Military suicide - LA times may have found the cause

[Oozlefinch]

The "benefits office" is called DEERS and is operated by the military. Even when you find civilians pushing papers, they're either veterans (there's actually a law requiring most of them to be veterans) or DoD contractors.

No, actually the majority of them are DoD personnel, not Contractors at all.

The DoD employs roughly 1 civilian (directly, not contracted) for every 2 people in uniform.

But thank you for your incorrect uninformed opinion. To bad I know what the truth of the matter is, and you do not.

 

[Jerry]

No, actually the majority of them are DoD personnel, not Contractors at all.

The DoD employs roughly 1 civilian (directly, not contracted) for every 2 people in uniform.

But thank you for your incorrect uninformed opinion. To bad I know what the truth of the matter is, and you do not.

I've been in the service for 4 years now. Go fly a kite.

Life insurense has nothing to do with military suicide.

 

[Aunt Spiker]

I think the suicide clause has been around since life insurance has been. Depending on state it is two or three years. Imagine if life insurance was not paid if a service member committed suicide.

The family would be in the poorhouse and unable to make it without said individual.

It wouldn't keep someone from committing suicide if they're just that disturbed. . .how often is the story 'he committed suicide and now we're on welfare and unable to survive' - but that never gets a headline.

. . . and maybe it should, to show that, yes, you're needed and important.

 

[Oozlefinch]

I've been in the service for 4 years now. Go fly a kite.

Life insurense has nothing to do with military suicide.

And I do not think it does either!

That is what the article was trying to say, not me. I was being sarcastic.

 

[ecofarm]

For perspective...

The US active duty suicide rate is 24 per 100,000 (352/1.5m), about the same as civilians in China, Japan or Russia and twice the rate for US civilians.

 

[Aunt Spiker]

I've been in the service for 4 years now. Go fly a kite.

Life insurense has nothing to do with military suicide.

Actually - I'm pretty certain that if my husband's insurance covered it, he would have killed himself last year.

Heart palpitations.
Chronic migraines that don't respond to meds.
Executive disorder caused by brain scarring from a tbi - he had to re-learn how to drive among other things.
Severe back pain.
Knee and foot pain.
Injured shoulder that never fully healed.
Torn ligaments in his elbow that weren't diagnosed for over a year.
He's been to the psych ward
Then after that, he was shipped all over the US for a year because he was too unstable to come home.

After all of this - I really don't know why he didn't, because it was no secret he thought about it all the time. In fact, he probably still does think of it all the time because nothing's changed except for prescription meds, most of which are ineffective and some of which have given him extra symptoms like the shakes.

If he didn't need to work to support the kids, he would have no purpose (in his view) - and if him dying would support them, he wouldn't even second guess his decision to do so, I'm quite sure of it.

Which makes me thankful it's not covered, and maybe he loves us just enough to keep him around, though seeing how much he suffers, physically, I don't say that and feel that without a bit of guilt.

He hasn't had a symptom free and pain free day in years.

 

[Thoreau72]

It's been over twenty five years since the the last time I have watched the movie M*A*S*H*.

I was in-country when the movie was first released and heard about if from a letter from home. It wasn't allowed to be seen on military installations because even though the movie took place during the Korean war it was considered to be a liberal Hollywood anti Vietnam war movie. But when I got back to the world I did see the movie at camp Pendleton at the outdoor movie theatre at Camp Las Pulgas when I was with the 5th MEB.

Just went to the IMDB website to refresh my mind by looking at the quotes. -> MASH (1970) - Quotes - IMDb

It was a good flick.

I saw it in country, in the 'movie theater' of the Third Surgical Hospital, which was also a MASH unit. Pretty cool, eh? That would have been 1970 or 71.

Also, I was in the unit (57th Medical Detachment HA) that was actually bringing the patients to the MASH in the movie. We were the first Helicopter Ambulance unit TO&E in the US Army, back when they were flying the TH-13 ships.

 

[Thoreau72]

Veteran's Today published a suicide letter from Daniel Somers, back on August 27. Very sad, but provides much insight into the mind of a soldier contemplating suicide.

http://tinyurl.com/ovcg8sy

 

[Jerry]

And I do not think it does either!

That is what the article was trying to say, not me. I was being sarcastic.

There is nothing in your OP to indicate sarcasm.

 

[Jerry]

Actually - I'm pretty certain that if my husband's insurance covered it, he would have killed himself last year.

