Clare Macnaughton's Blog, page 22
March 30, 2016
There’s No Such Thing As Free Money
No deposit Bingo – Is there a catch?
No deposit bingo offers are fantastic try-before-you-buy way to test drive a site without having to splash the cash.
It’s worth noting though that most no deposit bingo sites don’t allow the withdrawal of winnings without signing up to become a depositing player. It’s important to read the terms and conditions before playing.
Deal-tastic
Playing bingo online without any risk is great fun. This is the attraction and so bingo sites offer free play deals to new players without them having to make an initial first payment. Each site is different so it’s essential to read the small print before you begin your play because there are often future wagering conditions hidden in the terms. The free to play scenario is fabulous way to trial the software or the brand, providing the additional opportunity for a new customers a risk free chance to try out their new bingo account.
But Is there a catch?
Many experienced bingo players do use the no deposit deals as a gateway to winning and it can be confusing for newbies.
But there are no online or mobile bingo sites that will allow players to withdraw ACTUAL CASH, without a previous cash deposit. An account will have to be funded for real prior to withdrawal restrictions being lifted. Often there is an imposed limit on the amount of winnings that can be won from these deals too. In some cases wagering requirements are imposed and terms and conditions most definitely apply. It’s important to understand these before play starts.
Wagering is an important part of online gambling and has subsequently featured on the agenda of the online gambling commission’s to enforce regulations on FREE offers that require players to deposit cash up front.
A no-deposit offer is a bonus and the player should not have to pay into their account or provide a credit/debit card. It is described as free money but there are wagering requirements.
Research has shown that 39% of bingo players are unaware of wagering and often sign up for new bingo sites without scrutinising the terms that regulate the no deposit deal. It’s important to read the small print before you play.
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Bingo Is Everywhere
Turn on the tv or open a newspaper and it’s likely that you’ll find an advert for online bingo. There’s been a rapid growth of bingo websites. Twelve years ago there were less than 20 Bingo sites operating in the UK, but according to whichbingo.co.uk today there are around 350 and this is a great source of where to find out bingo sites.
Bingo hall owners Mecca and Gala, to newspapers like The Sun and Daily Mail are now operators of online Bingo platforms. Bingo traditionally was associated with the camaraderie of a night spent at crowded tables with friends so it might seem strange that it has transitioned so successful to the isolation of online playing.
Bingo is a game of pure chance and success is about keeping the pace with the bingo caller. In the British version of the game players listen out for the caller (the figure at the centre of the action who traditionally announces each number in a a special bingo language: “Two fat ladies – 88”, “clickety click – 66”) to shout out random numbers between one and 90 and match them with the ones printed on their card.
They are crossed off one by one until someone has crossed all the numbers on the card and there’s a winner – to which they shout “bingo” or “house”.
Online bingo players finds company in chat rooms. It is this chatroom-type element, which is key to the appeal of online bingo for many players. Bingo halls are silent and intense, chat is frowned upon while the game is being played in case the players cant hear the caller. But online users can talk as much as they like.
Many online sites fill the bingo cards automatically, so that players can chat. Online bingo terms have appeared as a result, including BLNG (better luck next game) and HABO (have a better one). Online sites also allow players to message one another privately and this is how they connect.
Traditional bingo’s turnover slipped 3% in the year to March 2012, according to Gambling Commission figures, with main stage, mechanized and seaside-style prize bingo turning over £1.22bn. Among the big brands, Mecca Bingo reports that a fifth of the money it now takes is online, rather than in bingo halls. Online bingo is here to stay and it’s only going to get bigger.
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Enticing The Bingo Players
There are ‘foot-in-the-door’ tactics to hook bingo players into other lucrative casino sites, such as including slots games on a bingo site. Howvever, 83% of online bingo players enjoy multitasking while they play the game – so actually offering slots for hungry players to kill time is a great idea.
Fortunately, the anonymity of online bingo entices many men to play bingo for fun. Thanks to mobile, tablet and PC play, men are now safe from being ridiculed for liking a ‘feminine’ game. Research has shown men are now playing online by creating female usernames.
Following this emergence, some male-targeted bingo sites developed, featuring more masculine graphics, black backgrounds and slogans like ‘you play it drinking beer’. Including more neutral, non-cash prizes that appealed to this gender, like cars and iPads.
