News Analysis: July 7, 2009
The deadliest day for US troops in Afghanistan in nearly a year. So make no mistake: even as our troops are preparing to drawdown from Iraq, they’re still deploying over and over to deadly war zones and suffering the shattering pressures that come with too little rest, too little psychological care and too little time with their families. Even the most famous war heroes pay heavily the mental price after returning from war — no one is immune; all of our troops deserve the help they need to be whole again.
The ranks of our troops suffering, in real psychological pain, are swelling fast. The number of our troops self-medicating to escape reality and their suffering is soaring. They need our help, now. Patchwork efforts do not help all of those in need.
Our military families are suffering right along with the troops who continue deploying, after more than six years, to two war zones. They need help, and support and monitoring and care, just like our troops.
And when they get home from war, too many of our troops are finding themselves homeless. Increasingly, these homeless include female veterans — and many of them have children, too.
Despite all the need, the dire situation facing so many of our military members and families, we are still failing them. The VA is still inadequate to the task at hand, observers say. Our veterans from Vietnam, a generation removed, are still struggling with their psychological wounds. If we’re going to lose another generation to post-combat trauma and pain, give up on another generation of valiant troops who served us all regardless of the politics back home, we have failed miserably in our duty to our troops and to our country.
Is the water at Camp Lejeune dangerous?
And now he is gone: Robert McNamara. “The fact that he finally stepped up with an informed voice, with a powerful voice based on the experiences of his life about war and, particularly, about nuclear weapons, went a long way to make his life worth having been lived,” said Bobby Muller.