(USA Today) Survey: Veterans are 16% of homeless

Military veterans are much more likely to be homeless than other Americans, according to the government’s first in-depth study of homelessness among former servicemembers.

About 16% of homeless adults in a one-night survey in January 2009 were veterans, though vets make up only 10% of the adult population.

More than 75,000 veterans were living on the streets or in a temporary shelter that night. In that year, 136,334 veterans spent at least one night in a homeless shelter ”” a count that did not include homeless veterans living on the streets.

Simply heartbreaking–read it all.

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Posted in * Culture-Watch, * International News & Commentary, America/U.S.A., Military / Armed Forces, Poverty

2 comments on “(USA Today) Survey: Veterans are 16% of homeless

  1. robroy says:

    I think that debt has something to do with this problem:
    [blockquote] As many as one in five members of the armed services are being preyed on by loan centers set up near military bases that can charge cash-strapped military families interest of 400% or more, a new Pentagon report has found.
    [/blockquote]
    We are taking a Dave Ramsey FPU course and [url=http://www.daveramsey.com/military/ ]Dave has a special lecture for military personel and debt[/url]. Pawn shops and quickie loans are preying on our soldiers.

  2. Cennydd13 says:

    I’m very familiar with this problem…..which has plagued military personnel for many years…..especially those in the lower enlisted ranks. Wrightstown, NJ, is a good example of this. When I was stationed at McGuire AFB, there were clipjoints from one end of the town’s main street to the other, and just outside of the gates of Ft Dix and McGuire AFB. Used car dealers, bars, etc, and these loan centers are certainly no different; not to mention the payday loan sharks.