Homelessness Plagues Many U.S. Veterans (500,000 homeless)

[cthrumatrix]

Homelessness Plagues Many U.S. Veterans


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Feb 28, 12:13 PM (ET)

By VICKI SMITH

FAIRMONT, W.Va. (AP) - Harleigh Marsh was tough enough to scrape ice from the frozen deck of a Navy aircraft carrier in the North Atlantic. Smart enough to strip and rebuild a cockpit. And responsible enough to maintain survival gear for pilots. So when he found himself homeless six years ago, he figured he could handle it.

Like many of the estimated 500,000 veterans who will become homeless at some point this year, Marsh had the "Army of one" mentality that the armed forces demand.

"When a squadron or something needs you, you don't ask questions. You never say no. You salute and you do the job," he says. "And when you get out, you don't want people telling you what to do."


snip

http://apnews.myway.com/article/20050228/D88HL2N80.html


Moral and compassionate values my ass.

[Megahurtz]

1. When you have PTSD

you are definitely an army of one.

[pauliedee]

16. John Kerry has a new "military family bill of rights" bill

John Kerry has a "support the military" op/ed piece out in the Boston Herald in which he tells us how we need to really support the troops in Washington DC. This addresses many issues for veterans: See below:

1. If we had begun expanding the military in 2003, when Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.) and many of us began calling for it, our military would not be as overstretched as it is today.

2. We need a Military Family Bill of Rights, a set of policies enshrined in law to meet the needs of military families.

3. Investing in military families isn't just compassionate - it's a smart investment in our national security. The Military Family Bill of Rights would:

4. Expand TRICARE to all Guard and Reserve members, whether mobilized or not. Members failing physicals impacts combat readiness, yet as many as one in five do not have health insurance.

5. Allow widows to stay in military housing for one year. For those with children, the current policy of 180 days can mean changing schools in the course of a year.

6. Establish a Military Family Relief Fund. Just as we let Americans donate a few dollars to finance presidential elections on their tax forms, they should be able to thank our troops.

7. Allow penalty-free withdrawals from Individual Retirement Accounts for deployment-related expenses, like increased child care.

8. Offer a tax credit to small businesses that make up the difference between Reserve and National Guard members' civilian and military pay.

9. Expand post-traumatic stress disorder programs and require more outreach. As many as one in six soldiers returning from Iraq show symptoms of PTSD, yet barely half of all VA medical centers have treatment facilities.

10. Increase the military death benefit. Last year I proposed increasing the benefit so that, combined with the Servicemembers Group Life Insurance, the families of those who die in military service would receive $500,000. No one can put a price on a life, but the current $12,000 is insulting. The president recently embraced a formula to reach $500,000 but limited it to deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan. Congress should embrace the broader benefit for all troops, regardless of where they die, and act immediately to make it law.

[Name removed]

2. Deleted message

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[newblewtoo]

5. Marsh joined the Navy in 1975...

Armin, would that make him a veteran of forgotten wars? He spent four years in, getting out in 1979. Mixing metaphors, a navy guy becomes an army of one? Sheeze Louise, what is with that?

[meganmonkey]

12. I'd love to see a link on that, because it just isn't true

First of all, it is hard to define:

"Many people call or write the National Coalition for the Homeless to ask about the number of homeless people in the United States. There is no easy answer to this question, and in fact, the question itself is misleading. In most cases, homelessness is a temporary circumstance -- not a permanent condition. A more appropriate measure of the magnitude of homelessness is therefore the number of people who experience homelessness over time, not the number of "homeless people." "
Studies of homelessness are complicated by problems of definitions and methodology
http://www.nationalhomeless.org/numbers.html

BUT - HERE ARE SOME ESTIMATES:


"An estimated 500,000 –600,000
homeless people are found in homeless
shelters every night "
http://www1.broward.edu/~dcharlot/dep2004/homelessness_files/homelessness.htm
(Note: that only counts those in shelters - not those who are sleeping on the streets on any given night)

Approximately 33% of homeless men are veterans, although veterans comprise only 23% of the general adult male population. The National Coalition for Homeless Veterans estimates that on any given night, 299,321 veterans are homeless (National Coalition for Homeless Veterans, 2003).
http://www.nationalhomeless.org/veterans.html
(Note: That is VETS ONLY)

I have more if you need 'em. I work in the field. I would love further information on who actually said that number on CNN, and where they got it from. Was it a news piece, or a political 'analyst' or some such BS?

