MILITARY - Something Long Needed

"Condolence Letter Policy Shift Opens Conversation on Military Suicides" PBS Newshour Transcript 7/7/2011 (includes video)

Excerpt

JEFFREY BROWN (Newshour): Now, President Obama takes a step to better acknowledge suicides in the U.S. military.

Under the decision, the president would send his condolences to families of soldiers who commit suicide in combat zones. It follows years of focus on an increasing problem. Last year, for instance, there were 468 suicides throughout the armed forces, more than died in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan -- 301 were in the regular Army, Reserves, and National Guard, up more than 20 percent from the year before.

There were 54 Air Force suicides, the most since 1994. Suicides in the U.S. Marine Corps fell nearly 30 percent. The Navy saw a slight decline as well.

For years, service chiefs and the secretaries of the Army, Navy and Air Force did send condolence letters to the families, but, in most cases, the commander in chief didn't.

But in his statement yesterday, President Obama said it's time to change that policy, at least for those in combat zones. He said: "These Americans served our nation bravely. They didn't die because they were weak. And the fact that they didn't get the help they needed must change."

Military officials have long downplayed a direct correlation between war experiences and suicide.

COL. ELSPETH RITCHIE, U.S. Army: When you look at our suicides, about a third of them happen before somebody has deployed with no history of deployment, about a third happen during a deployment, and about a third in the year after they return home.

JEFFREY BROWN: But soldiers and Marines say that what they experience on the battlefield can have profound effects, both while they are there and after they return home.

SGT. JOHN EUBANKS, U.S. Marine Corps: I was big on the alcohol, ruined some relationships. Work suffered. And it took a while before I figured out that this was not good. And it took some intervention from some good friends of mine to tell me, hey, you have got to -- you have got to get help and get going.

JEFFREY BROWN: Is it hard for Marines to admit that they have this problem, because it feels like weakness?

SGT. JOHN EUBANKS: A little bit. A lot of it is you just don't realize it.

JEFFREY BROWN: The Army vice chief of staff, Gen. Peter Chiarelli, responding to the president's action, acknowledged this week that wars do inflict hidden damage.

He said in a blog post, "The persistent high-operational tempo, the terrible things some have seen or experienced in combat have undoubtedly taken a toll on them. Many are struggling with the invisible wounds, including traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress, depression and anxiety."

The new policy went into effect two days ago and is not retroactive.

It's about time.