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[Spicoli]

Here's a good article on the causes of the recession.
http://www.projo.com/opinion/contributors/content/CT_morici24_09-24-10_S1JVLID_v9.2759902.html#

[stablepitandpub]

All of this crap has to stop..... OUR OWN Government has been feeding us this Strawberry dream crap and we are eating it... Any idiot with fingers can go on the internet and look for  or 5 sources of news and pick out what is close in each...somewhere in there is something close to the truth..... FACT we are and have been on average in DOUBLE DIGIT UNEMPLOYMENT. You have to look at the NEW CLAIMS BUT.... you also have to take into consideration TEMPS, underemployed and those who have just plain gave up and are eyeing another program.... like Welfare and Food Stamps.
 
We are hearing OH BOY the Housing Market sales went up 4.3%... HEY GOMER!!!!!  Check out what is being sold and why..... In my Hood...a slumlord can have $100,000 worth of money and collateral and buy 5....say 5 houses.... We are in a renter economy and it is crappy as well.... Crappy homes going for too damned much rent.... When the bubble was bursting in the Housing Market Cesspool.... I remember BRAND NEW BUILT NEVER LIVE IN HOMES were being demolished. A home gone back to scrap. Anyone who sees a plus in this..... maybe a trip to Sears is in order. First POS idea was the $8000+ tax break ....so that tells me the homes were overpriced in the first place and then..... the Cash For Clunkers that killed the used car market for those who can't afford a new car as well as parts to keep their PAID FOR older car on the road. We are a bunch of HUNGRY LEMMINGS who just want to die with a full stomach and no thought on the whole program. If you want something for free...... inhale....air is still free.....for now. The main way this all works.... is this.... do you want this to hurt now.... or later??? either way.... the pain is coming.... remember ...we are ALL on the same boat...the only difference is at which deck you are as it sinks.
 
If I sound cynical, sorry 'bout dat, but until I hit the POWER BALL... I will see all of this the same way. Until true things happen and not the BS we are fed..... so goes this ship. You can't make lemonade out of lemons and drink it when you are underwater. My regret is that I am forced to leave my Grand Kids this mess after my dirt nap commences.
 
 
 
"Lead is the ONLY precious metal."

What we need is someone like you to get a revolution going, and
            I think the whole government would be surprised how many of us
            would join you.  I'm ready, because the government is not con-
            conered about us, but they jump at other countries to give them
            help with our tax dollars.  What about the 9000 returning soldiers
            who have returned home, and can't find a job or a home, and are
            living on the streets. 

[Lifetime]

Guys.... Please believe me...you DO NOT want me in politics. I am not PC and am a Pessemist. I am sceptical and am so especially with supposed figures on Veterans.
 
A few things I found in the 40+ years of being a part of or working on Veteran issues...
 
Homeless Veterans.... I believe there are Homeless Veterans but I have found a fair share are self inflicted as in.... Kicked out of their HOME by spouses who can't put up with crap from them ...either Service related or just because they are and always were...of kilter. I met a guy who said he was homeless because.... he didn't own a home. DOH. He was disabled ( no not a veggie) and got a VA Disability Check. I asked him where he got it and he said at his sister's house..... where he lives. Others do have Chemical problems and employment issues. There is help available if they take the steps to get it. Many have Drug and Alcohol problems and can't even get through a 28 day clean up at a VA Facility let alone pass a pee test for a job.
 
I know employment is an issue... it is for everyone but, they have to seek programs available. There are Veteran Reps specially set aside at Career links to know programs and set up interviews. The trick is to utilize them. And NO..you may not get a job earning $25/hour but..all journies start with the first step. The VA has Homeless Programs and are establishing "Homes" for these Vets to establish themselves in the working community. I know these things because..... I attend quarterly meetings with the Director and her Staff at the Butler VA and they bring in people to speak on thes programs. Some are GROSSLY underused....but they do have a lot of success. There are programs for unemployed/homeless/chemical abuse/PTSD/female veteran services as well as many others. The first step is always to be taken by the one seeking.
 
If you live in PA ...one of the best first steps to find the purveyors of these Help Programs is to call or visit your County Veterans Affairs Director... all 67 counties has one and they serve under Pennsylvania's Department of Military and Veterans Affairs (DMVA). The other would be the Disabled Veterans' Outreach Program ( if eligible) DVOP and/or the Local Veterans' Employment Representatives (LVERS) at your local Carreer Link. Between these offices, you should be able to cover most of your concerns and get info on how to work to address the rest.
 