[Name removed]

14. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[meganmonkey]

15. Great use of a right wing talking point

What shelter was it? Did you report them? Are they still open? Did you ever see their budget reports? They'll give them to you if you ask.

See, right wingers like to say that shelters and Food Banks over-inflate their numbers to get extra money, because then they feel better about cutting funding for those programs. They sleep better at night thinking that they are all corrupt.

Guess what? They aren't.

The overwhelming majority of these nonprofits have more integrity and spend their money much more responsibly than most goverment agencies, let alone businesses, that's for damn sure.

The huge national nonprofits with the big names tend to be the ones who get busted for improper use of funds and the like. The local shelters and food banks? On a shoestring budget, busting their asses on the front lines of hunger and homelessness to help the most vulnerable members of the population.

Guess who we are helping? Veterans. Elderly people who can't afford prescription drugs and food in the same month. Kids who were unlucky enough to be born into a poor family. Have you ever seen a battered woman with three screaming, starving children, who finally got the courage to leave her abusive husband, begging for help? Not fun. But I rest easy.

For every example of a program you could show me that has been caught faking their numbers(that is, if you have any non-anecdotal evidence to back your comments up), there are literally hundreds or thousands who do everything right, quietly in most cases, known only to the lucky people being helped, the underpaid staff, and the kind people who donate their time and money. You don't see them in the news because it just isn't very exciting.
I work with over 100 of those types of programs at my job. Many are run by churches, or volunteers at neighborhood centers, or at apartment complexes for the disabled and elderly.

Back it up, back it up, that's all I'm sayin' :shrug:

[Name removed]

23. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Mandate My Ass]

24. We'd be happy if you backed up your claims

The phrases "I don't believe," "I just heard," "What I saw" are not statements of fact, just opinions and anecdotal evidence. Get some verifiable proof and then the dialogue can begin.

Sorry you feel sickened but if you can't stand the heat....

[meganmonkey]

25. I most certainly did not call you a right winger

I just said that one comment you made was a typical right wing talking point. I was pointing that out because I think you need to be educated on that particular point.

As I said in my post, I work very closely with lots of shelters. Let me look it up for you...
At last count - there are 17 that I work with weekly or monthly, and about 8-12 that I work with at least once a year.

Not to mention the dozens of other low-income programs I work with which handle at least some homeless people.

Next, I would like to point out that I am not a registered Democrat. I certainly wouldn't want to give Democrats a bad name.

Finally, I would like to reiterate that you still have provided me no evidence of your inference that shelters lie and cheat.

It's okay that you and I disagree. You don't need to take it personally. If you back up your claims, you could change my mind.

[bleedingheart]

26. To be honest I believe that there are probably over 500,000 homeless

in the country and that is without working at a homeless shelter.

It all depends upon how you term "homeless". I believe that to be considered homeless you have to be in a situation where you have no real permanent residence.

So people in shelters, people living on the street, in abandoned housing, hopping from relative to relative ...are all really homeless...in fact those that are temporarily housed in hospitals and in mental institutions are also "homeless" as some do not have residences to go back to.

As for permanent residence..I view that as a home or apartment that you live in which is where you

In my county of around 400,000 people there are 18,000 people receiving assistance from the food bank. I can't provide a link because it is in a newsletter but based on that figure 4.5% of residents in my county receive assistance for just food, who knows what number are actually homeless.

[pauliedee]

19. See Kerry's Military Family Bill of Rights

John Kerry has a Military Family Bill of Rights, which sets policies to meet the needs of military families. He is also calling to increase the size of our military by 40,000 troops (not for Iraq). Investing in military families isn't just compassionate - it's a smart investment in our national security. The Military Family Bill of Rights would:

1. Expand TRICARE to all Guard and Reserve members, whether mobilized or not. Members failing physicals impacts combat readiness, yet as many as one in five do not have health insurance.

2. Allow widows to stay in military housing for one year. For those with children, the current policy of 180 days can mean changing schools in the course of a year.

3. Establish a Military Family Relief Fund. Just as we let Americans donate a few dollars to finance presidential elections on their tax forms, they should be able to thank our troops.

4. Allow penalty-free withdrawals from Individual Retirement Accounts for deployment-related expenses, like increased child care.

5. Offer a tax credit to small businesses that make up the difference between Reserve and National Guard members' civilian and military pay.

