Would someone explain this toon, please?

[calimary]

9. That's where we see a LOT of people begging - at onramps and offramps to the freeways

here in So Cal anyway. It was crystal clear to me. They're out there every day. And many of them are veterans. Just makes me wanna cry. I had a moment at a stop light to talk to one of them. He was an Iraq veteran. Said he never dreamed in a million years that he'd be out there on a street corner with a handmade sign, begging like this. He said "it's either this or rob a bank." Just made me ill. I gave him whatever cash I had, and knew it would still hardly be enough.

But we've gotta go spend money on bombs for Syria...