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Do you have any statistics or anything to back up what you are saying in your blog? I see a lot of what YOU dealt with and the choices YOU made, but how on earth can you project that to anyone else? I have spent a number of years working and volunteering on a closed psychiatric VA hospital in Danville, Ill. I can tell you flat out that what a lot of these people(veterans) go through here at home causes the depression that leaves them unable to function. For years just the stigma of being a Vietnam era veteran prevented many from getting a good stable job that would increase their skill set.I would guess these comprise the majority of the homeless vets of which you speak. No job for years, no skill sets that is marketable in this days economy, no pensions to help pay rent(definitely no mortgages) and SS is not enough to pay anything. Piccolo, I believe you are wrong about it being a "choice" for most. Some, absolutely. For some of the younger veterans, perhaps. But to suggest that "most" are in the position they are in by choice is not altogether accurate.
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I'm going to agree with Pic here... it is a choice. I worked security in a homeless shelter for nearly five years. Met a lot of veterans. Of course, a few were mentally ill, but the majority of it was by choice. Want to know why they make that choice? No responsibility. They get up, go do whatever they want from drinking to drugs to fucking in the bushes by the overpass, and then they come back and check in. It's one hell of a lifestyle, but they choose to live it. |
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Do you have any statistics or anything to back up what you are saying in your blog? I see a lot of what YOU dealt with and the choices YOU made, but how on earth can you project that to anyone else? I have spent a number of years working and volunteering on a closed psychiatric VA hospital in Danville, Ill. I can tell you flat out that what a lot of these people(veterans) go through here at home causes the depression that leaves them unable to function. For years just the stigma of being a Vietnam era veteran prevented many from getting a good stable job that would increase their skill set.I would guess these comprise the majority of the homeless vets of which you speak. No job for years, no skill sets that is marketable in this days economy, no pensions to help pay rent(definitely no mortgages) and SS is not enough to pay anything.Piccolo, I believe you are wrong about it being a "choice" for most. Some, absolutely. For some of the younger veterans, perhaps. But to suggest that "most" are in the position they are in by choice is not altogether accurate. First of all nobody is saying to throw the truly mentally ill to the wolves. We broke 'em we're responsible to fix 'em. and I do mean fix them. Sending a guy a check every month is a cop out. Where possible we put them back in shape to reenter the work force if they desire so. I have seen two guys I'll mention here. Both are double leg amputees. One I have seen go from a guy that by all signs the loss of his legs was a bump in the road to a physical and mental slug constantly feeling sorry for himself. While he didn't choose to get his legs shot off he chose how to deal with it. Another guy I have seen a couple of times in a similar situation chose to take a different tack. He simply battled his way back into the work force. He made his choice. As far as the mental health part goes, we do have a responsibility to fix that and that was one of the first things I mentioned. Incidentally, life is not about what happens to you, it is about what you do when something happens to you. It's too damned bad I didn't learn this about 45 or 50 years ago. |
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I want to know how many of those so-called "homeless veterans" are actually, y'know... Veterans.
Every one of these guys I've ever tried helping out turned out to be a relentless bullshit artist, just like the fucking punk kid we had around here last summer claiming he was "at Fallujah... With the Marines...". I sat down with this little fraudster, and it was rapidly (and, readily, to any real former military member) that he was completely faking the whole thing. Asking him basic questions any real former Marine would be able to answer left me with the unavoidable conclusion that he was full of shit. When you ask a guy where he went to boot camp at, and he tells you he went to a "special class" at Fort Bragg, ya kinda have to wonder. I'm sure there are real "homeless veterans" out there. I've just never met one. |
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I want to know how many of those so-called "homeless veterans" are actually, y'know... Veterans. Every one of these guys I've ever tried helping out turned out to be a relentless bullshit artist, just like the fucking punk kid we had around here last summer claiming he was "at Fallujah... With the Marines...". I sat down with this little fraudster, and it was rapidly (and, readily, to any real former military member) that he was completely faking the whole thing. Asking him basic questions any real former Marine would be able to answer left me with the unavoidable conclusion that he was full of shit. When you ask a guy where he went to boot camp at, and he tells you he went to a "special class" at Fort Bragg, ya kinda have to wonder. I'm sure there are real "homeless veterans" out there. I've just never met one. THis. Many are full of shit and never served. Many more served but never saw any combat. But the vast majority are there because they chose to be there. I'd say less than %5 are actually mentally ill and deserve help. |
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I want to know how many of those so-called "homeless veterans" are actually, y'know... Veterans. Every one of these guys I've ever tried helping out turned out to be a relentless bullshit artist, just like the fucking punk kid we had around here last summer claiming he was "at Fallujah... With the Marines...". I sat down with this little fraudster, and it was rapidly (and, readily, to any real former military member) that he was completely faking the whole thing. Asking him basic questions any real former Marine would be able to answer left me with the unavoidable conclusion that he was full of shit. When you ask a guy where he went to boot camp at, and he tells you he went to a "special class" at Fort Bragg, ya kinda have to wonder. I'm sure there are real "homeless veterans" out there. I've just never met one. 
2 of them are past their late 60's one might be around 55, one in a wheelchair |