Falls VFW post planning ‘stand down’

Ok, the problem with being upset for people expecting the "guvment" to take care of their own is your belief that family and friends are better able to take care of those struggling with the after effects of war. That would be great if that were true, but in a large number of situations, it's just not. Well-meaning family members and loved ones are NO substitute for professional psychological care, particularly when you're dealing with PTSD. Trust me, I know this first hand. Love and support alone don't heal extreme psychological issues. And good psychological care is expensive to obtain on one's own. That's why veterans SHOULD be able to rely on the government.

Also, keep in mind that vets of wars like WWII, Korea in large part fought different kinds of wars than those in Vietnam and Iraq. Guerilla warfare is the key...IEDs, ambushes by "civilians"...I would never begin to compare the atrocities of either types of combat, but it's not unreasonable to think that while vets of all wars likely face challenges from PTSD/PTSS, that many vets of Vietnam or Iraq might face challenges different from many vets of wars with more conventional forces. It's not just a matter of how people welcomed vets home. That's a far too simplistic answer for a really complicated problem.

I don't know if stats of homelessness among vets get inflated or not. It's certainly possible b/c it's an emotional issue and tugs on all the right heartstrings. But heck, roj, you were in the military...most people there don't make a lot of money, and in this day and age, more than ever don't even have high school diplomas...so once you get home and get out, you have minimal education, possibly limited job skills depending on what you did when you were in, and not much extra money, you're already at a disadvantage. Now if you're all messed up mentally (and this can start with small things like having less patience, having anxiety problems, insomnia to full blown PTSD where you almost cease to be functional) and don't have $ to provide your own health (psychological) care, and you can't rely on the government, you're pretty much screwed.

It's great that you go out of your way to hire vets, and I'm sure you probably do a great deal more than that, being a vet yourself, but the fact that you yourself haven't run into people who are totally jacked up doesn't mean that there aren't a lot of them...I happen to know personally, or know of (friends of friends) at least 5-6...and I maybe know/know of 50 Iraq vets. In my "scientific" statistical sample, (LOL) that's 10%...not enough necessarily that you would constantly run into such severly troubled people, but enough to be worried about, surely!! And for some of those people I know, they had extremely supportive friends and family...and it just hasn't helped their situation.

So I commend the VFW for doing what they can!!