Hat tip to Old White Lady for this growing tragedy. The number of homeless male and female Vietnam era veterans is greater than the number of service persons who died during that war -- and a small number of Desert Storm veterans are also appearing in the homeless population. This is morally reprehensible. Many of the programs available to Vets are not widely known, and they are too few.
I was strongly against our involvement in Viet Nam; I am even more strongly opposed to our illegal war in Iraq. I am not against our troops, nor am I against a necessary military. We have an obligation to the young men and women who have been forced into these illegal and immoral actions that destroy their lives. They are our future, our past, our present. We have to find a solution to help them.
13 comments:
that comic strip captures it dead-on.
i've been noticing in various news articles over the past year or so that funding to the veteran's administration has been shrinking.
while incremental cuts like this can go "under the radar screen" for a little while, over time, with all these young men and women coming back from iraq with debilitating head injuries, losses of limbs, full and partial paralysis etc., it won't take much time before it's apparent that the vets of THIS war will not receive anywhere near the support given their forebears.
it's just so very sad.
anita, I find it unconscionable that this administration can send young men and women to war (illegally) and at the same time, cut their benefits.
glenda, yes, I got the message at PT, and it works. Thank you.
thank you so much for posting this. the cartoon is perfect. the magnet crowd are completely oblivious to anything that disrupts their vision of what america is.
betmo, why would they notice a homeless vet? They've got a gas card from Ford, or GMC, subsidizing their SUV.
Oh my lord that cartoon is soooo gooood. And the story is so horrid. Why isn't this more widely reported? It's simply DISGUSTING. Beyond disgusting. I don't know how to even describe how reprehensible this is.
You know, that cartoon is what happens. So many people feel that slapping a bumper sticker on their auto absolves them from anything else. They can say, "Hey, I support the troops, why don't you?" to the anti-war group.
helen, why provide benefits to people who probably won't come back anyway? I recall one US Marine from Camp Pendelton who was one of the early deaths in this current disaster; he had just gotten his US citizenship right before being sent to Iraq.
owl: bumpers stickers are a substitute for thinking and responsibility. Thanks for the link, I really wanted people to see the cartoon once I saw it. Over at The Kommandos Project (http://kommandos.blogspot.com/), we support the troops by trying to get them to come home. We're changing minds, one toy soldier at a time.
it's just another sign that Bushies and Republicans in power like to swagger and puff up their chest about fighting terrorism oversees...but when it comes time to take care of our injured and permanently maimed soilders....they seem so expendible to these 'patriots.'
Ack, I just finished watching Syrianna. It's a globby mess.
Sadly they are used by the govt. then tossed aside like yesterday's newspaper.
Taking care of them should surely be a part of supporting them.
tdharma and pop: yep. Perched in their ivory towers, they can ignore the vets. If we actually had accessible programs to help returning vets, and if their benefits were increased, rather than slashed, who would be hurt?
And yet millions of Americans - many with sons and daughters in military service continue to voice support for Bush and his policies. Despite how badly they are struggling to make ends meet. It escapes me; it just completely escapes me. You know - lately there has been an outcry against how recruiters are making their quotas. They have no choice – they are told to provide bodies, so provide them they do. I’m reminded of Burke and Hare in 19th century Edinburgh. And the blame for the recent influx of crazies will fall on their shoulders, I'm afraid - instead of higher up where it belongs.
tfls: yes, the influx of skinheads, mercenaries, and hate mongers into the military is terrifying. On the other hand, it makes perfect sense if Shrub intends to declare himself prez for life. He'd want a military made up of scum.
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