Comments on: 1 in 4 Homeless are Veterans

By: James Joyner

James Joyner — Mon, 12 Nov 2007 20:24:13 +0000

I don't see why we have to be sure that the vet is a proper and honorable and deserving person before we help them, either. It does nobody any good to have anybody wandering the street exhausted and sick (whether mentally or physically).

I'm not sure what veteran status has to do with that, though. Surely, it's not productive to have non-vets sleeping on the sidewalks, either.

By: Anitra Freeman

Anitra Freeman — Mon, 12 Nov 2007 20:02:51 +0000

Whatever the reason for a vet being homeless, doesn't "support our troops" mean we shouldn't allow it? If a vet's house burns down for reasons totally unrelated to military service, that's still a veteran who sacrificed for us, and we have an obligation to them. I don't see why we have to be sure that the vet is a proper and honorable and deserving person before we help them, either. It does nobody any good to have anybody wandering the street exhausted and sick (whether mentally or physically). You can, and should, expect somebody to be productive after a decent meal, a full night's rest, and whatever health treatment they need to get back to battery. A person has to be allowed to contribute something to the community, for human dignity. Expecting functional work out of somebody who slept on the sidewalk last night and hasn't even had a place to wash makes no sense. If we have any respect for our troops, we shouldn't have any of them homeless. If we have any respect for human dignity, we shouldn't have anybody homeless.

By: davod

davod — Thu, 08 Nov 2007 21:37:09 +0000

I am sorry but this sounds like the sort of stuff that came out about Vietnam Vets and was found to be BS (The rates were the same or less than the general population).

I will wait for a better reviews of the data.

By: 1 Out of 4 Homeless People Are Veterans « The Van Der Galiën Gazette

1 Out of 4 Homeless People Are Veterans « The Van Der Galiën Gazette — Thu, 08 Nov 2007 17:58:37 +0000

[...] urgency of the problem is a matter of perspective, well, partially that is, as James Joyner explains: “Veterans are less likely to be poor than their counterparts but are also somewhat more [...]

By: Bob

Bob — Thu, 08 Nov 2007 17:56:12 +0000

The MSM and Hollywood appear dead set to replay the same "vet victimization" narrative from Viet Nam and Gulf War. Look at the current crop of movies. I now understand the venom many VN vets felt towards the anti-war left.

By: JimT

JimT — Thu, 08 Nov 2007 17:08:36 +0000

I don't see where the article defines what a 'veteran' is. Do they define a veteran as one who is honorably discharged - or as one who served at least a day in uniform? Vastly different in my mind. A person who washes out or is dishonorably discharged may be more likely to continue to fail the rest of their life.