Post-War Veteran Suicides May Exceed Combat Deaths: U.S.

Bloomberg:

The number of suicides among veterans of wars in Iraq and Afghanistan may exceed the combat death toll because of inadequate mental health care, the U.S. government's top psychiatric researcher said.

Community mental health centers, hobbled by financial limits, haven't provided enough scientifically sound care, especially in rural areas, said Thomas Insel, director of the National Institute of Mental Health in Bethesda, Maryland. He briefed reporters today at the American Psychiatric Association's annual meeting in Washington.

Insel echoed a Rand Corporation study published last month that found about 20 percent of returning U.S. soldiers have post- traumatic stress disorder or depression, and only half of them receive treatment. About 1.6 million U.S. troops have fought in the two wars since October 2001, the report said. About 4,560 soldiers had died in the conflicts as of today, the Defense Department reported on its Web site.

Read the whole story: Bloomberg

Comments

[BeyondGoodAndEvil]

“I just felt like this silent scream inside of me,” said Jessica Harrell, the sister of a soldier who took his own life.

"I opened up the door and there he was," recalled Mike Bowman, the father of an Army reservist.

"I saw the hose double looped around his neck,” said Kevin Lucey, another military father.

"He was gone,” said Mia Sagahon, whose soldier boyfriend committed suicide.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/11/13/cbsnews_investigates/main3496471.shtml

[helonias]

Post-War Veterans Suicides Of Those Who Are Not From The Bush/Cheney/Romney Gene Pool May Exceed Combat Deaths: .

Post-War Veterans Suicides Of Those From The Bush/Cheney/Romney Gene Pool Has Not Exceeded 0.

A few significant number (how's the wedding planning Laura?) on many levels.

[BeyondGoodAndEvil]

VA, Defense officials grilled on allegations of 'epidemic' of soldier suicides:

Top officials of the Veterans Affairs and Defense departments faced harsh questioning from the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee on Wednesday about recently leaked e-mails written by the VA's head of mental health revealing that nearly 1,000 U.S. soldiers per month have attempted suicide after returning from service in Iraq and Afghanistan.

[BeyondGoodAndEvil]

http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=39848&sid=59

[BeyondGoodAndEvil]

Soldier suicides at Record Levels:

"I'm very disappointed with the Army," Whiteside wrote in a note before swallowing dozens of antidepressants and other pills. "Hopefully this will help other soldiers." She was taken to the emergency room early Tuesday. Whiteside, who is now in stable physical condition, learned yesterday that the charges against her had been dismissed.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/story/2008/01/30/ST2008013003145.html

[aquarius2001]

26 Posts on this topic. Well over 1,000 on both the Rev Wright and Eight Bell the horse.

What a shame.

[kellygrrrl]

how bizarre it is that there are 26 comments here
and hundreds of comments on a story about
John and Eliz Edwards talking to tabloid magazine
or
Obama bought a piece of cake for a few people

damn! we are sick

[ErnestineBass]

True. So true.

And the worst part is the number of lily-livered chickenhawks who show up and have the gall to call those of us who have served, or have family members who are serving, "libtards".

This country is in deep, deep trouble. It's heartbreaking.

[speakingtruth2power]

Especially when frank and honest comments made by our

known liberals have to be censored to not upset the MSM!

[plainsman]

It's depressing, kellygrrrl, to see so many become incensed over a gaffe or puff piece, and not even pay attention to stories like these. I wish there was a counter that showed how many people actually look at the stories, so we know whether people are even paying attention or have quit caring altogether.

[Davwbaird]

you are so wright

[robXdion]

What really makes me angry is the universal dismissal of military personnel by civilians as "stupid" or "losers" that couldn't hack it. But yet these SAME people harp about patriotism and flag pins and they've never served a day in uniform and can't do 3 pushups to save their pathetic lives. Americans are all for war and conquest just as long as someone else is doing it and their daily grind of $5 coffee, stories about Tom Cruise, Britney Spears and $2 gas and leisure is not interrupted.

THAT is what makes me sick!

[letsgetsmart]

Serving during peace time is one thing but during Nam hardly any of us wanted to be there and not many went back for more then two terms. The terms were shorter then. I know a few but even most of the west pointers couldn't handle to much of that war. Always having to worry about when a Cong would pop you from behind a bush or you would trip a mine, the tension was pretty hard on you. And those nifty charge up the same damn mountain against dug in positions which you had taken before. War will find out what you are made of. So, having said all of that, I have been puzzled about so many that are on multiple Iraq terms. Even the ones who get out and join the security forces puzzle me. How much of that do you really want to put yourself through?

[ejay579]

I thought the time on line was long for Vietnam. The number of deployments these guys go through is astounding.

[ann1]

My nephew returned from Iraq and hasn't been the same since. He often has nightmares and finds it very difficult to talk about his tour.

[kellygrrrl]

my condolences to you Ann
I hope that your family can afford to get him the help that is out there
I'm sorry We the People have failed your nephew

we are trying to make it right

[desthmoneses]

I agree with kellyrgrrl we the people have failed you and your son, and I want to apologize on my behalf for not having done enough to oppose this war.

[plainsman]

"About 4,560 soldiers had died in the conflicts as of today, the Defense Department reported on its Web site."

I wonder if that total includes soldiers who died on the way to Germany for treatment or stateside from complications. Regardless, the increasing rate of suicide is troublesome and reflects on the lack of care these soldiers are receiving. Shameful.

