Political Crossfire Forums

johnflesh · Joined: 16 Jul 2006 Posts: 503 Location: Texas

Quote:
Wives Of Troops In Iraq Soldier On At Home
Many Are Financially Strapped, But Say They're Not Looking For Pity

(CBS) While 25,000 military men and women based in San Diego County are serving in Iraq, thousands more wives and children are soldiering on back home. For the families who have been left behind, life on a daily basis is not easy, CBS Evening News anchor Katie Couric reports.

"You're not just the maid and the cook and the caretaker anymore. You're the sole disciplinarian. You are the electrician," says Lauren Hastings.

Hastings' husband, Justin, is on a Naval destroyer in the waters off Iraq. Erica Loux's husband, a Marine, just returned and could get shipped back anytime. Amber Grogan has a 6-year-old daughter and another on the way. Her Navy husband won't be there when she delivers in February.

"She climbs in my bed with me and I say, 'You can climb in here anytime you want.' She hasn't slept in her bed since," Grogan says of her daughter.

Many of these military families are financially strapped. More than 3,000 qualify for help when it comes to food and basic household items.

Everything is tight — money, bills, groceries. It's not nearly enough, the women explain. But Hastings adds, "I don't know that any military member wants pity."

Hastings uses her home as a headquarters for distributing handouts of donated bread for other wives in the same boat. "Every little bit does help. We don't make enough money that when the radiator breaks, we can just call someone and just take it to the garage and have them fix it," she says.

Every month, at least 100 new families are added to the list of those who qualify for donated items. Organizers say they haven't seen this kind of need since World War II.

"They're needy. It's a shame that many of them, many of them, are on food stamps and yet they’re fighting for the country," says Paul Kelly of the USO.

"We need help just like any other person," Grogan says.

What these wives don't need help with is keeping a stiff upper lip. They say being left as the sole caregiver for months at a time has only made them stronger and more independent. And despite the fact that the majority of Americans oppose the war, they firmly believe in what their husbands are fighting for.

"What my husband does, how he feels, he feels that he contributes," Hastings says. "It's the reason that the guy (opposing the war) can stand on the street corner and hold the flag upside down and not know how devastating that is to a soldier."

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/10/30/eveningnews/main2138058.shtml - link

First off, I'd like to go ahead and point out that this is a story covered by Katie Couric, though some of you have a definate bias against the woman, if you can put that aside for a second and read this as information that is the truth. It doesn't matter who wrote this, period.

This is no way to treat our troops and their families. I have no pity for them, or their families, I don't feel sorry for them. But I think it is dead wrong that these all but single parents, who have more than a job to do, have to go on welfare because they don't make enough money... while their husband and wives in some cases, are over-seas, putting their life on the line, for Americans. These families are living off of donated bread, canned goods, and other donated foods from the community.

While this war can be stressful on us all as well as this country, it is ridiculous to see these great people, who do have skin in the game, have to live day to day off donations. Without these donations of food and care these people would have to uproot their lives, move from their homes, just to make ends meet.

With all the money going into this war and the sizeable profits from stockpiling this war, you'd think that these families would get more of a chunk of that money, but as it turns out, the men and women of this war might as well be getting American minimum wage at this point. This is a sad truth to learn, indeed.

Snake · Joined: 10 Oct 2006 Posts: 21776 Location: e-Thuggin

Damn dude, that's f*cked up...

bigstick61 · Posted: Tue Oct 31, 2006 6:34 pm Post subject:

There's a reason why junior enlisted men were not allowed to marry or start families without permission. Also, this mainly affects those who live off-base, as housing is usually more expensive; if you live on-base, it's essentially free. Also, if you shop at the Commissiary and NEX, you get good deals on stuff.

Fido · Joined: 16 Mar 2006 Posts: 3936

Did you ever here the one about Caligula killing some poor slob for his fortune only to find out he had nothing; and this is the salient point: Caligula remarked that the man died for nothing.
Now, when do you suppose Bush or any of the clowns involved in defeating this country in Iraq will be so honest about those young men and women they see dieing for nothing?

