LIVE CHAT 6 PM to 9 PM EST Live Chat 6 PM to 9 PM EST ONE VOICE Chat Community Newspapers & Reporters Bum Nation: Putting an End to Vet Fakers & Hoodwinked Pity Factories (Personal Album)
Live Chat 6 PM to 9 PM EST ONE VOICE Chat Community Newspapers & Reporters Bum Nation: Putting an End to Vet Fakers & Hoodwinked Pity Factories (Personal Album)|
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| I have held onto this article for a time, looking for a break in my schedule so I could put it out in this Forum for all the world to see. The article below is taken from a local newspaper here in my New York area, but when it first made headline news here in this city, it really did set off a firestorm of gripes and protests from the public, from the veterans, and also from VA Hospital caregivers once I got wound up in my momentum in moving the story around with arguments. It's time that all my Vet readers get a clue about the truth of homelessness and what the national numbers are telling the people who work in the industry. By that I mean, leave all of the internet rumors and BULL behind because I have seen the Parrot Head Pity Factory that floods our email chains and internet groups between ourselves, and I am here today to put this issue of Bum Nation to rest. To that end, I ask that you grow a brain while reading this chat entry and take special note to the insights that I bring to the matter, and perhaps it will shed some light on many of you as to just how very MISTAKEN everyone is on the entire issue of homeless veterans and bums. If ya have a personal agenda to hold onto your Delusions, then so be it. But I for one, am NOT gonna go there with ya, and for each time this Bum Nation topic comes making it's rounds on the internet, then it will be me who sets the record straight and it will be you on the receiving end of my reality checks. So pay attention to this as I run through the drill for ya one time, and take notes so that it impresses upon you just what a Hoax and a pile of baloney this entire matter is of some of you who are thinking that homeless shelters are stretched to the seams with Veterans, all of who are combat types, and all of who are worthy candidates as Medal of Honor recipients. I am here today to take some of you down off your high horse on this subject, and to open your eyes Big Time to the truth and realities of this sinking Titanic of a ship called Bum Nation. First, let's take a look at the article that I brought to you and get a load of what all this says. The press photo that came with the article is also displayed below so you can all get the big picture. Please know that I live all of 3 blocks away from the City Mission where this article was based out of so I do not speak on this topic from an unknowing and safe distance from where it is situated. I have to walk right by this rathole of a place when I do my local shopping so get a clue, that I DO know a few things on this topic. _____________________________________ Start of Times Union Article Battling for better life By DENNIS YUSKO, Staff writer Click byline for more stories by writer. The Times Union, Albany NY First published: Sunday, April 13, 2008 James Gray, 57 James Gray, an Air Force mechanic who served in Vietnam from 1969 to 1971, has struggled with homelessness since returning from the war. Gray was born in Queens, grew up in Poughkeepsie and has stayed around Albany and Schenectady for 15 years. More than a year ago, on a cold and snowy night in Albany, his legs gave out. He had nowhere to go. Police and emergency personnel took him to the Stratton VA Medical Center. Once treated, doctors wouldn't allow Gray to return to the streets. He went to a VA homeless shelter run by the Saratoga County Rural Preservation Company in Ballston Spa. What led him to this place started in Vietnam. He lost a really good friend while fighting. He found the body in a river. "Vietnam was, for me, a bunch of body bags on a flight line -- bad memories," said Gray, who also was traumatized by war-related medical conditions and by protesters. "It was a sad and confusing time. I lost my innocence, grew up too fast, lost a sense of direction." Gray, a 57-year-old former aircraft mechanic, stayed with his mother before striking out on his own. Laid off from different jobs, he became overwhelmed with stress. "I wanted a regular life, but when I got back, my mind wasn't set up for that. A picket fence and 2.3 kids was out of the question," Gray said. "I became a rebel without a cause. I was looking at the U.S. different, everyone different." Though still unable to work, Gray has been sober for 15 months and, for the first time in decades, believes he has a chance at a satisfying life. "I'm coming to grips with myself, and that I am worthy of something other than the life I had been living." Luis Pagan, 48 Luis Pagan knows himself. "I'm an Army man. All I do is battle." Life has sometimes been a war for the 48-year-old veteran from Puerto Rico and Spanish Harlem. "I went into the Army to avoid family," said Pagan, who explained he had been abused and was undisciplined. He