6. Expand post-traumatic stress disorder programs and require more outreach. As many as one in six soldiers returning from Iraq show symptoms of PTSD, yet barely half of all VA medical centers have treatment facilities.

7. Increase the military death benefit. Last year I proposed increasing the benefit so that, combined with the Servicemembers Group Life Insurance, the families of those who die in military service would receive $500,000. No one can put a price on a life, but the current $12,000 is insulting. The president recently embraced a formula to reach $500,000 but limited it to deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan. Congress should embrace the broader benefit for all troops, regardless of where they die, and act immediately to make it law.

Please give feedback.

[TahitiNut]

3. "he figured he could handle it" (alone)

This encapsulates the fraud perpetrated on the working class by the 'robber barons' and their sycophants.

"You don't need anyone else." (That would be socialism, wouldn't it? Except when it's a manufacturer's association or Chamber of Commerce or any other cabal of corporatist profiteers.) After all, you're not a 'real man' if you go whining to mommy (or daddy or friends or family or a lawyer).

"What's your problem, recruit?" It's always the victim's 'problem.' That's like a death certificate for a person shot with a .357 Magnum calling it 'heart failure.'

Blaming the victim. Pretending that the impoverished have only themselves to blame and should be ashamed of taking 'entitlements.' (Quite literally, the original 'entitlements' were "King," "Duke," "Prince," "Emperor," "slave-owner," and other titles that conferred, by the power of governance, an entitlement to the wealth created by the labors of others! It is the wealthy who benefit, beyond all others, from 'entitlements.')

[pauliedee]

20. Kerry's Military Family Bill of Rights addresses PTSD

John Kerry has a Military Family Bill of Rights, which sets policies to meet the needs of military families. He is also calling to increase the size of our military by 40,000 troops (not for Iraq). Investing in military families isn't just compassionate - it's a smart investment in our national security. The Military Family Bill of Rights would:

1. Expand TRICARE to all Guard and Reserve members, whether mobilized or not. Members failing physicals impacts combat readiness, yet as many as one in five do not have health insurance.

2. Allow widows to stay in military housing for one year. For those with children, the current policy of 180 days can mean changing schools in the course of a year.

3. Establish a Military Family Relief Fund. Just as we let Americans donate a few dollars to finance presidential elections on their tax forms, they should be able to thank our troops.

4. Allow penalty-free withdrawals from Individual Retirement Accounts for deployment-related expenses, like increased child care.

5. Offer a tax credit to small businesses that make up the difference between Reserve and National Guard members' civilian and military pay.

6. Expand post-traumatic stress disorder programs and require more outreach. As many as one in six soldiers returning from Iraq show symptoms of PTSD, yet barely half of all VA medical centers have treatment facilities.

7. Increase the military death benefit. Last year I proposed increasing the benefit so that, combined with the Servicemembers Group Life Insurance, the families of those who die in military service would receive $500,000. No one can put a price on a life, but the current $12,000 is insulting. The president recently embraced a formula to reach $500,000 but limited it to deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan. Congress should embrace the broader benefit for all troops, regardless of where they die, and act immediately to make it law.

Please give feedback.

[pauliedee]

21. Kerry's Military Family Bill of Rights addresses PTSD

John Kerry has a Military Family Bill of Rights, which sets policies to meet the needs of military families. He is also calling to increase the size of our military by 40,000 troops (not for Iraq). Investing in military families isn't just compassionate - it's a smart investment in our national security. The Military Family Bill of Rights would:

1. Expand TRICARE to all Guard and Reserve members, whether mobilized or not. Members failing physicals impacts combat readiness, yet as many as one in five do not have health insurance.

2. Allow widows to stay in military housing for one year. For those with children, the current policy of 180 days can mean changing schools in the course of a year.

3. Establish a Military Family Relief Fund. Just as we let Americans donate a few dollars to finance presidential elections on their tax forms, they should be able to thank our troops.

4. Allow penalty-free withdrawals from Individual Retirement Accounts for deployment-related expenses, like increased child care.

5. Offer a tax credit to small businesses that make up the difference between Reserve and National Guard members' civilian and military pay.

6. Expand post-traumatic stress disorder programs and require more outreach. As many as one in six soldiers returning from Iraq show symptoms of PTSD, yet barely half of all VA medical centers have treatment facilities.

7. Increase the military death benefit. Last year I proposed increasing the benefit so that, combined with the Servicemembers Group Life Insurance, the families of those who die in military service would receive $500,000. No one can put a price on a life, but the current $12,000 is insulting. The president recently embraced a formula to reach $500,000 but limited it to deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan. Congress should embrace the broader benefit for all troops, regardless of where they die, and act immediately to make it law.

