so they're capable of attacking other nations anywhere on the planet but they can't take care of themselves?
On Thursday, January 16, 2014 6:45:10 AM UTC-6, Travis wrote: > > > > > Dr. Eowyn posted: " There is an epidemic of homelessness and > joblessness among our military veterans. Shameful! The Philadelphia > Inquirer reports (via military.com), Jan. 6, 2014, that as of January > 2012, more than 60,000 veterans were homeless, according to the Depar" > Respond > to this post by replying above this line > > New post on *Fellowship of the Minds* > <http://fellowshipoftheminds.com/author/eowyn2/> 60,000 U.S. military > veterans are > homeless<http://fellowshipoftheminds.com/2014/01/15/60000-u-s-military-veterans-are-homeless/> > by > Dr. Eowyn <http://fellowshipoftheminds.com/author/eowyn2/> > > [image: homeless > veterans]<http://fellowshipofminds.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/homeless-veterans.jpg> > > There is an epidemic of homelessness and joblessness among our military > veterans. Shameful! > > The Philadelphia Inquirer reports (via > military.com<http://www.military.com/daily-news/2014/01/06/air-force-colonel-goes-from-pentagon-to-homelessness.html?ESRC=dod.nl>), > > Jan. 6, 2014, that* as of January 2012, more than 60,000 veterans were > homeless, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs.* Reducing that > number supposedly is a priority for the Obama administration. Although the > number of homeless veterans dropped 24% nationwide from 2009 to 2013, > Pennsylvania is an exception where the number actually increased 46%, to > more than 1,400. > > Our veterans' homelessness is partly because of joblessness. A monthly > lunch in Washington, D.C. attracts about 200 veterans. After they eat, the > men and women who are unemployed stand up one by one to recite their > service records, hoping someone else in the room will hire them. Many are > highly accomplished. > [image: Retired Air Force Col. Robert Freniere] > > One of the homeless and jobless veterans is 59-year-old *Robert Freniere*, > a former colonel in the U.S. Air Force who retired in 2006 after braving > multiple combat zones. (pic left) > > After a 30-year military career in which he earned three graduate degrees, > rose to the rank of colonel, and served as an aide to Pentagon brass, > Freniere is unemployed and lives out of his blue minivan crammed with all > his possessions and held together with duct tape. > > He'd even tried getting a job as a janitor. But his plea for help to a > janitor he once had praised when the man was mopping the floors of his > Washington office, went unfulfilled. So have dozens of job applications > that he'd filled out six hours a day, day after day, on public library > computers. > > How does he cope? > > Freniere told the Philadelpia Inquirer, "You stay calm. That's what we > were trained for when I went through survival training." > > Last month, Freniere teared up as he asked for advice on finding a > paycheck from Adm. James Hogg, who had officiated at Freniere's > retirement ceremony in 2006 and hailed him as "a leading light." > > In an interview, Hogg described Freniere as "very smart" with "the gift of > gab" and thought it "crazy" that the vet is jobless. "With all his > experience, especially in intelligence, there's got to be a spot for him." > > But jobs are hard to come by. Freniere, like many of his fellow > down-on-their-luck veterans, does not match any hat-in-hand Hollywood image > of homelessness. He receives an annual pension from the military of more > than $40,000. > > His struggle to find a job after retiring from the Air Force collided with > the end of his marriage nearly two years ago. Unable to return to the home > he shared with his estranged wife, and faced with expenses including bills > for two sons in college and debts that mounted in his former a nicer > lifestyle, he took up a nomadic existence. Between spells on the couches of > friends in multiple states, he sleeps occasionally in motels and other > times in the dented blue van. > > [image: homeless vets by > states]<http://fellowshipofminds.