Thursday, July 11, 2013

Magistrate says veterans "come back damaged"

Seriously I hope this is just a poor choice of words. "Damaged" is not what they are. They are changed. No one ever leaves combat the same way they were before no matter how many times they made the trip. Humans in general are never the same after they lived through terrible things.

The problems come when the military has told the country they were taking care of what combat does to far too many and they ended up with the wrong message.

These men and women are not damaged but they have been treated like a markdown special with a no return policy.

They need help but not the "better than nothing" help the DOD has settled for. They need to understand what PTSD is and why they have it but they don't need the same B.S. they have been getting from the DOD stuffing "resilience" training into their heads.

How can they ever be called "damaged" by anyone?
Veterans task force focuses on crime and suicide
Veteran affairs
Vets treated differently than others in court system because they are different, judge says.
The Salt Lake Tribune
By Peg Mcentee
Jul 10 2013

The state Veterans Reintegration Task Force on Wednesday discussed how to help military veterans involved in criminal proceedings and reduce suicide among their ranks.

Veterans who commit crimes can suffer untreated mental health problems and post traumatic stress disorder, self-medicate with drugs and alcohol and feel anxious and angry, said U.S. District Court Magistrate Paul Warner.

He presides over a federal veterans court that involves misdemeanor and some felony cases that normally are heard in state courts. Defendants can stay out of jail or get lesser sentences if they get treatment, usually at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Salt Lake City.

"Why treat vets any differently from others?" Warner asked. "They are different. In most instances, they were sent into harm’s way in an insane environment, often with multiple deployments, and they come back damaged. When they get help, everything changes."
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