When you think online, you think about the younger generation – the under 30s. It appears that approximately 30% of players are now under the age of 30. As the most tech savvy generation, they are more involved in chat rooms, and understand the abbreviated texting language.
The UK is leading the way for online bingo, with the amount won online every year tripling since 2008. Players are enjoying new features with the rapid growth of cheap and free bingo on the larger bingo sites.
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Bingo: Young or Old? Male or Female?
A recent survey of UK players has shown that 3.4 million people play online bingo, with an annual turnover of £600 million for the industry. Surprisingly 50% of all online bingo players play daily, and 40% have been hooked to online bingo for over five years. But who are they?
Historically the bingo stereotype is that it’s an old person’s game. Truth be known 90% of all bingo players in the UK are actually under 50. This can be attributed to the rise of the Internet, with the younger, more tech aware generation looking for online bingo sites. Not forgetting, the under 30s are more engaged with social media marketing and TV advertisements then any other age group.
Celebrities also like mobile bingo. The outed famous players of the game include Sharon and Ozzy Osborne, Barbara Streisand, Robbie Williams and Catherine Zeta-Jones. These influencers are trendsetters for ages 30-50, however the Osbourne’s reality show delivered an even younger generation in their 20s!
More recently there has been a surge of bingo interest by non other than: Yummy Mummies. The Gambling Commission’s 2010 British Gambling Prevalence Survey alluded that 12% of women (compared to 6% of men) play bingo. Surprisingly, 30% are educated to university level and 50% of the players have children.
Perhaps, more women are playing these days thanks to the anonymity of the internet. It offers a gender-neutral safe space for women to game away, unlike the masculine betting shops and testosterone fuelled poker tables. This is apparent in the design of bingo websites – typically purple, pink or blue, with some kind of ‘cutesy’ setting or character to entice them in. The lower stakes and lighter atmosphere, creates a new type of “soft gambling” which gentles lures women into the industry.
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March 22, 2016
Hedda Gabler @SalisburyPlay Passes #TheBechdelTest
The only thing I know is that I don’t know much about theatre. But I do know if I have enjoyed or endured a theatrical experience. I have ignorantly dabbled with playwriting and I am enjoying theatre in many different ways to grow my range of experiences.
I have no experience of Hedda Gabler and when I spoke to my screenwriter mentor he said; “Great play but totally dependent on her – you gotta want to sleep with her.”
Previously, we had been talking about including a reference to Hedda Gabler in a screenplay he was writing and he brought my attention to her early feminist tendencies. I looked it up and basically, to prećis, it’s about a bored housewife who goes nuts. Now that is something to which I can relate.
I was excited to discover that it was being performed at Salisbury Playhouse, orchestrated by the Playhouse director, himself, Gareth Machin. Salisbury Playhouse is a warm, friendly theatre and I love going there. The heart of theatrical art in the South West. Salisbury Playhouse presents Brian Friel’s version of Ibsen’s Hedda Gabler, which premiered at the Gate Theatre, Dublin, in September 2008.
Plot summary:
Hedda Gabler returns, dissatisfied, from a long honeymoon. Bored by her aspiring academic husband, she foresees a life of tedious convention. And so, aided and abetted by her predatory confidante, Judge Brack, she begins to manipulate the fates of those around her to devastating effect.
Kirsty Bushell plays Hedda in Gareth Machin’s astonishing Salisbury production. Bushell’s Hedda is driven by a combination of stifling ennui and hysterical frustration into deliberate acts of selfish destruction. But she wasn’t quite nuts enough for me. I wanted Beatrice Dalle in Betty Blue, or the coquettishness of Vivien Leigh, in Gone With The Wind. I wanted her to be hot, evil and mad like Elizabeth Taylor in Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf. I wanted her to switch effortlessly from one persona to another subtly revealing her machiavellian traits only to me, the audience.
Ben Caplan, was my favourite as the over enthusiastic puppy scholar Tesman who’s so grateful that he managed to bag the General’s daughter, Gabler that he cannot see through her menacing ways
Judge Brack is played by David Bark-Jones, and is charming and seductive. The struggling artist Loevborg is played by Damian Humbly, but he is definitely not hot enough. He was the Johnny Depp of the piece and Humbly didn’t sex it up enough for me. Although his performance was good, I just didn’t fancy him and I wanted to.
There were delightful performances by Kemi-Bo Jacobs as the devoted but annoying Mrs Elvsted (not knowing the plot I secretly hoped Hedda would shoot her), Jane Wymark as pious Aunt Ju Ju and Petra Markham as the abused maid Berta.
