These 30 Responses To U.S. Army Asking ‘How Has Serving Impacted You?’ Was Not What They Were Expecting To Hear
Memorial Day weekend is meant to be a time of reflection to honor the Americans who have served, so two days before the weekend the U.S. Army reached out to veterans via Twitter to ask them to share how their service had impacted their lives – and it’s easy to say it backfired.
The innocent tweet was intended to stir up stories of patriotic pride, and while some did share positive experiences about how their time gave them self-confidence, an overwhelming amount shared dark and heartbreaking tales. The stories came from both veterans themselves and people who had met or were the family of service men and women. Tales ranged from vets who had returned with debilitating posttraumatic stress disorder, to those who had ended up committing suicide.
According to reports from the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs, about 30% of Vietnam veterans, 12% of Gulf War veterans and 11% to 20% of Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom veterans are living with post-traumatic stress disorder. As for suicide rates the numbers are disproportionately affecting vets, with more than 6,000 veterans dying by suicide between 2008 to 2016 and an average of 20 veterans dying by suicide each day between 2013 and 2014.
The U.S Army reached out to vets on Twitter to ask how their service had impacted their lives
Image credits: USArmy
But instead of just patriotic pride, they received a thread of heartbreaking responses
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This should be number one. It’s not just about the trauma these people face but rather the fact that it’s all based on greed, corruption, lies, and hatred of the American people at large, and anyone who isn’t in the ruling class.
In Michael Moore’s movie Fahrenheit 9/11 this very issue was tackled and there were some great scenes of Michael Moore asking congressmen if he could sign up there kids to go fight. We’ve known this since Vietnam. The poor kids fight wars while the kids of the politicians who send them there never even pick up a rifle.
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No need to downvote. She is just sincere about it. Not everyone has American English as their mother tongue. Feel free to downvote if your Swedish is as good as her English. It does not cost anything at all to be civil.
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Basically, if you're not rich, you're cannon fodder. I guess it's no coincidence that recruiters frequently came to my high school full of rednecks and the surrounding schools, that the same high school required all of us to take the ASVAB in 11th grade, and that recruiters still show up occasionally at my university (which is definitely not some private or big-name school).
Recruiters are required to visit EVERY school in their geographical footprint, not just the "poor" or "disadvantaged" schools. They may have better success with recruiting students from low SES schools, but this does not imply that they don't attempt to recruit those from high SES school districts.
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Captain Bone Spur needed to buy 6 doctor's notes to dodge draft. Rich kids don't die in useless wars.
As a veteran myself, I wholly speak out against this comment. When you are in poverty, it often seems like there is no way out, there is no life waiting for you where you can become something amazing, do amazing things and get recognized for it. The military is one place that can provide that and if they are recruiting at your school, they are offering you hope for something better. Yes, some people die, but we all know what we signed up for. Many of us accomplish things and become someone we never would have become if we'd stayed in the civilian world. It is a good thing for the military to be that beacon of hope in poor areas.
Because of my father's exposure to Agent Orange, I was born with spina bifida, clubbed feet and a urinary bladder that would not drain sufficiently under any circumstances my doctor would arrange. Nobody told him he signed me up for that. The military takes advantage of the desperate poverty of folks in poor areas to ensure it has enough meat for its grinder, and it grinds up their kids, too. My dad's service was the worst thing that ever happened to me.
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My husband served, retired and then re-enlisted for more... he’s amazing no PTSD but saw terrible things... God help all those men and women
Most "rich" high schools ban recruiters. Making false promises of no war is prohibited by regulations. Anyone enlisting and thinking that war is off the table is delusional.
Exactly, and by the way, when has there been no war??
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And now potus 45 wants to send anotrher generation of young people into another phoney war. How do you stop that? Maybe it's better in jail. Atleast you won't come out as damaged as coming home from a war. Young people should not enlist, let them put them in prison instead. Atleast they will be on home soil. think about it!
Not true at all. My husband is a U.S. Army recruiter and each station is assigned schools based off of location and must visit and set up tables/tents throughout the school year at every school on their map, regardless of socioeconomic status. While the "rich kids" may not feel as pressured to join because they may have the means to pay for college, etc., that does not mean that the recruiters do not try to recruit them. I understand a lot of these tweets and peoples' gripes with the military, but I'm tired of the recruiters being blamed for every little thing.
I went to an extremely wealthy high school and was constantly hounded by recruiters...
If you are stupid enough to join the military and think that combat isn't a part of it. Then you are dumber than dirt.
The kids at the rich high school all had bone spurs and doctors' notes.
