Michelle Obama – Black & Blonde Media

The Numbers Show Few Care What ‘Podcasters’ Are Blabbing About

©Black & Right — Mon, 15 Jan 2024 17:22:00 +0000

Some of us stopped listening to music subscribers because we noticed a very audible downgrade in sound quality. At first, our favorite songs sounded just like they did on the CDs. A few years later, they sounded bad. I can only guess that subscriber sites have finite storage on their servers and had to crush the song file size to make room for, wait for it… podcasts. You know, those “programs” in which we are blessed with the elongated musings of those who deem themselves important.

There’s an obvious problem with the subscription business model. While most people will listen to a song they like an untold number of times, people may listen to a podcast episode once; maybe twice? And then all it does is take up space. Not exactly a good use of valuable and expensive storage space and now the geniuses at these businesses are taking notice.

Apple has quietly tightened its reporting of how many people listen to podcasts, sending shock waves through an embattled audio industry still reeling from the end of the COVID-era production bubble. The shift, Apple wrote in a blog post, was technical: The dominant podcasting platform had begun switching off automatic downloads for users who haven’t listened to five episodes of a show in the last two weeks.

But while few users noticed the shift, some of the biggest podcasts in the world saw their official listener numbers drop dramatically. Long-running shows that publish frequently were hit particularly hard. A user who listened to a show like The New York Times’ The Daily a few times, subscribed, but stopped listening would continue to count as a download indefinitely.
— Semafor, 1/14/24

I’ve commented on, what I consider, the failed subscription business model because while you pay for certain things you like, you’re also forced to pay for many more things you don’t. In this case, you may have a person you enjoy hearing from but you’re also paying for the likes of Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, Meghan Markle, and almost every cable news personality and it’s doubtful anything you hear makes you want to hear it over and over again.

Even podcast executives believe the changes are part of a necessary shakeout in an industry whose bubbly inflation helped create the industry’s recent boom and bust.

But privately, reactions to the change have ranged from mild annoyance to legitimate alarm. Some advertising deals were inked under the assumption that shows had audiences they no longer have. The update also means that some shows could struggle to meet minimum download agreements. The fact that no major podcasts would talk about how much they lost is a sign that many big shows aren’t ready to admit how much their audiences have shrunk.

This could create some real problems in an industry that, in some cases, paid hefty up-front money to “personalities” and at some point will have to have awkward discussions with narcissists involving pay restructure because few are really rushing to hear what they say.

But even if it is not responsible for a sudden drop, podcast publishers are bracing themselves for a decline. “From our detailed analysis, these adjustments will largely impact download numbers on back catalog episodes, which are typically categorized as content older than 7 days,” Acast CEO Ross Adams wrote in a blog post on Thursday.‍ “However, it’s important to note that these adjustments do not reflect a change in the unique audience a podcast has, simply the number of downloads per user. On the whole, this will mean more accurate measurement and a more efficient depiction of a podcast’s total listens.”

You know who loves accuracy? Advertisers. And you know who doesn’t love paying for impressions that aren’t really impressions? Yeah, you get the drift. As this plays out, I will be interested to see how advertisers react to these changes.
— The Verge, 10/17/23

I can’t imagine how much a publisher pays on a monthly basis for storage, or if they own their own servers, how much it’s going to cost to expand, but if you’re having trouble getting advertisers or can’t tell them accurately what the reach to consumers is, that could be a problem.

It appears it now is.

Granted, a lot of the discussion centers around their reach to a smartphone, which nowadays also connects and sends content to automobiles (that strategically stopped putting CD players in them a few years ago). When phone manufacturers upgrade, it creates havoc downwind and that’s part of the problem.

Again, the subscription business model was ripe for those who wanted to take a website public, make a gob of money off screwed content creators, hire hundreds of employees, meanwhile forcing their consumers to pay for programming they like and programming they never consume. That is a model doomed for failure and it’s only a matter of time, especially when consumers revolt.

The geniuses as NBC decided to buck tradition, screw over the millions of football fans who already paid for cable subscriptions, and made the Miami Dolphins, Kansas City Chiefs playoff game available only to those who bought a subscription to Peacock, and went as far as openly bragging about it. Yet another act of public relations arrogance, thus stupidity.

And if it’s any consolation….

Peacock finished the June quarter with 24 million subscribers, up from 22 million at the end of March — but the streamer lost $651 million over the same three months.

