Suicide among the US Military

Source: Associated Press

Here is a small post concerning an issue I've been following since a couple months now.

Not all war wounds are visible. During the last decade or so, the US military has seen an steady increase of suicide rates among active troops. In 2012 it reached a new highest of 349 confirmed suicides and, as a worrisome fact, the number of soldiers killed in combat that same year was 310. More soldiers killed themselves than those killed on duty. These numbers could probably be a lot higher because of other unconfirmed cases, many deaths by overdose, poisoning, etc, are considered "accidents" and therefore not counted.

The concern about this situation has translated into a higher number of psychologists and psychiatrists stationed in military hospitals and clinics. Measures like this only scratch the surface of the problem though, the roots are buried way deeper.

Grieving Soldier Source: Global Research

Victims of mindless wars that they have nothing to do with, veterans are too often faced with PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). Many prefer to end their lives rather than living with the painful memories created while an invader in countries they didn't know existed.

Some new polls revealed that 49% of Americans would approve the sending of ground troops to fight ISIL, I say we must consider what it means to go in an all out war. Let the Middle East fight this war, support them against our common enemy but do not send troops! The worst way to kill the bees is by smacking the beehive.



Note: The numbers are from the Department of Defense's annual reports.