James Button’s set was exquisite. The grandeur of extraordinarily high ceilings and doorways, the pale duck egg blue painted walls, the long swishing drapes, the portrait of General Gabler scowling over the proceedings and the divine wood burner in the corner (where did he get those tiles? #covet #covet). There was a real sense of time passing throughout the day and night with the beautiful lighting of Howard Hudson.
It’s worth noting the play is long – first half 85 minutes and the second half 65 minutes.
Hedda Gabler runs in the Main House at Salisbury Playhouse from Thursday 17 March to Saturday 2 April 2016. For more information or to book tickets please contact the Ticket Office on 01722 320333 or visit the Salisbury Playhouse website.
Oh yes The Bechdel Test – I nearly forgot:
Hedda and Mrs Elvstead sit together and discuss how Mrs Elvstead was frightened of Hedda at school. Hedda laughs, remembering that she had threatened to set fire to her hair.
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February 22, 2016
Back From The Blogging Abyss
Well hello there! How are you? It’s been an age. I haven’t been present on the blog for sometime because I have been so busy and so very poorly sick. In fact, the truth is I don’t have time to be here today but I have missed you and I have missed my blog. So today, I’m making time to touch base and say ‘hi’. I’m thinking about you all. What’s been happening?
2016 is the year of #CleanEating, exercise and less alcohol. I am working with Clare Oetiker, personal trainer from Move It Look Fab and she has been putting my through my paces with HIIT exercise which is hard work but so much more fun than running.
I am committed to a #GlutenFree, #SugarFree, #DairyFree (except butter) and on the whole #AlcoholFree lifestyle and I LOVE IT! In fact, I don’t even think of it as a diet. This is now how I eat. I feel so much better in myself, and my skin is glowing. I test drove the ‘diet’ in November, with a view to losing a few kilos before a Christmas ‘do’ I was planning to attend and my body in my dress was looking decidedly bulbous. It was the best thing I had ever done and I did indeed lose enough weight to be able to rock my frock. Of course, having not drunk for a month before hand, the minute I stepped onboard the Jaeger train I lost all recollection of the evening, danced like a mentalist and eventually had to be put to bed by two of my very lovely, gorgeous friends.
Me and ma beatches
Sobrietous January began and also, the preparation for the performance of my first ever play “Take Me To The Oscars” for Juno Theatre which was a very interesting, learning experience on many levels. Not least because of managing the complexities of female interactions, which were not as egalitarian as I had anticipated, was exhausting; but also handing over control of my work to a director and an actress and not being wholly satisfied with the outcome. The audience wasn’t disappointed and at face value the piece was delivered in a very predictable way but I think the nuances of my voice were lost in it’s delivery. Only I would notice and those that were close to me. I feel very fortunate to have been given the opportunity to showcase my work and it was a great learning experience, which has created new connections for me which will serve to be invaluable in the future. I didn’t fight the process, I let the process play out without interference and offered consultation when requested. The whole experience has led me to think a lot about the place of theatre in our society, the commercially viability of theatre and the demographic of rural theatre audiences. The Juno Theatre “Circling The Square” showcase sold out and was a triumph for everyone involved and I was proud to be a part of it. I am delighted to be a part of Juno Theatre and to be working with women to support the finding of their voices through playwriting. I think it’s important to keep this in perspective.
Claire Wyatt plays me in my play “Take Me To The Oscars”
In the midst of this I popped over to Paris for the press conference launching the 2016 #VendéeGlobe. I actually rang the footballer Emmanuelle Petit to see if he wanted to attend with me but he was in Normandy, with his poorly maman and so unable to join me. I really want to work on this edition. I am passionate about the Vendée Globe and have been since I first learned of it in 1998. It is by far one of the most interesting and enduring of sport occasions.
Where’s Macnaughty? Find me I’m in the middle of the photo.
Vendée Globe Press Conference
This day trip to Paris by Eurostar was also the inception of a severe bout of poorly sickness from which I am still recovering.
Poorly sick :(
The doctor sent me to bed for three whole days. I asked him if I was sick because I was really old (44 yrs) and he said that it was because I was really ill. Hagar had to come and look after me and the kids. It was quite interesting to have unscheduled illness because I had no time to create any contingency plans and suddenly, all the little unseen things that I do every day became very visible when the ‘tidy up fairy’ was tucked up ill in bed. For 24 hours I was appreciated by all and they were worried about me. After three days in bed, everyone had enough and the ‘tidy up fairy’s’ illness hiatus was over and it was back to the grindstone for me.