My dad brought back Agent Orange in his body, and it messed up the cells that produced his sperm. As a result, I was born with spina bifida, clubbed feet and a bladder that would not drain fully under any circumstances my doctors could arrange. I've spent 21 years trying to get the VA to give me the Agent Orange benefits they law says I deserve, but it turns out there's no depth of dishonesty the VA won't sink to in order to deny those benefits. Also, if I ever have biological kids of my own, there's a heightened chance that I'll pass on my problems to the next generation. Even if the mother takes her USRDA of folic acid, that only reduces the chance to "normal" malnourished levels. My dad's service was the worst thing that ever happened to me.
My classmate served over in Iraq and he was killed. He was just about to come home too.
You consider it 'a shame' that 'many of us are not considering it from an economic standpoint??? It's not that we don't understand it, we just despise it.
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Two years ago President Donald Trump tweeted “will not accept or allow transgender individuals to serve in any capacity,” and this year the policy has gone into effect. Lt. Col. Carla M. Gleason, a Pentagon spokesperson, told BuzzFeed News, that it was not a ban but that “new recruits will be rejected if they’ve undergone a gender transition, that they cannot transition while in service, and they must conform to the uniform and fitness standards of their birth sex.” The estimated number of trans people serving in the military ranged from 2,150 to 15,000.
First they experience war on the outside, then war on the inside. It all leaves scars. We need to talk more about this</3
One out of three veterans seeking treatment for substance abuse, including alcohol use disorder, have PTSD. Overall about three-quarters of people who have survived abuse or violent trauma report that they struggle with alcohol abuse. People who struggle with PTSD and chronic pain struggle more frequently with alcohol abuse.
"You guys sent him back in a box" is literally the most heartbreaking thing ever
A study by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration revealed that only 50 percent of returning vets who need veteran mental health treatment will receive these services. Both active duty service members and veterans face barriers to treatment for mental health issues: Personal embarrassment about service-related mental disabilities, long wait times to receive mental health treatment, shame over needing to seek mental health treatment, fear of being seen as weak, Stigma associated with mental health issues, a lack of understanding or lack of awareness about mental health problems and treatment options, logistical problems, such as long travel distances in order to receive this type of care, concerns over the veteran mental health treatment offered by the VA, demographic barriers and false perceptions based on these demographics such as age or gender.
"😭" doesn't cut it. I died a little inside thinking of these two brothers. One dead, one the closest thing to death that isnt, because of military duty. A family ruined. What hit me hardest was "I don't know where he is or if he's still alive." I have two siblings and can't imagine anything like this, but I'm sure that they couldn't either, until it actually happened
From 1961 to 1971, the U.S. sprayed more than 20 million gallons of various herbicides over Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos and according to the EPA, Agent Orange, which contains the poisonous chemical dioxin, was the most commonly used. An estimated 2.8 million U.S. vets who were exposed to Agent Orange while on-duty later died.
Almost every conflict that we’ve ever been involved in has been for the express benefit of imperialist scum. It’s never been about protecting America.
Hold on a minute, your grandmother knocked out your uncle with a frying pan?
Jesus, that's so heartbreaking even to read... what the person is experiencing and is really living with all this is unimaginable for me. I have no words to say! :(
A veteran describing how his life has fallen apart telling people to love one another. He's showing more courage then tangerine turd could ever even dream off.
“Some folks are born Made to wave the flag Ooh, they're red, white and blue And when the band plays "Hail to the Chief" Ooh, they point the cannon at you It ain't me, it ain't me I ain't no senator's son, son It ain't me, it ain't me I ain't no fortunate one, no”
My grandfather on my dad's side did not serve, but he grew up in a WWII-era Taiwan occupied by the Japanese. As he aged, he got dementia, and even though he loved everything Japan- Japanese was his preferred language- he hated the bombs. Planes would fly over our house and he would cry and tell us that "they" were coming and they were going to bomb us and he needed to save us. I was four years old and I didn't understand. I laughed and told him they were just jets. Then one day a couple years ago my sister reminded me of those days and I was just like "Holy f***k oh my god I get it now." But my Akong is long dead and there is nothing I could do anymore. By the time I could do something, I cpuldnt. Goes to show, you don't have to serve. War is scarring all around. It may benefit the state but it destroys the individual.
I’m really sorry. Going into any type of military services can be scarring
Funny thing about the military is that contracts are only allowed to be broken by the military...
