POW/MIA Recognition Day: A Five-Year Record, a Veteran’s Question, and the Work of Preserving Evidence

POW/MIA Recognition Day: A Five-Year Record, a Veteran’s Question, and the Work of Preserving Evidence

Friday, September 18, 2026 | 1:41 p.m., Madison, Wis.—Today is POW/MIA Recognition Day. For me, the day calls for reflection—not only on military service, but on what follows it: reintegration, work, education, public institutions, and the obligation to keep a clear record when something feels unresolved.

For five years, Bob Cobb Freelance Ink LLC has collected documents, chronology, and personal observations connected to my corporate-communication journey. That work now continues through the Jaded Patriot Brief newsletter and Outpost 422. The project is not a claim that every question has an answer. It is a commitment to preserve the questions carefully enough that the evidence can be independently examined.

Speaking to leadership, not assigning blame

My concern is about how military service is understood and modeled in public leadership and workplace culture. I do not blame Governor Tony Evers personally for my experiences. I am speaking to him—as a veteran, constituent, and communicator—about leadership, accountability, and the public responsibility to listen when veterans raise documented concerns.

Today, I submitted a Wisconsin public-records request to the Governor’s Office seeking records concerning the Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs’ handling of state-funded veterans cemeteries. The request is part of a broader reporting effort. Its purpose is to obtain records, understand policy and oversight, and report what those records show. It is not a conclusion before review.

A new connection in a wider public conversation

Today, I met another party through the Deliberate Indifference Wisconsin channel. We became acquainted through a shared concern for transparency and fair process in Wisconsin public institutions. We recognize one another as RightFighters™—people committed to standing up for justice while keeping our respective experiences, evidence, and legal matters distinct.

The unnamed party’s reported legal matter involving the Wisconsin Department of Corrections is separate from my ERD matters. I do not speak for the unnamed party, and the unnamed party does not represent me. I will study the publicly available reporting and filings through the Deliberate Indifference Wisconsin channel as comparative sources, while keeping independent records and avoiding conclusions that the separate matters are the same.

My own record and why it matters

I am a self-represented paralegal student with multiple administrative complaints and ongoing reporting at Outpost 422. Some of my matters remain in abeyance or administrative review. I am using ChatGPT as an organizational tool to examine variables such as evidence handling, investigative scope, and Initial Determinations by the Wisconsin Equal Rights Division.

That process will separate four things: what I personally experienced; what the documents show; what remains an allegation or dispute; and what a tribunal or reviewing authority must decide. My concern is that material, objective evidence and complete theories may not have been fully addressed in certain matters. That concern is preserved for review; it is not a finding that any person committed misconduct or that a constitutional violation has been established.

The next stage

This is the whistleblower and reporting stage of my journey: a gonzo, firsthand account of moving from military service through work, disability accommodation, education, and the study of law. I will continue to speak on WordPress and social media about my DVR work-study experience and the documentary record that accompanies it.

As Veterans Day 2026 approaches, I will publish the story with the discipline it requires: chronology before conclusions, evidence before advocacy, and respect for the difference between a personal observation, a public allegation, and a proven fact.

Editorial disclosure: Bradley J. Burt publishes independently through Outpost 422 and Bob Cobb Freelance Ink LLC. This reflection is public commentary and reporting, not legal advice or a substitute for an agency or court decision.