# You voted for these wars, so what exactly is your problem? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [November 12, 2013, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-voted-for-these-wars-so-what-exactly-is-your-problem/673696 "2013-11-12T03:36:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/try2b_comprehensive/32/65_2.png) [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Try2B_Comprehensive)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-voted-for-these-wars-so-what-exactly-is-your-problem/673696/1 "2013-11-12T03:36:44Z")
I heard a lot of veterans are on food stamps. Why? Dunno. apparently some of them have mental or physical difficulties and they aren’t adapting to the economy. Maybe they’re the percentage of the military population who need food stamps- it happens. [Well, food stamps are getting cut.](http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/10/28/food-stamps-will-get-cut-by-5-billion-this-week-and-more-cuts-could-follow/) The people hollering for these cuts are the same fellows who got us into the last two wars and generated these veterans in the first place. What are they supposed to do now, starve? The same fellows are against raising the minimum wage, too. If the solution is, “well, get food stamps to those veterans right away!”, I’d like to point out that not everyone else on food stamps is some lazy bum, assholes. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-voted-for-these-wars-so-what-exactly-is-your-problem/673696/2 "2013-11-12T03:49:25Z")
> [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](#): > > [Well, food stamps are getting cut.](http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/10/28/food-stamps-will-get-cut-by-5-billion-this-week-and-more-cuts-could-follow/) The people hollering for these cuts are the same fellows who got us into the last two wars and generated these veterans in the first place. What are they supposed to do now, starve? The same fellows are against raising the minimum wage, too. Well, of course – what were we fighting those wars against, after all, but Communism?! Wait . . . ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-voted-for-these-wars-so-what-exactly-is-your-problem/673696/3 "2013-11-12T04:33:39Z")
> [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](#): > > …If the solution is, “well, get food stamps to those veterans right away!”, I’d like to point out that not everyone else on food stamps is some lazy bum, assholes. You know what they say, careful what you wish for. They are perfectly capable of doubling veteran’s benefits and cut all the rest. Flow My Crocodile Tears, the Republican Said. ---
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-voted-for-these-wars-so-what-exactly-is-your-problem/673696/4 "2013-11-12T04:50:14Z")
_You voted for these wars, so what exactly is your problem?_ (from the OP) You’re not being very comprehensive. You should try to be. Oh, and I’ve voted in every election for some time now, and I don’t remember ever voting for a war. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 5:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-voted-for-these-wars-so-what-exactly-is-your-problem/673696/5 "2013-11-12T05:21:19Z")
A temporary increase is set to expire. That is not a “cut”, except in the bureaucratese that exists in Wash DC. ---
**Author:** ![Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/try2b_comprehensive/32/65_2.png) [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Try2B_Comprehensive)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-voted-for-these-wars-so-what-exactly-is-your-problem/673696/6 "2013-11-12T05:22:12Z")
The identity is murky as it isn’t clear who is ultimately behind the food stamp cuts. Polls show voters generally approve of the food stamp program though. Edit @ M ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-voted-for-these-wars-so-what-exactly-is-your-problem/673696/7 "2013-11-12T05:24:47Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > A temporary increase is set to expire. That is not a “cut”, except in the bureaucratese that exists in Wash DC. And everywhere else, as you know. ---
**Author:** ![Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/try2b_comprehensive/32/65_2.png) [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Try2B_Comprehensive)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 5:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-voted-for-these-wars-so-what-exactly-is-your-problem/673696/8 "2013-11-12T05:25:18Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > A temporary increase is set to expire. That is not a “cut”, except in the bureaucratese that exists in Wash DC. Meh. It doesn’t seem like the need is expired. The Bush tax cuts didn’t entirely expire, and certainly not as scheduled. Same fellows, too. Same fellows want to roll back the sequester on the defense budget and keep the rest! ---
**Author:** ![Ibn\_Warraq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e19b73/32.png) [@Ibn\_Warraq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibn_Warraq)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-voted-for-these-wars-so-what-exactly-is-your-problem/673696/9 "2013-11-12T05:33:44Z")
> [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](#): > > I heard a lot of veterans are on food stamps. Why? Dunno. apparently some of them have mental or physical difficulties and they aren’t adapting to the economy. Maybe they’re the percentage of the military population who need food stamps- it happens. Actually, a really high percentage of the families of enlisted personnel have always been on food stamps long before either Iraq or Afghanistan. I grew up in a Navy town(Newport RI) and saw it all the time. Considering how little money they make, particularly if they’re not overseas and not getting hazard pay, it’s hardly surprising. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-voted-for-these-wars-so-what-exactly-is-your-problem/673696/10 "2013-11-12T06:00:08Z")
If the Army wanted you to have a family, they would have issued you one. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-voted-for-these-wars-so-what-exactly-is-your-problem/673696/11 "2013-11-12T06:04:24Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > If the Army wanted you to have a family, they would have issued you one. They did. Report to Barracks 12 immediately. Do not be alarmed if your wife appears at first glance to be a lesbian. ---