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/homeless-vets-by-states.jpg> > > The Philadelphia Inquirer veried the bulk of Freniere's story, which is > confirmed by military records. His is a story of service. > > Born in 1954, Freniere was an Eagle Scout and joined the Army in 1976, > and later the Air Force as an intelligence officer. As he moved through the > ranks, he served in combat zones in Somalia, Panama, Haiti, and Kuwait, > earned master's degrees in political science and criminal justice at the > University of Cincinnati and a master's in national security and strategic > studies from the Naval War College. > > Freniere moved to the Pentagon in 2000 and was there when it was hit by > terrorists Sept. 11, 2001. Two years later, he became special assistant to > Gen. Stanley McChrystal, then the vice director of operations of the Joint > Staff. > > In 2005, Freniere volunteered to go to Iraq. But as he was preparing to > deploy, his legs went numb one day, followed by back surgery. Instead of > flying to Iraq, he spent a year and a half convalescing. In 2006, he > retired from the Air Force. > > After his retirement, it took him a year to find work. Like many retired > servicemen, he turned to jobs with defense contractors which took him twice > to Afghanistan. When he came home, he had nowhere to go after separating > from his second wife. > > Freniere said he had not been able to find a contracting job since August > 2012 and blames the federal sequestration for squeezing contractors of > money and of the confidence to hire people. > > Freniere's dyslexia makes focusing on a computer screen difficult. Online > applications are so hard for him that tears well in his eyes as he > describes his days at public libraries. > > But Freniere said that he had not lost hope: "I'm a military guy. I'm > mission-oriented. You don't give up. I've got a lot of good experience. > I've got two beautiful sons. I've got a van. I don't know how long it's > going to hold up, but I've got it. I've got a lot of things to be thankful > for." > > See also "Democrats cut military pensions in favor of tax credits > for > illegals<http://fellowshipoftheminds.com/2014/01/14/democrats-cut-military-pensions-tax-credits-for-illegals/>," > > Jan. 14, 2014. > > *~Eowyn* > *Dr. Eowyn <http://fellowshipoftheminds.com/author/eowyn2/>* | January > 15, 2014 at 2:46 pm | Tags: Adm. James > Hogg<http://fellowshipoftheminds.com/?tag=adm-james-hogg>, > military pensions <http://fellowshipoftheminds.com/?tag=military-pensions>, > Robert Freniere <http://fellowshipoftheminds.com/?tag=robert-freniere> | > Categories: Congress <http://fellowshipoftheminds.com/?cat=4308>, > Economy<http://fellowshipoftheminds.com/?cat=17656840>, > illegal immigration <http://fellowshipoftheminds.com/?cat=34958091>, > Liberals/Democrats/Left <http://fellowshipoftheminds.com/?cat=115894710>, > Military <http://fellowshipoftheminds.com/?cat=33806753>, Obama's > America<http://fellowshipoftheminds.com/?cat=12285619>, > Republican Party <http://fellowshipoftheminds.com/?cat=56189> | URL: > http://wp.me/pKuKY-oY7 > > > Comment<http://fellowshipoftheminds.com/2014/01/15/60000-u-s-military-veterans-are-homeless/#respond> > > See all > comments<http://fellowshipoftheminds.com/2014/01/15/60000-u-s-military-veterans-are-homeless/#comments> > > > > Unsubscribe<https://subscribe.wordpress.com/?key=7f89380f46003915c34c2cdd2b126a38&email=bovinescatologists%40gmail.com&b=LSgW%3Dpoe%2CaTP.nYm-ld9%7E4%2CJaHLX%2C17oMpiy8asc6NiW%2Bmr.YpI>to > no longer receive posts from Fellowship of the Minds. > Change your email settings at Manage > Subscriptions<https://subscribe.wordpress.com/?key=7f89380f46003915c34c2cdd2b126a38&email=bovinescatologists%40gmail.com>. > > > > *Trouble clicking?* Copy and paste this URL into your browser: > > http://fellowshipoftheminds.com/2014/01/15/60000-u-s-military-veterans-are-homeless/ > > > Thanks for flying with WordPress.com <http://wordpress.com> > > > -- -- Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. 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