Coming home: US soldiers struggle in civilian life

Sad but unfortunately typical story.

This was not isolated to just Vietnam, it happened in many conflicts prior to that as well. So it isn't surprising that it's happening again.

I hate to be scathing, but I feel I have to put forth the ugly truth on this issue. I think the fact of the matter is most Americans don't support the troops, they just say they do to shield themselves from attack. Most of them will just keep on living and ignore or remain inactive as these escalate around them. Not that all of them are able to do much But compared to healthcare or global warming or the economy, Americans just do not care about this in my opinion.

Most of them probably won't even admit it, even if you laid the evidence right in front of their face.

And by extension, a people that are selfish and uncaring.

While the government does not always represent the people's interest, they are Americans. Americans of all political affiliations are quick to blame the government for injustice in their society, but they are never willing to admit that it is their own wasteful lifestyles or opinions that silently help these things along.

Would you house one of these homeless veterans if you could? Would you feed them and take care of them until they were able to stand on their own feet? Would you be willing to listen to them and give them money, at your own inconvenience, on a frequent basis if you thought it would help?

Maybe you would, but many would not. Ever. Why? Because they don't really care. Americans are disenfranchised from each other for the large part. Sure we talk about things like national healthcare, but we won't talk to the sick in our free time or help homeless people on the street. Most Americans would drive by a wounded person lying on the side of the road.

I'm not trying to be self-righteous, I'm not saying I'm much different. I just don't like this illusion that we are a caring people, when everyone knows that in general we don't care very much.

People are quick to cite examples of people that do care or show that they give money, but those things are not as important as what you do everyday in real life. Most Americans don't have love for people in need. I'm not trying to implicate that Americans are bad people, in fact I believe it's ok not to care. It's just part of human nature. But I don't like it when people say they do care when they only care about the idea of caring.

I did. A friend of my father's who served who was out of a job... I helped him get a job where I worked and helped him look for a better place to live. I also visited local veterans hospitals when I was younger with my church and always donated supplies to them when I could over the years through schools and other organizations and know others who do the same because it is all they can do. So while I can see your point about people, my bitterness extends to politicians who only visit graves on Memorial Day to get photo ops and then vote to fund wars that bring these situations about. It is as if you are saying the government has no fault in this, and sorry, that is simply not true. It was this government that spurned those returning from Desert Storm who had depleted uranium poisioning and other maladies caused by what they dropped over there by telling them their symptoms were "all in their head." It has consistently been this government that has crapped on veterans after they served their country. And it still continues. And it still outrages me. Eisenhower didn't call it the "Military Industrial Complex" for nothing.

WAR SUCKS.

Work for Peace with Justice.

One part of the problem, beyond the hampered ability of the Veteran's Administration to respond to the shifting and recurrent needs of the soldiers, is our society's lack of a mechanism to integrate warriors back into the normal functioning of everyday life. Native American cultures often had ceremonies used to cleanse warriors from battle, to re-establish their attachment to the living and to life. While this may seem hokey to some, they created a very important psycholgical barrier between the rigors of war and normal life. I'm not suggesting that we adopt those rituals, but we can learn from them. Our soldiers are highly trained for war, why can't they put more training on the backside of military life and start listening to soldiers' complaints instead of dissmissing or attmepting to dishonor them for having human emotions?

spoonieday you are so right here..it is one thing to train and dicipline a soldier to combat command position..and another to De-train them out of ie...this is what never happens...across a world scale...soldiers come out of service to find their lives have been lost because of their unique patriotism to their country.More should be done to help them re-adjust to a more natural life..it does not take a lot to help them do this...only more support in the right direction.

Jan, I didn't mean to say the government shouldn't be held accountable for what they are doing. Merely that the vast majority of Americans that say they care really don't.

I agree with you about government irresponsibility on this issue, I just wanted to clear that up. =)

spoonieday: It isn't hokey at all. I think it makes great sense. A way to try to cleanse the horrors they have seen and bring them into a new mindset to help them cope with the huge psychological load they carry is only logical. It is so hard for so many to assimilate back into normal life after being at war mainly because of that. I definitely believe what you speak of would help a great many of them.

No worries Jan - what's the problem? Haliburton, Bechtel and Blackwater's got their billions. They are fine.

Those "good ol' boyz" with Blackwater are living large. I saw one the other day driving a new Porsche he paid for with cash.

Big oil's making record profits, Busheney is playing golf again.

Tell the kid to get over it and buy stock in Haliburton.

Note: heavy sarcasm

Saladin: No problem.

Leslie Marmon Silko's CEREMONY focuses on war veterans and the ceremonies to cleanse and bring them back into balance after taking lives.

I think that some of our troops comming home from the war have problems, but to say that this man is a typical vet is a real stretch.

I like to think of war like sex.

If you don't want to get pregnant (have a problem) then pulling out is a good solution (just like pulling out of war) but that isn't completely safe, whereas abstaining from it will guarantee no pregnancy. ;-P

Just thought this up so I thought I would say it.

The real shame is that many of these homless veterans are eligible for benefits from the government but they just don't know how to access them.

As for the soldiers returning today they are in for really hard times, there are many Americans who didn't even go to war who are having a hard time finding a job. These are hard times under Bush and not just for our soldiers.

What about our injured soldiers? 30,000+ injured soldiers from this war and we aren't supporting the costs of their rehab? I feel like the physical effects are, or will be, just as important as the psychological effects.

lol

TouchArt, that was exactly the book i was thinking of when i wrote my response. It is soo good i reccomend it to everyone.

You sacrifice your life to protect your country the country should return the favor and give you payment that is worthy of such an offer. The President gets paid a salary for the rest of his/her life even after he/she is no longer a President. An officer of any military establishment should be gifted the same monetary praise for their determination to keep the freedoms that this country was built upon safe and obtainable.

Supporting our troops is a little more complicated than just tying a yellow ribbon around a tree trunk and putting a made in china bumper sticker on an SUV.

Theres nothing like not learning from our mistakes. Maybe war is not the answer to solving the worlds problems. Remember the sign of insanity is to continue to do something over and over that does not work. In this case we need to define what work means.

i think most civilians living day by day ,penny by penny.just cant understand the stress most soldiers endure. a large number of these soldiers are our young adults with a pure idea,an idea for the future.when they finally see through their own eyes the confusion that is being created intentionally. what will our future become?lack of hope,lack of vision...ends life.

The one thing about it all that infuriates me is that there are young men and women 19, 20, etc. who join because they were told by recruiters that it will bring them a career and a living... so they join because they are poor and feel they have nowhere else to turn. Then they are sent to Iraq, a hellhole that shell shocks them... then should they survive, when they return home there is nothing here for them.The military takes good, decent, bright people and ruin their lives making it harder and harder for them to get what they need and deserve for serving this country. And it is so true.... lack of hope is like a death sentence in and of itself. War is a crime committed by this government of monumental proportions.