joined the military at the end of the Vietnam War, serving as a sergeant from 1975 to 1979. Drinking and drugs were readily available, and he dabbled. By the time he returned home, he was ready to start a family. He and his wife had several children in New York City. Then, about eight years ago, he lost a loved one. Pagan spiraled into the first of his three battles with addiction. Whenever life became unmanageable, he turned to alcohol or cocaine or both -- burning holes in his wallet and family life. "Every time I became homeless, it was because I was using," he said. He hit rock bottom when his daughter saw him getting high and cried. Pagan went to rehab the next day, Feb. 6, 2007, and sought help from the VA. He was sent to Bath and then Albany for housing and counseling. Pagan, who says he's been stone sober since, showed off his neat Room 202 recently at the Albany Vet House. As "house rep," he enforces the rules at the 28-bed homeless facility -- no smoking, no food and no women in rooms -- and assigns chores. His wife, children and mother are again speaking with him. He now works as a printing laborer. "I'm really happy with my life now," Pagan said. "But I'm not going to sit here and blow smoke. They say I have a disease called addiction. It's a battle everyday. But I'm tired of losing and I ran out of excuses. All I can say is I am going to work on recovery one day at a time for the rest of my life." Dellon Washington, 50; Michael Leahy, 40 Returning to civilian life after eight years in the military proved difficult for Dellon Washington, 50, and Michael Leahy, 40. For Washington, an Army veteran from South Carolina and Brooklyn, personal issues started in the military when he went drinking "with sergeants who were like father figures," he said. When he left the Army as a sergeant in 1985 after two overseas tours, he "felt like a robot." He was afraid of dying and sad about being separated from family. It was hard to identify himself, he said. Leahy, a 6-foot-5-inch Marine Corps sergeant who served from 1985 to 1993, left the Marines after a successful military career but found it difficult to reintegrate into civilian life. "It's a different world," said Leahy, an Orange County native who served in Hawaii and overseas. Both are now trying to piece together their lives at the Albany Vet House. "Want to see my room?" Washington recently asked a visitor he had never met. Room 400 is filled with a bed, TV, lamp and lots of paperwork, and the soldier is proud to show it off. Doing the little things are important to recovery and redirection, Washington said: keeping a room clean, having a grateful attitude. By talking with counselors and understanding what stresses him, Washington has found renewed self-esteem. He now works at the Stratton VA and realizes he has the freedom to make his own decisions. "You've seen where things can go," Washington said. "These people make you feel like you're worth something, then you start to think that you're worth something." Down the hall in Room 304, Leahy navigated the Internet and talked about arriving in Albany in September 2005 because he needed to re-evaluate what he was doing with his life. "I definitely chose to numb myself," which may have stemmed from unresolved childhood issues, he said. Surrender, acceptance and self-exploration helped him turn a corner in his recovery. He's been sober for more than two years and has a job. "I'm finding out what life is," Leahy said. "The hand you're dealt is the hand you have to play." Michael Brown, 45 For many U.S. veterans, the 1980s were a quiet decade. Not so for Michael Brown, a Navy petty officer third class. The sailor from Auburn remains deeply affected by his years of service in Beirut and Grenada in 1983, two significant military actions that are sometimes overshadowed by Vietnam. Brown, 45, supported the invasion of Grenada, then patrolled and manned machine guns in wartime Beirut after radical Shiite militants bombed a Marine barracks in the Lebanon capital. Some 241 American servicemen died in the attack, and Brown witnessed coffins filled with the dead. "I learned a lot, but it scared the crap out of me," Brown said. Breaking down in tears at his temporary home at the Ballston Spa shelter, he said he saw "a lot of death." For years, Brown carried with him the symptoms of traumatic stress, soldiering on in civilian jobs despite feelings of guilt. He came to the area five years ago to accept a job at General Electric Co. in Niskayuna. Brown researched electrical insulations and voltage. He lived by himself in a Ballston Lake apartment. Then, in 2005, he hurt his back in a non-work-related incident. The injury left him bedridden, and he spent nine days in a hospital. Unable to work, he lived off his savings. That lasted until July 2006, when he was evicted. The ex-sailor is now undergoing mental health counseling. Helping hands The Stratton VA Medical Center funds a handful of independent contractors who provide shelter for homeless veterans: Adirondack Vets House, Glens Falls, nine beds Saratoga County Rural Preservation Company, Saratoga, eight