The real question here, is how culpable these Marines are for their actions; we don't have all the answers, but hopefully an investigation and a General Court will carefully look into that, instead of having a knee-jerk reaction to simply make an example of them. I'll tell you this; just from what I have seen anecdotally with some who have been on five or six combat deployments in the Sandbox, I am getting seriously concerned about the long-term psychological effects on these personnel.
That's some real shit right there Gadly, especially the last part. When this is all said and done and our men and women come home, we are going to be in unchartered territory dealing with Troops who have to come face to face with psychological terrors from 5 or 6 combat deployments, that is something we have never seen before, even in Vietnam.
But these were not conscripted as the Vietnam vets were. They joined of their own free will. Many have signed up for redeployment because that means they have a job and a regular income for their families. I know one right now who is pissed off he was called back from Afghanistan and is awaiting another deployment elsewhere because he will be working again. He enlisted. He was not drafted. Big difference.
Sunshine, like about two-thirds of us who served in combat in Vietnam, I wasn't drafted either. Neither PTSD nor enemy fire made any distinction between draftee and volunteer, officer and enlisted. Both are equal opportunity destroyers of soldiers, regardless of age, rank or status. Battle is terrifying, for the officer, the NCO, or the conscript private; the first two will try not to show it in order to lead, but they feel it. Everyone has a breaking point, and given enough exposure to combat, anyone, however brave and dedicated, may find his. I suspect virtually all of us who fought in 'Nam have some degree or form of PTSD, and always will. If we are lucky it hasn't destroyed us. I've known draftees who came out in comparatively good shape, and professional soldiers so broken by PTSD that they eventually took their own lives.
In spite of all the advances in diagnosis and treatment of PTSD, these kids today are subject to combat every bit as intense as anything we experienced. In Vietnam, most did only one tour; no one was supposed to serve more than two (thought a comparative few did so). These people are doing more and more frequent deployments, often at a higher operational tempo than we experienced. There's no reason to believe they won't have the same problems we did, if not worse. They will have access to better, earlier, and hopefully more effective treatment than we did; and many of them will need it. I am not willing to see even one of them left to deal with it on his or her own, because I know how that feels; the flashbacks, the nightmares, the depression that comes with feeling it will never end, all of it; and worst of all, the feeling that no one understands, or cares.
We are getting old now, but we were there for each other over there, we've been there for each other back here, and we are going to be there for these kids, supporting them, advocating for them, and looking out for them, as long as there are any of us left.
