After 19 years in military, homeless in Philadelphia

[malachi]

Luis Mejias admits he did something wrong. Last year, while stationed in Baghdad with the National Guard, he failed a random drug test. The Guard has a zero-tolerance drug policy, and Mejias was immediately discharged.

Now Mejias, 39, is home in Philadelphia - and homeless.

About 250,000 veterans are homeless on any given night, according to Linda Boone, executive director of the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans. More than twice that number are homeless during the year.

http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/news/local/11748734.htm

If I were in the military and assigned to the monkey's illiegal and immoral war, I'd be so high that they'd have to attach a rope to me to keep me from floating away.

[tk2kewl]

1. But they'll help a recruit fake a drug test.

Use 'em up. Spit 'em out. :(

[SouthernDem2004]

6. When and how? Got a link?

Drug screens are done at a MEPS station. Recruiters are not allowed past the lobby.

[bear425]

9. Fake diploma and how to beat a drug test - link here

http://news4colorado.com/localnews/local_story_118125046.html

[0007]

13. Quite an article!

I put nothing past this army or administration these days.

[saigon68]

42. These service members are USED UP AND THEN THROWN AWAY

Hope the meal at the soup kitchen is hot today, and your raging case of PTSD cooperates with the 2-- 40 OZ bottles of Malt Liquor you are about to consume </sarcasm>

[gorbal]

52. I heard 1/3rd of all homeless men are vets

YOu can find some eye-opening states here-

http://www.nchv.org/background.cfm


23% of homeless population are veterans
33% of male homeless population are veterans
47% Vietnam Era
17% post Vietnam
15% pre Vietnam
67% served three or more years
33% stationed in war zone
25% have used VA Homeless Services
85% completed high school/GED compared to 56% of non-veterans
89% received Honorable Discharge
79% reside in central cities
16% reside in suburban areas
5% reside in rural areas
76% experience alcohol, drug, or mental health problems
46% white males compared to 34% non-veterans
46% age 45 or older compared to 20% non-veterans
Service needs:
45% help finding job
37% finding housing

[SouthernDem2004]

19. Can not beat a blood test...

[MADem]

20. They don't do blood tests for drug testing at MEPS, though n/t

[SouthernDem2004]

28. What are the blood tests for? I know they do AIDS testing also but what

else?

[tabasco]

32. Have you ever had a physical in your life??

Blood sugar
Red blood cell count
White blood cell count
Blood anomalies
AIDS

NOT drugs.

[SouthernDem2004]

35. I have had numerous at MEPS and they do not do that type of work up.

No need to be rude either.

[tabasco]

43. Look at your Report(s) of Medical Examination.

You're telling me it does not include the basic blood info?

Every physical I've had in the military, from 1981 to the present day, had the blood info. I still have a periodic physical because I'm in the IRR.

Even for non-recruits, if you have a physical at a MEPS, you will get a 3-panel urinalysis for drugs. But the blood is not tested for drugs.

If you take your physical at a facility other than a MEPS, they will not give you a urinalysis for drugs.

This is helpful info for those in the ready reserves who may have inhaled some second-hand smoke at a concert.

I was no more rude than you were obstinate.


edit typos dammit

[SouthernDem2004]

44. Lol, I asked an honest question because I did not know the answer.

I have never read my medical file because I have never had a reason to.

Your reply was rude. Good luck with that.


Peace

[tabasco]

45. You made an assertion that recruits' blood is tested for drugs.

That is not a question.

You would then have us believe that you can't imagine why else they would take your blood for a physical, other than for drug testing.

Was that really your honest question? Prior to this thread, did you really believe that blood tests as part of a medical exam were only for drug testing? I find that very hard to believe.

[SouthernDem2004]

46. Hmmm, I asked someone else a question when they said blood test were

not for drugs. I assumed they were correct because I did not know. I then asked them what the blood test was for and then you felt the need to chime in with a rude post.

I see no further point in responding since your last post was just one giant assumption and misrepresentation of my post.

I wish you the best.

Peace...

[tabasco]

48. Riiight....you also claimed "I have had numerous [physicals]...

at MEPS and they don't do that type of workup."

Then later stated that you had never even examined your exam results because you had no need.

I think anyone reading this thread can decide for themselves who's full of shit.

