Thousands of U.S. soldiers in Iraq — as many as 10 a day — are being discharged by the military for mental health reasons. But the Pentagon isn't blaming the war.
It says the soldiers had "pre-existing" conditions that disqualify them for treatment by the government. Many soldiers and Marines being discharged on this basis actually suffer from combat-related problems, experts say. But by classifying them as having a condition unrelated to the war, the Defense Department is able to quickly get rid of troops having trouble doing their work while also saving the expense of caring for them.
Bullshit. Every soldier I know had to take a psychological test BEFORE they were admitted to the military. If they passed that, they were in after the physical part. So for the Pentagon to tell us that this many people have "pre-existing" conditions, they are full of shit. This is nothing more then a way to save money.
But there is a highlight, and it's coming from Barack Obama. No, really. Stop laughing, I'm not kidding.
Working behind the scenes, Sens. Christopher "Kit" Bond, R-Mo., and Barack Obama, D-Ill., have written and inserted into the defense authorization bill a provision that would make it harder for the Pentagon to discharge thousands of troops. The Post-Dispatch has learned that the measure has been accepted into the Senate defense bill and will probably become part of the Senate-House bill to be voted on this week.
The legislation sets a higher bar for the Pentagon to use the personality-disorder discharge, and also mandates a review of the policies by the Government Accountability Office. Bond said it also would "force the Pentagon to stop using this discharge until we can fix the problem."
I'd be very curious to see what this provision actually says before I support or denounce it. However, even on paper, it's nice to see someone try to support the soldiers when they need it the most; after they are discharged and trying to return to a normal life.
Jon Soltz, an Iraq war combat veteran who founded the group VoteVets.org, said untreated psychological problems were contributing to the highest military suicide rate in a quarter-century and to growing homelessness among veterans, he said.
If such widespread mental problems really existed before people joined the military and saw combat, they would have been uncovered when the recruits were enlisting, Soltz said.
Here's where Jon and I are in complete agreement. They do these tests to make sure they aren't allowing psychopaths and maniacs into the military, and if they now say that these conditions are "pre-existing", they are full of shit.
I guess Jon is the go-to guy when it comes to military stories now.
Travis
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