Coming Home from War is No 4th of July Picnic
I'll never forget my Independence Day at war. On July 4, 2003, I was in Baghdad, preparing to return home with my infantry platoon after six months fighting Saddam's Army and an insurgency that was just beginning to exact its toll on coalition forces. On that day, however, my expectations were thwarted, as my men and I were notified that our combat tour would be extended indefinitely. So instead of enjoying fireworks stateside, my unit watched AK tracer trails zip across the sky, walked patrols instead of parades, and ate MREs instead of hot dogs.
Many Americans will never see the inside of a Humvee on the Fourth of July. Instead, they will enjoy three-day weekends capped by barbecues, block parties, and Roman candles. I'm extremely proud to be an American, but real patriotism is more than just picnics. And anyone who has served in any war will tell you that.
Ironically, for veterans, the Fourth of July can be a difficult holiday to celebrate. With every uniform that marches by in parades, we remember our friends that did not make it home. The sounds of fireworks remind us of incoming mortar rounds. And as large crowds gather to celebrate America's birthday, we sometimes find ourselves scanning the masses for potential danger.
But the impact of war isn't limited to July 4th.
In case you haven't been tracking the figures, our military is in crisis-mode, trying to fend off a silent killer among its ranks. Almost 20 percent of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans are suffering from mental health injuries like Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), and less than half are receiving the help they need. Left untreated, the ramifications are clear: divorce, substance abuse, unemployment, and suicide.
Already, we've lost as many soldiers to suicide this year as to combat in Iraq and Afghanistan combined. This frightening trend has triggered military stand-downs, and finally gotten the attention of the media. The alarm has been sounded. But our troops are still waiting on real action from Washington. And families of servicemembers like Specialist Joshua Omvig from Gillette, Wyoming--who suffered in silence until combat stress led him to take his own life--are left wondering what could have been.
The military must take immediate steps to reduce unnecessary stress on the force, and our nation's lawmakers must also take an active role. For months, Iraq and Afghanistan veterans have been petitioning lawmakers on Capitol Hill to include a provision in the Pentagon's annual defense bill that would provide mandatory mental health screenings by licensed mental health professionals to all servicemembers. These screenings would go a long way towards reducing the stigma associated with mental health injuries, and identifying those that need care the most.
In just a few weeks, Congress will recess for the summer, and before they do, they must have ensured that every returning veteran gets the care they deserve.
Six years ago today, my men and I held the hand of a fledgling democracy as it struggled for its own independence. This week, I watched as U.S. troops pulled back from towns and cities in Iraq as Iraqis celebrated their own "National Sovereignty Day." For Americans, this means that more troops will be coming home, and for that, we should be thankful. But we must be ready to welcome them. Parades and applause are nice, but real support comes in the form of robust mental health care for our returning troops.
As we celebrate the birth of our great nation, it's time to appropriately honor those who have stood on the front lines of freedom and sacrificed in the name of liberty. Every second Congress wastes, more lives are on the line.
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Paul Rieckhoff is the Founder and Executive Director of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA), and the author of Chasing Ghosts.
Paul, I thank you for the work you do on behalf of those who have put their lives on the line. Agree or disagree on reasons (and I will never agree with having gone into Iraq) no one should come home to be ignored.
July 3, 2009 3:11 PM | Reply | Permalink
The major problem is that the US military used to be there to protect our country, and that always meant to fight any invaders or those who were obviously intent on invading. But, about 50 years ago, starting in Korea, that changed. From then on the military has mostly been used as a way of demonstrating that a President is manly.
Clinton was one of the few presidents who had a different way of proving his manliness, not a way that was very well accepted, but at least he didn't get any US soldiers killed as a result.
Bush, Johnson, Bush Sr., Reagan, etc. all seemed to need to use US soldiers lives to prove their manliness. As bad as that was, and it was very bad, they did worse by not providing the care needed by those soldiers either during their service or afterwards.
Unfortunately, Obama seems determined not to follow Clinton's example, but his other predecessors. I just hope he does change the policy of neglecting our soldiers, but only time will tell. I still have hope.
July 3, 2009 5:33 PM | Reply | Permalink
The military could better serve the troops by providing mental health care in the combat zone instead of waiting until they come home and self destruct.