The Menace and her buddy bottle feeding a lamb
I have also been writing regularly for Wiltshire Life and working with cloven hooves by this I don’t mean Satan himself, but in fact lambs and goats. I went to visit the baby lambs at Roves Farm, Swindon and then in the up and coming edition, (April) I meet the regimental goat of the Royal Welsh. He was a very grumpy goat indeed and his poor goat major had got dressed up in full rig to hang out with me on the steps of the Officer’s Mess. It was indeed and a privilege to see inside the British Army, which is steeped in history and tradition to which it clings like a tree frog; but I couldn’t help feeling that it’s time to let go of the past and move into a new era, where the ceremony is relegated to the annals and the business of soldiering is modernised to reflect the budgets and needs of today.
He is not amused
Grumpy goat
Lovely ickle lamb!
My latest tome #LookingForMrRabbit now sits at four completed chapters and a prepared overview of the whole book. I am now ready to start approaching agents to test the water and see what they think. Once upon time I was in a hurry to get the book published but a wise man told me to be patient and work with an editor. He said I was to write the best book it could be and I have taken my time, listened to the feedback and developed my writing. At the moment, every day is a school day but I am not giving up. Writing is an emotional roller coaster. I emphatically want to be a successful and accomplished writer. This ambition is a like a noose around my neck. I yo-yo between creating content with a commercial imperative and writing from my confused heart. It’s the slowest ladder I have ever had to climb. At the same time I want to honour my children and be their guiding light so they can be the best versions of themselves as they grow. Whilst negotiating an elitist and traditional culture and not being able to give it my all. Daring to be different but at the same time fearful that being different is too much. I’m scared that the readers are diminishing and the writer’s significance in a creative contribution is ever increasingly undermined. It’s so frustrating and there are times when I question myself and my ambition. The burden is heavy, the washing is infinite and I am a hamster in a wheel. The constant self promotion is exhausting and those who are over exposed are tired of my battle to have my creativity acknowledged. In fact I grow tired of it myself. There is no-one more over exposed to me than me. It’s a been a tough few weeks for me and I have been close to having a complete hissy fit and slamming the door. I just want you to know that it’s laborious, lonely journey being creative and independent. I struggle with it despite constantly ‘smiling and waving.’ The words torment me and it’s not a case of just stopping and moving on. The need to write would still haunt me and the words would still circle my soul, tugging me this way and that way. I can’t stop but at the same time sometimes it’s hard to carry on. Onwards and upwards. Thank you for supporting me through the highs and the lows.
And finally, last but by no means least, there is my lovely client and friend Kate, from The Balance House. I have been working with Kate since November and I am very proud of what we have achieved transforming her brand into a stylish, eye catching and relevant business. Speaking of the Balance House, I have to go and draft some articles on ‘Women in Leadership’. Whilst Britain debates BrExit the EU is committed to 40% women non-executive directors on the boards of big listed companies by 2020. Now, this is a target I can buy into and I love writing articles that help smash the glass ceiling. I won’t leave it so long to blog next time so please keep popping over.
Thank you for reading. If you want to stay updated then please WATCH, LIKE and SHARE on the channels below.
Big Love, Macnaughty
xxxx
Clare Macnaughton; a modern military mother; a feminist, British military spouse, and lifestyle journalist, writing about real life adventures.
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December 15, 2015
My Beautiful Boudoir
My bedroom is my castle, my sanctuary and a place of peace. As I live in a rented house and have spent years moving around living in military quarters, I can’t be bothered to paint the walls and so I am stuck with magnolia. Instead to fulfil my bedroom decorating ideas I have decided to adorn it with a wonderful ensemble of pieces that provide special memories and moments for me.
My sunken bedroom
The bed was the bed I bought after the birth of my first child, when my husband and I had outgrown the bed we bought when we wedded. It is a giant bedstead be reminiscent of the one in the Disney film, ‘Bedknobs and Broomsticks.’ It is the bed of my childhood dreams, as I nursed my babies propped up at night, thinking about bobbing along on the bottom of the beautiful briney sea.