[MADem]

38. Blood typing, HIV, veneral disease, hepatitis, that kind of thing n/t

[bear425]

22. That may be true. You asked for a link and I provided one

regarding recruiters assisting in beating a drug test.

[Horse with no Name]

34. You can't beat a blood test

While that is true, a random urine test detects more than a blood test--that's why it is preferred.:)

[LiberallyInclined]

37. Hair testing is another one that can't be beat-

but i have no idea how prevalent it's actual use is.

[Raster]

51. Yes it can.

http://www.passyourdrugtest.com/kits/hair-tests.htm

[AwakeAtLast]

2. We must remember every Veteran!

Our country needs to STAND UP for these brave people. How long are we going to kick them to the curb once their service is over? Enough! :grr:

[mike_c]

3. so all a Guardsperson has to do to avoid spending the next...

...couple of years getting their ass shot off in Iraq is get STONED?! I sense an untapped business opportunity....

[pokercat999]

4. lol....best laugh I had all day....thanks

[KFC]

16. Excellent

Tough choice. Get stoned or go kill people.

[Megahurtz]

29. Lol!

:D:smoke:

[obxhead]

50. I think I might be on the same page

Find "junkies" and sell their dirty urine

this might just work :)

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

5. Yes, the same Ronald Reagan that emptied California's mental

hospitals onto the street imposed this policy. During Viet Nam, the military HAD to dry you out...now they discharge you and it's YOUR problem.

[TahitiNut]

8. One of the uglier 'secrets' of the Vietnam era ...

... was a pervasive practice of dumping guys with "problems." The most prevalent 'treatment' of (undiagnosed, of course) PTSD was a discharge. Drugs like pot were a form of self-medication. While not officially sanctioned, a blind eye was just as effective.

[EFerrari]

15. Unfortunately, this is still the unspoken policy of many of our

institutions -- schools, the military, even mental health clinics and homeless shelters. :(

[Mizmoon]

11. With all due respect, you have no idea what you're talking about

as the relative of a woman who was held in a psych hospital for 20 years against her and her family's will, I take great umbrage with the idea that emptying those hospitals was a mistake.

Don't try to solve the homeless problem by locking people away.

[cap]

14. there's a balance between locking everyone away

and ensuring that people have the care that they need.

Your relative is lucky that she had family who cared...what about those who dont? Or those who dont have the resources to deal with the problems that people are bringing home with them.

I would like to see a series of VA homes arranged on a ladder according to need. Some can just be open apartments where folks can just be together. Others can be half-way homes or hospitals.

[Mizmoon]

26. I would like to see the same

sadly in my experience those solutions always get defunded over time and end up to be worse than the problem they were meant to solve. That's what happened to those big institutions - they were New Deal Era and meant to be compassionate. They turned into prisons.

[EFerrari]

21. Emptying those hospitals was one of the biggest mental health

care disasters in California history, if not the biggest one.

I'm sorry about your relative, however many people who needed care were put out like the garbage, and the "community based care" never materialized.

[WhiteTara]

23. I agree. The people at the street corners

need real mental help, not just some spare change. Just another reason I hate ronald raygun.

[Mizmoon]

25. How is being imprisioned helping them?

Would you want someone to 'help' you by locking you away for decades?

[WhiteTara]

33. if someone is incapable of functioning

then the least that can happen is that they get fed and clothed and housed. Or do you think that garbage cans and street corners are the way to go?

[Mizmoon]

24. Keeping people locked away when they didn't have to be

is a crime against their civil rights.

I don't think you give a rat's ass about my relative or you wouldn't advcocate imprisoning people like her.

I love the logic that the lack of community based health care means that these people should be locked away, not that there should be decent community based mental health care.

[EFerrari]

27. Well, Mizmoon, you are talking about

imprisonment. I'm talking about a mental health care crisis that impacted me, and the families I advocate for, for the last three generations.

Imprisonment is not health care.

On edit: And this is the current mental health care model in California. Imprisonment. So you see, we're on the same side of this one. Imprisonment is not health care.

[redqueen]

7. This is how Republicans honor the troops...

by turning their backs on them as soon as they're no longer useful.

Shameful.

[Toots]

10. Wonder what type of discharge he received?

If it was a General 212 discharge which becomes honorable after a certain period I wonder why more don't follow that route. If it was dishonorable then he is screwed for life. He will never receive any benefits ever.

