At least 2,250 of Canada’s veterans are homeless due to alcoholism, drugs and mental
- Thread starter B00Mer
- Start date
I blame average Canadians for this as well. It's very easy to put a yellow ribbon magnet on your car that says "Support our Troops", but symbolism does nothing, if it is not backed up by action. Over the years I have been extremely active in writing my MP, the Minister of Veterans Affairs, Minister of National Defense and even the the Prime Minister on these issues.
Unfortunately, not enough Canadian's could be bothered and if Politicians do not see enough of a movement that can put their job in jeopardy they simply write the odd complaint off.
All you have do is start a thing on Change.org and you've changed the world. It's what diaperfloss would do and then boast about it.
Do you believe that veterans are at greater risk for homelessness than the general population and if so, do you have any stats that back it up?
First of all, I like how you completely dodged my initial challenge to your ridiculous opening statement, but I can certainly understand why you dodged it.
The op was about homeless veterans, not the stats of the homeless population risk factor vs veteran risk factor, so again I love how you try to muddy the issue. Nothing new with you.
Do I have the stats? Another benchmark in how completely out of touch you are.
Now here is your opportunity to throw out the usual, "I knew you didn't and your just being silly."
Carry on, oh inept one.
Hypothetical question. My friend is an alcoholic but is too ashamed to tell me. I invite him to the pub for a beer and he declines, maybe proposing an alternative activity instead.
My other friends and I decide to nag him about it until he capitulates. We go regularly and each time we repeat the process of him not wanting to go and us nagging him on. Before you know it, he's the one who always wants to go to the bar and we can't keep up with his drinking. Then he goes on to full blown alcoholism.
Though he no doubt bears much responsibility for his actions, do I hold some moral responsibility for his state too?
Another example. I decide to open a casino. To what degree am I responsible for the harm my service might cause others? Again, I'm not saying most of the responsibility does not rest with the gambler ultimately, but do I still have at least some responsibility in ensuring those who come to my casino are informed of the nature of what I'm selling, the risks involved?
In the same vein, should I be required to list the ingredients on the food I sell? Should I be required to provide warning labels and safety instructions on the equipment I sell?
How are they different?
PTSD is not limited to veterans. Transgenerational trauma is a real factor too. For this reason we should also consider the children of veterans, firefighters, police officers, paramedics, etc.
Not only can the behaviour of PTSD sufferers affect their children, but their colleagues too.
I remember reading a case a few years ago of a Canadian army therapist in Afghanistan. He'd never seen combat and always remained far from the front lines. His job naturally involved dealing with PTSD sufferers on a regular basis, day in, day out.
Though his medical training had taught him about transgenerational trauma, he somehow thought it couldn't happen to him. He'd come back from Afghanistan suffering PTSD. He said in spite of the fact that his education should have caused him to expect it, it still took him by surprise.
Hence the moniker "Bob and Weave"!
Deleted.
Deleted? Sorry, I don't get it.
I don't remember saying that it was. I'm just saying that anyone that tries to say that the rise in homeless veterans has nothing to do with being a vet and everything to do with mental health and addiction is out of touch.
I have two Afghan veterans in my family, know at least a a few hundred from my military family and by extension have seen the effects of PSTD brought on by the war and not just Afghanistan, but the Balkan war as well. (Cough cough, I mean Peacekeeping).
It's is a huge contributing factor, but some like to lump it in with the present state of homelessness to muddy the waters.
Somebody gets blown up, sees their best friend die, is witness to atrocities and rather than treatment and support VAC cuts them a check and says, "See ya." Certainly it raises the possibility of that individual falling between the cracks.
Civilian mental health facilities can't take care of the civilian demographic, so who would expect them to understand veterans issues?
And yes, you don't have to see combat to suffer from mental health issues. I was a peacetime veteran and when I left the military on a medical discharge there was essentially no place on civilian street for me to seek help for the deep depression I suffered for over a year. Thankfully, my military insurance program, not VAC, had a descent counselor who got me some help from a retired military psychologist who was able to help me make the transition.
That psychologist coincidentally was at the forefront of getting PTSD recognized after the Balkans.
You've made statements that it is the government's fault and it is the publics fault however, if the stats I provided are correct and the homeless rates among veterans is actually half that of the general population, I submit that all things considered, the government is doing a reasonably good job. Clearly this bothers you as you seem unwilling to address it.
Clearly it does not, but then again. You continue to try and muddy the op and ignore the factors I mentioned because that is your M.O.
Don't go away mad, oh inept one, just hand out a silly and carry on.
I've suffered the symptoms of transgenerational trauma since as far back as I can remember and it only got worse throughout my childhood. Without getting into detail, I'd lived in fear of my father throughout my childhood.
I'm now diagnosed with PTSD though the therapist believed I might also suffer OCD and BPD too. I just didn't have the money to continue any further. All he was good for was diagnosing me, not offering solutions, so I quit.
How is suffering PTSD my fault?
You only see it as muddying because my comments contradict your agenda. I've seen it before. Carry on as they say