Sadly, those losses have pretty much become par for the course. The NBCUniversal streaming platform lost $704 million in the prior quarter (and $467 million in Q2 2022). The company expects to post “peak” losses from streaming — to the tune of $3 billion — in 2023. Good thing Comcast is soon to come into about $9 billion in streaming bucks through the sale of its Hulu stake to Disney.
— Yahoo! Entertainment, 7/27/23

Chances are very good that once their tech-challenged, NFL playoff broadcasts are over, Peacock subscription will be cancelled en masse and they have it coming.

It’s no surprise the podcast industry is cratering. Most of those, who deem themselves important, aren’t creative enough to find new ways to talk about the same thing. They seem to believe an audience will be perpetually enamored simply because they said it. But they are still a part of what we used to refer to as the “entertainment business”. With few exceptions, people talking isn’t really all that entertaining.

Especially when it comes to people who have nothing else of value to give the world.

Political Declarations of ‘Ended’ Veteran Homelessness is a LIE

©Black & Right — Mon, 12 Nov 2018 19:28:56 +0000

In the media’s ongoing attempt to prove how much better they are than the American people, CNN issued the following “Do more than just thank a veteran” in their daily email drop.

Help veterans on the streets
A phone call can also make difference in the life of a veteran who is homeless or at risk of becoming homeless. Call 877-4AID-VET, or 877-424-3838, to connect with help at the VA. This service is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The Department of Veterans Affairs’ Stand Down program is designed to help homeless veterans “combat” life on the streets. Stand Downs are usually one- to three-day events that provide food, shelter, clothing and health screenings to homeless and unemployed veterans. To find a Stand Down program in your community, contact your local VA hospital.

This implies there ARE veterans that don’t have a warm place to call their own, however if you were look at the declarations of states and municipalities (mostly Democrat-run) you would get a far different impression of the plight of too many veterans.

The whole theme of “ending veteran homelessness” was initially a pet project of First Lady Michelle Obama and we all know the priority “pet projects” of the boss’ wife are given, even if the results have to be embellished to keep the wife happy and those involved in good favor.

Opportunist politicians took the cue and announced successes that require a suspension of common sense.

Virginia Just Became the First State in the US to End Veteran Homelessness

And it just snowballed from there….

The disingenuous definition of “ending veteran homelessness” for the politically callous is sending a homeless veteran to a shelter. If he or she goes to that shelter for a night, that veteran is checked off the “homeless” list. This is VERY temporary and too many veterans would rather sleep on the street than go to potentially dangerous homeless shelters.

When this administration took on the challenge to end veteran homelessness, many believed that it was an unattainable goal. A growing list of more than 35 communities, and the entire states of Connecticut, Delaware, and Virginia, have proven that ending veteran homelessness is possible and sustainable.
— Tina Tchen, Assistant to the President and Chief of Staff to the First Lady

“Functionally” and “effectively” are political words used to dance around reality for political backpats and points. Some even leave those words out and make the declaration despite the very real reality on the ground.

Utah had touted ending homelessness for veterans years ago. Now the numbers are increasing

While the first person whom a veteran reaches out to points to a shelter, what does it say when being on the street is preferable to any homeless shelter a social worker, politician or nonprofit brags about but would NEVER choose to stay in themselves?

This shelter pictured above probably got advanced notice a state senator would be dropping by so don’t assume it looks (and smells) this clean the other 364 days of the year.

Let’s be real: the military and subsequent veterans are very low on the priority list of many politicians, yet politicians and nonprofits love to be pictured with black homeless veterans in particular to tug on public and donor heartstrings.

But as no one has called the politically-motivated out on the lie, it continues on….

St. Joseph reaches goal of ending veteran homelessness
Manistee, Missaukee, Wexford counties celebrate being ‘Functional zero’ for veterans homelessness
Lexington first city in state to effectively end veteran homelessness
Mayor announces end to veteran homelessness in Lansing

The federal government is even showcasing the ending-veteran-homelessness fabrication.

Communities and states that have ended Veteran homelessness

The VA continues to be a mess, albeit not as bad as in previous years, and taxpayer dollars meant for homeless veterans are quickly diverted to more desired immigrant refugees, illegal aliens with children, unwed mothers with children, etc.

The “success” stories continue to trickle in….

Series of innovations has virtually ended homelessness among veterans in Minnesota
James Lovell Federal Health Care Center marking an end to veteran homelessness in Lake County
Phoenix Valley model on ending veteran homelessness getting attention from Washington D.C.

