Need outstrips beds for homeless vets... "For most of us, it's back on the streets,"

[SoCalDem]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070331/ap_on_re_us/homeless_veterans;_ylt=ArcVU6tCADTs87BDEjumKSxvzwcF

Need outstrips beds for homeless vets

By THOMAS WATKINS, Associated Press Writer Sat Mar 31, 2:02 PM ET

SAN DIEGO - Now that warmer weather is arriving, the giant tent that was a winter home for 150 veterans is being packed away. "For most of us, it's back on the streets," says Marvin Britton, a former military policeman who's been crisscrossing the country since leaving the Army in 1971 following three combat tours in Vietnam.

The battered tent, pitched on a Navy parking lot, is reflective of a problem that almost certainly will worsen as more troops come home from
Iraq and Afghanistan and leave active duty — there just aren't enough beds for vets who end up homeless. "We all feel like we are fighting against a clock," said Toni Reinis, who runs New Directions Inc., a Los Angeles substance abuse center providing residential and outpatient care for homeless vets.

No one knows for sure how many homeless there are — estimates vary from hundreds of thousands to millions. According to the Department of Veterans Affairs, there are about 195,000 homeless veterans on any given night. Last fall, the VA estimated a shortfall of 9,600 "transitional" beds for those vets, accommodations intended to serve as a stepping stone from the streets to independent living. The VA has secured funding for up to 1,800 beds to be added by the end of this year and is seeking $15 million more from Congress for more beds.


snip...

[crikkett]

1. if you have to be a homeless vet, San Diego is the place to do it.

perfect climate.

[midnight]

2. Why doesn't the govt. put to work the inner city kids via

habitat for humanity. These vets deserve a home and someone to help make it happen.

[SpiralHawk]

3. Why do republicons hate our honorable veterans?

The republicons bad mouth veterans every chance they get, underfund the veterans hospitals and other programs, and now offer shit for support when the veterans are down on their luck?

Is it because the republicon leaders & top propagandists (Rush, Hannity, O'Reilly) are all chickenhawks who never served America for even one day? Are the republicons ashamed of their leaders records of lazy cowardice? Is that why they trash veterans?

[eShirl]

4. I think you've got it

[kiteinthewind]

7. Sociopaths: No conscience. Nothing in it for them. Period. nt

:cry:

[Jonathan50]

5. Some things never change.. "Tommy" is Brit for "GI"

Rudyard Kipling

Tommy

I went into a public-'ouse to get a pint o'beer,
The publican 'e up an' sez, "We serve no red-coats here."
The girls be'ind the bar they laughed an' giggled fit to die,
I outs into the street again an' to myself sez I:

O it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy, go away";
But it's ``Thank you, Mister Atkins,'' when the band begins to play,
The band begins to play, my boys, the band begins to play,
O it's ``Thank you, Mr. Atkins,'' when the band begins to play.

I went into a theatre as sober as could be,
They gave a drunk civilian room, but 'adn't none for me;
They sent me to the gallery or round the music-'alls,
But when it comes to fightin', Lord! they'll shove me in the stalls!

For it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy, wait outside";
But it's "Special train for Atkins" when the trooper's on the tide,
The troopship's on the tide, my boys, the troopship's on the tide,
O it's "Special train for Atkins" when the trooper's on the tide.

Yes, makin' mock o' uniforms that guard you while you sleep
Is cheaper than them uniforms, an' they're starvation cheap;
An' hustlin' drunken soldiers when they're goin' large a bit
Is five times better business than paradin' in full kit.

Then it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy how's yer soul?"
But it's "Thin red line of 'eroes" when the drums begin to roll,
The drums begin to roll, my boys, the drums begin to roll,
O it's "Thin red line of 'eroes" when the drums begin to roll.