My brother served in VietNam as a Marine Scout/Sniper. On his return home, he was afraid to sleep in-doors. He slept in our back yard for months. (Always with a rifle). He tried really hard to adjust; he married, they had a baby, he had a good job. But as a year passed, he drank and smoked and God knows what else and the gradual change in him sped up. He was killed in a motorcycle/vehicle accident in 1972 and our little family, his little family were and continue to be just wrecked. People, please understand these Vets need so much help after their service because all governments only use them as cannon fodder. They were never expected to come home alive. The U.S. Government still thinks of them as expendables and they always will.
What did they expect when they put up this question, lovely tales of the great happy militairy?
They expected, "Wow, the military was a great experience and changed my life! Taught me about respect & honor! Thank you!" But seriously that's never the case when they're seen as numbers and not people by those who put them into war.
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They were protecting our country? Really? When have we ever have foreign troops on our soil? It's it US that are the foreign troops on foreign soil. We remove Leaders of other countries and leave those countries to crumble in the vacuum. I believe world peace is possible and that there really is enuf for everyone.
I think that would start by removing your own leaders. They're doing it with the vote of the public. The public have to take off the rose coloured glasses and stop voting for them.
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While we ought to be grateful for people who decide to defend their country, there is nothing to glorify about it. Maybe some return from war as heros, but for me the greatest heros are those who care for people returning traumatised from war.
While something like World War 2 was justifiable for the U.S. to get involved in, it's been largely involved in wars because of capitalist interests, especially the current wars. I don't want to simplify the issue too much, but it really has a lot of basis in sending the poor to die so the rich get richer.
It's not even "we want your s**t" like it used to be. Kingdoms would invade and take the spoils. Now America goes in, soldiers die, a few contractors make money, and taxes have to go up to pay for the war. Super. Only the Haliburton's of the world get anything out of it.
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I never understood why certain websites glorify weapons of war. how a handful of politicians can dictatie the terms and conditions rest of the population. I never understood how that is even possible in this day and time.
1984...recent anniversary of the book is so apt for our current time
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My ex got a traumatic brain injury while serving in the Army before we met. 18 years later, when our kids were little, his brain function was so deteriorated he committed a felony and went to prison for 5 years. He has no comprehension of his crime. Our marriage didn't survive but the kids (now young adults) are there for him and my heart is broken because of how the TBI ruined his ability to have fulfilling and healthy relationships.
Let's see... Health services need to be insured, making it impossible for average people to afford proper care. Your company pays for it, so you become their wage slave. Wage slaves fatten the pockets of the rich. College fees are drastically overpriced so the average person is in debt and can't afford it. Free tuition is touted to underprivileged kids to make the army more appealing, so you can go to poor countries to send their ore, resources and opium home in order to sedate the population that suffers pain or addiction or trauma. Afterwards you don't get the healthcare you're entitled to and end up terrorising the people who love you, so essentially you bring the war home. Now I do believe the majority of the USA to be decent human beings. Why do people keep falling for this s**t?
Agreed. It is really frustrating to live with this madness. Unfortunately in my second country (Italy) there's an ugly political shift happening as well. I see it all as a fear response, fear of losing a treasured lifestyle, due to the shifts in migrant patterns (which in part are due to wars that were supported by the "first world " countries) . I get it: nobody wants to lose their comfort. But in the US (at least) it's deeper than that- people see the changes as the loss of the mythical "American Dream". Change can be frightening
Load More Replies... Did the U.S. army even care what agent orange would do to the soldiers?
I am very sorry for everyone who had or is serving. I’m very very greatful that these beautiful souls are protecting are country and I just wanted to say thank you to all of you and your families. you are all brave
Protecting from who? Zero countries on earth are a threat to America. Beyond their military might, they have friends north and south and oceans to teh east and west.
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This reminds me a bif of all those pro lifers... Once you have been born they don't know you anymore. Once you've served you've become useless!
US army is the only army in the world "protecting" its country by attacking the whole world ... and destroying its own soldiers of course
"Fortunate Son", 1969, Credence Clearwater Revival. The poor have been cannon fodder for as long as there has been war, and will continue to be as long as there is war. What is even worse is the way veterans of all those wars have been treated. Talk about adding insult to injury
I served in Afghanistan. Not for the us. Another country. I live in us now, but they will not treat me for ptsd because they" cannot find evidence you served" i sm afraid of most everything and can get very violent when confronted. I am a woman, if that even matters here. I still limp from a bullet i took to the leg. I cannot sleep anymore because i am afraid i will be killed. I cannot trust anybody. I am considered an enemy, even tho i am american citizen, because of my accent. I want to die.
