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| New National Guard motto: "Always Ready. Always There. Fucking starving." |
They came here to help protect the border but now the first wave of Texas National Guard troops deployed after Governor Rick Perry made the call, are needing assistance to pay for food and gas.
"We were contacted that 50 troops that are in the Valley don't have any money for food and gas and they need our assistance,” said Food Bank RGV Executive Director Terri Drefke.
They've turned to the Food Bank RGV for help since they won't get paid until September 5th and have been in the Valley since August 11th.
Drefke told Action 4 News they are more than ready and willing to assist the military personnel.
"We have fresh, boxed, and frozen food available” Drefke said.
Local lawmakers got wind of the issue when Action 4 News contacted them with our questions.
Texas State Rep, Rene Oliveira (D-Brownsville) said he is appalled.
"It's embarrassing that our troops have to stand in a food pantry line,” Rep. Oliveira said. “This is the fault of the state."
Oliveira is willing to use some of his own money to pay for meals for the National Guard deployed to Cameron County, but says all the blame falls on the lack of planning.
As you might imagine Rick Perry's office took offense to this story and claimed it was exaggerated:
"First, the suggestion that Guardsmen aren’t getting paid is false. They are getting paid on a regular schedule with their first pay day on Sept. 5, then every two weeks after that. Second, based on information provided by the Texas National Guard, two soldiers sought and received assistance through the Family Assistance Coordinator. Family Assistance Coordinators routinely help Guardsmen all across the state with needs they may have, regardless of deployment or duty status. Also, based on information provided by the Guard, they currently have no indication that any Guardsmen received any assistance from the Rio Grande Valley Food Bank.
Governor Perry is confident the Guard stands ready to assist to any Soldier who may need it, regardless of deployment or duty status so they can meet the needs of their family, or the mission they are performing."
Well here we go again. Do we believe the food bank, and the reporters, or do we believe the Texas politician with national aspirations who is trying to cover his ass?
Boy that's a real conundrum.
Okay let's go with Perry and accept that it was only two soldiers who asked for assistance.
Do we really think these men went to the food bank asking for a handout without EVER contacting their superior officers and letting them know that their situation was getting desperate?
I mean NOBODY wants to ask for charity, and usually that is the last resort for somebody who has run out of options.
So whether it was two soldier or fifty, even one soldier made to stand in the blistering heat without adequate nourishment is one too many.
Actually, Perry confirmed they won't get their first check until Sept. 5. So there you are.
ReplyDelete"First, the suggestion that Guardsmen aren’t getting paid is false. They are getting paid on a regular schedule with their first pay day on Sept. 5, "
DeleteDoes he not realize that September 5th is ALMOST A WEEK AWAY????
So, no, they're NOT getting paid - yet - and I don't know of any food stores that take a promise of a September 5th paycheck as payment.
Or maybe he just expects them to wait another week before they eat. Idiot.
Perry is such an idiot...I guess he thinks these kids in the national guard all have trust funds and "do" the guard for entertainment... Guards, in my experience, serve because they NEED the extra income...sheesh. BTW, during the gulf war their were many Marine families at Camp Pendleton in Oceanside California that were on food stamps... it is a disgrace.
DeleteIt appears that a social worker contacted the food bank on behalf of TWO soldiers that were previously unemployed before being sent to the border. Therefore, they have no money to spend for food and are given one meal per day plus a reimbursement at pay day for meals purchased. It sucks...but at least they aren't homeless with no meal in sight.
DeleteI am sure that somehow someone (talking to you Sarah), will make this Obama's fault. Anything bad that happens is always Obama's fault. And of course, anything good that happens is not due to Obama.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like the troops are paying for their own food, thus would be getting a per diem. However, it is obvious that no one thought to give the troops an advance on their per diem so this would not happen. And since they should not even be there in the first place, this is all the more evidence of how poorly planned this was.
The Governor of Texas is using the National Guard for a political stunt. Shame on Rick Perry.