[halobeam]

12. except the benefit of living to see another day.

[TexasLawyer]

17. Epidemic of homeless, alcoholic veterans

I am on the Advisory Board for a very small Houston charity that acts as a temporary residence and therapy center for veterans who suffer from homelessness and substance abuse.

In preparing my fundraising pitches to various business and foundations, I've had to educate myself on this problem. The VA's own statistics show that ONE in THREE homeless men in the US are US veterans. Many of these suffer from post-traumatic stress syndrome and other war-related mental and physical injuries. These guys (and a few gals) medicate themselves with alcohol, heroin and other drugs and lose connection with their families and other bases of support.

It is so sad. The VA medical community is not adequate to help these people.

And hey, if you feel so inclined to make a contribution to this place (it is run 100% by volunteers-- ALL money flows directly to the care and well-being of the veterans) you can send a small donation to:

Housing & Recovery, Inc.,
2421 Truxillo St.,
Houston, Texas 77004-4357

:yourock:

[EFerrari]

18. Bravo, Texas Lawyer!

What a great project. :hi:

[Megahurtz]

30. Sadly, sometimes

they lose connections with their family, because families don't always understand the effects of PTSD and how these effects can drive a person to drinking and doing drugs, just so they can try to cope and keep their sanity.:(

[RobinA]

31. Wait...I Missed Something

They do drug testing on soldiers in a war zone? Why? Pot et al. are more dangerous than getting shot at? Plus, wouldn't it be a quick ticket home?

[NavyDem]

39. To answer that question....

Yes. We are subject to random drug tests. Normally between 10 and 20 percent of our troops are tested monthly.

As sad as it is that the guy wound up homeless, He made a choice to do drugs right? He knew what the consequences would be.

To give an example, I know of a Navy E-7 that popped on a piss test at 19 years, 11 months, 3 weeks. That's right. 1 week away from retirement.

He left with no benefits that he would have been entitled too.


While I could care less about what civilians do drug wise, I have a very vested interest in adhering to the zero tolerance policy.

[Senior citizen]

41. Please be careful and educate yourself extensively.

I know of many false positives. A relative of mine worked at a large company that did drug testing and was astonished when his test came back positive, as he hadn't used any drugs. Fortunately, he had gone to another doctor for some reason on the same day, so there was a control sample that was tested and found negative. Not everyone is likely to be that lucky.

When I worked as a civilian aboard a Navy base, the guys in my shop would often comment about how many people had heart attacks and died just before retirement. It just seemed that there were too many of them for it to be a coincidence.

For you to adhere to the zero tolerance policy is, unfortunately, not sufficient. You also need the people doing the testing to play fair, which is something they have not always been known to do. My suggestion is to take a tip from my relative's good fortune--if you're nearing retirement and get sent for a drug test, immediately go for a duplicate test somewhere else, just in case an "error" is made in processing.

[bling bling]

36. I couldn't link to the article. Did it say what drugs were found?

Some drugs are worse than others. I wouldn't want to be fighting next to a well-armed teammate high on heavy hallucinogenic drugs, for example.

Some drugs can impair your judgement dramatically and don't allow for the brain to sober-up quickly if battle suddenly breaks out. It would seem irresponsible and neglectful if the military didn't discharge someone with drugs in their system, with the exception of pot, in my opinion.

[Barkley]

40. A 17-year old kid does investigative journalism?!?! Where's CNN?

The mainstream media must be ashamed and embarrassed: a High School kid did this kind of investigative journalism.

This kid really shouldn't go to college it will only train him to be doubtfu of his instincts and in born talents.

[cyberpj]

47. In it's corporate owners' pocket - nt.

[gorbal]

49. Back to the original subject-a way to help

The KWRU are trying to find permanent housing for the family-

http://www.kwru.org/updates/2005/5-24-05.htm

:)

[ncnemesis]

53. This guy did not serve in Iraq...what else did he lie about?

This guy got busted and has not set foot in Iraq. Lets get the facts straight before we look like a bunch of idiots.

http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/news/local/11811632.htm

[MrScorpio]

54. Ah, there's the rub

Too bad the Bush lovers and voters didn't take your sage advice.

That's why it's so easy for someone to pick those idiots out of a crowd