Also, i did not enlist. Military service is a requirement in my country of birth
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To serve your country.... sounds kind a noble, honorable, you know, sounds good. True definition, however, is: Get used and discarded! What ticks me off to no end, is those who did tours, came back and are now convinced that war IS a racket, as Smedley Butler told us, but still put those who didn't go (often because they maybe recognized what it really accomplished) as non patriots. What the ef are you calling a patriot of anyway? Someone being proud and standing up for a country involved in perpetual wars, covert regime changes, brainwashing (look up MK Ultra) false flag operations, arming countless despots and tyrants? The bottom line is, DO NOT ENLIST, DO NOT participate in this despicable game they are playing only serving the corporate military establishment. Defend your country at home, not from 800 military bases scattered over the globe to keep a control grid functioning. Read, be awake, pay attention, STOP PARTICIPATING!
"The combined arms sales of the 42 USA-based companies in the Top 100 grew by 2.0 per cent in 2017, to $226.6 billion, accounting for 57 per cent of the overall total (see figure 3). Considering the volume of US arms sales and the number of companies ranked in 2017, the USA will continue to be the world’s largest producer of arms for the foreseeable future. Lockheed Martin remains, by far, the largest arms producer in the world, with arms sales of $44.9 billion in 2017" (The SIPRI Top 100 arms-producing and military services companies, 2017)
This was all really heartbreaking to read, my stepdad is in the air force, I did not know him before he went in or deployed, but I think he would be different now. He is extremely controlling, and wants everything perfect, he yells all the time, which my mom, me, and stepsister(7) hate. My mom was a very different person before they met, and I have never seen her so stressed or sad before. They got divorced a little over a year ago, and she came back to live with her mom for a while, and to stay with me, but then on 4 of July, he called her and she went right back to him, after complaining to me how it was so hard for her to live with him. I say he has some kind of spell on the rest of my family and it hurts my heart to watch.
I love google ads. I have armed force mortgage loan in this article
Brit here, my cousin died in Afghanistan about 10 years ago from a IED, his best mate saw him blown into a few pieces, i still speak to his friend regularly as he is home now, he is half of the person he was, he cries at the drop of a hat and is starting to smoke heroin, i will try my hardest to be there for him and get him off that junk.
You're missing the vast swath of sexual assault stories that have also been told and the detritus of recovery for those survivors.
Let's see. My uncle drank himself to death after WWII. My husband served in Vietnam and has 26 basic training classmates up on the Wall, plus his cousin. And we knew a guy who'd been a sniper in Vietnam; at least he KNEW how damaged he was and when he needed to stay away from everyone for a few days. he had found a way to live with it, not well but at least no longer harming himself or anyone else. And the awful part is he WAS treated by the VA! They don't have a CLUE how to treat PTSD. They're just flailing in the dark.
It’s high time humanity puts an end to war. War has never solved anything and it’s insane to keep it up. Not only does it ruin the lives of thousands of people in the US but millions in the world. It has to stop now and if men and women will refuse to fight (or enter the military) it would stop immediately. I can’t imagin that the old men who instigate the wars would actually pick up a gun and continue it. 😒
Both my parents served. Most of my family have served. We are one effed-up bunch. Thanks, US military. THat golden ticket promise of training and/or GI Bill suckers us in and then some rich guy gets richer and we get dead. Even alive, we're still dead....
This is horrific. We NEED to do better. We should be falling all over ourselves to help these people.
Shocking that the main reason of death seems to be not only on the battlefield (which would be bad enough), but because of suicide.
Idiots wanted a pat on the back for posting such a stupid tweet and got hard truth they didn't expect because they're idiots. Are these replies even up, or did the Army only keep the patriotic s**t to inspire the naive to serve?
Twitter doesn’t work that way. The Army Twitter account holder only controls its own posts. Everyone replying to them is entirely separate.
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Oh, and let's not forget the injections of venereal diseases into black surface men, or the refusal to help out those who suffered from our go to chemical of the day "Agent Orange". Or the navy guys who wiped down their aircraft carrier after wiping out an island of people, who were told nothing bad would happen. Every time I see that horrific burst of flame that killed 8000Japanese instantly, and left countless others to suffer and die, I cry. I cry for how much we play fast and loose with the lives of others while safe underground playing a very scary game of Risk or Battleship. Shame on anyone who ever thinks it's the cost of doing business. Not by my standard ever. Men waving d**k to see which one is the biggest, as Carlin said. I value my loved ones more than the biggest d**k you got to wave. The potential life it delivers will be killed by some other idiot whipping it out while killing lions who think they are enjoying retirement , not being shot like fish in a barrel.