Yes, the same Phoenix the late John McCain said was free of homeless veterans and way up near the top of our list, Connecticut in 2015 was declared the second state to end veteran homelessness.

That was then….

Connecticut Coalition to End Homelessness CEO Richard Cho says in the report that “Connecticut appears to be maintaining its progress on ending veteran homelessness as the number of homeless veterans remains low, and homeless veterans that are identified continue to be reconnected to stable housing quickly (e.g., within 90 days).”
— Fox 61, 6/22/19

Kinda sucks when you have to revise the lie; a lie that requires constant updates.

Abilene officially ninth city in US to end veteran homelessness

The fact we still have homeless veterans is something we’ll continue to see on our street corners and sidewalks despite what politicians, bloated self-enriched nonprofits and the media say to our faces.

Veterans homelessness is down 49% since the Departments of Housing and Urban Development and Veterans Affairs began an inter-agency effort to tackle the issue nine years ago.

More specifically, about 77 communities and three states across the country have declared an effective end to veterans homelessness, Hunter Kurtz, assistant secretary for public and Indian housing at HUD, told a handful of members of the House Veterans Affairs Committee at a field hearing in San Diego, California, last week.
— Federal News Network, 8/28/19

If only Secretary Kurtz and the president really knew the reality.

When Gangsta’ Rap, SlutWalk, #FDT Democrats Were AGAINST Deviancy

©Black & Blonde Media — Wed, 10 Oct 2018 15:15:26 +0000

There was a time when the wife of a United States senator led a crusade against what she deemed deviancy in the entertainment industry, specifically the music business. Tipper Gore, wife of Senator Al Gore (D-Tennessee) and one of the “Washington Wives” whose “Parents Music Resource Center” pet project led an all-out assault on such vile music acts like Prince, AC/DC, Twisted Sister, John Denver and Van Halen.

The very people who now facilitate the #Slutwalk, teach masturbation to children, publicly use profanity on the taxpayer dime, promote “pride” parades complete with performances that can’t be aired on broadcast television (yet), defend rap and pop music that promotes gangsta violence and degrading imagery of ratchet women….

If I could find some way constitutionally to do away with it, I would.
— Senator Fritz Hollings (D-SC), 9/19/85

Then again, making things they don’t agree with go away has always been in their playbook, until those things define who they are and have always been.

Trump IS the #Resistance to Eight Years of Democrat-Obama Hell

©Black & Right — Thu, 19 Oct 2017 14:25:10 +0000

To put our present situation in proper perspective, here’s a definition of the sore-loser, #resistance narcissist we have to deal with.

People with narcissistic personality disorder believe they are superior or special, and often try to associate with other people they believe are unique or gifted in some way. This association enhances their self-esteem, which is typically quite fragile underneath the surface. Individuals with Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD) have difficulty tolerating criticism or defeat, and may be left feeling humiliated or empty when they experience an “injury” in the form of criticism or rejection.
— Psychology Today

Couple that with the mental state of too many on the left….

A political-science journal that published an oft-cited study claiming conservatives were more likely to show traits associated with “psychoticism” now says it got it wrong. Very wrong. The American Journal of Political Science published a correction this year saying that the 2012 paper has “an error” — and that liberal political beliefs, not conservative ones, are actually linked to psychoticism.
— New York Post, 6/9/16

When Hillary Clinton was defeated and the above mentioned did not get their way, the liberal Democrat left took it very personally. They believed, despite the fact in two elections 120,881,827 voted against Barack Obama, the narcissists claimed a mandate to implement anything and everything they wanted and we were all good with it as we didn’t immediately take to the streets in “mostly peaceful” opposition that they would call “obstructionist”, “racist” and “unpatriotic”.

No Republican voter wanted our local law enforcement repeatedly second-guessed by the President of the United States to the point where some were targeted for assassination by liberal crazies who now consider political violence a valuable tool of #resistance, informally blessed by the former attorney general.

The left assumed the next president would continue the legacy of Barack Obama precisely because it was what THEY wanted and Republicans, respectful of the election process, didn’t take to the streets like spoiled children. Instead, Republicans elected politicians they hoped would #resist his policies. So much for that, however….

No Republican voter wanted the federal government to “stimulate” the economy by throwing billions of dollars to the well-connected into technology that still isn’t economically feasible.

No Republican voter wanted IRS employees to be able to politically target people and/or entities that weren’t of the political positions they hold.