Our VA Medical Facilities are there for their use. Here in our area we deal with at least 3 VA Medical Centers ( Hospitals) as well as a ton of clinics. In Ohio we have Cleveland (VAMC) and the use of the Bellemont Ave. YO. CBOC... We also have Pittsburgh/Butler and Erie VAMC's as well as their many Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOCs). The one we have in Hermitage is one of the Best in our region. We are now able to utilize some of the facilities of our local Sharon Regional..We have use of the Imaging center to include those services needed by Female Vets. We are working to utilize even more down the line...Heart, Cancer, Diabetis, etc.
 
 
So... if you are a Vet in need or you know one who is.... I have just given you some first steps before you start to label yourself.
 
One thing I learned is... HELP doesn't always seek you out...you or a friend/relative have to seek IT.
 
And yes...I am proud of the VA System. I remember when you couldn't get a bedpan in the 60's to today. It is a difference of night and day. Sure... I hear complaints about the service but I ask those who do complain what they did and usually they walk away ...I ask if they talked to a Patient Advocate...a blank look  ... so they go on their way telling everyone how bad the system is and never even tried to correct their situation and in the end ...maybe that of a brother or sister who may follow in his or her's footsteps. As Veterans...you have to learn where and how... Who held your hand while in the service??
 
So when a Veteran comes to me...I listen...and then I start to ask questions. If you get angry... sorry, but... I won't be the only one. My point...there is help there for most and yes... we need to try to help all. We also need cooperation and honesty.
 
Sometimes the CURE can be as painful or more in some cases than the disease. Even a Highschool coach will tell you to "work through it." I know it isn't simple but we do no service to ourselves and others making it more complicated.
 
"Use it...don't abuse it."
 
 

What we need is someone like you to get a revolution going, and
            I think the whole government would be surprised how many of us
            would join you.  I'm ready, because the government is not con-
            conered about us, but they jump at other countries to give them
            help with our tax dollars.  What about the 9000 returning soldiers
            who have returned home, and can't find a job or a home, and are
            living on the streets.

 
...Write In...Vote... ... ...Lifetime... ... ...

[stablepitandpub]

Ko-Shin, that is what I am doing.  I think the most discouraging thing to me is to find out how much is spent to put a person in
office.  One woman, I think it is to run for governor in California,
has spent 140 million to win the office.  Our generation has been
completely stunned by believing that two years ago, CHANGE would
happen.  It sure has, we are so in debt right now that the USA will
never see the light of day.  We are paying millions every day just
in interest payments to other countries. 
 
Lifetime, I believe what you say about the veterans coming home,
but are they told about the benefits you have just explained to us?
That definitely puts everything into different light for me, but I myself think that these problems are partly why we have a legislator
in each district. 
 
The first thing that should be done, starting right now, is to only
run ads that are positive qualities about that candidate, and what
his/her goals are that they want to achieve.  By now, I don't want
to vote for anyone who runs ads on TV.
 
Even at our local level, I attend some township meetings, and some
of the taxpayers talk down to the supervisors, the secretary, and
even the lawyer.  At least the supervisor positions don't spend big
bucks to win the election.  I sit and listen, and wonder why ANYONE
would want to put themselves in that position, to be talked down to
by someone who has a nasty disposition over a petty problem.
 
Regardless of who wins whatever election, just how much change are we going to see to bring back jobs?  Our Marcelleus Shale could
help alot, but it also has issues.  I just read that the recent oil rig
explosion was because of a faulty part that the right people knew
about, and the Chili mine disaster had a three hour warning by one
of the more experienced miners, yet who did anything to correct or
save:  lives, which is the most important, and billions of dollars because someone would not listen to common sense?  I don't think
that the Pa. State Legislator has any more problems than the other
states do, it just affects us more here in Pa. 
 

[Lifetime]

The military has what they call the TAPS program.... but a lot of veterans getting out pass it over and miss some of the info. I and many others from our era try to tell EVERY Sand Box Vet we meat where to look for help... We do our best to lead them to water.... but. A big part of Veterans problems can be fixed if they just talk to the right agency and people in the community. Here in Mercer County, we have the a Veterans Affairs Director and Staff... Some good VSO's and even a Veterans Advisory Council that works through the County Commissoner's office.... John Lechner to be exact. We have Outreaches set up at various times at places like the Sharon American Legion... the just have to call the Veterans Affairs Directors Office for info...it covers everything from benefits, employment and even Health screening and shots.... The system is there...it is up to them "to drink".
 
 
And sometimes it takes a special person to take on Public Service...and I am talking about the ones doing it for the right reasons. Alas...some of the best intended ones...catch what is called "Potomac Fever" at various levels. Pay and Perks are reason for some... Honesty and Integrity are hard to hold onto sometimes. Oh well.
 
Am I correct in thinking you are in Crawford County? If so...send the vets to Fred Cunningham... County Veterans Affairs Director at the Crawford Courthouse. He is a Marine but he is a good guy.