This is the most shoking thing i have ever read :o I dont understand how people still go and serve even knowing they are risking their lives
The answer is in the posts. They send recruiters to poor areas to tell kids they'll get a college education if they enlist. Then the stuff in the rest of the posts happens. If your whole life is poverty it's a seductive pitch. They don't tell you that you'll be crippled or die because of it.
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This has so many replies... Makes me sad and how lucky am I of not being an usa citizen. I'm so sorry for all the families that were broken cause of this.
Well you get hurt the ARMY treats you like you don't matter after I got hurt left waiting while my leg I was about to loose wait was three weeks send me to military hospital so I paid get it fixed so I could keep my leg Filed with VA they said I never had the accident on active duty. Very shameful ARMY As today on SSI disability still waiting on VA and got 9 shots at $1000 each and 3 left in three months waiting on 12 for my left knee THANKS FOR THE DISHONOR ARMY
Veterans are returning homeless and forgotten. Is this what we have become? A machine that takes our youth and casts them aside when we don't need them? Brave men and women fight and die for us, and they still have their benefits cut, receive very low pay, and are cast aside with no regard to their detiorating mental health. I am ashamed of what our country is becoming. One man in uniform has a hundred times more courage than the orange man-child in office today.
Veterans are returning homeless and forgotten. Why? Is this how we treat our brave men and women in uniform? We forget about them, cut their benefits, and cast them aside with no regard or treatment for their mental health? I am ashamed of what our country has become.
My father was recruited from college to play for the Philadelphia Eagles in 1957. Uncle Sam drafted him the same week. Guess who got him? He died this year, still hating the military.
OMG, that's the f*****g worst. I can't even imagine going from that high to that low in one week.
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God, these are awful. Thank you to all those who have served, or who are serving, in all countries.
I am forever grateful for those who fought so that we can be free. But the wars should never had been allowed to happen! Our world leaders should have been forced to talk to each other and find a peaceful solution. It breaks my heart to read how the veterans are treated. They sacrificed all and should get all the help they need. They are the real heroes. No more wars!
"Our world leaders should have been FORCED to talk to each other and find a peaceful solution.". I don't like war any more than you do, but please reflect on what you said.
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My dad served for 20+ years in Air Force. Saw travesties in the Gulf War, Bosinia War, rebuilding water sources in remote Turkey, Rwanda, and Saudi Arabia. Has so many medical problems know we cant keep up with the meds he is on. Doesn't help that tricare costs them so much each month. Suffers PTSD from his service and the abuse and neglect he suffered from his father and step being in nam. Yay military.
And thus is NOT any news. Its been known for at the least since ww1 that war is litterarly tearing people apart weather you survive the war itself or not. How come people still doing that stupid thing?
Tragic. These people, full of wonders and life, dying because they are viewed as expendible pawns. War is like a vampire, slowly draining the life out of the victims.
I have PTSD from Iraq, not an American, and in a bi-kcombat role, but still broken. I am currently being treated by a psychologist, using an eye movement therapy. It's going well, but the in between times are tough. To everyone out there suffering, war related or not, it's ok to not be ok. It's ok to ask for help. It's ok that the biggest thing you achieved today was having a shower- well done for getting that far! I hope you find hope, I hope you know you are loved, and I hope.... I hope the hurting stops. It hurts so bad
I served 4 tours in Afganistan, Somalia, and 2 in Iraq as an Army Ranger. I believe that people who enlisted went through because they wanted to serve. Why else would they join? They were assigned to go on a tour somewhere because that is what they signed up to do. While doing the process, they would have read the terms and contracts and they knew the risks. With the living veterans, all we can do is offer support, and with the deceased, all we can do is remember what they sacrificed, thank them for their lives and our freedom.
It is quite sad to read these experiences. I served in Vietnam in combat for 2 years, had command over 150, did not know of any with PTSD. My younger brother died of Agent Orange effects. War obviously effects some more than others. I have gone on to have 7 successful children, 24 grands and 35 great-grands. I may be the some soldiers come in too young. Our nation needs to assure better care for those and their families who suffer. Colonel-St...d9ce9d.jpg 
I agree. My Dad enlisted right after Pear Harbor at age 29. He served in 2 invasions. He spoke generally of the war but not specifically of his experiences. He was a great husband, father, grandfather. Will say that the VA and the system to help veterans let him down on his return - but he was strong and just kept going. I do think age has something to do with it and the fact that the US was attacked. I think that veterans should be able to go to any doctor and any hospital to get good care.