beds Schuyler Inn, Menands, 60 beds Turner House Center for Veterans, Williamstown, Mass., nine beds Vet House, Albany (part of the Albany Housing Coalition), 28 beds ___________________________________ End of Times Union Homeless Article Now, I am going to rifle through this article for you, one piece at a time and let's get at the truth here. James Gray This guy may very well be the only guy in the entire news article who is legitimate. He is a genuine combat Veteran from the Vietnam Era at a time when no PTSD support services existed. But now they do, so then what is the REST of his pile of excuses for not getting into treatment? This is a fair question to know, because they guy has been living on the lamb all the way into his age of 57, and he STILL doesn't get it that he absolutely DOES have to go into the system if he is ever to get out of the Bum Nation that he is in. The problem here of course, that is actually CHOOSING Bum Nation as a preferance because the lack of treatment and combat conditions has long, long, and long been removed from him as an excuse. So what's up with him STILL peddling this story around? Nonetheless, in comparison to the rest of this article, James Gray may be the end-all for what can be held up as a legitimate Veterans case making an appearance in this news story. Luis Pagan By all means, DO get a load of this guys story for the faker that he really is. He is not even from this city area at all, he is a transient. He voluntarily entered the military, not because of some pie in the sky notions about Duty, Honor, and Country, but just to escape from his family. He was already a misfit when he went in, and he was more of one when he got out. Then, he has a single rough spot in life and this completely derails his entire momentum. He has nothing at all to do with combat, he took up drinking and gambling "just hanging out with the boys". His low point came when he lost a family relative --- or something like it. Now, what in the royal HELL does any of this have to do with military service or VA disability, I would love to know?? The truth is, too too many of you all have been falsely bestowing the wrong distinction of veteran statusing or combat statusing upon this ratpile of voluntary Bums when a lot of them are NOT deserving of it or are even close. These are a bunch of slacker types who are going to make any excuse for anything at all, just as long as they do not have to take the blame upon their own sorry selves for being a bunch of Losers to start with. Let's get real, everybody, this guy is talking in his own words and here he is in a freaking VETERANS SHELTER while he is doing it. Dellon Washington & Michael Leahey Both of these men claimed to be stationed "overseas" but WHAT does that have to do with "combat"? Excuse me, but WHEN was there any combat in Hawaii? There was none, so here is the false illusion going on that somehow being stationed "overseas" is the same as being in "combat". Us Girls have a name for these 2 and ya might as well know what it is: Baby-Ass Syndrome! Yes these are Sniffle-Butts Extraordinairres who want all of life itself spelled out to them in an AR regulation before they actually get on the same page and go out to DO it! Get a load of their 2 stories and then please TRY to keep a straight face, because these are the crackpots who are sitting in a Veterans homeless shelter and trying to "justify" why they are all there. Michael Brown Well here is the last of the Losers look for a pity rub from the public while he lives within the walls of Bum Nation. He starts off looking like a possible legitimate combat case until ya read further into his story. This guy is an Idiot beyond words so think twice before you feel for him. He gets a really good job with one of the major and best employers of this entire area, General Electric, a place where I myself used to work. Then after he hurts himself on the job, only THEN does it dawn on him that he can just slack off and make full use of his Veterans status inside of Bum Nation. This is a Workers Comp case gone wrong, and he is hiding his dysfunctional self under the false and deceptive shroud of combat and service connected illness. Now I say to you here, these Fakers from Hell felt completely comfortable talking to this news reporter, since the reporter himself was a civilian and NOT a Veteran --- not really in the know about what was right and what was wrong about these story profiles which started out to be about why Veterans are in homeless shelters. But THEN, as the stories got confronted one by one, that whole entire "theme" fell apart by the rest of us who ARE Veterans are In The Know! This news story is about one single legitimate Veterans homeless case while the rest are all fakers and tag alongs. Not any of them are from this original birthplace of a city here in Albany NY they are all transients. Which also means they more than like have even MORE they are hiding from the public back at the original places where they are all from. All of you who hunker around this internet DO need to start facing the great faker reality of