Army Suicides up 20 Percent in 2007; Attempts Up 500% Since 2002

Not that the Chimperator would know or care, living in a buble as he does, but the increased successful suicide rate and the five fold increase in unsuccessful suicide attempts in the U. S. military clearly indicates that something is very, very wrong. Saying that one supports the troops as the Chimperator likes to intone is vastly different from actually doing something to truly suppoert the troops in the his failed war.

I suspect that this trend is the result of (1) the numerous redeployments soldiers are experiencing - one local friend is on his 4th deployment to Iraq - and also (2) the nature of the war where it is often impossible to tell friend from foe and the carnage which often includes dead children is horrific. Having a cousin who never was the same after a tour in Vietnam as an Army Captain, I suspect many in our military are experiencing the same type of emotional/mental trauma as occurred in that disasterous war that the Chimperator in his delusional world has managed to replicate. Here are some CNN story highlights (:http://www.cnn.com/2008/HEALTH/01/31/army.suicides.ap/index.html):

WASHINGTON (AP) -- As many as 121 Army soldiers committed suicide in 2007, a jump of more than 20 percent over the year before, officials said Thursday. The rise came despite numerous efforts over the past year to improve the mental health of a force stressed by a longer-than-expected war in Iraq and the most deadly year yet in the now six-year-old conflict in Afghanistan. Internal briefing papers prepared by the Army's psychiatry consultant earlier this month show there were 89 confirmed suicides last year and 32 deaths that are suspected suicides and still under investigation.

More than a quarter of the combined total -- about 34 -- died while serving a tour of duty in Iraq, an increase from 27 in Iraq the previous year, according to the preliminary figures. The report also showed an increase in the number of attempted suicides and self-injuries -- some 2,100 in 2007 compared to less than 1,500 the previous year and less than 500 in 2002. The total of 121 suicides last year, if all are confirmed, would be more than double the 52 reported in 2001, before the September 11 attacks prompted the Bush administration to launch its counter-terror war.

Col. Elspeth Ritchie, the psychiatry consultant to the Army surgeon general, has said that officials found failed personal relationships, legal and financial problems and the stress of their jobs have been main factors in soldiers' suicides. Officials also have found that the number of days troops are deployed in Iraq, Afghanistan or nearby countries contributes to that stress. With the Army stretched thin by years of fighting the two wars, the Pentagon last year extended normal tours of duty to 15 months from 12 and has sent some troops back to the wars several times.

Some troop surveys in Iraq have shown that 20 percent of Army soldiers have signs and symptoms of post-traumatic stress, which can cause flashbacks of traumatic combat experiences and other severe reactions. About 35 percent of soldiers are seeking some kind of mental health treatment a year after returning home under a program that screens returning troops for physical and mental health problems, officials have said.