"Hey man, would you help a homeless veteran?"

Have you ever been asked that question? I have, and sometimes crosses my mind that the guy who's asking might not be homeless. However, I'm not about to demand that every panhandler claiming to be a veteran show me his discharge papers. Besides, I don't like to give money to people if I think they're going to blow it on booze or something. Not that I'm against drinking or anything, but if I'm going to buy someone a drink, I'd rather it be a friend, not a stranger who might be suffering from alcoholism.

Don't get me wrong. I think that because they have served their country in ways most of us don't, helping homeless veterans is a good idea. In fact, to the extent veterans are homeless, I think they are more deserving than other homeless people.

I have noticed that a lot of homeless people claim to be veterans, though, and I'm wondering how carefully the agencies that help them verify that they are in fact veterans.

Do they verify anything, or do they just take them at their word?

In that regard, I found a taxpayer-funded scientific study titled "Health Care of Homeless Veterans -- Why Are Some Individuals Falling Through the Safety Net?" Considering the title, it's not surprising that the study concluded that homeless veterans are in fact falling through the safety net. But what especially disturbed me was a statement made almost in passing in the conclusion:

There are several limitations to consider when interpreting these findings. First, the data are self-reported and not validated by any collaborating sources. It is possible that respondents underreported the amount of care they were receiving at the VA or overreported their VA eligibility. We did not verify veteran status, including whether they had an honorable or dishonorable discharge from the service. Given the paucity of veteran women in our sample, we only report on male veterans and our results cannot be assumed to apply to women also. Finally, the data presented are on an urban homeless population and cannot be generalized to suburban or rural settings.

In summary, veterans are disproportionately represented in homeless samples and continue to have substantial needs. Special attention must also be given to engaging homeless veterans not currently accessing services or receiving benefits.

(Emphasis added.)

With that in mind, what assumptions might I make about this story in today's Inquirer?

The 200 or so men and women encamped for the weekend in field tents at the National Guard Armory in Northeast Philadelphia have two things in common:
Years in the military and a desperate need for housing.

From Philadelphia and the surrounding area, homeless veterans gathered yesterday at the armory for a three-day "Stand-Down."

It's a military term used for soldiers suffering from battle fatigue who need rest and recuperation. For many of the vets, this was a needed break from life on the streets or shelters.

Marsha Four of the Philadelphia Veterans Multi-Services and Education Center said it is difficult to determine how many homeless veterans are in the region, including Wilmington and South Jersey, but she estimated that the figure could be as high as 2,500.

Ed Speller, coordinator of the Stand-Down and an Air Force veteran, said military people run a high risk of becoming homeless.

What is the difference between a guy telling a reporter he's homeless and the same guy telling me he's homeless as I walk down the street? Are strangers who might have an interest in not telling the truth simply being taken at their word?

This isn't a question of not having a heart. It's a basic issue of honesty. And concern for homeless veterans. It strikes me that if the goal is to target homeless veterans specifically for help, out of respect for the veterans someone ought to make absolutely sure that they're not lumping them in with lying con artists. (Yes, I think someone who claims to be a veteran who is not, simply to get something to which he is not entitled, is just about the lowest form of scum imaginable.)

So, when I read that government scientists make pronouncements about homeless veterans without verifying their status, I figure, why wouldn't reporters do the same thing?

For that matter, why not the bureaucrats? I don't know how typical this is, but the State of California Department of Veterans Affairs provides the following list of homeless veterans rights under the food stamp program:

According to the National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty (NLCHP), homeless veterans have the same rights under the food stamp program as people who are housed. NLCHP advises that homeless veterans have additional rights, listed below, based on their homeless status:

Homeless veterans do not need a permanent address to receive food stamps.

There is no requirement to have a place to cook or store food to receive food stamps.

Homeless veterans cannot be denied food stamps simply because they do not have a photo ID. The food stamp caseworker is required to verify identity through wage stubs, voter registration card, birth certificate or a "collateral contact" with a homeless shelter case manager.

Unless, of course, there is an honor system along the lines of "homeless veterans would never lie about their veteran status."

OK, I'm enough of a bleeding heart to go along with that. So let's give the homeless vets the benefit of the doubt. But even if we do assume that homeless veterans would never lie, what about dishonest homeless people who claim to be vets?

Sorry, but I can't go along with the notion that homeless people would never lie. And lying about veteran status is pretty low. Actually, it's been made a crime in Washington state, and while Ihaven't read the law, punishing fake veterans is not a new idea. In ancient Rome the imposters were (according to this site) sent to die in the arena:

What percentage of beggars claiming to be Vietnam veterans are fakes? Nearly all of them. According to a survey by the Vietnam Veterans of America, over 90% of street beggars claiming to be Vietnam veterans are fakes.

Beggars figured out a long time ago that they could get more money from passers-by by claiming to be veterans and by making themselves look like veterans. In ancient Rome, beggars falsely claiming to be disabled or honorably discharged Roman soldiers were subject to death in the arena.