More US soldiers are losing their lives to suicide than from enemy forces, the Pentagon reports.

by Fariborz-Zak Posted 2012/06/10 05:57:03

Related Topics: suicide, War, Operation, Office, American, 2012, Website, Life, Died, Shocking, Active, tell

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	I believe this	30 votes	91%
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RT.com:According to findings released on Thursday by the US Department of Defense, the suicide rate for active duty soldiers so far in 2012 is around one per day. In just the first 155 days of the year, 154 soldiers have committed suicide, a statistic only made more ghastly by comparing it to the number of American troops killed by insurgency this year — the website iCasualties.org reports that only 139 US soldiers died in battle this year.

"We are very concerned at this point that we are seeing a high number of suicides at a point in time where we were expecting to see a lower number of suicide,” Jackie Garrick, head of the Pentagon’s newly established Defense Suicide Prevention Office, tells the Associated Press.

In analyzing the report, the AP notes that the suicide rate among active-duty soldiers has plateaued in the preceding two years, creating confusion for researchers caught off guard by the alarming numbers released this week. Even with the Iraq War officially over and the Obama administration promising an expedited end to its military operations in Afghanistan, troops are taking their own lives in shocking numbers. Dr. Stephen N. Xenakis, a retired Army brigadier general and a practicing psychiatrist, explains to the AP that the latest figures aren’t all that surprising to him, though.

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\V/ 2012/06/10 07:57:18

I believe this

$\V/$

+6
Not everyone that plays video games using a real live drone to blow up small remote mountain villages in Yemen and Afghanistan gets to drive home in a hot sports car to his hot young wife and perhaps a bit of champagne, after all, all those explosions made for an exciting week.

Most of the rest of the troops have to be stationed no too far from their ungrateful victims.

I hope the guys manning the perimeter of the base don't take too many meds. Then a few terrorists could sneak in and light the place up.

The question then arises, is Khandahar really the best place from where to launch these multimillion dollar toys? Are they impossible to hack?

Curious minds want to know.

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Shirley 2012/06/20 18:34:43 (edited)

I believe this

+1
Even the strongest among us are not equipped to mentally absorb the daily stress of survival in a war zone -- having to cope with the fact that the fighting and killing has had to become a way of life. I can't even imagine how our soldiers -- or the civilians for that matter -- can handle it.

(edited for typo)

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elijahin24 2012/06/13 16:03:01

I believe this

+1
We're getting close to the 1-year anniversary of the day one of my soldiers killed himself. It's bad. And while we have more resources than we used to, it's not enough. We all have to look out for each-other. Look for the red flags. Sometimes they're hard to see. I've never experienced greater pain or regret than this.

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YouSirName 2012/06/11 23:16:02

I believe this

+1
While combat deaths are very sad, much of the true horror of war lies in the injury (both physical and mental) inflicted on the living who remain. Some of those find this pain intolerable and take what they see as the only way out.

Need also to consider all those who suffer and don't commit suicide, on all sides.

Could the U.S. have accomplished its objectives purely by financial means? There are 32 million Iraquis. The U.S. spent between 1 and 3 TRILLION on the war, depending on the source used. That works out to a minimum of $30,000 for every man, woman, and child in Iraq, the equivalent of spending $720,000 for every individual in the U.S.

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Pronatalist Pronatalist 2012/06/11 07:12:23

I believe this

+2
Yet another sign that The United Slaves of America is doomed.

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luvguins 2012/06/11 04:34:12

I believe this

+1
Have heard this from multiple sources, and it is sad. Multiple and long deployments, PTSD, and not feeling enough reason to be there I think are contributing factors to make these men take their lives.

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Daniel S 2012/06/11 04:07:10
Freedom 2012/06/11 01:52:48

I believe this

+1
I believe this and its a shame. Maybe we need to re-examine what we are doing over in these countries?

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James 2012/06/11 01:29:45

I believe this

+1
Well....looks like the neocon "never-ending-war" philosophy is working out JUST fine...

