The slaughter of five comrades by a "stressed out" U.S. soldier today in Baghdad is a true tragedy -- but should not come as a shock.
Some of us have warned about this kind of thing happening for years, with many in the media ignoring the effects of the war on our soldiers and veterans, or paying attention for just a short while and then moving along. Of course, there are exceptions, such as Salon's Mark Benjamin.
It's revealing that today's incident took place at a clinic for soldiers suffering from trauma or mental fatigue, and the killer, a sergeant, apparently was a patient himself.
Suicides both in Iraq and among vets back home have been unusually high almost from the beginning of the war and have surged in recent months. Also truly shocking is the number of veterans with brain trauma or mental problems. These numbers get reported when a study emerges, then are forgotten. At least President Obama has upped money for treatment.
Nearly one in five American soldiers deployed in Iraq suffer Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), according to the U.S. military's battlemind.army.mil website.
Too often the media treats our presence in Iraq as essentially benign now, ignoring the plight of those serving there, and the travails when they come home.
I have written about soldier suicides for almost six years now. I always have plenty to write about, unfortunately. And now, mass murder.
Paul Rieckhoff, head of the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America said this afternoon: "Unlike during the Vietnam War, today's military is a professional, all-volunteer force. There have been only five cases of intentional fratricide by U.S. service members in Iraq. But these incidents, however rare, draw public attention to an important issue: the enormous stress on our armed forces. Many troops are under great psychological strain and are not receiving the treatment they need. Over 600,000 troops have served more than one combat tour since 9/11. Military suicide rates have hit record highs every year since 2003. Much more must be done to address troops' psychological injuries before they reach a crisis point."
And remember: We still have as many soldiers in Iraq as we did before the surge -- and are sending thousands more to Afghanistan.
Greg Mitchell's book "So Wrong for So Long" included several chapters on soldier suicides. His latest book is "Why Obama Won."
Follow Greg Mitchell on Twitter: www.twitter.com/GregMitch
I was in the Navy and we had a murder on our ship. It was a senseless act. I don't blame the Navy for it.
I blame the guy that did it. He was full of hate. The Navy didn't teach him that, he brought it from somewhere else.
It's exponentially more critical, yet strangely similar to the healthcare quagmire we have in this country. When a soldier needs help, they need it STAT. An officious privateer jus' won't do.
A Satanic force is pushes us onward. Could it be (partly) within ourselves? Some of the soldiers seem to know that. They see their friend's face as a bit of goo and they "know what to do" but sometimes not who to do it to.
Now there are soldiers near American suburbs targeting to 7000 mile range, "avoiding" PTSD. Like a new garden weed killer that proves carcinogenic, the Predator Drone system could be hit fleeing suspects or political rivals, here or abroad. It's only a matter of time until Big Brother is holding the sword of Damocles, as 60 Minutes demonstrated when it showed its own camera crew in the monitor of the guys who play the Predator game. A guy could snap.
Unfortunately, I am merely considered an unrealistic voice, shouting in the wind. Just like John Lennon, I guess I am a dreamer. I think I am in good company.
Please, President Obama, bring home our troops NOW! And spend the money to care for them when they get home. I would love my tax dollars to go for that...
volunteer implies doing something and not asking for anything in return...
Way too many 'volunteers' are professionals in fields other than fighting ill conceived wars. Many volunteered to National Guard units to serve, at home, for two weeks training annually plus one weekend per month. -These people did not volunteer for endless deployments into combat zones.
Those that volunteer for 'Active' duty, in the service, do so knowing that they will have the best of training and will be going wherever asked for the next several years.
The military, for some, is a great career but many National Guard troops did not 'volunteer' for the 'Draft'. Like it, or not, the draft is alive and well. Unlike the draft of the 'Nam days, the Guard is an almost certain way of finding yourself in combat.
And those are just the symptoms we KNEW beforehand. This is WHY the military opposed Bush's increased deployment lengths and pacing. It wasn't just about destroying soldiers' lives at home and with family, but ALSO about ruining their effectiveness as a fighting force. Why is it that nobody listened before it hit the fan.
these killings are on the bush-cheney crime syndicate's hands.
Thought that was a shame.
After doing your time in an infantry unit, it was good to know that you could get retrained to become a nurse or dental assistant or something and lead a halfway normal life for a few years while still serving your country. Think it's important for soldiers to have those choices after a combat tour or two (or three, or four!). It would very much help someone traumatized by combat to reintegrate back into the real world...It would give them a chance to put down the weapon, get a useable skill and allow the military some time to keep an eye on the soldier for awhile instead of just dumping him back in society to find his own way thru...
We must deconstruct the sequence of events that lead to this tragic incident and find out what went right and what went wrong. The military teaches us to dis-identify with the brains normal response to war and pursue the military objective, sometimes for the greater good or national policy but most service members find themselves simply fighting to survive and protect the men and women to the right and left on the battlefield. But is it that simple? Soldiers can be easily trained to dis-identify with what their mind is telling them and press on with the collective task at hand but being trained to set aside who we are and what we believe or feel to accomplish a military objective does not mean that the mind wont revisit these issues before , during or after the battle is over.. Without resources and community partnerships the veteran and their families are left unattended and unsupported. This is a recipe for disaster and we can do better.
The longer we stay, the longer the wars will continue. Did we not learn from Alexander the Great, the Romans, the British, and the Soviet invasions? They don't want us there, just as we wouldn't want them here. And you know this, President Obama.
Let's coerce the governments of those two countries to take a semblance of responsibility for their people and get out of there. As long as we stay, their corruption will continue to feed on our billions.
Yes, we broke it; but we can't fix it by staying. Just leave and hope the countries in their neighborhood will step up their efforts to secure their own safety and welfare.