We aren't no thin red 'eroes, nor we aren't no blackguards too,
But single men in barricks, most remarkable like you;
An' if sometimes our conduck isn't all your fancy paints:
Why, single men in barricks don't grow into plaster saints;

While it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy, fall be'ind,"
But it's "Please to walk in front, sir," when there's trouble in the wind,
There's trouble in the wind, my boys, there's trouble in the wind,
O it's "Please to walk in front, sir," when there's trouble in the wind.

You talk o' better food for us, an' schools, an' fires an' all:
We'll wait for extry rations if you treat us rational.
Don't mess about the cook-room slops, but prove it to our face
The Widow's Uniform is not the soldier-man's disgrace.

For it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Chuck him out, the brute!"
But it's "Saviour of 'is country," when the guns begin to shoot;
An' it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' anything you please;
But Tommy ain't a bloomin' fool - you bet that Tommy sees!

[Jonathan50]

6. Bump

Illuminating that this thread has only had 75 hits..

And the "walking out of Wal Mart" thread has over 3600.

[kiteinthewind]

8. Kick for Jonathan because we DO care. Don't read hit numbers into priorities.

:hi:

[Jonathan50]

9. Why not read hit numbers into priorities?

If someone is interested in a subject they will click on the link.

If someone is not interested in the subject they will not click on the link.

It's that simple.

[kiteinthewind]

13. Because we are human, Jonathan, and therefore we act on our personal interests sometimes, but that

doesn't mean we don't care. Sometimes I am on overload with all that is happening with the war and how they are treating our vets. Sometimes we choose something that we can enjoy reading without feeling sick. Just human nature. Not trying to start a fight, just want you to know that most people on DU do care.
:hi:

[Jonathan50]

16. I agree that we are all human and act on our own priorites..

But we criticize Republicans for not supporting the troops and yet seem to do little better ourselves.

I find it heartbreaking that people who have offered to pay the ultimate price for this country are discarded as casually as one would throw away a used sanitary napkin.

[blues90]

20. I completely agree .

There are subjects on this forum that are basically meaningless that seem to always get the most hits .

Personally I can't imagine how these vets as well as many other people have no way to get back on their feet . Now with the job situation as it is there is even less hope for so very many people and most of all for the vets .

As long as people can ignore this it will never change and I don't know how this sort of horror will become the main topic of interest in the publics minds .

I always have to continually wonder just what sort of country we really live in .

[Quantess]

21. Think of it this way. The title says it all.

Everyone here knows it's terrible and feels bad, but there's nothing to debate. Nobody can think of anything clever or contentious to post on such a depressing and unpleasant topic.
But Jonathan50, if you would like people to join in the discussion, all you'd have to do is post something that makes people want to argue. That would keep them clicking on this post.

[Lurking Dem]

10. Kick and 5th rec.

This is unconscionable in a nation like ours.

[LeftishBrit]

11. Yes, that's 'supporting the troops' all right

[Olney Blue]

12. This is outrageous. War has consequences, and we have a rabid chimp

creating more opportunity for these heartbreaking circumstances.

[Stinky The Clown]

14. Homeless since 1971 ........

Nineteen fucking seventy one ....... that's thirty six years.

K&R

[Jonathan50]

15. You personally?

That's horrible..

:grouphug:

[Stinky The Clown]

22. Nononono ...... the guy mentioned in the post

He's like far too many homless guys in their 60s .... Viet Nam ..... drugs ..... despair .... PTSD ....... Agent Orange ..... Something Else ...... homeless .... for 36 years ..... 40 years ......

[CrazyOrangeCat]

17. K&R

:mad:

[nam78_two]

18. K&R.nt

[Prisoner_Number_Six]

19. The nation needs a new WPA.

It would solve many problems at once, just as it did when first created in 1935.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Works_Progress_Administration

[TahitiNut]

23. Use 'em up and throw 'em away.

"There's more where he came from."

When human beings are treated as commodities (objects) and as a means to someone's ends rather than an end in themselves, this is what we harvest. There is not a single social evil that is not founded on this attitude - human beings as commodities.

[saigon68]

24. Been there---Seen that

[ellisonz]

25. Kick.