[Lifetime]

Notice for the Vets.... Spouses might be able to check and see if the Visiting Nurses will be at a particular outreach... I understand they can get shots for nominal fee....
 
http://www.butler.va.gov/calendar.asp
 
Below..... reference to Veterans Affairs and the TAPS program as well...
 
http://www1.va.gov/vso/index.cfm?template=viewreport&Org_ID=214
 
 
 

[stablepitandpub]

You are absolutely correct about Fred Cunningham.  He is the type of person who gives 100% to whatever it is he does.  He is also in
the Shriners, as I used to have a lot of their banquets. 
 
It just upsets me to hear that so many vets coming back do not have a job or a home.  I have a few friends who have lost their
sons to war in the past ten years, and it is always heartbreaking
to hear that news. 
 
If we are supposedly broke as a nation, why are we spending so
much money for moon exploration?  We have a crisis right here in
the U.S. that can house and feed many people. We need to keep
the millionaires OUT of office, as they do not comprehend what we
unemployed and underpaid go through just to put food on our tables.  I read the perfect sign yesterday, "if you can't stand behind
our armed forces, stand in front of them".  They should not come
back to nothing.  Please, everyone in Crawford County, go to the
Court House in Meadville and find Fred Cunningham.  He is who everyone will refer you to, and you will be happy that you did.

[Lifetime]

Again..... the Veteran cannot sit on their asses and complain without doing what they should FIRST. NO ONE is going to bring the platter to YOU...YOU have to be Pro Active. If you don'thave a job.... then make a "job" out of finding one.... 8AM to 5PM... in that time... search and go to those who CAN help. If you want to go to school...again... Veterans Affairs Director has the info and if not, he/she knows who does. Many schools have internal Veterans Affairs people. Even Penn State Shenango has a Veterans Committee. And word to the wise.... when you are talking to people who can help.... Don't Bullsh_t them. Many of them, myself included... have grown a BS meter. I have listened to escapades from a lot "Vietvets" and over the years.... some of it is just plain..... Bar Room BS. After years of learning, I have picked up on Units/Locations/Missions. They all seem to slip up in conversation. If one comes to me and this happens..I lose my ambition to help. If I am asked for help and I offer the resources, you have ONE chance to use it. If you don't attept, don't return to me. I do this for nothing so don't waste my valuable time.There is another Veteran out there who actually does want my help and will act on it. Oh and did I mention.... Fred is one with a big BS meter.
 
I also know that if a Vet is BSing...word travels fast.... If he/she turns up at another location and does the samething... We now have a name for these .... "Shoppers". They are usually the ones who don't get the answer they want to hear and SHOP other resources until they find one that fits. They give the Honest Vets a bad name. If you want to see how hard the Veterans Affairs Offices work... this is 2 of their sites that show how much in Compensation and Pension Awards/annum for the County Directors Offices in that county... 2010 isn't in yet.... but for these 2..I think it will be even more awards for the Veterans of their counties.. ( You will notice below, that the Allegheny[Pittsburgh area] Veterans Affairs office, has yet to even hit $1 million for their Vets. I hope this gives you some info you can use and pass on.
 
http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/community/county_directors_for_veterans_affairs/11384/hide_mercer_county/566041
 
http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/community/county_directors_for_veterans_affairs/11384/hide_crawford_county/565942
 
Now compare these 2 counties to the record of the Pittsburgh area which has MORE Veterans and how hard their Director's office seems to work..
 
http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/community/county_directors_for_veterans_affairs/11384/hide_allegheny_county_directors_page/564603
 
 
And if you want to check ANY county in PA...go here and find the county....
 
http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt?parentname=SearchResult&space=SearchResult&in_tx_query=Veterans+compensation+awards&parentid=22&in_hi_userid=2&control=bannerstart&cached=false
 
 
 
 
 

You are absolutely correct about Fred Cunningham.  He is the type of person who gives 100% to whatever it is he does.  He is also in
the Shriners, as I used to have a lot of their banquets. 
 
It just upsets me to hear that so many vets coming back do not have a job or a home.  I have a few friends who have lost their
sons to war in the past ten years, and it is always heartbreaking
to hear that news. 
 
If we are supposedly broke as a nation, why are we spending so
much money for moon exploration?  We have a crisis right here in
the U.S. that can house and feed many people. We need to keep
the millionaires OUT of office, as they do not comprehend what we
unemployed and underpaid go through just to put food on our tables.  I read the perfect sign yesterday, "if you can't stand behind
our armed forces, stand in front of them".  They should not come
back to nothing.  Please, everyone in Crawford County, go to the
Court House in Meadville and find Fred Cunningham.  He is who everyone will refer you to, and you will be happy that you did.