VFW's and American Legion closing post all over the Country

[Monkeyman]

It about time their membership drops off. They have forgotten Veterans and gone Right Wing. They worry about what Bush thinks bingo games and bar flies. Benefits are being taken away by Bush where are they? VVA and Veterans For Peace have taken on the roll of fighting for Veterans. DAV has always been there. I wonder if they will slap the Vets in the face coming home like they did to Vietnam Vets. My Word here Good bye don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out

[liberal N proud]

1. Their leaderships right wing tactics are biting them in the ass.

[orpupilofnature57]

2. Shrub has even taken the pride out of pride.

[AX10]

3. The VFW may have changed (more partisan), but to my knowledge, the...

American Legion has always been a right wing (ultra partisan) group.

[StClone]

4. Sad decay, sellout

My father was a WW II vet and I read his "American Legion" magazine and noticed the radical turn most in the early 90's. They when from getting medals to Vets, doing stories on heroic battles and personalities to pandering to Wing things and attacking Clinton. Now that the WW II and Korea guys are aged and the Viet Nam Vets are less inclined to support The Legion, I think it has become the old Soldier that fades away.

[tularetom]

5. They screwed themselves years ago by treating Vietnam vets like shit

I'm not a Vietnam vet (served from 60 to 63) but some of us that attended some functions in the early 70's were pissed at the cold shoulder we got from the WWII guys, so we didn't join and never went back. Now all the WWII vets are dead and the Vietnam guys have found other interests so the memberships are going down the shitter. Too fucking bad.

[The Wizard]

14. Yes they did

and when they brought politics into the picture they alienated half of those that were members.
My Vietnam Veterans of America chapter was the third largest in the country. Some bonehead decided to use the newsletter for partisan political purposes and the monthly meetings now have about 6 to 10 members when in the past there were 40 to 70 showing up on a regular basis. And the downfall all started with a false story about Bill Clinton. Therefore, the logical conclusion is only douche bags introduce partisan politics into nonprofit organizations and expect a positive result.

[nadinbrzezinski]

17. They gave my hubby the cold shoulder

and that was a year ago at the fair...

So there... somethings have not changed.

So they will quietly go away

[Thothmes]

19. Screwed themselves

This was also the case at the end of WWII. My father joined the American Legion in 1947. All of the posts were run by WWI vets then. Got the same treatment as the Viet Nam vets did in the 70's. Now the Viet Nam vets make up the majority of the Legion legion leadership.

[sarge43]

21. They also treated women and minorities like garbage, too.

I received a letter from the Legion shortly after I retired inviting me to join. I was informed that my wife could join the auxiliary. There's nothing androgynous about my first name; it's quite obvious what my gender is.

For year the VFW wouldn't accept women as full members.

[Jackpine Radical]

6. Nice to see ya around, MM. And I agree abt those old-line vet groups.

I always refused to join. For one thing, after Nam I wanted to get my life back on track. Didn't want Nam to be the most important thing that ever happened to me. Didn't wanna sit around telling ancient war stories every night til I fell off the barstool. Didn't like the fascist mentality. And I noticed, on my few ventures into those joints, that most of 'em were WWII straphangers who hadn't seen the nasty stuff & wanted to have everyone worship them like it was 1946 forever & mistake them for heroes or something.

[Glorfindel]

7. Good riddance. Here's one veteran of a foreign war who will shed no tears...

silly, useless, fascist organizations, doing more harm than good.

[doc03]

8. I got out of the Army in 1970 and never heard from

the American Legion until around 1980, I guess they must of went on a recruiting program then. After receiving many letters from them I finally joined the National Organization. A few weeks after that I got a call form the local post asking me if I was interested in joining their post I said I was interested and was asked who my sponsor was. I had run into this before when I wanted to join a couple hunting and fishing clubs and they wanted you to come to a meeting with your sponsor, well I talked to a guy I worked with that was a member about why I needed a sponsor and he said they just want to be sure you aren't black. Well I can maybe see a private hunting and fishing club full of bigots screening their members but if you are a Veteran I sure as hell can't see any reason to screen members. I never joined either hunting or fishing club and I told the guy from the American Legion I was a Veteran if that wasn't good enough I didn't want to join. If you are the son of Legion member you can join even if you dodged the draft and they want my DD214 and a sponsor to join.

[unhappycamper]

9. No loss.

Around mid-1970, everyone in my unit (25th ID) received a permanent VFW lifetime membership. Like Jackpine Radical sez, hanging out telling war stories until you fall off a bar stool ain't the way I want to go. I've never considered being associated with either of those organizations.

I have zero tolerance for fascist, Republic politics. About the only good thing to come of the VFW in recent memory was a fellow named Richardson who attended a convention where * was speaking:

[james101]

10. Good! I'm glad these groups are going down!

I recieved a letter when I left the Army in 2001 inviting me to be an

American Legion member. I never joined. I thought about joining and then

I went to wikipedia to do some reaserch on the group. I looked at

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Legion and it said it's a facist

organization. I'm glad I never got involved. Like many of you here I

don't want to think of the military as the highlight of my life.

I thought most people I met in the Army were real assholes anyways. I

woulden't want to be drinking alcohol around most of those crazy SOBs.

[james101]

11. I don't drink beer

or think Bush is the best thing since sliced bread. So I would have no

good reason to join the american legion.

[Cuauhtla]

12. A bit different in SoCal?

The Vets for Peace guys who erect Arlington West in Santa Barbara on Sundays (I helped until my knee wouldn't allow it any more) have close ties and leadership roles in the SB and Ventura VFWs.

[unhappycamper]

13. And I'm a proud member of the Smedley D. Butler Brigade of the VFP.

:thumbsup:

[Ezlivin]

18. I just got through reading "War is a Racket"

And General Butler is my new hero.

The things he said in 1935 are so applicable today.

[pwb]

15. VFW is helpful with claims at the V A

our post is shrinking in size. about the only functions i attend now are at funeral parlor final salutes.

our local legion closed five years ago.

i use to enjoy the magazines but now throw them out when they come.

seems if you are a veteran, to them, you have to support any war that comes along, that is not me....

[benddem]

16. amen brother n/t

[Joey Liberal]

20. I lost all respect for them n/t

[IllLib]

22. Well said. Not for me. They brought it on themselves. n/t