The colour scheme for my room was determined by a painting by my son did when he was at nursery school. I loved the way the brushes randomly connected, squiggling, and so in homage to his painting I created a colour scheme for my bedroom.
A few years later, by some miracle, my daughter made a feather collection with twigs and sparkles that matched my bedroom colours perfectly.
Once the palette was set and then I became a collector. The pink and turquoise satins that sit on my dresser I picked up in a market on a trip to Dubai. The floral jug, bowl and potty belonged to my mother, who passed 41 years ago and on the dresser is a jewellery box and brush set that belonged to my nana. As I child I used to sit and play with them. I’d dress up in her scarves and put rouge on my cheeks and lips. She would declare that I looked just like Elizabeth Taylor.
Recently at Christmas auctions I stumbled across four antique fashion prints which blended well with an antique railway poster of Swanage, a place we love to visit as a family which mixes town and coast. It reminds me of ‘Sunny Prestatyn’ by Philip Larkin, a bawdy poem I studied for A’level at school.
“Come to Sunny Prestatyn Laughed the girl on the poster, Kneeling up on the sand In tautened white satin. Behind her, a hunk of coast, a Hotel with palms Seemed to expand from her thighs and Spread breast-lifting arms.”
Of course, what bedroom is complete without a soft furry throw and two sleeping kittens. Like I said at the beginning; my bedroom is my castle, my sanctuary and a place of peace.
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West Ham Up Their Game Capacity
West Ham United are aiming to increase the capacity of the Olympic Stadium to 60,000 in response to increased season tickets sales, according to vice-chairman Karren Brady.
The east London club intend to move across London from Upton Park at the end of this season but Brady said the initial 54,000 seats may not be sufficient to meet demand.
After a series of sell-outs at Boleyn Ground, Karren Brady believes West Ham can draw much larger crowds following the move.
The Hammers are sitting 7th in the Premier League table, lead by manager Slavan Bilic and are keen to obtain a place in the European places to open their new era at the Olympic Stadium in style.
Speaking to BT Sport, Brady said: “It’s 54,000 [at the moment], we are looking to take it up to 60,000 because demand for season ticket’s has been so high that we’ve now got several times as many people that want season tickets than we can actually fulfil demand, so, we are looking at increasing the capacity.”
The Hammers depart the Boleyn Ground and move to Stratford at the end of this campaign.
This controversial shift to the Olympic Stadium has created rows among supporter groups of rival London sides, as the Hammers allegedly are paying only £15m of the £272m conversion costs to transform the stadium in the new season. Their 99 year lease with the London Legacy Development Corporation for 25 days at the ground is approximately £2.5m per year.
It’s quids in for the London side though, in February 2015, West Ham United announced a new record shirt sponsorship deal with the online bookmaker Betway, after their previous sponsor, Swiss company, Alpari’s business went under. This is one of the biggest deals in the club’s history.
It is understood that under the agreement Betway will pay West Ham £20m over the next three and a half years. It dwarfs the deal with Alpari, which was worth £3m per year, and comes as the club prepare for their move to the Olympic Stadium. This combination of this fantastic new partnership and new 60,000 capacity ground could mark the beginning of a spectacular new era for West Ham.
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December 2, 2015
Instant Fun On The Go
Mobile devices are rising in popularity, especially with the use of smartphones, so it’s no surprise that mobile phone games are also becoming more popular. The average user teens or twenty year olds use their smartphone to stay in touch with their network of friends and wile away the hours.
Ready to play
The growing popularity of mobile games can be attributed to the smartphones’ increasing popularity among people of video-game age. With the mobile and connected capabilities of smartphones gamers can play anywhere, liberating them of the physical limitations of a desktop computer and archaic landline connections. Combine rapid improvements in mobile graphics and speed, and the perfect conditions are set for play-as-you-go games.
Ease of access
Overall, mobile phone games sit comfortably between simplicity and creativity. The nature of the interaction suggest that a mobile game needs to be simple, and yet with such a large range of games, individually they need to be a good standard and creative. So that sporadic gamers, or those who are less skilled at playing computer games, can still have access to good-quality game without getting bogged down. Mobile phone games don’t just appeal to the technologically savvy kids, but also to older generations with less acumen who want a fun, user-friendly game to play every now and then.