No Republican voter wanted our country to be balkanized by race, gender and our institutions of higher learning be dominated by educators who feel free to indoctrinate students into “mostly peaceful” activists with one-sided presentations.

No Republican voter wanted unelected bureaucrats that could implement policies affecting our land and water and when they screw up, are shielded from any accountability despite how much they pollute and negatively affect the livelihoods and health of the public.

No Republican voter wanted the federal elected to implement a health care system they exempted themselves, their staffs and families from and despite ALL the promises to the contrary, took away our choice of doctors and plans via a website the cost a half billion dollars and didn’t work.

No Republican voter wanted our intelligence agencies to have the ability to spy on us, yet that’s a part of the Obama legacy.

Instead, we got a president in Barack Obama that encouraged his supporters to go home and disrupt family holiday gatherings. In fact, during the 2008 campaign he said,

I need you to go out and talk to your friends and talk to your neighbors. I want you to talk to them whether they are independent or whether they are Republican. I want you to argue with them and get in their face.

When it comes to the crime of being a presidential narcissist, Barack Obama was clearly near the top of the heap, even though it was mostly the conservative media doing the counting.

The election of Donald J. Trump was a repudiation of policies the leftist #Swamp imposed on the American people and arrogantly assumed would be left in place.

The election of Donald J. Trump was a repudiation of federal employees who believed they knew better than the American people and would imposed their beliefs on us with the full power of the government behind them.

The election of Donald J. Trump was a repudiation of policies that left our inner cities in worse shape then when Obama assumed the presidency, despite direct outreaches to black voters promising the contrary, including condescending overtures like the Obamaphone.

The election of Donald J. Trump was a repudiation of an administration that repeatedly lied directly to our faces on foreign policy disasters that cost the lives of Americans, blaming everything from a YouTube video or a subsequent election loss on Russian collusion without one scintilla of evidence.

The election of Donald J. Trump was a repudiation of policies that gave favor (via the overused moniker of “hate”) to a religious minority that holds questionable allegiance to our country while some are committing violent atrocities unheard of until their gradual admittance began with little attempt to assimilate to our culture while gradually demanding we adapt to theirs.

The election of Donald J. Trump was a repudiation of the continued neglect of Veterans Administration including the many shameless lies told by President Obama, his wife, and other Democrat politicians that veteran homelessness is “functionally ended”.

The election of Donald J. Trump was a repudiation of a political party in bed with a media that fawned all over and protected an administration led by the president one columnist considered “God”; a president who actually said his election “was the moment when the rise of the oceans began to slow and our planet began to heal“.

The election of Donald J. Trump was a repudiation of lax immigration policies that have led to the deaths of countless innocent Americans, not to mention the sanctioned, continued genocide of millions of babies in the womb. While topics like granting benefits to illegal aliens and gay rights consistently lose at the ballot box, liberal judges blow off the Constitution and impose their superior judgments to the detriment of the “non-college educated” consider beneath them.

The election of Donald J. Trump was a repudiation of liberal Hollywood elites who believed they have the power to change public opinion and shame opposition into voting for Democrats and their policies. Many of these “celebrities” still believe the promise to leave the country and deny us of their presence is enough to make us change our minds despite the fact they never leave when we don’t succumb to their threats.

Since the election of President Donald J. Trump, almost every doom-and-gloom scenario painted by the left has been proven false despite the initial declarative hysterics.

The disaster for America and the world has so many aspects that the economic ramifications are way down my list of things to fear. Still, I guess people want an answer: If the question is when markets will recover, a first-pass answer is never.
— Paul Krugman, New York Times, 11/9/16

The stock market has risen to record levels to this day, yet a responsible admission of error will never come from narcissists.

As a result of the election of President Donald J. Trump, some on the left are planning to invoke the 25th Amendment in an attempt to have him removed because in their wisdom and benevolence, they believe he’s a dangerous narcissist in undoing the wonderful legacy of Barack Obama.

They would know.

It’s All About Harvey and Sick Hollywood!

