasing the details soon, so stay tuned.

Bruce is Ops Manager Of The Veteran’s Association Food Bank in Edmonton and gives us an update of how things are going.

If you are a veteran who is struggling, please know that you’re not alone. Reach out to Bruce Given or John Kennedy at the VAFB to donate or learn more or to volunteer you can stop in at 17218 107 Ave Edmonton., or call to 833-422-8387

Note: the event mentioned in the video took place on January 9th

The Veteran’s Association Food Bank operates on a model that can work wherever there are people who are willing and able to make a serious commitment to helping their fellow veterans. Contact Bruce or Marie Blackburn at the VAFB in Calgary (info.vafb@gmail.com) for more information.

A GoFundMe Campaign Has Been Set Up To Help His Family.

This last week was, by any measure, one of the most trying weeks in our recent memory and it would begin for myself and a number of other people on Monday. Rob Murphy was a friend who came into my life about 30 years ago, and on Monday morning he would leave it after suffering a fatal heart attack. He was 52 and leaves behind a loving family that will miss him immensely.

In all the years that I knew Rob I can’t think of very many occasions when he wasn’t working, and if he wasn’t it didn’t last long. Over the years he worked in the oilfields of Alberta and then drove truck for a number of years up until he left us. He was one of the many thousands of Albertans whose efforts helped drive this nation’s economy.

With Rob’s sudden and untimely passing his family has been placed under an unexpected financial strain, so a GoFundMe campaign was launched by Nichole Ferguson on behalf of Rob’s widow, Krista. They are hoping to raise $10,000 to help cover the expenses that they are facing. Now I know that this is a bad time in the province to try raise donations of any kind, for any effort, but I am hoping that some people might be able to spare a little something to help them out.

On behalf of Rob’s family and many friends, I would like to say thank you for your time and for keeping them in your hearts at this most difficult of times.

Fundraiser For Krista Murphy Following The Sudden, Unexpected Passing Of Her Husband Rob

https://gofund.me/a61e3dc9

Four years ago today they tragically lost four of their own, and mefloquine is the likely reason.

It is now four years since the Desmond family of Antigonish, Nova Scotia experienced the tragic and horrific loss of four beloved family members. Four years since the Desmonds lost their mother, Brenda, their sister-in-law, Shanna, their niece, Aaliyah, and their brother, Lionel.

I will not dwell on the details of what happened to them on that horrible day, rather I will address what I believe to be the reason for this incomprehensible tragedy, namely the antimalarial drug mefloquine, which he was seen taking during his tour in Afghanistan in 2007. I was contacted early last year by somebody who was with Lionel in Afghanistan, and he told me the he witnessed Lionel taking the neurotoxic drug that also goes by the brand name Lariam.

Former soldier with PTSD who killed himself and his family were victims of ‘systemic failures’: witness

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/lionel-desmond-inquiry-1.5441286

Lionel was misdiagnosed. Although he may have been suffering from PTSD at the time he died, the result of his service in Asia, it is also entirely certain that he had been adversely affected by the mefloquine he had been given, and the symptoms that he had been showing are consistent with that. He and his family were not only failed by the government after he got home from Afghanistan, but they were also lied to about what was really wrong with him. Had Lionel Desmond been given the correct information and access to the proper resources that he needed, he and his family might still be alive today.

Lionel Desmond inquiry aims for mid-February resumption, barring technical delays

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/lionel-desmond-inquiry-dates-set-covid-19-1.5820161

The Desmond Inquiry is scheduled to reconvene again in February, and whether evidence about mefloquine will be allowed to be introduced remains to be seen. In any event, such evidence wouldn’t have much of an effect on the outcome of the Inquiry given its scope. There will need to be another much larger investigation undertaken to look into this matter completely, something along the lines of a Royal Commission of Inquiry, though this is unlikely to occur barring growing public pressure.

The Desmond family, and all Canadians, deserve and have the right to know the truth. Lionel Desmond’s brain was damaged by a drug the Government of Canada knew to be neurotoxic, yet still ordered him to take under penalty of military justice. They lied to and misled him and thousands of other Canadian Forces personnel, resulting in the deaths of four people four years ago. Lives cut tragically and unimaginably short.

I therefore call on the government to form a Royal Commission of Inquiry to address this and the other issues affecting Canadian veterans and their families on a daily basis, and I am asking other Canadians to do the same.

May almighty God hold Brenda, Lionel, Shanna, and Aaliyah in his bosom, and may they all rest in peace.

Years of neglect and mismanagement have led to a crisis in veteran’s services, impacting the mental health of veterans and the front line government employees dealing with them.

#canadaveteranservicecrisis

There is a crisis in this country that isn’t being covered by any of the media, and sadly it’s probably because this crisis is happening by and large within the veteran community. There is a major problem with the way the government delivers services to our vets right now and it is having a significant impact on the well-being and mental health of thousands of them across the country. It has also negatively impacted the mental health of some of the front-line government employees who deal with veterans on a daily basis.

