A Veteran's Death, The Nation's Shame

The New York Times:

HERE’S a window into a tragedy within the American military: For every soldier killed on the battlefield this year, about 25 veterans are dying by their own hands.

Read the whole story at The New York Times

Comments

[beaniecapguy]

10:17 AM on 04/18/2012

As much as I loathe the concept of war I now have deep gratitude and compassion for our men and women who go fight those wars. Their reintroduction to civilian life is often brutal, perhaps in some ways as brutal as the wars they fought; just in very different ways. Shortly before they're discharged from active duty service they're given a brief seminar vis-a-vis the Transition Assistance Program (TAP) that covers some of the basics as to what benefits are available to them along with things like how to apply for a job and what jobs in particular are hiring vets. But the bigger challenges that plague so many of them are unaddressed in the TAP seminar and from one day to the next they're suddenly in a world that many are completely unprepared for and have little if any skills to cope with.

A guy who goes straight from high school and his parents home into the military for four years and then straight out into the real world can have so many strikes against him that thriving can be difficult. And for some almost impossible. In our early 20s we're already limited in our ability to deal with the realities of life. Add to that the horrors of war and we have the perfect storm for failure. The military knows when it has troubled men and women on its hands and those service members need to be taken better care of before being discharged.

[Ishmael1]

08:53 PM on 04/17/2012

As long as vets emd their lives at home theyill be out of sight and ignored. On the other hand, if 1/4 of vets chose to commit the kanji form of seppuku on the steps of the Pentagon or the Capitol Mall outside Congress or in Lafayette Park across front of the White House, we might see changes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uS0VhvoGWVw

[Baghooli]

07:20 PM on 04/16/2012

About time someone shining the spotlight on true casualty of wars, people who are actually fighting wars instead of corrupt politicians who are lining up their 'afterlife' financial reward from Corporations who are benefiting from these perpetuated wars and 'option on future' wars!

[rojocabrito]

07:18 PM on 04/16/2012

Stop signing up, perhaps?

[ruthtruth]

12:17 PM on 04/16/2012

What is Ryan's plan for these brave soldiers? Cuts? What is Mitt's plan for these brave soldiers? He's not telling. What is the President doing about this. Fighting like he!! along with the First Lady to get these brave human beings and their families whatever they need to stop this from happening over and over again. We must help the ones that have put their butts on the line so we don't have to. Donate, talk to a vet, help find them a job, see what you can do for our soldiers. We all can do something.

[stargazer13]

11:25 AM on 04/16/2012

I worry for my uncle who is on V.A. Meds

[beaniecapguy]

10:26 AM on 04/18/2012

And with good reason. As caring as the VA doctors are and as much as they try to oversee and help the Vets they prescribe meds for they're often overburdened and can only do so much within the limitations imposed on them. And our Vets and their families pay a big price for it.

[WILLIEMOJORISIN]

12:26 PM on 04/18/2012

How long have to been a petient of the V.A. ? if the answer is never,then hush.

[WILLIEMOJORISIN]

12:25 PM on 04/18/2012

The V.A. has been very good to me all these years.

[escholar]

11:22 AM on 04/16/2012

Empire or Republic? -
The high rate of veteran suicides is alarming and deserves very serious and focused attention. How can more troops kill themselves than are killed by the enemy? And why aren't the troop suicide deaths reported regularly, like the combat deaths?
Can this tragic trend be reduced or stopped completely as long as we choose to be a global empire and not a republic? And can this sad state of affairs be addressed posively, while we seek to control all major resources and territories on planet earth?

- http://globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=28254

[Joeltron]

11:12 AM on 04/16/2012

Some guy a few weeks ago was ranting against Kurt Cobain in a memorial thread and told me that he had no respect for Cobain because he was a drug addict who committed suicide, and said that he reserves his respect for fallen soldiers, cops, and firemen. I then asked him if he respected soldiers who became drug addicts and then committed suicide due to the terrible psychological toll the war played on them, and he never responded to me.