Please give feedback.

[Guckert]

4. the GOP calls it " Grocery cart Freedom Roaming". Now get it strait!!!

[pauliedee]

22. Feedback on Kerry's Military Family Bill of Rights ?

John Kerry has a Military Family Bill of Rights, which sets policies to meet the needs of military families. He is also calling to increase the size of our military by 40,000 troops (not for Iraq). Investing in military families isn't just compassionate - it's a smart investment in our national security. The Military Family Bill of Rights would:

1. Expand TRICARE to all Guard and Reserve members, whether mobilized or not. Members failing physicals impacts combat readiness, yet as many as one in five do not have health insurance.

2. Allow widows to stay in military housing for one year. For those with children, the current policy of 180 days can mean changing schools in the course of a year.

3. Establish a Military Family Relief Fund. Just as we let Americans donate a few dollars to finance presidential elections on their tax forms, they should be able to thank our troops.

4. Allow penalty-free withdrawals from Individual Retirement Accounts for deployment-related expenses, like increased child care.

5. Offer a tax credit to small businesses that make up the difference between Reserve and National Guard members' civilian and military pay.

6. Expand post-traumatic stress disorder programs and require more outreach. As many as one in six soldiers returning from Iraq show symptoms of PTSD, yet barely half of all VA medical centers have treatment facilities.

7. Increase the military death benefit. Last year I proposed increasing the benefit so that, combined with the Servicemembers Group Life Insurance, the families of those who die in military service would receive $500,000. No one can put a price on a life, but the current $12,000 is insulting. The president recently embraced a formula to reach $500,000 but limited it to deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan. Congress should embrace the broader benefit for all troops, regardless of where they die, and act immediately to make it law.

Please give feedback.

[Krupskaya]

6. Two words sum up one of the Top 5 Crimes the U.S. Commits:

"Homeless veteran."

There is NO EXCUSE for this.

[llmart]

7. Yeah, but wow, I did my part.......

by slapping one a them ole' yellow magnets on the back of my SUV. So, I support the troops. And I support Republicans 'cause they are soooooooo pro-military.

Heavy on the sarcasm here.

[Krupskaya]

8. "Yuh! I support 'em!"

"Wait, you mean that means I hafta FUND 'em when they come back all crazy-like'n'shit? Aw, man, no one told me THAT!"

[zapp]

9. I work with homeless vets

And I must say that the previous Secretary of the VA did more in his tenure to help homeless vets than anyone before. Now, I will say something that will shock most of you. I am a yellow dog dem, and despite my support of all things progressive and positive, the fact remains that the federal monies available to agencies working with the homeless are far more now than were available during the Clinton years.

The Problem is far deeper than anyone imagines. More than just money is needed. Building community is whats needed, and including those whom most of us prefer to ignore.

[ixat]

13. Monies available to agencies that deal with ALL homeless,

or just homeless vets?

Having said that, I'm definitely shocked to hear that the * administration actually cares about the downtrodden in this instance. Hats off to them, I guess.

[karynnj]

29. Was the money more inadequate in the Clinton years?

I know the economy was better and homelessness was less visible.

In the suburban county I live in, there was (is) a very well thought of homeless agency that was trying to do the community building you mention. I only saw it very tangentally as my daughter volunteered as part of a service project to read to the children one day a month. But while waiting, I looked at their posters explaining their goals, plans etc that they put together for explaining themselves to the public. The people we met who worked there seemed to do a fantastic job in treating the families with respect, while helping some of them work on social skills or other problems.

We only saw the housing for families when they first entered the system. They were small, but nice. Their goal was to stabalize the family and help them into some subsidized transistional housing in the future. One of the biggest problems in our area is the lack of much low income housing.

When we go into NYC, the problem seems to have mushroomed in the last 4 years.

[MountainLaurel]

10. This is my hometown

This man is just a few years younger than my uncles, both of whom were in the military. One served in Vietnam, the other in Germany.

Generally, you don't often see articles in the local papers about the homeless and poor unless it's for recognizing the selfless folks who staff those those facilities. Homelessness is what happens to drunks and druggies and crazies, in their minds, not what happens to their brothers, and daughters, and cousins who catch a few bad breaks or who have a disease of the mind that their churches tell them doesn't exist.