[nomobull]

doubtful

[BeyondGoodAndEvil]

No it does not include those en route, or who died anywhere other than Iraq or Afghanistan. When Obama becomes President we are going to find out that the Pentagon have been lying to the American people about the number of deaths of American soldiers, which is at least 12,000.
http://www.tbrnews.org/Archives/a1669.htm
http://www.tbrnews.org/Archives/a2540.htm#001

[kellygrrrl]

BG&E - I'm trying to get people to focus on this story and look away from
the tabloid mag interview with the Edwards and the cake story.

let's do this!

[UncleJimbo]

I mentioned this fact months ago and the Trolls jumped all over me! Thanks for clearing that up!

[plainsman]

I'm going to need more proof than that, or more corroboration from inside sources. Seems like a lot of conjecturing.

It's highly likely that the death toll is much higher, but that doesn't quite cut it for me. Thanks for the links though, and I hope many truths come out once Obama is in office. Let's hope McCain doesn't get elected. That will give the criminals 4 more years to scrub any evidence of their crimes from existence.

[camcat]

Exactly what I was wondering, plainsman. In 2005 the number of soldiers who died en route to or in Germany was already nearing 10,000. How many have died here in U.S. hospitals? The figures are hidden and unreported. The American public goes about its daily routine, griping now about the price of gas, unaware of the horrible loss of life due to the biggest rip-off of another country's wealth and culture since Nazi Germany ransacked Europe. The American public is equally unaware of how the same obscene pillaging by the same people is going on unchecked by the Bush administration and all its corrupt second rate hacks ensconced in high positions. And that includes Bush's Supreme Court appointees. The Congress and Senate, I might add, except for a few, enabled this ongoing atrocity.

[ejay579]

Where did you get this 10,000 fatalities figure? There still putting names on the Vietnam Memorial for victims of that conflict. I find it hard to believe the fatalities are actually two and a half times of that actually reported

[amyjooni]

Do you think "W" is going to run out of room in his hat soon? I mean there are so many feathers in it, he either looks like an Indian chief or a chicken, I think the latter suits him better. chicken George has a ring to it that "Chief George" will never have.

Along with Abu Garib's, order to torture, black water, Halliurton, cheating on election..­...feather­, feather, feather. This latest suicide news of Chaney's "volunteers" has to be a turkey size feather in his hat. Turkey George, that's another good one.

So when will someone, anyone, is going to grab this guy by the ears, like a stupid school bully, and scream nose to nose, that what you're doing is bad? His father perhaps? Yo, big W, talk to your kid. His mom? His wife? Any one?

[bigogre]

While reviewing an article in an old Time Magazine (Jan.11, 1988) for a project I'm working on, I found this gem:

"(...) and we'll probably never know how many young soldiers committed suicide after witnessing unspeakable horrors in Afghanistan. The Soviet Union is not a free country."

Ah, the (very sad) irony...

[HamletsMill]

Read my good Russian friend Vladislav Tamarov's book "Afghanistan: Soviet Vietnam". He used to stay with me with his American girfrined when they traveled through. He always wanted to sleep with a loaded pistol under his pillow like je did in 26 months of combat in Afghanistan. I would not let him do that in my house. I always took the gun off of him.

[kellygrrrl]

RIP brave soldiers!

We the People feel tremendous remorse!

Condolences to all families who lost their loved ones!

[Tropiholic]

A friend's son is going through this right as we type. He did one tour in Afghanistan and another in Iraq. It's absolutely heartbreaking and I feel so helpless. This is disgraceful!

[MACS]

.
We need for bush to announce the number of all of the Iraq vets that have died wihin three years of returning to the us, including those that have died after leaving Iraq while in transit to America. We are being lied to again.
.
We also need to know the number of divorces involving troops within thje three years after returning.
.

[iPolitics]

How about spending some money on counseling for these kids coming back from service? There is also a lot of domestic violence connected to soldiers who return home. I know the Republicans and McCain don't want to spend money for their education with the GI Bill...is that true with mental health too?

[kellygrrrl]

yes, very true

[GhostintheMachine]

Carolinas senators pitch GI bill update GOP trio breaks from earlier bipartisan plan co-sponsored by 57 Momentum is gathering for an update to the Montgomery GI bill.

But three Carolinas senators are going against the tide with legislation they offered last week as an alternative to one that has 57 bipartisan co-sponsors.

Sens. Richard Burr, R-N.C., and Elizabeth Dole, R-N.C., and Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., are joined by Sen. John McCain of Arizona, the presumptive Republican nominee for president.

Their bill has a unique feature that would allow service members to transfer some of the educational credit they earn to other members of their family, a portion that would increase the longer they stayed in the military.

Burr said he's opposed to the bill sponsored by Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., because it bases the amount of the benefit on the most expensive public school in the state where a military member chooses to enroll.

He said the benefit would be about $5,200 to go to school in North Carolina, based on tuition at UNC Chapel Hill, but it would be more than $10,000 to go to school in Michigan, a figure determined by an art and design program.

"Two GIs, same commitment, getting two incredibly different packages," Burr said. "I believe one of our responsibilities is to treat everyone equitably, the GIs themselves, but also the state."

[iPolitics]

That's typical Republicans. Dumb on economics and unethical in politics. Tuition is different by state. GI's should get enough to go to school regardless of state. It's not unequal to give more to those in more expensive states..it­'s common sense.

[fuzzwald]

The amount of money in question is a drop in the bucket compared to what we're (over)paying for no-bid contracts. But try to match today's G.I. Bill with that received by the "greatest generation, " or try to see that the vets get decent followup care, and these scrooge tightwads fill their diapers. They really do hate the troops.