Twenty-Four Suicides in One Month Among U.S. Soldiers

This was in January.  That is more than died in combat in both Afghanistan and Iraq for that same month. Some are surmising that the long deployments may account for some of the tragic deaths. I would surmise that, especially with Iraq, it’s the unjust war itself.  How do stay motivated in a war without a cause, a war that has no justifiable near or long term objectives, a war with an enemy that has no standing army to fight against, a war wherein sick terrorists blow away politicians, innocent civilians, women and children, and themselves, thinking that it’s the will of Allah?

Frustration, with his own military, with Iraqi police infighting, and with the abuses committed by American civilian contractors in Iraq, were the reasons cited for the apparent suicide of the first officer to die in Iraq, Col. Ted Westhusing, a military ethics scholar.  In November, 2005, NPR reported that “Westhusing’s suicide note lashed out at officers and expressed despair over allegations of corruption and human-rights abuses against the contractors he oversaw.” There are questions, however, about this apparent suicide and the note: Westhusing was a man of steel, friends testified, as brave as they come; graduated 3rd in his class at West Point; earned three PhDs, one in philosopy, one in Russian, and one in military strategy.  That is an incredible accomplishment.  Furthermore, he was devout practicing Catholic with no history of any mental instability.  Finally, he had only five weeks left in his deployment.  He was soon to be on his way home, where a wife a three children were waiting for him.  On the other hand Westhusing was furious with the army that he had once loved serving in, that anger reached right up to the general that headed our forces in Iraq; and he wanted out.  “Ted Didn’t kill himself,” his niece Lauren protested, “He wouldn’t volunteer to go over there for six months and then five weeks short of coming home throw his life away. He wasn’t depressed, someone had to be threatening him. I know that much is true.”

Interesting, too, is that Colonel Ted Westhusing was an expert authority on post traumatic stress disorder.

Then, there was the tragic case of Capt. Roselle M. Hoffmaster, a 32 year-old army surgeon, who took her own life in Iraq with a bullet to the head.  Such constant exposure to the horrors of mutilated dead bodies and writhing victims in emergency rooms day after day was enough to break the verve even of an experienced surgeon.

Finally, there’s mefloquine, the anti-malarial drug our troops are required to take.  Consider the side effects of this drug developed by the military, as given by MedicineNet.com:

SIDE EFFECTS: This medication may cause stomach upset, stomach pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, fever, hair loss, ringing in the ears, dizziness, drowsiness, headache, insomnia, strange dreams, or lightheadedness. These effects should subside as your body adjusts to the medication. If these symptoms persist or become severe, contact your doctor or pharmacist promptly. Tell your doctor immediately if any of these unlikely but serious side effects occur: fast, slow, or irregular heartbeat, seizures, muscle pain, loss of coordination, numbness and tingling of hands or feet, vision changes. If any of the following highly unlikely, but serious side effects occur; call your doctor immediately; you may need to stop using mefloquine and start another medication for malaria prevention: unexplained anxiety, mood changes, depression (sometimes severe, including rare thoughts of suicide), hallucinations, restlessness, confusion. A serious allergic reaction to this drug is unlikely, but seek immediate medical attention if it occurs. Symptoms of a serious allergic reaction include: rash, itching, swelling, severe dizziness, trouble breathing. If you notice other effects not listed above, contact your doctor or pharmacist.

I have also read that there have been 125 murders committed in the U.S. by soldiers, one of them a female, who served on these two fronts.  Clearly, our soldiers are experiencing something very demoralizing over there.  How many vets from these two wars alone have ended up with in their lives in a shambles?  And what about the latent effects of all these risky injections drugs that the enlisted must take?  Effects that haven’t surfaced yet with life-threatening symptoms?

Major thanks go to Bill White, president of the Intrepid Warship museum, which is docked on the Hudson River, for making the cause of servicemen and women enduring severe depression and PTSD his own.  He is currently running a fund raising campaign to help the most recent veterans deal with depression and PTSD.