LEEDS, Mass. (AP) -- Peter Mohan traces the path from the Iraqi battlefield to this lifeless conference room, where he sits in a kilt and a Camp Kill Yourself T-shirt and calmly describes how he became a sad cliche: a homeless veteran.
There was a happy homecoming, but then an accident - car crash, broken collarbone. And then a move east, close to his wife's new job but away from his best friends.
And then self-destruction: He would gun his motorcycle to 100 mph and try to stand on the seat. He would wait for his wife to leave in the morning, draw the blinds and open up whatever bottle of booze was closest.
He would pull out his gun, a .45-caliber, semiautomatic pistol. He would lovingly clean it, or just look at it and put it away. Sometimes place it in his mouth.
"I don't know what to do anymore," his wife, Anna, told him one day. "You can't be here anymore."
Peter Mohan never did find a steady job after he left Iraq. He lost his wife - a judge granted their divorce this fall - and he lost his friends and he lost his home, and now he is here, in a shelter.
He is 28 years old. "People come back from war different," he offers by way of a summary.
This is not a new story in America: A young veteran back from war whose struggle to rejoin society has failed, at least for the moment, fighting demons and left homeless.
But it is happening to a new generation. As the war in Afghanistan plods on in its seventh year, and the war in Iraq in its fifth, a new cadre of homeless veterans is taking shape.
And with it come the questions: How is it that a nation that became so familiar with the archetypal homeless, combat-addled Vietnam veteran is now watching as more homeless veterans turn up from new wars?
What lessons have we not learned? Who is failing these people? Or is homelessness an unavoidable byproduct of war, of young men and women who devote themselves to serving their country and then see things no man or woman should?
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For as long as the United States has sent its young men - and later its young women - off to war, it has watched as a segment of them come home and lose the battle with their own memories, their own scars, and wind up without homes.
The Civil War produced thousands of wandering veterans. Frequently addicted to morphine, they were known as "tramps," searching for jobs and, in many cases, literally still tending their wounds.
More than a decade after the end of World War I, the "Bonus Army" descended on Washington - demanding immediate payment on benefits that had been promised to them, but payable years later - and were routed by the U.S. military.
And, most publicly and perhaps most painfully, there was Vietnam: Tens of thousands of war-weary veterans, infamously rejected or forgotten by many of their own fellow citizens.
Now it is happening again, in small but growing numbers.
For now, about 1,500 veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan have been identified by the Department of Veterans Affairs. About 400 of them have taken part in VA programs designed to target homelessness.
The 1,500 are a small, young segment of an estimated 336,000 veterans in the United States who were homeless at some point in 2006, the most recent year for which statistics are available, according to the National Alliance to End Homelessness.
Still, advocates for homeless veterans use words like "surge" and "onslaught" and even "tsunami" to describe what could happen in the coming years, as both wars continue and thousands of veterans struggle with post-traumatic stress.
People who have studied postwar trauma say there is always a lengthy gap between coming home - the time of parades and backslaps and "The Boys Are Back in Town" on the local FM station - and the moments of utter darkness that leave some of them homeless.
In that time, usually a period of years, some veterans focus on the horrors they saw on the battlefield, or the friends they lost, or why on earth they themselves deserved to come home at all. They self-medicate, develop addictions, spiral down.
How - or perhaps the better question is why - is this happening again?
"I really wish I could answer that question," says Anthony Belcher, an outreach supervisor at New Directions, which conducts monthly sweeps of Skid Row in Los Angeles, identifying homeless veterans and trying to help them get over addictions.
"It's the same question I've been asking myself and everyone around me. I'm like, wait, wait, hold it, we did this before. I don't know how our society can allow this to happen again."
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Mental illness, financial troubles and difficulty in finding affordable housing are generally accepted as the three primary causes of homelessness among veterans, and in the case of Iraq and Afghanistan, the first has raised particular concern.
Iraq veterans are less likely to have substance abuse problems but more likely to suffer mental illness, particularly post-traumatic stress, according to the Veterans Administration. And that stress by itself can trigger substance abuse.