Hollywood has the best moral compass, because it has compassion.
— Harvey Weinstein, 2009

SNL mocks everyone — but remains silent on Harvey Weinstein
‘SNL,’ other late-night shows ignore Harvey Weinstein scandal — but not John Oliver
The Harvey Weinstein Scandal Could Take Down A Fashion Label
Hillary STILL isn’t giving back a cent of the millions Harvey Weinstein donated to the Clintons
Mira Sorvino, Rosanna Arquette and Asia Argento Accuse Harvey Weinstein of Sexual Harassment
Jeffrey Katzenberg refused to support Harvey Weinstein in plea before firing
Lisa Bloom Was ‘Totally Lied to’ by Harvey Weinstein, Did Not Know Severity of Allegations
Then she’s either a shitty lawyer or a liar
The Atlantic: One Harvey Weinstein in Hollywood, Another in the White House
This “story” was written 16 years too late
President Obama Is ‘Disgusted’ by Harvey Weinstein Sexual Harassment Claims

2013 Oscar host Seth MacFarlane’s shtick was so thoroughly offensive that we missed the truth about Weinstein’s predatory behavior. And now the joke’s on us.

Lena Dunham: Harvey Weinstein and the Silence of the Men
From Aggressive Overtures to Sexual Assault: Harvey Weinstein’s Accusers Tell Their Stories
Hollywood Figures Rebuff Harvey Weinstein’s Emailed Plea for Help
Audio: N.Y.P.D. sting operation
Fashion designer Donna Karan comes to Harvey Weinstein’s DEFENSE suggesting his victims may have been ‘asking for it’ by the way they dress calling the shamed mogul and his wife ‘wonderful people’
Gayle King rushes to defend Barack and Michelle Obama, saying they were unaware of Harvey Weinstein’s sexual harassment despite having NO proof to back that claim
Jennifer Lawrence Says She Did Not Know About Harvey Weinstein’s “Inexcusable” Behavior
During the election, these geniuses told us who we should vote for and why. Now, nobody knows nuthin’

Rose McGowan Calls Out Matt Damon, Russell Crowe, Ben and Casey Affleck
Reluctant Alyssa Milano: My Comment on the Harvey Weinstein Scandal
Kevin Smith, Ryan Murphy, George Clooney and more men call out Harvey Weinstein
John Oliver blasts Harvey Weinstein amid barrage of sexual harassment claims
Jessica Chastain Was ‘Warned From the Beginning’ About Weinstein’s History of Sexual Harassment
‘Weinstein is a bad guy but Trump is far worse’: Rob Reiner says the President of United States is an ‘abuser’
Meryl Streep Speaks Out Against Harvey Weinstein
‘Harvey Weinstein’s Media Enablers’? The New York Times Is One of Them
Nathan Lane breaks his silence on how Harvey Weinstein ‘threatened to destroy him’ and ‘threw him against a wall’ at Hillary Clinton’s birthday 17 years ago
‘He begged me to massage him’: Model, 43, claims Harvey Weinstein stripped naked in front of her and chased her around a hotel room before bursting into tears saying ‘You think I’m fat’ when she refused to touch him

Yes, we’re “attacking the accusers”. What does it say about women who would even want to be in the same room with someone they repeatedly heard did this kind of thing?

Decades of Sexual Harassment Accusations Against Harvey Weinstein
Another man behaving badly in Hollywood — this time, Harvey Weinstein. What a shocker
Weinstein slams New York Times report over harassment claims, says he’ll sue for $50M
Leading Feminists of the Day Caught in The Tank with Harvey Weinstein
Lisa Bloom Defends Harvey Weinstein, Who’s Turning Her Book Into A Miniseries
I’ll fight the NRA to ‘channel’ my anger at myself for sexually harassing women
Flashback: Harvey Weinstein’s lawyer allegedly donated $10G to Manhattan DA who declined to pursue sexual assault charges in 2015
Visitor Records: Harvey Weinstein Visited Obama White House 13 Times
Harvey Weinstein’s generous donations, mostly to Democrats
At the end of the day, he’ll be rehabbed because he’s a Democrat

The Obama Love Story vs. the Bush Death Wish

If there was ever any more proof of indoctrination, double standards, sheer hate of Republicans, let’s contrast the Obama love story in theaters that we know many of you have seen already.

There would rightfully be national outrage had anyone thought it a great idea to create a docudrama of an assassination of the first half-black president. Producing such a movie of George W. Bush earned the makers critical acclaim and those who had a problem with it were told to lighten up: it’s just a movie.

And after the first weekend, Southside with You has pulled in a measly $3 million which makes it as much of a dud as the Obama presidency.

LIE: McAuliffe Claims He ‘Functionally Ended’ Veteran Homelessness in Virginia

There are those rare times nowadays when a falsehood is easily recognized for what it is, no matter who says it. Then again, when coming from anyone with Clinton ties, parcing becomes the necessary word dance.