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No help or rememberance or thanks or public holidays for Australian Vietnam Vets..my biological dad just bottled it up and had zero treatment. He’s a jerk because of it..nobody talks about it at all and it’s a damn shame :
One thing I don't understand, why is the US army is still attractive to people as they are treated as canon meat.
I served during peace time (Ha! Ha!) , but the one thing that really stuck home for me was during my in briefing at RAF Upper Hayford 1981. The whole room was told that as far as any one there was concerned was that we are above all else "MERCENARIES", because we accepted money to serve a government in its defense. After I later was discharged from service I could feel the eyes of people following me, and when searching for work hearing "Oh, I see you were in the military. We'll back to you", an sometimes hearing under there breath things like "Babykiller, psycho, or my least favorite.... Walking dead". Then you are expected to be proud of the country that you have sacrificed so much for either in peace, or battle. My apologies for rambling on, but it infuriates me to no end about honoring our service men, when so few even have a clue what we go through. What's the difference between RIGHT and WRONG, when even our own self-serving government doesn't know?
I don’t know a sane person who was or is in the military. Every single one who was deployed came back different.
Many people in the comments complain about how upsetting this is to read. How is it to live through? To die through? These people had to face all this. The least you can do is wish them well, and stop whining for your virtual tears. To anyone who has had to face this; I hope things get better one day.
Yes, the soldiers are treated horrifically by the government and it's a shame. That said, I have an honest question: What the f**k were these people expecting? Glory? Thrills? It's war. It's watching your friends die and seeing the absolute worst in humanity and it's always been that way and before going in they knew it was life-and-death etc. I'm sure they all heard about "shell shocked" WWI soldiers, so again, to all the undrafted volunteers who went willingly: what the f**k did you expect? To see dudes arms and legs get blown off and to kill people who are just as scared as you are , only to come home and mow the lawn and go to PTA meetings?
Sorry if I may be ignorant, but what exactly is agent orange? Also, I know many here love Pixie and Brutus, so if you go to pet_foolery on Instagram the author posted some great fan comics related to Brutus's PTSD
"Agent Orange was a powerful herbicide used by U.S. military forces during the Vietnam War to eliminate forest cover and crops for North Vietnamese and Viet Cong troops. ... Agent Orange, which contained the deadly chemical dioxin, was the most commonly used herbicide." (https://www.history.com/topics/vietnam-war/agent-orange-1)
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I’m so glad that military families in Australia is nowhere near as common as In US. I told my hubby that if he ever enlisted for the military it is bye bye. Thankfully he has zero interest. I know of 2 people who have fought in the war, one came back in a box and the other has significant hearing loss and was discharged. I don’t know any other effects coz I barely know him. Whilst I feel extremely sad that these lives have been taken or people suffering ill effects. the fact of the matter is this is a choice that the individuals made (except for compulsory enlisting).
My ex is in the Australian army, and they're definitely treated better here than in the US post tour. He has been to Afghanistan twice, and was well looked after upon his return. It's not exactly a bed of roses, but from what I've read and seen, much more care is taken in regards to mental and physical health for our military here. Between the US's lack of available healthcare (unless you've got the $$), and the debt incurred from student loans, I'm so incredibly glad to be Australian.
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This both gives me HUGE respect for all veterans and takes away any sense of pride in my country. When we treat our young men as objects to be tossed in front of a bullet and/or driven insane by being tossed in front of said bullet, we lose all sense of humanity.
My grampa on my dads side ofught in africa in ww2. Ive never met him and im pretty sure hes dead. If he is, my dad doesnt ever really tell me how he died. By now i dont want to know.
All I could was read these posts . I can't even give up votes because it would feel like I were saying "Yeah!", when that feels wrong because there are no yeahs or no applause or no....words. I am just so sorry ....so sorry that so many had to suffer. So sorry
People keep saying that we need to take care of our veterans like we can "fix" them after they come home. There is one way to avoid the problem, and one way only. The leaders of our various countries need to stop sending innocent men and women to fight obscene and evil battles in the name of "freedom"or "defending our country" when it's almost always about control of natural resources. (Did you know about fossil fuels in Vietnam? Look it up.) We need to stop war. We need to stop selling the idea of war as something that brave and selfless people do. It's a cattle train of slaughter and the people that survive it are left irrevocably broken. The stories above are the most real stories, but they are the ones we don't hear. Even when the cause of a war seems valid (WWII for example), the fallout from it is always horrific and problematic: think, the Iron Curtain, rise of "Communism", Holocaust denial, Israel/Middle East issues. Sorry for the long post. I have strong feelings on this.