Some advocates say there are also some factors particular to the Iraq war, like multiple deployments and the proliferation of improvised explosive devices, that could be pulling an early trigger on stress disorders that can lead to homelessness.
While many Vietnam veterans began showing manifestations of stress disorders roughly 10 years after returning from the front, Iraq and Afghanistan veterans have shown the signs much earlier.
That could also be because stress disorders are much better understood now than they were a generation ago, advocates say.
"There's something about going back, and a third and a fourth time, that really aggravates that level of stress," said Michael Blecker, executive director of Swords to Plowshares," a San Francisco homeless-vet outreach program.
"And being in a situation where you have these IEDs, everywhere's a combat zone. There's no really safe zone there. I think that all is just a stew for post-traumatic stress disorder."
Others point to something more difficult to define, something about American culture that - while celebrating and honoring troops in a very real way upon their homecoming - ultimately forgets them.
This is not necessarily due to deliberate negligence. Perhaps because of the lingering memory of Vietnam, when troops returned from an unpopular war to face open hostility, many Americans have taken care to express support for the troops even as they solidly disapprove of the war in Iraq.
But it remains easy for veterans home from Iraq for several years, and teetering on the edge of losing a job or home, to slip into the shadows. And as their troubles mount, they often feel increasingly alienated from friends and family members.
"War changes people," says John Driscoll, vice president for operations and programs at the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans. "Your trust in people is strained. You've been separated from loved ones and friends. The camaraderie between troops is very extreme, and now you feel vulnerable."
The VA spends about $265 million annually on programs targeting homeless veterans. And as Iraq and Afghanistan veterans face problems, the VA will not simply "wait for 10 years until they show up," Pete Dougherty, the VA's director of homeless programs, said when the new figures were released.
"We're out there now trying to get everybody we can to get those kinds of services today, so we avoid this kind of problem in the future," he said.
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These are all problems defined in broad strokes, but they cascade in very real and acute ways in the lives of individual veterans.
Take Mike Lally. He thinks back now to the long stretches in the stifling Iraq heat, nothing to do but play Spades and count flies, and about the day insurgents killed the friendly shop owner who sold his battalion Pringles and candy bars.
He thinks about crouching in the back of a Humvee watching bullets crash into fuel tanks during his first firefight, and about waiting back at base for the vodka his mother sent him, dyed blue and concealed in bottles of Scope mouthwash.
It was a little maddening, he supposes, every piece of it, but Lally is fairly sure that what finally cracked him was the bodies. Unloading the dead from ambulances and loading them onto helicopters. That was his job.
"I guess I loaded at least 20," he says. "Always a couple at a time. And you knew who it was. You always knew who it was."
It was in 2004, when he came back from his second tour in Iraq with the Marine Corps, that his own bumpy ride down began.
He would wake up at night, sweating and screaming, and during the days he imagined people in the shadows - a state the professionals call hypervigilence and Mike Lally calls "being on high alert, all the time."
His father-in-law tossed him a job installing vinyl siding, but the stress overcame him, and Lally began to drink. A little rum in his morning coffee at first, and before he knew it he was drunk on the job, and then had no job at all.
And now Mike Lally, still only 26 years old, is here, booted out of his house by his wife, padding around in an old T-shirt and sweats at a Leeds shelter called Soldier On, trying to get sober and perhaps, on a day he can envision but not yet grasp, get his home and family and life back.
"I was trying to live every day in a fog," he says, reflecting between spits of tobacco juice. "I'd think I was back in there, see people popping out of windows. Any loud noise would set me off. It still does."
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Soldier On is staffed entirely by homeless veterans. A handful who fought in Iraq or Afghanistan, usually six or seven at a time, mix with dozens from Vietnam. Its president, Jack Downing, has spent nearly four decades working with addicts, the homeless and the mentally ill.
Next spring, he plans to open a limited-equity cooperative in the western Massachusetts city of Pittsfield. Formerly homeless veterans will live there, with half their rents going into individual deposit accounts.
