slavegirljoy
Posts: 1207
Joined: 11/6/2006
From: North Carolina, USA
Status: offline
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1 in 4 is a big number. Here are some more big numbers, regarding our military veterans.
(Source: U.S. Census Bureau | Public Information Office | Last Revised: August 09, 2007)
http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/releases/archives/facts_for_features_special_editions/005696.html
24.5 million
The number of military veterans in the United States.
(From the upcoming Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2006.)
1.7 million
The number of veterans who are women.
(From the upcoming Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2006.)
9.5 million
The number of veterans who are age 65 or older.
(From the upcoming Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2006.)
2.3 million
The number of black veterans. Additionally, 1.1 million veterans are Hispanic; 276,000 are Asian; 185,000 are American Indian or Alaska native; and 25,000 are native Hawaiian and other Pacific islander. (From the AmericanFactFinder.)
8.2 million
Number of Vietnam-era veterans. More than 30 percent of all veterans served in Vietnam, the largest share of any period of service. The next largest share of wartime veterans, 3.9 million or fewer than 20 percent, served during World War II.
(From the upcoming Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2006.)
16%
Percentage of Persian Gulf War veterans who are women. In contrast, women account for 5 percent of World War II vets, 3 percent of Vietnam vets and 2 percent of Korean War vets. (From the upcoming Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2006.)
432,000
Number of veterans who served during both the Vietnam era and in the Gulf War.
6
Number of states with 1 million or more veterans. These states are California (2.3 million), Florida (1.8 million), Texas (1.7 million), New York (1.2 million), Pennsylvania (1.1 million) and Ohio (1.1 million).
(From the upcoming Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2006.)
$22.4 Billion
Aggregate amount of money received annually by the 2.6 million veterans receiving compensation for service-connected disabilities. (This isn't counting the nonservice-connected pensions recieved by veterans, like me.)
(From the upcoming Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2006.)
$59.6 Billion
Total amount of federal government spending for veterans benefits programs in fiscal year 2004. (From the upcoming Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2006.)
Now, for my personal view, as an Army veteran (1974-1987), i have known a fair amount of soldiers and some sailors, many of whom served honorably in an ugly war, called "Vietnam" and none of them were fucked-up. They were good men and good soldiers and they returned to civilian life and got good jobs, some with the government but, most in the private sector, and they own their homes and they are married and have kids and live good lives.
That's not to say that there aren't some who came back messed-up but, they aren't the majority. The military is made up of a cross-section of our country, mostly middle and lower-middle class, and in that cross-section there is going to be a percentage that are either already a little messed-up or prone to becoming messed-up at some point in their lives, just as there are in any other cross-section of our population. Some in the military are already or, are prone to becoming, alcoholics or drug abusers, just as is the case in any workplace.
Additionally, i have been served by several VA hospitals and clinics from Georgia to Vermont and i have had the better medical and mental health care through the VA than i ever had in any civilian medical facility. The VA saved my life, when i was at my lowest point and, not because of anything service-connected, either. It was because a drunk driver passed-out and crashed into me, as i rode my bicycle into the parking lot of my little girl's day care center at 9:00am on a Monday morning. The civilian trauma center patched-up my body and kept me alive, physically but, no one ever checked on any emotional trauma i might have suffered. It was the VA that did that and they gave me the help that i needed to get my life back to something close to a 'normal' state, so that i could be close to fully functioning again. They have provided me with so much help, physically, emotionally, financially, and they provide me with state-of-the-art prosthetic legs, free of charge, which i could never afford on my own or be able to get through Medicaid.
So, when i see news reports, such as the one that ABC's 20/20 did a year or two ago, that totally bash the VA health care system, it bothers me very much. In fact, it sickens me, it is so biased. i don't know of any civilian equivalent system that does as good a job for so many people as the VA does. There are also Veteran's Outreach Centers in every large city and in a lot of smaller communities that provide counseling, job assistance, housing assistance, clothing assistance, transportation, and meals to any veteran, free of charge. The people who are living on the streets, by and large, are doing so because they haven't taken the steps necessary to get the assistance that's available to them or, they aren't able to stay with the program assisting them in getting off the street. So, please don't blame the military, the VA or, the government for their plight. A lot of them have been in and out of care, repeatedly, and there is only so much that can be done to help them.
Finally, it's wonderful to feel concerned about the homeless, whether they are former military or not. And, there are many ways to offer assistance to the many groups and centers that are there to help them. Most of them will accept donations and also volunteers. If you don't know where any are in your community or, nearby, you can usually find out pretty easily. Most counties have some sort of social services office and they are usually aware of the local homeless centers and other charity groups in the surrounding area. Talking about the problem and making people aware of the problem is a good thing but, getting out there and helping by donating time, clothes, food, or money, is also a good thing to do.
Heres another government resource available to help veterans with housing needs:
HUD Veteran Resource Center (HUDVET) http://www.hud.gov/offices/cpd/about/hudvet/
This directory is designed to increase your knowledge of and participation in the wide variety of HUD homeless assistance programs and services for veterans and other individuals who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.
slave joy
Owned property of Master David (also an Army vet, who served in Vietnam 1970-72)
quote:
ORIGINAL: Gwynvyd
1 in 4 Homeless are Vets
This is just shameful. We should be supporting our Vets of all wars.
< Message edited by slavegirljoy -- 11/8/2007 4:49:24 PM >
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RE: 1 in 4 homeless are a veteran - 
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