what is going inside these Bum shelters, and if raking over this one local demonstration of a news article is not enough for you to do that, then here is more. Below at the end of this chat, I am giving to you 2 different LINKS to 2 statistics reports on Bum Nation and the overall make up of homeless shelters. In the photograph below, we all made the clear and obvious observation that military service, generally, is a white male phenomenon. Blacks are a significant minority in military service, with women even a smaller minority. And YET, as you can see with your very own eyes, this photo of Bum Nation in Albany NY is predominately Black. Now, get a clue that the majority of Bums who are taking over the city parks in downtown Washington DC, are ALSO predominately Black. So this raises the question about how can it POSSIBLY be that Blacks dominate the Bum Nation both in Albany NY and in Washington DC?? What the rumor mill internet never bothers to talk to all of you about is what the usual and rest of the Bum Nation is really made up of all by itself, either with or without Veterans so that you can start putting these Fakers to Nowhere into some kind of perspective. Generally speaking, Blacks always dominate the Bum Nation population. For homeless shelters, it is 42% Black against 39% White. This has nothing at all to do with Veterans statusing, it is a just a fact that you cannot argue with. ALSO!, single adult males are as much as 44% of the entire Bum Nation population. What that means is, that homeless shelters are largely a Black phenomenon and also a MENS phenomenon. Are ya starting to see where this is going? Veterans occupying homeless shelters are only a Dinky 6% over the rest of the mens population who have nothing at all to do with military service or combat. GET REAL everybody because this is the flaming truth. 40% of the adult male population are Veterans in Bum Nation while 34% are NOT!! Now, how does THAT rock yer world? And out of this big huge number of 76%, the majority of men who are occupying Bum Nation, only 16% are mental cases. This means that 60% of them can likely get up off it TOMORROW and change their circumstances if they really want to. These are shocker numbers that will render a lot of you into silence, I am knowing for sure. It will bring to a screeching Halt, all of that you have been misled into believing from the homeless Nazi's out on this internet who seem to love flooding our email chains with this issue whenever it serves their convenience. But it's a lie, and here are the cold hard facts to OUT this stinking story for the Faker nonsense that it really is. There is only a 6% discrepancy margin between Veterans in Bum Nation and civilians who are also in Bum Nation. They would be there anyway, it is a phenomenon of MEN and Blacks and that is the end of the story so get used to it. On a final note, TV cameras were back into the Albany City Mission over the holidays in the past few days and here is what we all saw: Mostly Blacks eating free dinners at the City Mission or lined up to get free Christmas presents. The Blacks all had top quality designer hair cuts, and were sporting near brand new clothes and winter jacket-wear. Obese types who were trying to pass around the idea that they were hungry and needed free food. Many of you really do have to remove your SAP shirts and hats, and put on a new ensemble that says "not me, not today" because you are allowing yourselves to be suckered into a false, faker, and deceptive Bum Nation situation that does not exist in the way that you are being misled into. Yes there are Veterans there, yes there are bums there, but the numbers tell a different story than the internet Pity Nazi's all want you to believe. These are a bunch of Losers who never did a single thing "heroic" in their lives and in some cases, did not even see combat. And yet here you all are running after them and carrying their stories as if they were all candidates to receive the congressional Medal of Honor. Give Me A BREAK, I say, and let us all start to shut down the rumors and the BULL that is coming from every direction on this internet to somehow suggest that these lost souls can actually be saved. Bum Nation is a voluntary CHOICE and it's a "lifestyle" too. So study over the numbers now, and come away from this chat a wiser, and more committed person to not pander to this issue any more than it deserves. Here are the statistics LINKS for your contemplation: http://www.policyalmanac.org/social_welfare/homeless.shtml http://www.nationalhomeless.org/publications/facts/who.html This message has been edited. Last edited by: McClellanVet, |
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LIVE CHAT 6 PM to 9 PM EST Live Chat 6 PM to 9 PM EST ONE VOICE Chat Community Newspapers & Reporters Bum Nation: Putting an End to Vet Fakers & Hoodwinked Pity Factories (Personal Album)
Live Chat 6 PM to 9 PM EST ONE VOICE Chat Community Newspapers & Reporters Bum Nation: Putting an End to Vet Fakers & Hoodwinked Pity Factories (Personal Album)Copyright 2004
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