I wonder if the local paper will select this one from the AP feed.

[MountainLaurel]

11. Kick

Because this is something we all need to see, and it makes a great talking point when Dittoheads accuse liberals of not supporting the troops.

:kick:

[pauliedee]

17. See Kerry's Military Family Bill of Rights

John Kerry has a Military Family Bill of Rights, which sets policies to meet the needs of military families. He is also calling to increase the size of our military by 40,000 troops (not for Iraq). Investing in military families isn't just compassionate - it's a smart investment in our national security. The Military Family Bill of Rights would:

1. Expand TRICARE to all Guard and Reserve members, whether mobilized or not. Members failing physicals impacts combat readiness, yet as many as one in five do not have health insurance.

2. Allow widows to stay in military housing for one year. For those with children, the current policy of 180 days can mean changing schools in the course of a year.

3. Establish a Military Family Relief Fund. Just as we let Americans donate a few dollars to finance presidential elections on their tax forms, they should be able to thank our troops.

4. Allow penalty-free withdrawals from Individual Retirement Accounts for deployment-related expenses, like increased child care.

5. Offer a tax credit to small businesses that make up the difference between Reserve and National Guard members' civilian and military pay.

6. Expand post-traumatic stress disorder programs and require more outreach. As many as one in six soldiers returning from Iraq show symptoms of PTSD, yet barely half of all VA medical centers have treatment facilities.

7. Increase the military death benefit. Last year I proposed increasing the benefit so that, combined with the Servicemembers Group Life Insurance, the families of those who die in military service would receive $500,000. No one can put a price on a life, but the current $12,000 is insulting. The president recently embraced a formula to reach $500,000 but limited it to deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan. Congress should embrace the broader benefit for all troops, regardless of where they die, and act immediately to make it law.

Please give feedback.

[pauliedee]

18. John Kerry "Military Family Bill of Rights" Bill addresses PTDS

John Kerry has a Military Family Bill of Rights, which sets policies to meet the needs of military families. He is also calling to increase the size of our military by 40,000 troops (not for Iraq). Investing in military families isn't just compassionate - it's a smart investment in our national security. The Military Family Bill of Rights would:

1. Expand TRICARE to all Guard and Reserve members, whether mobilized or not. Members failing physicals impacts combat readiness, yet as many as one in five do not have health insurance.

2. Allow widows to stay in military housing for one year. For those with children, the current policy of 180 days can mean changing schools in the course of a year.

3. Establish a Military Family Relief Fund. Just as we let Americans donate a few dollars to finance presidential elections on their tax forms, they should be able to thank our troops.

4. Allow penalty-free withdrawals from Individual Retirement Accounts for deployment-related expenses, like increased child care.

5. Offer a tax credit to small businesses that make up the difference between Reserve and National Guard members' civilian and military pay.

6. Expand post-traumatic stress disorder programs and require more outreach. As many as one in six soldiers returning from Iraq show symptoms of PTSD, yet barely half of all VA medical centers have treatment facilities.

7. Increase the military death benefit. Last year I proposed increasing the benefit so that, combined with the Servicemembers Group Life Insurance, the families of those who die in military service would receive $500,000. No one can put a price on a life, but the current $12,000 is insulting. The president recently embraced a formula to reach $500,000 but limited it to deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan. Congress should embrace the broader benefit for all troops, regardless of where they die, and act immediately to make it law.

Please give feedback.

[Megahurtz]

27. Okay, okay! I hear you!

:+ (kidding)

I'm glad someone is addressing the PTSD problem with Veterans, because this is one major important issue that the U.S. ignores.
This is the number one issue of why Veterans come back and they cannot function normally and become homeless.
The Government needs to wake up and become accountable for their damage. This is probably why they basically just dump Veterans when they're done with them, because they don't want anyone to figure out that they are accountable. That's why they refrain from acknowledging PTSD.

And I'm sure Bushitler would like to further exploit soldiers/Veterans by sending them back and forth on tours of duty, so is he going to acknowledge PTSD? I think not.

In this case the smartest thing a Veteran can do is go and get his/her own doctor's report.

Post Traumatic Stress is a serious, very debilitating syndrom that should not be taken lightly.

[fbahrami]

28. "you don't ask questions"

that's part of the problem.

As Howard Zinn would say: "Civil Disobedience is not the problem - Civil Obedience is".

Still it breaks my heart, cause people join the military when young (and foolish) and after years of school/home/society training in obedience.