Plenty of America servicemen and women's family live on government assistance and the help of charities to get by.
ReplyDeleteSupport the troops (through bumper stickers but no social safety nets!)
Stop believing the hype. Service men and women have base housing provided, they have the ability to shop at the PX. They have their medical insurance provided by the US of A. Why do you think people enlist? If they wanted to starve they'd just get a job flipping burgers. They are adequately compensated for what they do, many come into this enlistment with the barest of requirements (high school degree). Those that are officers are compensated in a higher manner due to their achieving lower officer status, or higher officer status based on college education. It's a guaranteed paycheck for many that would not be able to find work elsewhere.
DeleteUmmm, you are as dumb as Perry. One: the waiting list for base housing is years (NOT ENOUGH HOUSING TO GO AROUND). Two try living in San Diego on Corporal's pay (especially when you have a wife and kids). The PX? not a lot of savings. If it is all so great why so many Marines at Camp Pendleton are on food stamps.... wake up! (BTW, I'm from a Marine family that was stationed in San Diego for over 8 years (base housing wait then was 3 to 4 years). And some of the base housing is so old and rotted that it is not fit for dogs. DON'T BUY THE HYPE.
DeleteBut hey don't forget to wear your fkg flag pin!
It's a guaranteed paycheck?!!
DeleteHey 4:57pm
DeleteI neither own a flag pin nor would ever wear one. People enlist, they do so at will. If they could find a better job then why would they enlist? It IS a guaranteed paycheck. If you don't want to end up enlisted in the armed forces and paid less than you see fit, then get a higher education and find a job that suits your monetary requirements. Easy, peasy, just do it and stop complaining already.
All this "supporting the Troops" bullshit makes me sick. I support them with my Federal tax dollars, it pays their salary. If they want more then get your Bachelors, Masters and PhD and get a job that pays enough to live on.
Time to bring back the draft....
DeleteHey 4:57pm
DeleteYeah, and I'm the dumb one? Seriously, you talk about being in the Marines for 8 years and still not making ends meet? Hello? How about doing something else? Rotten, degraded housing? I'd last about a week in those conditions before I went seeking a job that paid me enough not to live in squalor. Why didn't you?
Anonymous @3:57 PM
DeleteDo you have a reading and comprehension problem? It sure seems like you do.
These Guard members ARE NOT ON THEIR BASE and not shop at the PX.
They are stuck on some God forsaken dessert due the that idiot Rick Perry trying to show how tough he is.
3:57; are you saying a high school diploma is the barest of requirements? Then what's your opinion of the Wasilla Wendigo's spawn--all three of them over the age of 18 lack even a high school diploma.
Delete
DeleteFunny how some people just like to criticize young people for enlisting in the military. They see losers, people that just need a pay check. And that is all they see.
I guess Pat Tillman was a loser too.
People enlist in the military for many reasons.
.
Oops!
ReplyDeleteSounds like our Congress, people getting paid to do jack shit,
ReplyDeleteThis.
ReplyDeleteThis post.
Is why this is my favorite place.
Honesty.
It's so rare.
Cherish it.
Border Patrol Agent
ReplyDeleteFires At Armed Militia Member Near Rio Grande
A border patrol agent fired several shots at an armed militia member while chasing a group of immigrants Friday near Brownsville, Texas.
Border Patrol Spokesman Omar Zamora told the Associated Press that agents were pursuing a group of immigrants when one agent spotted a man holding a gun near the Rio Grande.
The agent fired four shots but did not hit the man, Zamora said. The man then dropped his weapon and identified himself as a militia member.
The unidentified man was not arrested and appeared to have permission to be on private property where the incident occurred, Cameron County Sheriff Omar Lucio told the AP. Lucio, whose agency is involved in investigating the incident, said the man was wearing camouflage and was carrying either a rifle or shotgun.
The sheriff said militias really aren't needed at the Texas-Mexico border given the number of law enforcement agencies already working to secure the area.