I’m going to dig deep in order to find out how and why things have reached the point that they have. I will be interviewing veterans as well as current and former VAC employees, and mental health advocates. I will be gathering information from VAC through their published reports and by using ATIP requests, and I am also contacting many of the largest police agencies across Canada for information and input.

Any articles I publish about this will use the hashtag #canadaveteranservicecrisis. I would ask that you please use this hashtag on Twitter and other social media to get it trending.

Contact me.

If you are one of the following, I would like to hear from you:

• any veteran who has had a wellness check done by police no matter the outcome
• any current or former VAC employees particularly Case Managers and Veteran Service Agents

Information shared with me will be treated as confidential and not shared with anyone without prior approval.

My secure and encrypted email address is derekrbodner@protonmail.com.

Elderly veterans in Montreal hospital at serious risk due to incompetence and a complete disregard for patient safety during pandemic.

There are roughly 30,000 surviving World War 2 veterans in Canada right now with an average age of 94 years old, and with each passing year we lose them in ever greater numbers. It’s safe to say that the vast majority of them live in some kind of long-term care facility or hospital. At one time there were a number of veterans hospitals across the country, most built between the World Wars, but now there is only one left. Ste. Anne’s Hospital in Montreal is home to about 120 veterans including the esteemed World War 2 vet Wolf Wm Solkin, who is one of the last of the Dutch liberators.

WW2 veteran living at Ste. Anne’s Hospital praises front-line workers, denounces management

Ste. Anne’s is now in the midst of a COVID outbreak that has affected a vast majority of the veterans who live there. They have been put in grave danger and sadly it comes as no surprise. Back in March Wolf was speaking out about this, warning that something like this would happen. Sadly, nobody that mattered listened.

The elder statesman of veterans advocacy has nothing but praise for the frontline workers at Ste. Anne’s for their dedication and devotion. From the medical staff to the those that help to keep the hospital running, Solkin has no issue with any of these people who work tirelessly in often trying conditions and circumstances. These are the people who have been the heroes not only in Ste. Anne’s but in fhospitals and medical facilities across Canada.

https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2019/03/28/i-wont-take-it-wolf-solkin-a-96-year-old-wwii-veteran-is-suing-two-governments-and-hes-not-one-to-retreat.html

Solkin’s issue is with the incompetent government bureaucracies at work in Ottawa and Quebec City. Things had been relatively good when control of the hospital was in the care of Veterans Affairs Canada and the federal government. In 2012 an agreement was made between the federal government and the province of Quebec to transfer responsibility of the facility over to provincial authority.

Since then the level of care these patients recieve has deteriorated despite the best efforts of the staff. When the Quebec government became their new employer it imposed a new collective agreement on the unionized staff which effectively cut their salaries in half. Prior to the transfer 1,000 people worked at Ste. Anne’s. On the day of the transfer 40% of them left and another 20% would leave in the year that followed. Hospital administrators, anticipating that only 25% would leave, were left unprepared and have since been trying to fill the large number of vacancies.

Solkin went on to file a class action lawsuit against the federal and Quebec governments as well as the agency responsible for operating Ste. Anne’s, and in February of this year a Quebec Superior Court judge authorized it.

LTC and. TLC

I customarily expend what little energy I can still muster, to protest or attack transgressions against my fellow-Veterans at Ste. Anne’s Hospital, committed by the uncommitted, unthinking and unfeeling bureaucrats, who abjectly administer our facility from afar. At this time in our pandemic pandemonium, however, I feel it is incumbent upon me to laud to the skies the cadre of dedicated and devoted front-line health workers…..doctors, nurses, orderlies,technicians , cooks and cleaners alike….who, almost without exception, arrive at work daily, do their jobs diligently, and give of themselves unstintingly to their charges, under the most challenging of circumstances, and despite the most disconnected of their “superiors”.

Theirs is an excellent example of the confluence of Long Term Care [LTC] and Tender Loving Care [TLC]! and, through the persistent pain and festering fog of my every fibre, I offer up to them my most heartfelt gratitude, with every breath I take. You paragons of patience and compassion , as overworked,and underpaid as you may be, are as much real heroes as some of my comrades here, and you truly validate my contention that…….OLD VETS MATTER !

Wolf Wm Solkin

It is absolutely outrageous that this has been allowed to happen. At least 19 veterans have been sickened by COVID19, all of them at high risk of death due to their ages. There are some out there that don’t particularly care if those over the age of 65 succumb to the virus, they were old anyway. This seems to be the attitude of those left in charge of the care of the patients of Ste. Anne’s hospital.

Aside from basic human dignity these men are owed a modicum of gratitude and respect for their often heroic service to this country. Take the time to let them know you care. Contact the federal and Quebec governments and tell them to take action now. If there should be any fatalities at Ste. Anne’s they will be on the heads of the incompetent bureaucracies charged with their care, and the politicians that made it happen.

Call the Deputy Minister for Veterans Affairs Canada, Gen.(ret.) Walter Natynczyk at 902-566-8666, and tell him that this is unacceptable.