"$10 million for veterans goes unused; State wants to ease path to bonuses" by Brian MacQuarrie, Globe Staff | August 18, 2009
Tighe said that he routinely helps veterans with the application but that many veterans discard the Welcome Home information. “Most of them throw it away,’’ Tighe said. “They just want the hell out.’’
What? Why?
After what president Obama said?
"The U.S. didn't choose to fight in Afghanistan but was forced to invade that country to stop future Sept. 11-style attacks"
“This is not a war of choice. This is a war of necessity. Those who attacked America on 9/11 are plotting to do so again. If left unchecked, the Taliban insurgency will mean an even larger safe haven from which Al Qaeda would plot to kill more Americans. This is not only a war worth fighting. This is fundamental to the defense of our people.’’
Why would the soldiers want the hell out of such a noble effort, America?
Why wouldn't they reenlist? What could be a more noble calling than this?
Three years after Massachusetts officials pledged to pay “Welcome Home’’ bonuses of up to $1,000 to veterans returning from active duty, some $10 million set aside for the program still languishes in state coffers.
That's CHUMP CHANGE!!!! Especially when KBR was given $84 MILLION in BONUSES for ELECTROCUTING SOLDIERS!!!
Of course, if a local policeman or cop were to get a $1,000 thank you the Globe would scream it's busting the budget!
State officials and veterans advocates alike say they are vexed by the lack of participation in the program, launched in 2006 as a goodwill gesture toward members of the military who served after the World Trade Center attacks, many of whom went to war. More than a third of the estimated 30,000 qualified veterans have yet to receive their money.
Officials speculate....
That is what the newspaper has become; they don't investigate anything anymore. They sit around and speculate. That's how they fill their news pages because that is all that is there.
The bonus program pays Massachusetts veterans who served in any of the regular branches of the armed forces, the National Guard, or reserves for at least six months after Sept. 11, 2001. It pays $1,000 to service members who were deployed to the Iraq or Afghanistan theaters and $500 to anyone who served elsewhere.... Getting word to former full-time members of the armed services can be challenging, officials said....
It's just ONE EXCUSE after ANOTHER! Well, the BANKS and WAR LOOTERS sure get their money pronto, no trouble finding them! NO TROUBLE with the RECRUITING EFFORTS!
But suddenly, when the soldier is all done, up, can't find him anymore!!!! Isn't there some sort of RECALL CLAUSE in the contract? But the military wouldn't know where they are!
National Guard units learn about the bonus as a group in demobilization briefings when they return to Massachusetts. Still, gaining their attention, even for a $1,000 check, can be a problem when thoughts are on a reunion with family and home after long deployments.
Readers, would a WAR LOOTER leave $1,000 on the table?
Would Raytheon? Lockheed? Boeing?
Would anyone?
Oh, right, this is ALL SPECULATION!!!!!!
“If you spend a year and a half overseas and you haven’t seen your family, the last person you want to see is someone giving you a benefits briefing,’’ said Coleman Nee, undersecretary for the state Department of Veterans’ Services.
Why not GIVE 'EM the CHECK THEN?
Yeah, the LAST THING the returning soldier would want is $1,000.
Other veterans simply do not want to be bothered with the process, Nee said, or they reject the bonus as a form of unwanted charity....
Yeah, GIVE IT to some WAR-PROFITEER INSTEAD!
To receive the check, veterans must fill out a two-page application and provide proof that they lived in Massachusetts for six consecutive months before their latest enlistment. After the application is submitted, the money should arrive within four to six weeks, according to the treasurer’s office....
Does the Pentagon ever have to wait?
Nee said that boosting awareness is one of the top priorities for state Veterans Secretary Thomas Kelley. “We want every single person who’s eligible for this bonus to take advantage of it, particularly now,’’ Nee said.
Each month, the state sends a list of names of discharged veterans to all local veterans agents. But those agents, many of whom are busy with a flood of wide-ranging inquiries each week, are not required to contact the veterans to ask whether they have applied for the bonus or to help them with the application process.
Chris Tighe, the veterans agent for Peabody, said he simply does not have time.
“There’s no way for me to use the list,’’ Tighe said. “If there was one more thing for me to do, I’d be working 70 hours a week.’’
Yeah, to HELL with the TROOPS putting their LIVES on the LINE for WARS of EMPIRE and OCCUPATIONS based on LIES!!!!
The list contains only the names and addresses of returning veterans, Tighe said, and does not include their age, branch of service, or any other identifying information that might help the agents locate them.
Yeah, when it comes time to PAY the SOLDIER there are ALL SORTS of EXCUSES!!!!!
The paperwork, which Tighe said is confidential, simply notifies agents that a Welcome Home package has been sent to the veterans listed on the form.....
Then WHY NOT GIVE 'EM the CHECK in the PACKAGE?
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