Things are not all right at home.

Grandmothers enlisting, fathers speaking out. Mothers arrested while a Vietnam veteran (a minister, no less) chooses death over the pain of another war.

Fathers killed, children abused and dying -- too many dying. Wives murdered, wives strangled, wives drowned, wives stabbed. And strangled again. Ex-wives and their boyfriends shot. Friends slain. War buddies murdered. Cousins shooting cousins over and over, sons overeating, and banks robbed all to keep from having to return to Iraq. Others going AWOL after returning home. Desertion.

We are failing our military families. And we are failing each other. Do you have the courage to see but a sliver of the grand tragedy that is befalling our nation?

What a stunning span of days the past week and half has been for the exploration of combat-related posttraumatic stress disorder [PTSD]. A veritable `perfect storm' of events lined up to push the plight of our returning veterans squarely into the forefront of national debate and discussion. The increased visibility is definitely welcomed, and long overdue.

We all have a role to play, and I think our efforts are beginning to pay off. If you happened to have missed out on any of the positive PTSD news events of this week, follow me for a brief run down...

Related Note: Zogby International, in conjunction with Le Moyne College, has just completed a first-ever opinion poll of our combat troops serving in Iraq. The results are absolutely stunning.

This past Thursday, February 23rd, was the 15th anniversary of the start of the first Gulf War's ground war: Desert Storm. It lasted, incredibly, from start to finish 100 hours. We celebrate the end of that war tomorrow.

March 19th will be the 3rd anniversary of the start of the second Gulf War: Operation Iraqi Freedom. Although it was said that we destroyed 80% of the Iraqi army in 1991, OIF has now run 25,800+ hours and counting. We don't know when we'll be able to celebrate the end of this war.

As we pay our respects to those who served, those who died, those who suffered - and suffer still - a review of the two wars is in order. Though facts and figures and numbers and stats are sterile and dry for some, they no less have a tale to tell...

Another inspiring (yet frustrating) local story has hit the wires this afternoon.

We can add it to the fine job local media outlets are doing covering the PTSD issue (as compared to their bigger budget brothers). And we can also file it under the anemic quantifiable support that our veterans seem to be getting from our government after they return from war.

More below the fold...

Update [2006-2-16 11:46:46 by Tom Ball]: I Edited this post to remove the Valentine's day theme because the day has come and gone but the content is truly valuable and holiday independent. Hopefully ilona won't strangle me.

Let's share our loving side with the ones who need it the most: our troops. Let's get busy and show them who really supports them, ok?

I've tried to make this as pain-free and fun as possible. Some of the action items can be done right in front of your computer screen. Other items will require you to get up and move about into the fresh air outside - maybe even mingle with other people. Still others will require you open up your wallet, if you so choose to do. No pressure there from me.

You ready to start showing the troops you care?

Three cheers to Esquire magazine.

The publication, whose tagline is Man at His Best, delivers an astounding 16-page spread in its March issue. Special Report: The Iraq War, Three Years Later (not available online) contains the following articles:

• The Best Years of Our Lives - After being stateside for the past year, one Iraq vet catches up with the guys he served with.
  
  
• Ten Numbers on the State of the Iraq-War Veterans - Shows the impact of a conflict that's about to surpass the Korean War in duration.
  
  
• The Monks of War - An interesting piece on Lt. Gen. David Petraeus, Lt. Gen. James Mattis, and Commander on the `Thunder Run' to Baghdad, Gen. William Wallace.
  
  
• What They Were Thinking - My personal favorite; predictions from the prominent war planners in 2003 on how the war would go. Oh, boy...

I've got all the goodies (well, except for the Evangeline Lilly spread) below the fold...

ePluribus Media has just published Blaming the Veteran: The Politics of PTSD.

Along with their PTSD Timeline, the folks at ePM hope to shine a light on the plight of veterans returning to us suffering with post-traumatic stress disorder [PTSD]. They're not the only ones working on educating the public on this issue -- Garry Trudeau has been doing his part, too.

Doonesbury by Garry Trudeau

Following up on my last diary on the award-winning comic strip, let's find out how returning character B.D. (a hard-nosed wounded Iraq combat vet and amputee) is dealing with his PTSD...

Let's take a look at the War President's budget through the veteran lens. Does Bush put his money where his mouth is? Does his budget support our troops when they're done fighting his wars?

List of veteran and force cuts below the fold...

Let's get right down to it.

First off some good news for our troops: if the President has his way, they'll be getting a 2.2% raise. That translates to $1,188 per year for an Army captain. It doesn't quite keep up with inflation, but an increase is an increase. I applaud the raise. Increase it, and I'll throw in a free cheer, too.

As some of you might know, Sen. John Kerry began posting over at the Big Orange yesterday. Following a response of 1100+ comments, he posited a brief thank you diary today, invited us to watch him on tomorrow's This Week, and even answered a few comments.

One of the comments he carefully and thoughtfully answered in length was regarding a subject near and dear to my heart: PTSD/returning veteran care issues:

Thank you for your service to our country (4.00 / 18)

I'm worried for our returning soldiers suffering with post-traumatic stress disorder.

With our national budget in disarray, I'm worried that we're not providing the very best treatment for all of our wounded -- both those with physical and psychological scars received in battle.

I have been doing what I can from my humble position to bring more attention to this matter. Please, sir, can you speak out more on this issue?

Thank you!

His reply and PTSD Resources below the fold...

james webb, former navy secretary under reagan, in today's nyt...

   Military people past and present have good reason to wonder if the current administration truly values their service beyond its immediate effect on its battlefield of choice.     Military people past and present have good reason to wonder if the current administration truly values their service beyond its immediate effect on its battlefield of choice.

With their smear of Congressman John Murtha, including a hysterical attack by Congressman Jean Schmidt calling him a coward, and the GOP House Leadership writing a bill requiring Bush to leave Iraqi immediately and portraying it as Murtha's bill, the Republican Party continues their brand of lies, hatred, smears, and political opportunism. Their smear of John Murtha shows that they appeal to the worst instincts in American culture by treating Murtha in a similar way that the segregationists treated Blacks in the Jim Crow era.

The expectations that the segregationists had for Blacks and the expectations that the Republicans have for military veterans are very similar. The segregationists expected Blacks to be quiet, not get too uppity, not make trouble for whitey, and stay on their end of the tracks. Blacks who didn't were regularly lynched; one writer I studied in college suggested that the White segregationists did so in order to show their sexual prowess.

Meet Cpl. Joseph J. Brown

Cpl. Joseph J. Brown almost gave his life for a country that wasn't his.
...
The citation on the Army Commendation Medal he earned that day says his courageous actions "led to the safe evacuation of his crew despite numerous IED's."

He brought home something else from that day -- wounds from an explosion during the firefight, including spinal injuries, nerve damage to his left leg and post-traumatic stress disorder.
...
Five months after Brown was wounded, Iraqis cast ballots in their first democratic election in half a century. Back home in the United States, Brown could not vote. He was not a citizen.

"The local Veterans For Peace chapter has found itself in conflict with organizers of the Milwaukee Veterans Day Parade over the peace group's exclusion from the event this Saturday.

Parade organizers have banned Veterans For Peace members from marching with their banner, saying the group's political activism violates the spirit of the event, which is to honor veterans."

Article here

HEY!  Whatever happened to the "veterans fought and died for their right to protest" meme?  Is that passe already?  Have we skipped right from that to 1930's Germany-style fascism?