Downing is convinced that ushering homeless veterans back into homeownership is the best way out of the pattern of homelessness that has repeated itself in an endless loop, war after war.
"It's a disgrace," Downing says. "You have served your country, you get damaged, and you come back and we don't take care of you. And we make you prove that you need our services."
"And how do you prove it?" he continues, voice rising in anger. "You prove it by regularly failing until you end up in a system where you're identified as a person in crisis. That has shocked me."
Even as the nation gains a much better understanding of the types of post-traumatic stress disorders suffered by so many thousands of veterans - even as it learns the lessons of Vietnam and tries to learn the lessons of Iraq - it is probably impossible to foretell a day when young American men and women come home from wars unscarred.
At least as long as there are wars.
But Driscoll, at least, sees an opportunity to do much better.
He notes that the VA now has more than 200 veteran adjustment centers to help ease the transition back into society, and the existence of more than 900 VA-connected community clinics nationwide.
"We're hopeful that five years down the road, you're not going to see the same problems you saw after the Vietnam War," he says. "If we as a nation do the right thing by these guys."
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posted
the Vets need to be able to ask for help and keep their dignity at the same time... how could we accomplish that?
the Nam Vets (and post Nam SEALS that saw alot of action) that i know that had problems often hid them deeply. they'd come pouring out at odd times..
IMO? it somehow needs to be communicated to people before they go into battle that they will face this OR their FREINDS will face this, eventually, maybe the way to present it is that their friends will face it and not to push it on any indivdual.
the problem is how do you train somebody to go into battle, but train them that this will happen to you.
in boot camp? they used to do a " total retraining" to indoctrinate people into the military lifestyle,
i dunno how boot runs today, but maybe we need an UNbootcamp mandatory for troops coming off deployment... complete with factual presentations of real case studies of what troops in the past have gone thru... and what resources are available to them THAT THEY HAVE EARNED EVERY RIGHT TO USE, and THAT WE OWE THEM.
troops will not want to do this, they will want to go back their life, but going thru a group "decompression" immediately after deployments might help... IMO? they would gain the most by being with the people they were deployed with, because they are the ones who know what exaclty went on during the deployment.
i bet even the Romans had these types of issues...
-------------------- Don't envy the happiness of those who live in a fool's paradise.
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I really do not see the government admitting that there is a major problem with combat troops. They make small attemps from war to war but have no intention of completely addressing the issues, maybe because it is to costly.
We know that that every troop that enters those combat areas is going to have some sort of ptsd, especially those involved in combat directly.
To me its never has been a question of whether the troops have ptsd, the question is how it effects their lives afterwords that's really the important part.
Lets face it if you been in a combat area very long (especially direct combat) and you are not affected some by your experience when you come home, then you most likely are in a body bag.
I think an UNbootcamp would be great. But these military guys are afraid they might need these troops again and again(like in Iraq) and if they UNbootcamp them to good they might not have anyone to fight their wars.
I really think we are already starting to forget about these Iraq veterans and soldiers. It seems that we are starting to separate ourselves from what is going on in Iraq and what is happening when these soldiers come home. Maybe we are just becoming more and more immuned as the war goes on and we feel frustrated that we can not do anything about it
I hate to see this country slipping into this phase, but i think we are going to see history repeat itself like so many wars before.
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It sucks re-adjusting. Little bit tougher if you done multiple deployments which im sure some of you nam vets have done. The byproduct of war is something the bush administration failed miserably to plan on when beating the war drums.
It is a real mess and nobody seems to have the solution to fix it.
-------------------- It isn't so much that liberals are ignorant. It's just that they know so many things that aren't so.
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So many of the programs that are intended to help soldiers and vets seem to kind of go to the wayside.
Even though there is some money appropriated for these programs it seems like someone is always taken a lot for themselves and others outside of the intended use.
Here is and article that goes back a few years but still is part of todays VA and SS system.
It is a perfect example what happens to some of the money that should be going to help veterans.
