Attrition: Patterns of American Combat Casualties

[rangerrebew]

Attrition: Patterns of American Combat Casualties
 
Ezoic

March 14, 2024: The armed forces in the United States are paying more attention to the long term impact of combat on their soldiers. The primary tool for this study is STARRS (Study to Assess Risk and Resilience in Servicemembers). STARRS began with a random selection of 55,000 soldiers, who were interviewed to obtain additional data on their experiences in the military. That will be periodically updated over the lives of the study subjects. Over the decades the army will learn more and more about military and combat stress and be better able to develop policies to avoid it and create treatments for harmful aftereffects.

STARRS is one of a growing number of efforts to deal with an unprecedented number of troops who have spent a lot, more than any other war of time, in a combat zone. Over the last decade more and more of the combat NCOs and junior officers have been found to be suffering from debilitating PTSD or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Studies so far have found that at least 20 percent of troops sent into a combat zone suffer some form of mental distress. That's over 400,000 troops out of two million who have served in Iraq or Afghanistan. Adding in the many Vietnam veterans who have been treated for PTSD and studied, the army has already found some useful data. For example, troops are more prone to serious PTSD effects, including suicide, if there are genetic factors which are often, but not always, revealed by a family history of psychiatric problems, traumatic childhood events, and insufficient support and treatment after traumatic battlefield events. For centuries it's been accepted that some men are prone to break under the stress of combat. It was understood, even without any knowledge of genetics, that a soldier with a family history of mental instability would be less able to handle combat. Now the army can more precisely measure the risk and more accurately screen out those who will be most at risk.


Ezoic
Another big problem is that the United States has never had such a long period of combat with so many troops involved. Moreover, casualties, especially combat deaths, are much lower than in the past. As a result, more troops are surviving to spend a lot more time in combat. This is producing an unprecedented number of NCOs who are very stressed out. If the NCOs are having stress-related problems, that usually makes their subordinates uneasy as well.

https://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htatrit/articles/20240314.aspx

[sneakypete]

The biggest problem is most of this is pure BS,created by shrinks to justify their existence,and slackers looking for an excuse to get disability retirement.

Back when I first started going to a VA hospital to get treated for what became known as "Agent Orange",there would be large groups of veterans gathered around the mess hall at lunch time sharing and asking others about why they were there.

All I had to do was mention "Agent Orange",and I would have a crowd gathered around me,asking me "What did yours look like and what were the effects? Mine went away,and I forgot what they looked like so I can't tell the doc in order to get help and disability payments."

So I just quit telling anybody why I was there,or making up lies and saying stuff like "getting a dental appointment".

One example is a guy I saw there EVERY time I went. BIG healthy-looking black guy in a wheel chair. I figured he got wounded or injured some way and needed the chair,but was never rude enough to ask him about it until one day I mentioned that I would be driving off the VA property and to a Wendy's to eat  lunch. He asked me if he could ride there with me,and I told him there wasn't room in my car for him and his wheel chair.

So he just stood up and walked around me to prove he didn't need the chair. I told him to go bleep himself.

Don't get me wrong. There ARE patients at VA hospitals with VERY serious problems,but it SEEMED to ME that most were there trying to scam the government out of a disability pension.

If anyone is interested,I can post a VERY funny (to me,anyhow) story about a USMC VN Vet (wearing USM Utilities and boots) who I saw walk into the VA hospital in Denver to ask for a drug refill,and what happened.