The Brave, Living and Dead

[babylonsister]

http://www.consortiumnews.com/2009/031409b.html

The Brave, Living and Dead

By Michael Winship
March 14, 2009

Editor’s Note: Lost in the chatter of Washington political class – as it continues to defend George W. Bush’s wars with clever debating points – is the horrendous human cost of such endeavors, whether considering the deaths of hundreds of thousands or a single individual, plus the pain and suffering of survivors.

In this guest essay, writer Michael Winship reflects on the human calamity that is war both in large numbers and in one:


snip//

The Army's suicide rate is now exceeding the U.S. civilian rate, for the first time since the military began keeping records in 1980.

"Why do the numbers keep going up?" Army Secretary Peter Geren asked rhetorically at a press conference last month. "We cannot tell you."

Experts say PTSD is a big reason - the RAND Center for Military Health Policy Research estimates that 19 percent of all the troops who have served in Iraq or Afghanistan suffer from it, some 300,000 men and women.

Others point to the high rate of redeployment. According to a new report in the Boston Phoenix newspaper, "With the number of personnel that have served in the two theaters reaching nearly 1.8 million, critics estimate that one-third have served multiple deployments."

With that redeployment comes incredible stress and anxiety, not only on the battlefield but back home, where marriages and other relationships collapse from the strain.

This past fall, the Army announced a $50 million, five-year joint study of suicide with the National Institute of Mental Health. And this week, the service will be wrapping up a month-long training program to help soldiers recognize suicidal behaviors in their comrades.

But much more needs to be done. "We keep getting studies," Rep. John Murtha, chair of the House defense appropriations committee said at a March 3rd hearing. "That's the problem with the Defense Department - they study it to death."

What's more, according to an Army Medical Department's 2008 report, 33 percent of the troops in Afghanistan and 21.8 percent in Iraq say when it comes to mental health, their leaders discourage them from seeking help.

That has to stop. We must treat the living as respectfully as we do the de

[midnight]

1. The numbers keep going up because the reasons for killing

keep changing, and non of them are the truth. Bring them HOME!