It is so EASY to say you 'Support the Troops' and claim patriotism, but when will these people stop to look past the superficial nature of their bumper stickers and realize the devastating effects these corporate wars are having on our troops? Every two and a half days, two soldiers commit suicide. When will these 'Troop Supporters' start supporting them?

[Joeltron]

11:59 AM on 04/16/2012

Actually I got the number wrong -- it is every TWO days, THREE soldiers kill themselves, which is roughly 9 soldiers every week.

[ruthtruth]

12:20 PM on 04/16/2012

That is a very good question. We all need to do as much as possible. I have been showing my gratitude for almost 10 years now and will continue to do so. F&F

[gernger]

11:08 AM on 04/16/2012

After the Vietnam war vet centers were established. They were places vets could and be with and relate to other vets.They received help in many ways. Homeless vets wemt there. It was separate from the VA. and was catching on. Vets felt comfortable there. Reagan came to office, and said they were a waste of money because we have the VA. The vet centers were defunded, and no longer exsists..

[pepper1311]

11:33 AM on 04/16/2012

There are still Vet centers, but the decision is up to the individual VAMC's chief. True they were cut, but they were funded, now they come out of individual hospitals budgets. No incentive for vet centers. I go to a medical VAMC that has a Vets center, but one 30 miles away is manly psych and has none!

[minapod]

11:04 AM on 04/16/2012

My brother was a Viet Nam vet and took his life two years ago, at the age of 62. He never got over the trauma of being deployed to 'Nam at 18.

[pepper1311]

11:33 AM on 04/16/2012

It never goes away, why would it.

[minapod]

02:59 PM on 04/16/2012

You're right, it never goes away. What I was implying was that he was never able to learn to live with the horrendous trauma of serving in 'Nam, although he tried through the years. He wouldn't accept any type of help, nor seek any help. For him the subject was to be avoided at all costs, which turned out to be at great cost.

[weneedaLEADER]

02:10 PM on 04/16/2012

So sorry for your loss.....we MUST do more.

[vividrick]

10:55 AM on 04/16/2012

"An American soldier dies every day and a half, on average, in Iraq or Afghanistan. Veterans kill themselves at a rate of one every 80 minutes. More than 6,500 veteran suicides are logged every year — more than the total number of soldiers killed in Afghanistan and Iraq combined since those wars began."

...just those opening words can leave you speechless! As a PTSD sufferer myself, I'm torn between feeling shocked, & yet not surprised by these statistics. The link between the theatre of war & deteriation of mental health, as well as lack of understanding/treatment has been neglected long enough. Put's the 'pride' aspect under serious contradiction.

[The Yellow Rag]

10:50 AM on 04/16/2012

And strangely, none of the villains that lie to send these young people to needless war without end have taken their own lives....

[ruthtruth]

12:22 PM on 04/16/2012

One of them even got a new heart !

[sumogirl]

02:25 PM on 04/16/2012

Yes, the tin man!

[mass maritimer]

10:19 AM on 04/16/2012

My brother, under the care of the VA, took his own life just thanksgiving.

I'm a vet too and I arrogantly thought I could help my brother.

[jondekonkeroo]

10:51 AM on 04/16/2012

Maybe you did. at least as much as you could. please accept the condolences of a stranger. As a nation we have a problem here that we need to address. This can't be done with one party preaching every man for himself and never veering from this message. There are too many things that demand unity, and that party used to know that.

[tinarm]

11:13 AM on 04/16/2012

I am so sorry to hear that, as a child of a Vietnam vet I know how real all of this is. Until someone lives it or is around it they can't understand it.

[jondekonkeroo]

10:04 AM on 04/16/2012

Indifference to combat veterans is another manifestation of Social Darwinism. It's not survival of the fittest at all. It's selling your blood to support your drug habit.

[Roommate]

10:03 AM on 04/16/2012

Bring all troops home and then there would be no deaths or injuries.

[tinarm]

11:14 AM on 04/16/2012

There will still be deaths and or injuries, just because you don't see them on the outside doesn't mean the don't exist. I believe the damage has already been done.

[Roommate]

03:10 PM on 04/16/2012

Before the iraq war there were zero us soldiers killed in iraq.