Some might disagree with me and say that these exams are helping the veterans and well worth the cost, but this stuff really bothers me now as well as it did many years ago, such a waste. _________________________________________________
FIRM RUN BY FORMER VA SECRETARY PRINCIPI TO MAKE $1.2 BILLION ON VA
Anthony J. Principi has held key positions at the Diamond Bar medical firm before and after heading the agency. Fees could exceed $1 billion.
By Walter F. Roche Jr., Times Staff Writer April 23, 2006
WASHINGTON — A Diamond Bar company headed by former Veterans Affairs Secretary Anthony J. Principi could get fees exceeding $1 billion from the VA, much of it on contracts approved and amended while he ran the agency, records show.
Principi was president of the medical services company QTC Management Inc. before he joined President Bush's Cabinet in 2001. He ran the VA for four years, then returned to the firm as chairman of the board.
While he was VA secretary, Principi's past and future corporate home collected about $246 million in fees, according to VA records. Congressional Budget Office projections show the contracts could be worth as much as $1.2 billion through 2008.
Principi said he had no role in awarding, amending or administering VA contracts with QTC.
"While at the VA, I had no contact with QTC on any business matter and recused myself entirely from any issues or business that QTC might have had with the VA," he said in e-mail responses to written questions. He said he complied with federal statutes barring contact with the VA after his departure.
Citing his two sons' recent combat service, Principi said: "Caring for these young men and women we send to war is the only thing that motivates me whether I'm in public service or in any aspect of business, where their interests are at stake."
Whether, or to what extent, Principi stands to benefit from QTC's success was not determined. He said he held nonvested stock options in QTC, but did not say how many shares.
Principi's firm administers medical exams to veterans seeking disability assistance. It also examines soldiers before they are discharged. The results of the exams play a substantial role in VA disability benefit decisions.
Though the VA is QTC's biggest customer, the company does similar exams for other agencies and private insurers.
According to its website, QTC owns and operates 31 medical evaluation facilities and has produced "more than 2.5 million" medical exams and reports.
Principi, deputy VA secretary and acting secretary under President George H.W. Bush, also served as Republican chief counsel and staff director of the Senate Armed Services Committee a decade ago.
Principi graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., and is a Vietnam veteran. He was a partner in the San Diego law firm Luce, Forward, Hamilton & Scripps, according to his White House biography.
In 1996, he was named chairman of a congressional task force on veterans issues. His panel recommended having a standardized, comprehensive physical exam for outgoing military personnel. That recommendation led to exams conducted by QTC.
The firm began its relationship with the VA in 1998, conducting disability exams under a pilot program. Principi joined the company in 1999.
QTC's initial performance drew some criticism. As mandated by Congress, its work was reviewed by a private consulting firm, which said QTC's fees were much higher than expected.
A QTC hearing exam, for instance, averaged $495.55 compared with $89.80 for an in-house VA exam. Even with an adjustment for possible hidden VA costs, the difference exceeded 400%. For a general medical exam, QTC's average fee was $393.52 compared with the VA's $225.58, the consultants found. They recommended further cost-comparison studies, but such an analysis was not done.
VA officials, in a written response to Times questions, said a follow-up study was not done "because the [QTC] fee schedule was studied carefully by the technical evaluation teams and found to be reasonable and fair."
In the program's third year, Principi was nominated to be VA secretary. He told the Senate panel considering his confirmation that he had "terminated all relationships with QTC and waived any and all future rights or benefits that could flow from [his] relationship with that organization."
Still, Principi's 2001 financial disclosure listed a $250,000 bonus he said he received from QTC before his confirmation Jan. 23.
The next year, he was photographed with QTC officials at a business forum in Orange County. Principi was the featured speaker, and QTC's founder and then-principal owner, Steeve Kay, was a sponsor.
Right after becoming head of the VA, Principi appointed a task force on the backlog of veterans' claims. In its report to Principi, the panel lauded QTC's performance and recommended that the medical exam program continue or expand.
Principi said he had nothing to do with that review or the recommendation. The head of that panel later was appointed a top deputy to Principi.