Incredible statements by the First Lady and especially Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe, who had the audacity to say it in front of active duty soldiers and veterans. Some of the numbers of homeless veterans recited by Michelle Obama are simply unbelievable, and the very idea there are NO homeless veterans in Virginia, are on its face also unbelievable, as are the government’s suspect numbers.

The Obama administration recently said that the number of homeless veterans dropped by 12 percent from 2010 to 2011. But getting accurate counts of the homeless is extremely difficult, and the government changed its counting methods during the year of the reported drop. Is the number of homeless vets really going down, or is the drop an artifact of murky statistics?

In 2010, the actual head count of homeless veterans registered 61,011 people. However, HUD knows that a head count isn’t going to include everyone. For example, homeless vets who stay in beds at VA shelters were not counted. Homeless people on the streets were not asked if they were veterans or not. To reflect the homeless veterans the PIT count missed, HUD “imputed”—that is, they estimated—the number and added 15,318 homeless veterans to the official 2010 statistic. For reference, a 12 percent drop in the nation’s homeless vets equates to 8834 fewer people.

Even to a fawning media….

“Folks, there is a reason why we are the greatest state in America. We are because we take care of our veterans,” Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) said at a ceremony at a Richmond veterans memorial.

Technically according to McAuliffe’s twisted political reasoning, a veteran in a shelter counts as being off the street and thus, no longer “homeless”.

McAuliffe announced Wednesday that Virginia is the first state to meet the federal definition of effectively ending homelessness among military veterans. The federal homelessness designation means Virginia has no homeless veterans with the exception of those who have been offered housing but do not want it. The state must find a home for a veteran within 90 days and have more homes available than the number of veterans who have been identified as having no place to live.

Ask any current homeless veteran for their experience on how “the state” found them a place to live in 90 days….

A little over a month since his declarative Veteran’s Day statement about the Commonwealth of Virginia being the first state in the nation to “functionally end veteran homelessness”, Governor Terry McAuliffe took the opportunity to repeat a political comment that requires the suspension of common sense.

After what we’ve written about the governor’s statements (which was polite in comparison to the many we’ve talked to who responded to McAuliffe’s assertion with much more colorful language), we assume the governor saw B&B Media at the grand opening of the Fredericksburg Veterans Benefits Office and may have directed some of his comments to us….

At the 2016 Democrat National Convention in Philadelphia, McAuliffe continued his shameless lie.

Until veterans are no longer used as opportune political props, there will continue to be homeless veterans, despite his lie being the political template used and repeated by politicians nationwide to this day.

Yesterday evening, the Operation Renewed Hope Foundation presented Governor McAuliffe with the Northwestern Mutual Award for Improving the Lives of Veteran Families during the foundation’s Five Year Anniversary Awards Ceremony. Operation Renewed Hope has helped more than 500 veterans and their family members find housing. The organization, which serves veterans through job referrals, transportation assistance, and financial management, chose Governor McAuliffe due to his administration’s achievement functionally ending veteran homelessness in the Commonwealth.

“I am so proud to receive this award on behalf of the Virginia civil servants who worked their hearts out functionally ending veteran homelessness in our Commonwealth,” said Governor McAuliffe, speaking at yesterday’s announcement. “Since we made the commitment to end veteran homelessness, Virginia had helped 2,640 veterans find a permanent place to call home. Virginia’s historic progress over the past three years sends a clear message of support to our veterans. And while we can never fully repay the sacrifices they’ve made, we can ensure that any veteran’s experience with homelessness either now or in the future will be rare, brief, and non-recurring.”
— Virginia Department of Veteran Services, 1/20/17

Again and again.

Governor McAuliffe announced today that the Virginia Department of Veterans Services (VDVS) received the Abraham Lincoln Pillars of Excellence Award from the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The award recognizes the innovative partnership between the Commonwealth and federal and local entities that enabled Virginia to be named as the first state to functionally end veteran homelessness in 2015.

“I am proud to announce the Virginia Department of Veterans Services has been honored for their outstanding work making the Commonwealth the first state in the nation to functionally end veteran homelessness,” said Governor McAuliffe. “The public servants at VDVS worked with their federal, state and local colleagues to demonstrate that smart, innovative government can make a different in people’s lives.”
— WVIR NBC29, 3/28/17

Sad and still true.