The Labor Department announced March 8th it has $600,000.00 on hand to help homeless veterans.  It is estimated that this would assist 10,000 veterans reintegrate into society. The one with no jobs?

These grants are titled “Stand Down” grants to States and local communities and are provided for services including, food shelter, clothing and employment assistance. In some locales the money goes to basic core services like showers, haircuts and medical care to enhance the veterans opportunity to procure a job.

The grants are part of the Administration’s initiative to  end veteran homelessness by 2015, yet the program is currently under scrutiny in the face of budget cuts that have become a top priority. The budget passed by the Republican controlled Congress for 2011 would eliminate these grants.

The irony of course being that we will only see a surge in homelessness.  But this time around it is not just the veterans who are  flung into un-summoned homeless scenarios. While the  returning veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan, are joining the ranks of the homeless at a much faster rate then their fellow Vietnam Veterans, so are the ranks of the civilian middle class.

We have a problem NASA, one that is way beyond some paltry grants.