Australia Defense Ill Prepared for PTSD Time Bomb

Defence 'ill-prepared' for PTSD time bomb
Sydney Morning Herald
February 24, 2013
Tim Barlass

Soldiers who have served in Afghanistan say the Defence Department is unprepared for the number of servicemen who will return with post-traumatic stress disorder.

Ray and Pam Palmer, the parents of commando Scott Palmer, who was killed in Afghanistan, are among those who believe the impact will be much higher than Defence's estimates of about one in 10 serving staff.

Private Palmer was among the first on the scene when his colleague Private Damien Thomlinson drove over an improvised explosive device, which was to claim both his legs.

Mrs Palmer, from the Northern Territory, said she noticed a big change in her son before he returned for his third tour of Afghanistan in 2010. He later died in a Black Hawk helicopter crash.

''He developed a twitch, a sense of nervousness and was reluctant to go out in case a car backfired,'' she said.

''The government is not ready for the number of people that are going to come back with PTSD. They think it is going to be a ripple but it is going to be an enormous wave.

''The government should realise they stuffed up with Vietnam; not helping the guys when they came back. Let's not make the same mistake twice,'' she said.
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Arrest made in death of 2nd LT. Alvin Bularoro

Camp Pendleton Marine arrested on murder warrant
The Associated Press
Feb. 23, 2013

FALLBROOK, Calif. -- A 23-year-old Marine corporal has been arrested on a murder warrant charging him with killing a man found dead in his car last month, authorities said.

Kevin Albert Richard Coset was taken into custody Friday night at Camp Pendleton, San Diego County Sheriff's Capt. Duncan Fraser said in a statement. Agents from the Naval Criminal Investigative Service assisted in the arrest.

On Jan. 3, the body of 24-year-old Alvin Bulaoro was discovered zipped into a sleeping bag inside his Toyota 4Runner at an Albertsons market in Fallbrook. He was last seen Dec. 21, when he went to visit friends. His family reported him missing Dec. 23.
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Senator Mitch McConnell thinks blog satire is real

GI Bill' Parody Draws Official Response
Feb 22, 2013
United Press International

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell's office confirms it queried the Pentagon about a satirical report that Guantanamo detainees will get GI Bill benefits.

The parody appeared in The Duffel Blog, founded in 2012 by a Marine veteran and frequently described as a military version of the satirical news website, The Onion.

It quoted a fictitious Defense Department spokesman as saying, "By allowing the detainees to use the Department of Veterans Affairs, we hope to completely crush their souls with bureaucracy" -- and included a made-up quote attributed to Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki, saying his department is prepared to process detainees' GI Bill benefits claims "in 12-15 years as per standard operating procedure."
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Soldier lost leg but returned to duty in Afghanistan

Amputee Soldier Returns to Battlefield
Military.com
Feb 22, 2013
Army.mil/News
by Sgt. Luke Rollins

KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, Afghanistan - It's clear from the way Staff Sgt. Brandon Vilt moves around the maintenance bay of Delta Troop, 3rd Squadron, 17th Cavalry Regiment, Task Force Lighthorse, that he has his mission in mind. An OH-58 "Kiowa" helicopter crew chief responsible for the maintenance of the troop's fleet, he and his soldiers keep the "moshshe"-Pashtu for mosquito because of its bite and illusiveness, and the nickname for the Kiowa-flying to bring the fight to the enemy.

"I just want to make sure my guys put out a good, quality product," said Vilt, a Cameron Park, Calif., native.

Not only is he responsible for the soldiers on the maintenance bay floor, but he's also a platoon sergeant. If he's not overseeing the maintenance of Kiowas, he's up in the office loft doing administrative work for his soldiers.

Vilt moves up the stairs to his office. The motivation in each upward step ignites a spark of inspiration among his coworkers, but he's too humble to show his discomfort if he had any. "Stairs are the worst," he says, collapsing into his office chair. A prosthetic leg hangs on the rear wall. Vilt rolls up his left pant leg to reveal the prosthesis helping him accomplish the mission at Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan.
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Military Chaplains need healing too

"Despite never seeing combat" was pointed out in this article as if it was an important factor. This Chaplain ended up with PTSD after being sent to Afghanistan. He was already haunted by the suicide of a soldier he was taking care of before he was sent there.

Post-Traumatic Stress: Looking For A Place To Rest
UPDATED News Canada
February 24, 2013


A Canadian Armed Forces chaplain who was sent to Afghanistan to give spiritual support to the troops came home with post-traumatic stress disorder himself, despite never seeing combat.

Maj. Michel Martin takes listeners to his dark corner of reality, describing a heart-wrenching descent into anguish, depression and anger in a CBC Radio documentary entitled Looking for a Place to Rest. It was produced by John Chipman for The Sunday Edition with Michael Enright.

Martin, who moved into the armed forces after acting as a civilian pastor, was on the front line dealing with the mental suffering of the troops.

The sudden suicide of a soldier under his care, before his deployment to Afghanistan, began his spiral of emotional stress.

“I had a burden on me, I felt guilty,” Martin says.
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Chaplains do not fight in combat but they fight what combat does to others. If you can't understand how Chaplains can need help to, then you don't understand PTSD.