Heart palpitations.
Chronic migraines that don't respond to meds.
Executive disorder caused by brain scarring from a tbi - he had to re-learn how to drive among other things.
Severe back pain.
Knee and foot pain.
Injured shoulder that never fully healed.
Torn ligaments in his elbow that weren't diagnosed for over a year.
He's been to the psych ward
Then after that, he was shipped all over the US for a year because he was too unstable to come home.

After all of this - I really don't know why he didn't, because it was no secret he thought about it all the time. In fact, he probably still does think of it all the time because nothing's changed except for prescription meds, most of which are ineffective and some of which have given him extra symptoms like the shakes.

If he didn't need to work to support the kids, he would have no purpose (in his view) - and if him dying would support them, he wouldn't even second guess his decision to do so, I'm quite sure of it.

Which makes me thankful it's not covered, and maybe he loves us just enough to keep him around, though seeing how much he suffers, physically, I don't say that and feel that without a bit of guilt.

He hasn't had a symptom free and pain free day in years.

Insurense is not a factor in military suicide, as sourced.

 

[Oozlefinch]

Veteran's Today published a suicide letter from Daniel Somers, back on August 27. Very sad, but provides much insight into the mind of a soldier contemplating suicide.

http://tinyurl.com/ovcg8sy

This is months old already. And Ron Paul has been dragging this around for months now, nothing new here.

 

[Oozlefinch]

There is nothing in your OP to indicate sarcasm.

That may be, but I am sure those that are used to my posts caught it, I apologize if it was not more obvious. But if you had scrolled down to my next post, it should have become obvious.

But now you advocate really screwing the surviving family members by cancelling the suicide benefits? Egads man, I thought you were all about respecting those "surviving family members?" Maybe you are one of those "compassionate conservatives", eh?

I advocate screwing surviving family members? I guess your sarcasm detector is off, or it was not as obvious as I thought that what I said was in complete sarcasm. However, because of this article it would not surprise me if some did actually advocate that, it almost seemed to be what the article implied.

I often wish there was some kind of font that was just for the use of sarcasm. I am actually one of the more respectful users of sarcasm in the forum, but for some reason people still miss it.

 

[Jerry]

That may be, but I am sure those that are used to my posts caught it, I apologize if it was not more obvious. But if you had scrolled down to my next post, it should have become obvious.





I often wish there was some kind of font that was just for the use of sarcasm. I am actually one of the more respectful users of sarcasm in the forum, but for some reason people still miss it.

There is a sarcasm font, it italicises every other letter, but this forum doesn't have it.

Maybe just not trying to be sarcastic in dry text is the best option.

 

[Jerry]

I guess your sarcasm detector is off...

My sarcasm detector is a voice recognition program using a microphone: HowStuffWorks "Understanding and Learning Sarcasm"

Obviously we don't have voice on this forum as everything is said over text.

 

[Thoreau72]

That may be, but I am sure those that are used to my posts caught it, I apologize if it was not more obvious. But if you had scrolled down to my next post, it should have become obvious.





I often wish there was some kind of font that was just for the use of sarcasm. I am actually one of the more respectful users of sarcasm in the forum, but for some reason people still miss it.

Respectful but amateur. Respectful and following the crowd no matter what. eace

 

[paddymcdougall]

Actually - I'm pretty certain that if my husband's insurance covered it, he would have killed himself last year.

Heart palpitations.
Chronic migraines that don't respond to meds.
Executive disorder caused by brain scarring from a tbi - he had to re-learn how to drive among other things.
Severe back pain.
Knee and foot pain.
Injured shoulder that never fully healed.
Torn ligaments in his elbow that weren't diagnosed for over a year.
He's been to the psych ward
Then after that, he was shipped all over the US for a year because he was too unstable to come home.

After all of this - I really don't know why he didn't, because it was no secret he thought about it all the time. In fact, he probably still does think of it all the time because nothing's changed except for prescription meds, most of which are ineffective and some of which have given him extra symptoms like the shakes.

If he didn't need to work to support the kids, he would have no purpose (in his view) - and if him dying would support them, he wouldn't even second guess his decision to do so, I'm quite sure of it.

Which makes me thankful it's not covered, and maybe he loves us just enough to keep him around, though seeing how much he suffers, physically, I don't say that and feel that without a bit of guilt.

He hasn't had a symptom free and pain free day in years.

Totally feel for you and your family. I'm amazed he can work with all that. My husband had chronic pain, along with migraines and other things; it is so debilitating and so wearing on the spirit. So while I don't know everything you're going through, I totally sympathize.