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| Iraq |
| Depriving combat veterans of disability & pension benefits |
| 2007-04-06 |
SPC Jon Townwas standing in the doorway of his battalion's [Ramadi] headquarters when a 107-millimeter rocket struck two feet above his head. The impact punched a piano-sized hole in the concrete facade, sparked a huge fireball and tossed the 25-year-old Army specialist to the floor, where he lay blacked out among the rubble. Eventually the rocket shrapnel was removed from Town's neck and his ears stopped leaking blood. But his hearing never really recovered, and in many ways, neither has his life. A soldier honored twelve times during his seven years in uniform, Town has spent the last three struggling with deafness, memory failure and depression....[The article refers to] multiple cases in which soldiers wounded in Iraq are suspiciously diagnosed as having a personality disorder, then prevented from collecting benefits. The conditions of their discharge have infuriated many in the military community, including the injured soldiers and their families, veterans' rights groups, even military officials required to process these dismissals. Jerry Pournelle had this to say: It is the kind of rumor the anti-war people would make up. It is also a very dangerous rumor, particularly if it is discovered that it was [true]. I still don't know, but this is the kind of story that caused great trouble in [ancient] Gaul and Africa among the [Roman] Legions. Threatening pensions and benefits of those with what amounts to a monopoly on the means of violence is never an intelligent thing to so. On Pournelle's blog, a Army Drill instructor said this: I learned that to 5-13 discharge a recruit who wouldn't obey orders, I had to prove a pre-existing mental condition. This meant that the pampered little brat didn't attend training, had to be taken to medical and mental health appointments, usually by a much-needed-elsewhere NCO, and had to be housed separately, lest his barracks-mates belittle him for his stupidity. Civilian medical and mental health records would have to be sent for and evaluated by military mental health folks, and THE PROCESS TOOK WEEKS. It was also discouraged by higher ups who were under pressure to produce troops for the war effort. I had to attend seminars led by General Officers that "explained" how we weren't actually lowering standards. One of the instigators of the article in The Nation sent this in anonymously (link) I am an Iraq War Veteran who came home from Iraq with many issues, one being mental related. So I too sought help from the Mental Health professions at the Army Hospital . On the first visit and within the first 15 minutes of the one on one with the Psyche I was told that I could be out of the Army within 2 weeks if I took a personality disorder discharge. I went home that evening and looked up AR 635-200 chapter 5-13 and read about it (being the army geek that I am). I went back the next day and told my doctor that I didn't feel that a personality disorder was what I had. My doctor immediately started the paperwork to begin the MEB process. 4 months later my 10 year military career came to an end with the PEB giving me a 30% disability rating which made me medically retired...I went to work as an out processor. Myself and another 20 year retired veteran are the only two that do this part of the out processing here at our installation. We were both there the day Jon Town came in. The 20 year vet (Paul) was so disgusted when he heard Town's story and after taking care of more and more Iraq vets with personality disorders said to me "we need to do something about this"...[The article's author] doesn't finish the story so let me. Jon Town went to his congressman who made this a big issue with my installation and the Pentagon. After many months of work, Jon Town's debt to the military was wiped away and he also received payment for Separation Pay due to the fact that he had served over 6 years and was involuntarily discharged. The Pentagon asked Town, in his words "To shut up about this", which obviously he didn't.The number of personality disorders here at this installation has declined severely since Josh Kors started writing his piece. I know that the article was slanted and I tried to help Mr. Kors stay unbiased since this is not a political issue. I didn't know that it was going to be in the Nation (my fault, should have asked), I'd rather it had been on the front page of USA Today or the cover of Time Magazine. Something that has a better reputation than the obviously far-left leaning The Nation. Our sole purpose of getting this story out was to show the American people that we as a nation must take care of our Veterans. We owe it to every American hero. |
| Posted by:Anguper Hupomosing9418 |
| #3 Zhang Fei - "On March 10, 1783, an anonymous letter, written by Major John Armstrong, was circulated among the officers at Newburg; the letter condemned Congress for failure to honor its promises to the army and incited the veterans to defy Congress if the accounts were not promptly and equitably settled. Major John Armstrong circulated a second anonymous letter two days later which implied that Washington supported his efforts. A revolt began to percolate which threatened destroy a very new and fragile democracy. On March 15, 1783, Washington personally addressed a regular meeting of the officers at Newburgh. He stood before them, a commander-in-chief whose strength of personality had held together a rag tag army for eight years; a commander who, when the revolution seemed lost, had led them to improbable victories at Trenton and Princeton, rallied them at Monmouth, shared their misery at Valley Forge, and finally had led them to victory at Yorktown, and then independence. Washington advised moderation, patience, and promised expeditious congressional action on the salary and pension demands of the soldiers. He asked them to abandon their talk of rebellion, but their distresses were severe, dissatisfaction ran deep, and Washington's first words had no effect. Finally, Washington fumbled for his glasses to read a crumpled note from a Congressman which he said would show Congress's good faith to pay its soldiers. He then spoke a few powerful words: "Gentlemen, you will permit me to put on my spectacles, for I have not only grown gray but almost blind in the service of my country." Further words choked in his throat and he turned and left. This humble statement by their commander-in-chief, who had done so much, brought shame to their souls and tears to their Eyes. The threat to democracy at Newburgh evaporated." I don't think we have another individual of Washington's stature available today. Don't poke the 800 lb gorilla. |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2007-04-06 23:26 |
| #2 Unfortunately, it has taken a while for the medical profession to understand the long term impact of even simple but severe concussion, let alone that of overt brain injury, on cognitive function and what turns out to be resultant emotional state. However, now that it has, there are several important research hospital complexes working flat out to discover the extent of the impacts and figure out the best methods to diagnose and treat -- or at least ameliorate -- these previously unrecognized injuries. While it is shameful that these veterans had not been properly treated until recently, in fairness troops are surviving injuries that not so long ago would have been an immediate death sentence. And, again, it is only as the result of the unrelenting advocacy of the family/friends/comrades of some of those injured since the 2003 invasion of Iraq that the neuropsychiatrists even started doing the kind of testing that revealed that the problems are real, and are clearly caused by trauma. The public advocacy of that reporter who was injured as a result of the vehicle he was in being hit by a roadside IED helped to drive the issue as well, but he's only been at it for less than a year (I saw him on one of the late night talk shows -- with Jon Stewart or Jay Leno, I suppose -- a few months ago, talking about the book he'd written about his experience including the impact on his own cognitive ability). |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2007-04-06 22:16 |
| #1 JP: It is the kind of rumor the anti-war people would make up. It is also a very dangerous rumor, particularly if it is discovered that it was [true]. I still don't know, but this is the kind of story that caused great trouble in [ancient] Gaul and Africa among the [Roman] Legions. Threatening pensions and benefits of those with what amounts to a monopoly on the means of violence is never an intelligent thing to so. This is silly. The US military is neither monolithic nor a praetorian guard. It is bound to protect the constitution, not its pensions and benefits. MacArthur, a Medal of Honor winner, broke up the Bonus Army right after WWI. This is after a war that killed 100,000 US personnel. |
| Posted by: Zhang Fei 2007-04-06 20:57 |