Snake · Joined: 10 Oct 2006 Posts: 21776 Location: e-Thuggin

wtf does that have to do with the above topic. Failed thread hijacking imo....

Fido · Joined: 16 Mar 2006 Posts: 3936

Kamel wrote: wtf does that have to do with the above topic. Failed thread hijacking imo....

Does the truth always make you swear?

Snake · Joined: 10 Oct 2006 Posts: 21776 Location: e-Thuggin

lol, you're just mad because I prevented you from hijacking this thread.

Alizard · Posted: Wed Nov 01, 2006 1:37 pm Post subject:

bigstick61 wrote: There's a reason why junior enlisted men were not allowed to marry or start families without permission. Also, this mainly affects those who live off-base, as housing is usually more expensive; if you live on-base, it's essentially free. Also, if you shop at the Commissiary and NEX, you get good deals on stuff.

So, then why are so many not taking advantage of the free housing on base?

Oh, yeah... because there isn't enough. And the pittance they call "housing allowance" doesn't begin to cover real cost.

You do get a 30% discount at the exchange, but that's of little comfort to the families standing at the gates of Camp pendleton waiting for the handouts of old bread and surplus food.

Alizard · Posted: Wed Nov 01, 2006 1:39 pm Post subject:

Kamel wrote: wtf does that have to do with the above topic. Failed thread hijacking imo....

Here is the thread topic:

Wives Of Troops In Iraq Soldier On At Home

You don't think the wives of KIA's are suffering extreme hardships because of it?

You don't think many are are financially destitute because of it?

Wake up.

Marzelvane · Joined: 19 Oct 2006 Posts: 93

Alizard wrote: bigstick61 wrote: There's a reason why junior enlisted men were not allowed to marry or start families without permission. Also, this mainly affects those who live off-base, as housing is usually more expensive; if you live on-base, it's essentially free. Also, if you shop at the Commissiary and NEX, you get good deals on stuff.

So, then why are so many not taking advantage of the free housing on base?

Oh, yeah... because there isn't enough. And the pittance they call "housing allowance" doesn't begin to cover real cost.

You do get a 30% discount at the exchange, but that's of little comfort to the families standing at the gates of Camp pendleton waiting for the handouts of old bread and surplus food.

do these women work? I thought everybody is equal now. Shouldn't they be working?

Alizard · Posted: Wed Nov 01, 2006 2:10 pm Post subject:

Marzelvane wrote: Alizard wrote: bigstick61 wrote: There's a reason why junior enlisted men were not allowed to marry or start families without permission. Also, this mainly affects those who live off-base, as housing is usually more expensive; if you live on-base, it's essentially free. Also, if you shop at the Commissiary and NEX, you get good deals on stuff.

So, then why are so many not taking advantage of the free housing on base?

Oh, yeah... because there isn't enough. And the pittance they call "housing allowance" doesn't begin to cover real cost.

You do get a 30% discount at the exchange, but that's of little comfort to the families standing at the gates of Camp pendleton waiting for the handouts of old bread and surplus food.

do these women work? I thought everybody is equal now. Shouldn't they be working?

I think most of them are brain surgeons.

Of course they could work..... and at minimum wage, what they make would cover about half of what the day care would cost so somebody would watch their kids while they are working.

These are not typically people with high level skill sets.

Snake · Joined: 10 Oct 2006 Posts: 21776 Location: e-Thuggin

Alizard wrote:
Here is the thread topic:

Wives Of Troops In Iraq Soldier On At Home

You don't think the wives of KIA's are suffering extreme hardships because of it?

You don't think many are are financially destitute because of it?

Wake up. And if you actually read what fido wrote, you would see that he was entirely off topic. None of the above was mentioned in the post I responded to. Learn to read before blindly jumping on the right-bashing bandwagon.

The Russian · Joined: 27 Oct 2006 Posts: 384 Location: Buffalo, NY

I'm a retail manager and one of the people working for me is a wife of a naval officer, and she has 1 kid. By regulations I'm not allowed to be biased on the basis of military service and I think that is good reasoning. Another employee at a different location is a wife whose husband was killed in a car accident, she has 2 kids.. and this kind of thing would be picking between two tragedies.