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Gloria 2012/06/11 00:41:18

I believe this

+1
I don't believe this. I know it. I volunteered at the National Veterans Art Museum. https://www.nvam.org/

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ajracestables1 2012/06/10 21:14:13

I believe this

That's to bad, our service men and women deserve better.

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BIG BAD JOHN R. 2012/06/10 19:20:57

I believe this

+2
To much stress, to long of war, poor economy at home, and seeing your buddy die. Read the report not just the headlines and see what it says.

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Pedro Doller ~POTL-PWCM~JLA 2012/06/10 16:26:33 (edited)

I believe this

+2
Over 110,000 have been prescribed Psychotropic Medications. When deployed to combat, they can receive a 180 day supply and that can be renewed for another 180 days. Along with these medications, stimulants are also provided for that extra edge. This is the modern military. Soldiers already diagnosed with PTSD are deployed again and again. What is happening now is alarming, it will be nothing when they return home and have been cut off from these brain chemical drugs. Suicides, alcoholism, illegal drug abuse, rage binges. The Military has opened a Pandora's box. A problem for many years to come.

http://www.foxnews.com/politi...

http://articles.latimes.com/2...

http://www.bordeninstitute.ar...

http://www.naturalnews.com/03...

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mich52 2012/06/10 13:55:24

I believe this

+3
Our soldiers aren't meant to be an occupying force and Bush was a fool for fighting two wars.. We should get out of Afgan. we got Bin Laden..

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Pronata... to mich52 2012/06/11 07:20:45

+2

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mich52 to Pronata... 2012/06/11 16:02:16

+1
Faux News? You need to get a fffing life idiot..

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Pronata... to mich52 2012/06/11 18:45:49

+1
Sounds like you missed the point. I don't have Fox News channel. I don't have satellite nor cable TV. The point was OSAMA'S BEEN DEAD. I didn't believe that story about "Osama buried at sea." What an obvious PR stunt for Obama, and after risking soldiers to get him, then we hide the evidence, before anybody can see?

Hardly anything can be believed from the mainstream misleadia. You always have to ask, what really happened, and what's the cover story angle? What are they really hiding or covering for? Somebody said, "The news is the movies, and the movies are the news." What they tell you in the movies, is probably more true than what they tell you in the news.

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Bob DiN 2012/06/10 12:57:36

I believe this

+3
I feel our entire country can't deal with adversity. We have become a soft nation. Tough work has been replaced bt bitching about every litlle thing.

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KarenInKenoshaWisconsin 2012/06/10 12:53:11

I believe this

+3
And that's just for active duty...

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Nameless 2012/06/10 12:35:37

I believe this

+4
Either way, it's sad, However, it's truly sad that we do not support our troops well enough to provide them with the mental health care they need...

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\V/ 2012/06/10 07:57:18

I believe this

$\V/$

+6
Not everyone that plays video games using a real live drone to blow up small remote mountain villages in Yemen and Afghanistan gets to drive home in a hot sports car to his hot young wife and perhaps a bit of champagne, after all, all those explosions made for an exciting week.

Most of the rest of the troops have to be stationed no too far from their ungrateful victims.

I hope the guys manning the perimeter of the base don't take too many meds. Then a few terrorists could sneak in and light the place up.

The question then arises, is Khandahar really the best place from where to launch these multimillion dollar toys? Are they impossible to hack?

Curious minds want to know.

reply
Pat 2012/06/10 07:38:20

I believe this

+5
I believe it because it happened to my family. My cousin who was also my godson killed himself in 2004 after returning from Iraq. He was a Major in the USMC and a pilot who flew the Cobra helicopters guarding convoys in Iraq. He loved his country, the Marines and his family. He left his wife and two young sons, his parents, three brothers and an extended family who loved him and were so proud of him and his service to our country.

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Duke----The Non Racist, Fun... 2012/06/10 06:40:34

I believe this

+4
But the suicides are far more than what has been told here

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oldlady to Duke---... 2012/06/10 11:02:15

+1
I agree and like after the Viet Nam war more will take their lives years after coming home.

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Devin Pederson 2012/06/10 06:01:09

I believe this

+4
It's believable. Being in a war zone is stressful even if you're not in combat at the exact moment.

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