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/border-patrol-agent-fires-at-armed-militia-member
The Diva from Wasilla took offense to this characterization despite the fact that there is long-standing evidence of her extravagant demands for public appearances. But for some reason, she went after the Daily Caller, which is run by Carlson, instead of Berg who made the statements to which she objected. On her Facebook page Palin launched into a tirade replete with personal insults and invective.
ReplyDelete...Meow! So according to Palin the Daily Caller is not really “conservative,” nor a practitioner of “journalism” (as if the woman who couldn’t name a single newspaper that she read would know). And she just couldn’t help ridiculing Carlson’s fashion sense, albeit for the bow ties he stopped wearing years ago. What Palin did not do in her rant was to offer any proof that the claims by Berg were false. She would certainly have the evidence if she were interested in refuting what she called “B.S.” Why do you suppose she would decline to provide it?
...Carlson is notoriously thin-skinned, so we may have the good fortune of hearing his retort to Palin and a prolonged public quarrel. It’s notable that Palin chose to belittle Carlson with a reference to his “frat house” immaturity. Just yesterday, Carlson made a similarly insulting remark directed at the U.S. Ambassador to the U.N., saying that “This is what happens when you have a foreign policy run by college sophomores like Samantha Power.” For the record, Power is a Pulitzer Prize winner with a distinguished career that puts Carlson, a trust-fund baby, to shame. More to the point, both Carlson and Palin regard college credentials as liabilities, which explains a lot about their mutual affinity for ignorance.
However, what will be truly interesting is to see if Palin is taken to the wood shed for beating up on “little fella” Tucker. After all, Fox News CEO. Roger Ailes, made it clear that he will not tolerate intra-network derision by people in his fiefdom “shooting in the tent.” So they better be careful. They don’t want to make Uncle Roger mad.
http://www.newscorpse.com/ncWP/?p=20375
WTF? You mean that while deployed they aren't getting three meals a day? Mres,long rats, K-rats, C-rats? or reg. chow line rats? Hard to believe anyone is that fucked up. Must be Texas.
ReplyDeleteThe military allows one meal per day plus $32 per diem. Nothing new here. move along.
DeleteWell, Washington isn't doing anything.
DeleteFor crying out loud! (You KNOW that's not what I wanted to say.) How STUPID do you have to be to send troops out in the desert to protect your border and NOT give them food or money to get from point A to point B?
ReplyDeleteSeriously - WHEN are they going to speak out to the people of Texas?
He can't manage to make sure that his Texas National Guard troops, who HE called up himself, have food to eat.
DeleteBut he thinks he is qualified to be President of the United States.
C'mon, $arah, show ;em your cookies!
ReplyDeleteGoober pRick deployed the Guard to the border. As it is a holiday weekend, he should be down there all weekend barbecuing for all of them. He should also do something novel and pay for it out of his own pocket. But that is what a real man would do, not some all hat no cattle posturing oopsy boy punk.
ReplyDeleteOMG they don't come much stupider than pRick. He's so stupid that he doesn't know he's stupid [like stain]. The repugs deserve his idiocy. And he has the hubris to think he's going to run for president LMFAO.
ReplyDeleteWhere's Rick's photo op with a dish of chocolate chip cookies? This is a disgrace! He got the guards involved, basically to stand there, they can't fire their weapons, and now they aren't getting food.
ReplyDeleteWhat they SHOULD be doing is feeding and hydrating those crossing the border AND not have to worry about being "food challenged" themselves.
This all lies on Rick's shoulders. He can't do the basic logistics to take care of troops HE asked for, and he wants to run for President?
http://www.statesman.com/news/news/breaking-news/texas-national-guard-troops-use-border-food-banks/nhCDC/
ReplyDeleteUpdate 4:38 p.m.: Texas National Guard officials said this afternoon they have no indication that any Guardsmen received assistance from the Food Bank of the Rio Grande Valley.
What ever happened to "esprit de corps"?
ReplyDeleteCouldn't they share MRE's?
Makes no sense.
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