War has real costs. Not only do lots of innocents die and children don’t get to see their parents for years … going to war has traumatic effects that can last with a person for the rest of their lives. It could be losing a limb or it could be severe PTSD … but more and more of our soldiers are killing themselves over the years. There are more suicides than combat deaths and it’s breaking up families, it’s ruining lives and it’s also costing every American as well. We need to support our troops; the best thing we can do is bring them home.
The Guardian has the story HERE:
In the first 155 days of 2012 there was 154 suicides among active troops, around 50% more than the number killed in action in Afghanistan, according to Pentagon statistics obtained by Associated Press. This is the highest number in 10 years.
The numbers reflect the burden of conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to experts. The military is also struggling with increased sexual assaults, alcohol abuse, domestic violence and other problems.
Suicides had levelled off in 2010 and 2011, but this year’s surge has caught officials by surprise.
The Veterans Affairs budget request for 2012 is $140 billion – (source). The VA says, “The budget request includes $64 billion in discretionary funds, mostly for medical care, and $76 billion for mandatory funds, mostly for disability compensation and pensions.” The budget for the VA was $53 billion in 2002 (source).
Source for military suicides chart HERE