Mobile bingo has taken off and it’s quickly becoming the most popular mobile games. Bingo can be played quickly and if there’s real money at stake it can offer speedy gains. The benefits about gaming on the hop is it can be done anywhere- from queuing at the bus stop to sitting on the couch. It’s social which adds to the fun and with the growth of social networking, most of the mobile bingo games have responded to this. You can try out your luck with mobile bingo at Landmark Bingo.
Mobile phone games are not going anywhere. People love the simplicity of the games because they are cheap, have a variety of complexity and are easily accessible. If you are a frequent gamer or a numpty novice, there is a mobile phone game out there just for you.
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December 10, 2014
Health Problems After Military Service
Most people are aware that military service can be dangerous. Even during peacetime, it’s understood that active service members are at risk of getting shot, or suffering other combat injuries – especially if they are deployed to a volatile area. People are also aware of the mental and psychological toll that combat, and combat injuries, can take on our veterans. What most people don’t expect are injuries not from combat, but from constant and repeated exposure to chemical agents and environmental contaminants.
Mustard Gas, Agent Orange, and Asbestos
Mustard gas was one of the earliest chemical weapons used in 20th century warfare. While it was first developed by the French in 1914, mustard gas was widely used by the Germans during World War One. The gas was added to shells, grenades and bombs, and was also sprayed into the trenches in liquid form.
Mustard gas caused skin burns, and it also damaged the lining of the respiratory tract. Those who did not die immediately from the gas attacks often suffered lingering, and debilitating, long-term effects. It was not unusual for soldiers to return home with serious respiratory issues that grew worse, until they finally succumbed to their injuries years later. Although a majority of the soldiers affected European, approximately 73,000 American soldiers were also exposed to the gas. Because of its devastating effects the use of mustard gas, and other poison gases, in warfare was banned in 1925.
One thing about mustard gas is that it was considered a legitimate weapon, and the injuries sustained from exposure were considered combat injuries.
Agent Orange and Asbestos are a different story.
Agent Orange
Although Agent Orange, originally developed by Monsanto, was used in combat operations, it was not designed to attack human targets. Agent Orange was an herbicide that the United States developed for use in South East Asia during the Vietnam War. It was designed to destroy the thick vegetation that was used for cover by the opposing forces, and to destroy the enemy food supply.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs estimates that more than 19 million gallons of Agent Orange and other herbicides were dropped over the jungles of South East Asia, including areas where allied forces were stationed.
Agent Orange contained extremely high amounts of a chemical called dioxin, a known carcinogen. Long-term exposure to dioxin is also linked to immune system impairment, Hodgkin’s disease, chronic lymphocytic leukemia, neurological disorders, and other illnesses.
Many soldiers did not have any symptoms while they were deployed, but developed diseases and disorders believed to be related to Agent Orange years after exposure.
Asbestos
Asbestos saw wide usage in the United States military, especially in the Navy. Because it is so durable, as well as heat and fire-resistant, it was used in the engine rooms of ships, and in materials used to build and repair the ships. It was also used in building materials on bases, and in the field.
Soldiers who worked in shipyards were at great risk of exposure to asbestos, and rates of exposure in the Navy were some of the highest of all branches of the military. However, because it was also widely used in construction, service members who did insulation and construction work as part of their active duty were also at greater risk for exposure.
Asbestos is a fibrous material that is fairly safe when it is intact, but when it is damaged it can release those tiny fibers into the air. If those tiny fibers are inhaled or ingested, they can get stuck in the tissues of the lungs, the digestive tract, and the membranes surrounding the organs.
Asbestos exposure is linked to several serious, and life-threatening, diseases including malignant melanoma, asbestosis, and lung cancer.
Like Agent Orange, service members often do not show symptoms during the periods of exposure, but develop their illnesses years later.
Issues Surrounding Exposure
The biggest issue surrounding exposure to chemical agents and environmental pollutants is that it can often take years to discover the damage.
While the Department of Veterans Affairs does acknowledge that there are illnesses associated with exposure to Agent Orange and Asbestos, and has compensation programs in place, it’s not always easy for veterans to get the help they need.
Service members have to prove that the exposure happened during military service, and not through other means. They may also have to prove that they were in specific places, at specific points, during their military service. If they have been discharged from the service, it has to have been under other than dishonorable conditions, and they will need to submit to a physical examination by the military.
Service members filing on behalf of children born with birth defects, as a result of exposure to Agent Orange, also have other hoops to jump through, and there is no guarantee that the Veteran’s Administration will approve the claim.
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