The favorable Principi task force report was cited as justification for language inserted in the 2003 VA budget authorizing continuation and expansion of the program. That extension and expansion had been requested by Principi's agency.
The task force urged that the expansion and continuation be done on a competitive basis; the VA awarded a new contract to QTC after giving rival contractors 30 days to submit proposals. No other bids were submitted. Some competitors said they learned of the new contract only after it was awarded.
Sahniah Lambert, a physician with MSLA, a competing firm based in Pasadena, said she contacted the VA about bidding, but no one returned her calls.
During Principi's leadership of the VA, his agency also awarded QTC performance bonuses, as provided for in the contract.
The firm emerged in 2003 as the sole private contractor selected to perform the comprehensive joint discharge physical exams recommended by the Principi task force.
The VA has since made multiple amendments to two successive QTC contracts, increasing the number of approved sites for the exams and thereby adding to the contract's value. As the number of sites multiplied, so did QTC's revenue — from $8 million in fees in 1998 to $69.1 million in 2005.
Principi wrote in response to questions that he had nothing to do with the expansion of sites while he was secretary.
Veterans groups and radio talk shows recently have seized on Principi's ties to QTC and accused him of conflicts of interest.
John Hennon, who broadcasts a veterans show in Illinois, said he was convinced that QTC "was contracted to deny as many claims as it could." He blamed Principi. He said it was "not a surprise" that the former secretary had an interest in QTC.
Skip Dreps, head of government relations for the Northwest chapter of Paralyzed Veterans of America, said: "I'm disappointed in the secretary." He said he regretted "even the appearance of a conflict of interest."
QTC has additional critics.
North Carolina attorney Hugh Cox, who frequently represents veterans, accuses the company of working with the VA to deny disability claims.
"Significant numbers of QTC medical examiners issue addendums to previous medical reports creating an appearance that VA officials communicate off-the-record with the QTC examiners to alter the veteran's chance of receiving benefits," Cox wrote in an e-mail response to questions.
Cox said Principi's involvement with the firm before and after he was VA secretary was "of special concern" while taxpayers continued to pay "increasing and unchecked amounts to QTC."
One of Cox's clients, Vietnam veteran Jimmy S. Pollock, was told to appear for a physical exam scheduled two days before he received the notice. "They put me down as a no-show," he said.
According to VA data, QTC has been paid $6.2 million since May 2003 for no-show exams. VA officials say QTC's no-show rate is 10.86%, "which is considered excellent."
Seattle psychiatrist Philip B. Plattner, who has worked at veterans health facilities for 23 years, was one of the first to question QTC's expanded role. He launched a letter-writing campaign warning that veterans could be the victims of inadequate evaluations.
In a letter to several members of Congress, Plattner said the switch to QTC exams had the appearances of a "good old boys plan to privatize VA services, which will cost our country and our veterans dearly."
Plattner said the VA was paying double what it should. He cited data from a May 2005 VA inspector general's report that showed the average cost of a QTC exam was $590.
Principi, in his response to questions, defended QTC's performance, noting that the company in its 25 years failed only once to get its contract renewed. "If mistakes are made," he said, "QTC employees strive hard to correct them."
The value of QTC's federal contracts became apparent late last year, when the firm was sold to Spectrum, a Massachusetts-based venture capital firm, for a reported $270 million.
A partner who spearheaded the Spectrum purchase was Steven Price, a colleague of Principi's in the George W. Bush administration who served as a deputy Defense secretary. Price was named to the QTC board immediately after the purchase, but has since stepped down.
Principi acknowledged discussing with Price his return to QTC before the sale. "Spectrum approached me about joining the company if they were successful in purchasing QTC," Principi wrote.
Spectrum and QTC refused to disclose whether QTC's VA contract was pledged as security for the $150-million-plus loan used to finance the purchase.
An investment firm's report on the sale noted QTC's "very close relationship" with the VA and said QTC "has integrated its process and systems with the VA and has even co-located several offices at VA facilities."
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