My nephew did tours to Iraq and Afghanistan and came home well. I got to meet his platoon SGT and will be eternally grateful to career NCO's and Officers who used their experience to bring their troops back alive. It was a burden on you and your family to be extended. I hope you take some comfort in knowing your experience probably saved some US lives.
And thank you for not leaving fallen troops behind just because they are civilians now.
The chickenhawks say it is OK for soldiers to suffer wounds and die now because they volunteered to be there. The same cowards said it was OK for draftees to die in the olden days.
July 4, 2009 12:18 PM | Reply | Permalink
I may have missed something, but when and how many of America's troops in Iraq have "come home" to America? I read recently that American troop levels in Iraq (uniformed and mercenary) remain mostly at levels of past years and that any decrease in "coalition" troop strength in Iraq seems to have simply transferred to Afghanistan. So, when does this big "homecoming" happen?
This reminds me so much of a standing joke we used to have at Defense Language School prior to shipping out to Southeast Asia with the Nixon-Kissinger Fig Leaf Contingent (Vietnam 1970-1972).
Question: "If Nixon is withdrawing us troops from Vietnam, how come I've got orders to Vietnam next year?"
Answer: "You fool! How can Nixon withdraw you from Vietnam unless he sends you there first?"
We stopped getting our military forces killed and wounded for nothing in Southeast Asia when we packed up and left Southeast Asia. We will stop getting our military forces killed and wounded for nothing in Iraq and Afghanistan when we pack up and leave Iraq and Afghanistan. Not that our fuck-up-and-move-up, ticket-punching General Motors generals will ever admit this obvious truth for one moment.
Yes, we need to fund our veterans health care and rehabilitation to civilian life, but since we don't have any money anymore, we need to find the funds for this by ending our two needless quagmire occupations and cutting the bloated military/"intelligence" budgets by 50% at least. As nineteen unarmed hijackers from Saudi Arabia proved on 9/11/2001, our vaunted visigoths have about as much relevance to American national security as our fast-disappearing "coalition" partners do in IraqNamIstan. After seven years of nothing but foot-dragging and excuses and endless demands for more of everthing to keep accomplishing nothing, our military brass need forced early retiring in droves. Warfare Welfare and Makework Militarism have to end -- and soon. Then we can take care the veterans we have and stop producing so many more new ones that we can't afford.
July 4, 2009 9:25 PM | Reply | Permalink
Paul, great post, book and organization. Without gutsy truth tellers who've been there, we are all stumbling in the imperial fog.
July 4, 2009 10:14 PM | Reply | Permalink
Paul, thank you for your service to our country, in and out of uniform.
July 6, 2009 2:14 PM | Reply | Permalink
We have two holidays for veterans: Veterans Day and Memorial Day.
The 4th of July is about ideals and ideas. While I respect your service, I am bringing this up because I've heard too many times over the last few days this linkage between the armed forces and the 4th of July.
We do need to remind ourselves that the United States is about something besides war. Neither Jefferson or Madison served in the Revolutionary War. It is important as well to honor the service of civilians who also serve this country.
July 6, 2009 5:04 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well well ...
From one old sailor boy to a fellow soldier.
You can petition for mental health till the cows come home and that would be a positive for all you who have actively served if the powers that are were to move.
But the real starting point is to get the hell out of Iraq and Afghanistan immediately and totally.
But since that is not about to happen our country and our service personnel will continue to exist, yes here at home and overseas and many will die under this dark cloud into the foreseeable future.
My feelings about the 4th of July and the Bush crime syndicate since we made that sudden U-turn from Afghanistan and illegally invaded the sovereign nation of Iraq?
My initial Cafe post in 2005 pretty much sums it up.
Keep up the good fight Paul.
~OGD~
July 7, 2009 4:42 AM | Reply | Permalink
Great introspective article and I'm glad it proved what I was thinking a long time ago right. I have two neighbors who went to war and I was very proud when I saw them back into their apartments in San Francisco. We should not forget that thanks to these people we have a 4th July picnic and we can walk proudly everyday.
February 27, 2011 1:47 PM | Reply | Permalink
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April 27, 2011 9:47 AM | Reply | Permalink
Though I've never been in a war, I have always imagined that you can try to keep your hopes thinking at a beautiful house with a garden and a wine cellar. This way, maybe returning home is easier and the ex-solders could accommodate. Still, the reintegration in the society should be the psychologist's job.
May 2, 2011 6:59 AM | Reply | Permalink