I see this commercial last night...It is a homeless guy on the street with a "will work for" sign, the next shot is a homeless woman sitting on the ground, her back to a brick wall shivering in the cold, the third shot is another homeless guy pushing a shopping cart of junk...the end result is an ad with the tag line "a home for every veteran"...
Ok, i have an issue here........
First of all what makes them a veteran..Is it that they served during a war or are all people who serve considered veterans? If it just includes people who served during war what do those that served in peace time get? A hand shake and " sorry we weren't fighting then,maybe next time" ? Because i always thought that you were a veteran no matter when you served and whether you poured sand out of your boots or not you got the same benefits.
Second of all, with the amazing amount of homeless people (including families with children) why are we only willing to "Give" housing to homeless veterans? And if we can "give" this housing away, why haven't we done it sooner and again for ALL people who are homeless? Would it not make more sense to house these people and make them productive members of society again?
Would it not make more sense to house the needy regardless of their military service? Is it a ploy by the government to get more people to serve in the military...you know something like (picture Uncle Sam here) "Enlist now, serve your country and if you ever have a mental breakdown, make bad financial decisions and loose it all, or simply choose to not pay your bills we will give you a home!!!" Well, gee i guess i better run right out and sign myself up...you never know when i might be homeless.
My parents served in the army, both of them, my husband served in the army. Are they offered the same benefits as those going to Iraq now? Hell No. Yes i understand that the men and women over there now are in a time of war and being shot at, etc....So again i ask you , is it OK to change the benefits for military personnel simply because "oh gosh there wasn't a war going on then"....NO. Is it OK to only provide housing to homeless vets when there are millions of non vets on the street in the same position...NO.
But i guess since my parents, my husband and millions of other VETERANS weren't being shot at daily, they no longer qualify as veterans. I guess since the woman down by my local post office holding the sign that says "will work for food, shelter, anything" is screwed and will have to continue freezing her butt cheeks off since she didn't serve in the military either.
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