Think first - don't guess: How many veterans take their own lives each year according to VA estimates?.?

Question

7th Paragraph (link below): (...) The VA estimates that every year 6,500 veterans take their own lives. The mental health director for the VA, Ira Katz, said in an e-mail last December that of the 18 veterans who commit suicide each day, four to five of them are under VA care, and 12,000 veterans under VA care are attempting suicide each year. (...)

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Source: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080728/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/veteran_suicide

Is this characteristic of a healthy society? Is this but one "cost" of empire??

Answer 1

No, this is typical for veterans of any war. Once I thought war was a glorious and heroic adventure, I was ten years old at the time. Wars put the participants under severe psychological, emotional, physical, chemical, and biological stress for months at a time. The human organism was designed for wars that last hours, not months or years. So in any war a significant percentage of the veterans are going to suffer from drug addiction, alcoholism, suicide, etc. The veterans of WW2 suffered the same. In other words war has a very high price win or lose, which is why they should be avoided and loathed, not sought out and glorified.

Answer 2

Less than the suicide rate for non veterans. What does that tell you?

Answer 3

I would say those are the cases reported.I live in military area and my hubby works at the base I can tell you the depression of these men and women returning home and trying to adjust back into their normal daily routines is tough!!

The kids and wife have gotten a routine and lived without dad /mom and all of sudden dad or moms home giving new rules etc..its rough.

We had one guy here in 1998 from the gulf war...shot his gf and her kids ...it was sad.None lived and he sits on flas death row.

http://prisonpotpourri.com/HUTCHINSON/No...

Answer 4

The VA estimates that every year 6,500 veterans take their own lives. The mental health director for the VA, Ira Katz, said in an e-mail last December that of the 18 veterans who commit suicide each day, four to five of them are under VA care, and 12,000 veterans under VA care are attempting suicide each year.