A wife of a military man or a KIA should not get privelages above a wife whose husband ran out on her or was killed in some other manner, IMHO. Whether they need the money more than a college student is for sure, but not when it comes to separating themselves through one form of tragedy or another. Sadly, a wife alone and raising a kid or two on her own is no where near rare, but thats a whole other topic.

In regards to personal oppinion, my dad has been more-or-less non-existant since I was 9 and my mom raised me and my sis on her own and we barely survived on welfare / medicaid... I would not say that her struggles are any less than a military wife raising her kids alone who has a mil husband to send home a paycheck.

Alizard · Posted: Wed Nov 01, 2006 3:18 pm Post subject:

Kamel wrote: Alizard wrote:
Here is the thread topic:

Wives Of Troops In Iraq Soldier On At Home

You don't think the wives of KIA's are suffering extreme hardships because of it?

You don't think many are are financially destitute because of it?

Wake up. And if you actually read what fido wrote, you would see that he was entirely off topic. None of the above was mentioned in the post I responded to. Learn to read before blindly jumping on the right-bashing bandwagon.

I read his post:

Quote: Now, when do you suppose Bush or any of the clowns involved in defeating this country in Iraq will be so honest about those young men and women they see dieing for nothing?

You claim there is no connection between dying in a useless war and the hardships being imposed onto their families?

You truly see with blinders on.

Snake · Joined: 10 Oct 2006 Posts: 21776 Location: e-Thuggin

The thread is about living conditions and the welfare status of soldiers families.

this thread has officially been hijacked

no.1 · Joined: 13 May 2006 Posts: 84 Location: NJ

Yeah they got it tough, it really s*cks for them and I think the soldiers should be paid more. There should be more pay, more cheap housing, and more jobs. I don't pity them because they didn't get drafted, but that doesn't mean the should get shafted. I have a friend in the Army and his wife doesn't work. They have a house off base and two cars on his rediculous salary.

On the other hand housing is too expensive everywhere. You would think we were running out of land in this country. Spread out people! We don't all need to be within 3 hours of the beach.... getting off topic a little.

Alizard · Posted: Wed Nov 01, 2006 5:58 pm Post subject:

Kamel wrote: The thread is about living conditions and the welfare status of soldiers families.

Then let's talk about that..... want to know how severely the standard of living has fallen for the families of National Guard and Reserves who never knew they were going to be used as an active duty force for ten years time?

I'm sure you won't want to talk about that either, but the cause of all of it is a stupid, unnecessary and useless war...... oh, sorry...... you have said talking about that is "off topic".

Marzelvane · Joined: 19 Oct 2006 Posts: 93

hijacked

Snake · Joined: 10 Oct 2006 Posts: 21776 Location: e-Thuggin

Alizard wrote: Then let's talk about that..... want to know how severely the standard of living has fallen for the families of National Guard and Reserves who never knew they were going to be used as an active duty force for ten years time?

I'm sure you won't want to talk about that either, but the cause of all of it is a stupid, unnecessary and useless war...... oh, sorry...... you have said talking about that is "off topic". :lol: You know, you discredit your 'arguments' everytime you post :lol:

But alright, I'll play your lib games. I already do. My brother signed up for the army reserve, and was deployed last year. Now I'm helping take care of his family, helping pay the bills, helping take care of my nephew and neice. My sister in law already works 2 jobs to pay the bills. It's hard, no sh*t, you don't have to tell me because I already know. To say they didn't know they would be deployed is very misinformed, because it was known for quite some time that we needed more soldiers in Iraq.

Cal-Pak · Joined: 25 Aug 2006 Posts: 1950

Kamel wrote: The thread is about living conditions and the welfare status of soldiers families.

this thread has officially been hijacked
I would say this thread is about the Obliviousness of the people in charge to the living conditions and welfare status of soldiers families.

We have been at war for 5 years now. This is not a new issue.