Vietnam Vet Freezes To Death Christmas Eve
...................................snip........... .........................
A very high percentage of homeless males in that age group are
Vietnam-era vets. Of those, an extremely high number are suffering form
some sort of mental illness. It's too bad we no longer have a safety net.

Only in America........Billions of dollars spent on war and not enough to
have housing for the homeless.

Every large city, and many smaller ones, have food pantries and shelters for
the poor and homeless. Some of these are not-for-profit religious groups;
most receive money from the federal and/or state government directly, (and
by proxy, since they get tax-free donations from companies and individuals,
who get to write the donations off of their federal taxes- so, in essence,
the government is "paying" for this by not collecting the revenue) and the
vast majority get their food donated to them by families such as ours.
You'll also find many folks volunteering their time to deliver sandwiches
and coffee to the homeless, or to round them up and take them to a shelter
for a meal and a bed. One of our neighbors (a woman minister and her
husband) started a program to help homeless families get an apartment, find
jobs, and feed/clothe the families. They also have a big Christmas party
every year for the homeless and poor here, and get donations of clothes,
school supplies, and food for the event. There are always more than enough
volunteers to help with the event.



When I was in Havana, last winter, I noticed a signboard on a large
building
in the downtown area. On this sign was written, in English, " 30,000
children slept in the streets last night. Not one was Cuban." This
sign
is in reference to the homeless in the USA. In Cuba, everyone has a
home,provided by the government, or built by the people themselves.

And I'm sure it's very nice in Cuba, if you toe the party line, and behave
like a good communist- otherwise, I imagine that being tortured or
imprisoned for your political beliefs would be at least a minor
inconvenience, no?



There are homeless people living in the streets of Toronto, but it is
their
choice to do so. Not anyone here has to be homeless. Our government will
provide a place for people to sleep so they can come in out of the cold.

It's mostly a choice here, too (except for mentally ill, drug addicts,
alcoholics, etc) - though you'll get some argument from those who feel that
until every person is GIVEN an apartment, a job, and food, we havent done
enough. I, for one, see that trying to HELP someone by giving them TEMPORARY
assistance to find food, shelter, and work is vastly superior for that
person than trying to alleviate their suffering by GIVING them unlimited
free subsistance. Many of the people who are GIVEN a free ride will simply
become dependent upon it. If they are simply helped, for a limited time,
most can and will become productive citizens with infinitely more self
esteem and pride than those poor souls who depend on the public at large for
permanent support. Obviously, we can do a better job of locating and helping
those who are permanently disabled by mental illness or in need of drug
treatment, but by and large this country does a marvelous job of taking care
of it's own via a pertnership between concerned individuals, groups of
individuals supported by their companies, and by the government. To say
anything less is to undermine the vast amount of help and goodwill that
happens every single day in this country... And don't get me started about
the amount of money we spend around the globe on the poor populations of
countries whose leaders and populations still disdain us as the "rich,
selfish Americans" as if we OWED then something. We give, and I'm tired of
hearing the bitching and moaning that it "isn't enough". Sounds like a
spoiled teenager who is ****ed 'cuz he got a used car instead of a new one
for his 16th birthday.


Jim Carter.
"The Boat"
Bayfield

Happy boating, Jim.