**Author:** ![Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/try2b_comprehensive/32/65_2.png) [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Try2B_Comprehensive)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 6:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-voted-for-these-wars-so-what-exactly-is-your-problem/673696/12 "2013-11-12T06:33:40Z")
> [@Ibn\_Warraq](#): > > Actually, a really high percentage of the families of enlisted personnel have always been on food stamps long before either Iraq or Afghanistan. > > I grew up in a Navy town(Newport RI) and saw it all the time. Considering how little money they make, particularly if they’re not overseas and not getting hazard pay, it’s hardly surprising. And millions of people potentially could be dropped from food stamp coverage. Between you and me, I don’t think small benefits to the working poor are what’s wrong with our economy. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 6:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-voted-for-these-wars-so-what-exactly-is-your-problem/673696/13 "2013-11-12T06:52:36Z")
Fox News: Very rich people telling rich people to tell middle class people to blame poor people. Worked quite well many times in the past. Course, now, there’s a lot more poor people than there were before. And a lot of them were never poor before, don’t know the rules about how its all their fault. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 7:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-voted-for-these-wars-so-what-exactly-is-your-problem/673696/14 "2013-11-12T07:22:48Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > Fox News: Very rich people telling rich people to tell middle class people to blame poor people. Worked quite well many times in the past. Course, now, there’s a lot more poor people than there were before. And a lot of them were never poor before, don’t know the rules about how its all their fault. Middle class people were okay with dumping everything on the poor back when they thought they themselves might be rich someday. Now that middle class people see they have a better chance of ending up poor than ending up rich, they’re rethinking their position. ---
**Author:** ![Ibn\_Warraq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e19b73/32.png) [@Ibn\_Warraq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibn_Warraq)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 7:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-voted-for-these-wars-so-what-exactly-is-your-problem/673696/15 "2013-11-12T07:31:59Z")
> [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](#): > > And millions of people potentially could be dropped from food stamp coverage. Between you and me, I don’t think small benefits to the working poor are what’s wrong with our economy. I don’t think they are either. I was just responding to the suggestion the high number of members of the military being on food stamps was due to PTSD. ---
**Author:** ![3trew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/3/13edae/32.png) [@3trew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/3trew)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 7:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-voted-for-these-wars-so-what-exactly-is-your-problem/673696/16 "2013-11-12T07:55:17Z")
You are all missing the point of the rhetoric. We support the troops. Veterans, having left the service, are no longer the troops. They are ex troops. Fuck those guys. We support the troops. ---
**Author:** ![VarlosZ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d78d45/32.png) [@VarlosZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VarlosZ)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 11:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-voted-for-these-wars-so-what-exactly-is-your-problem/673696/17 "2013-11-12T11:00:16Z")
I don’t have an opinion about funding for food stamps, but this is a \*really \*weak argument. On the one hand it can be applied to basically anything since veterans will be a percentage of every program (“Cut funding for the Smithsonian? But veterans go to those museums!”), and on the other hand it’s not like their military service is the \*reason \*for these veterans’ being on food stamps. I mean, I’m sure there are people for whom that’s the case, but that’s gonna be the exception and not the rule. ---
**Author:** ![Steophan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steophan/32/9595_2.png) [@Steophan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steophan)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 11:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-voted-for-these-wars-so-what-exactly-is-your-problem/673696/18 "2013-11-12T11:06:58Z")
People who willing signed up to go kill themselves some brown people who suddenly find they can’t cope with having done so are not at the top of my sympathy list. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-voted-for-these-wars-so-what-exactly-is-your-problem/673696/19 "2013-11-12T11:24:51Z")
> [@Steophan](#): > > People who willing signed up to go kill themselves some brown people who suddenly find they can’t cope with having done so are not at the top of my sympathy list. Just for fun, name the top 3 on your sympathy list… ---
**Author:** ![Steophan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steophan/32/9595_2.png) [@Steophan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steophan)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2013, 12:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-voted-for-these-wars-so-what-exactly-is-your-problem/673696/20 "2013-11-12T12:16:36Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > Just for fun, name the top 3 on your sympathy list… Number one is you, for your obvious inability to comprehend rhetoric. Number two is me, for being stupid enough to reply to you. Number three is anyone who reads this. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-voted-for-these-wars-so-what-exactly-is-your-problem/673696.md?page=2)