I am completely wrecked with these testimonies. How is it possible that the people do not see through this trap? US politicians waging endless wars across the Planet, hurting, maiming, killing, destroying everyone, the soldiers and the civilians, entire families, and for what? To keep 400K young men yearly off the US streets, since they have no access to higher education and jobs? To keep the military industry complex churning more billions every year on destructive weaponry and invented made up conflicts? All that remains is pain, destruction and lies, too many people being left behind for profits, a blood trail of suffering, PTSD and damaged families. Too sad, too savage, too primitive for this day and age. We should do better, as humans, and decide to abstain from participating in this criminal madness.
Going to go see some cat memes, that's the only thing that can cheer me up, wish I could say the same for the affected.
And to just think that the U.S.A. army has 1,375,000 active people and 875,000 people in reserves.
I am grateful that my father fought in 'Nam, came back and re-enlistsed twice. 23 years he server his country, I got a wonderful education, Dad's job wasn't easy, but he loved his country and served it well. My BF also served in Navy, his father the AF, my nephew the AF .. all have been to war. All have shadows, yet I don't think one regrets it for a moment. They all cope differently, it changed them yes.. Does our country need to step up after care, f**k yes they do. But we as a community and family need to also step up, learn and help when we can ..even if it's just being there with them. My father's last duty station, his job.. to inform the families their loved one wasn't coming home. Took me along time to understand how hard that must have been for him. I will stand and support every service man - no matter his Creed, color, religion or reason for joining. You signed that blank check.. I am in your debt and I have your so here at home.
My granhid dad, served in the wwll when he came hom hise he began to drink beat and a child molester, in 82 he was arrested for molesting me, and went to a state hospital where they put him under hypnosis, and they told me mon, that he was not who we thought he was, but never told us who he was because it was against the private act as a patient.
That’s why it’s called “serving” it’s not pretty and it’s why we are supposed to thank our soldiers and veterans.
Are you being serious? This is one of the stupidest things I have ever read
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You so do not know what you are talking about! Apartheid South Africa was propped up by the USA to fight a proxy war to keep the USSR out. Meanwhile up in Zaïre, Mobutu Seseseko was installed by the USA and he killed his rivals mercilessly.
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....The actual Army's Twitter posted this ahead of Memorial Day. Would a better time be Halloween or something?
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What did they expect when they put up this question, lovely tales of the great happy militairy?
They expected, "Wow, the military was a great experience and changed my life! Taught me about respect & honor! Thank you!" But seriously that's never the case when they're seen as numbers and not people by those who put them into war.
Load More Replies... They were protecting our country? Really? When have we ever have foreign troops on our soil? It's it US that are the foreign troops on foreign soil. We remove Leaders of other countries and leave those countries to crumble in the vacuum. I believe world peace is possible and that there really is enuf for everyone.
I think that would start by removing your own leaders. They're doing it with the vote of the public. The public have to take off the rose coloured glasses and stop voting for them.
Load More Replies... While we ought to be grateful for people who decide to defend their country, there is nothing to glorify about it. Maybe some return from war as heros, but for me the greatest heros are those who care for people returning traumatised from war.
While something like World War 2 was justifiable for the U.S. to get involved in, it's been largely involved in wars because of capitalist interests, especially the current wars. I don't want to simplify the issue too much, but it really has a lot of basis in sending the poor to die so the rich get richer.
It's not even "we want your s**t" like it used to be. Kingdoms would invade and take the spoils. Now America goes in, soldiers die, a few contractors make money, and taxes have to go up to pay for the war. Super. Only the Haliburton's of the world get anything out of it.
Load More Replies... I never understood why certain websites glorify weapons of war. how a handful of politicians can dictatie the terms and conditions rest of the population. I never understood how that is even possible in this day and time.
1984...recent anniversary of the book is so apt for our current time
Load More Replies... My ex got a traumatic brain injury while serving in the Army before we met. 18 years later, when our kids were little, his brain function was so deteriorated he committed a felony and went to prison for 5 years. He has no comprehension of his crime. Our marriage didn't survive but the kids (now young adults) are there for him and my heart is broken because of how the TBI ruined his ability to have fulfilling and healthy relationships.
Let's see... Health services need to be insured, making it impossible for average people to afford proper care. Your company pays for it, so you become their wage slave. Wage slaves fatten the pockets of the rich. College fees are drastically overpriced so the average person is in debt and can't afford it. Free tuition is touted to underprivileged kids to make the army more appealing, so you can go to poor countries to send their ore, resources and opium home in order to sedate the population that suffers pain or addiction or trauma. Afterwards you don't get the healthcare you're entitled to and end up terrorising the people who love you, so essentially you bring the war home. Now I do believe the majority of the USA to be decent human beings. Why do people keep falling for this s**t?
Agreed. It is really frustrating to live with this madness. Unfortunately in my second country (Italy) there's an ugly political shift happening as well. I see it all as a fear response, fear of losing a treasured lifestyle, due to the shifts in migrant patterns (which in part are due to wars that were supported by the "first world " countries) . I get it: nobody wants to lose their comfort. But in the US (at least) it's deeper than that- people see the changes as the loss of the mythical "American Dream". Change can be frightening
Load More Replies... Did the U.S. army even care what agent orange would do to the soldiers?
I am very sorry for everyone who had or is serving. I’m very very greatful that these beautiful souls are protecting are country and I just wanted to say thank you to all of you and your families. you are all brave
Protecting from who? Zero countries on earth are a threat to America. Beyond their military might, they have friends north and south and oceans to teh east and west.
Load More Replies... This reminds me a bif of all those pro lifers... Once you have been born they don't know you anymore. Once you've served you've become useless!
US army is the only army in the world "protecting" its country by attacking the whole world ... and destroying its own soldiers of course
"Fortunate Son", 1969, Credence Clearwater Revival. The poor have been cannon fodder for as long as there has been war, and will continue to be as long as there is war. What is even worse is the way veterans of all those wars have been treated. Talk about adding insult to injury
I served in Afghanistan. Not for the us. Another country. I live in us now, but they will not treat me for ptsd because they" cannot find evidence you served" i sm afraid of most everything and can get very violent when confronted. I am a woman, if that even matters here. I still limp from a bullet i took to the leg. I cannot sleep anymore because i am afraid i will be killed. I cannot trust anybody. I am considered an enemy, even tho i am american citizen, because of my accent. I want to die.
Also, i did not enlist. Military service is a requirement in my country of birth
Load More Replies... To serve your country.... sounds kind a noble, honorable, you know, sounds good. True definition, however, is: Get used and discarded! What ticks me off to no end, is those who did tours, came back and are now convinced that war IS a racket, as Smedley Butler told us, but still put those who didn't go (often because they maybe recognized what it really accomplished) as non patriots. What the ef are you calling a patriot of anyway? Someone being proud and standing up for a country involved in perpetual wars, covert regime changes, brainwashing (look up MK Ultra) false flag operations, arming countless despots and tyrants? The bottom line is, DO NOT ENLIST, DO NOT participate in this despicable game they are playing only serving the corporate military establishment. Defend your country at home, not from 800 military bases scattered over the globe to keep a control grid functioning. Read, be awake, pay attention, STOP PARTICIPATING!
"The combined arms sales of the 42 USA-based companies in the Top 100 grew by 2.0 per cent in 2017, to $226.6 billion, accounting for 57 per cent of the overall total (see figure 3). Considering the volume of US arms sales and the number of companies ranked in 2017, the USA will continue to be the world’s largest producer of arms for the foreseeable future. Lockheed Martin remains, by far, the largest arms producer in the world, with arms sales of $44.9 billion in 2017" (The SIPRI Top 100 arms-producing and military services companies, 2017)
This was all really heartbreaking to read, my stepdad is in the air force, I did not know him before he went in or deployed, but I think he would be different now. He is extremely controlling, and wants everything perfect, he yells all the time, which my mom, me, and stepsister(7) hate. My mom was a very different person before they met, and I have never seen her so stressed or sad before. They got divorced a little over a year ago, and she came back to live with her mom for a while, and to stay with me, but then on 4 of July, he called her and she went right back to him, after complaining to me how it was so hard for her to live with him. I say he has some kind of spell on the rest of my family and it hurts my heart to watch.
I love google ads. I have armed force mortgage loan in this article
Brit here, my cousin died in Afghanistan about 10 years ago from a IED, his best mate saw him blown into a few pieces, i still speak to his friend regularly as he is home now, he is half of the person he was, he cries at the drop of a hat and is starting to smoke heroin, i will try my hardest to be there for him and get him off that junk.
You're missing the vast swath of sexual assault stories that have also been told and the detritus of recovery for those survivors.
Let's see. My uncle drank himself to death after WWII. My husband served in Vietnam and has 26 basic training classmates up on the Wall, plus his cousin. And we knew a guy who'd been a sniper in Vietnam; at least he KNEW how damaged he was and when he needed to stay away from everyone for a few days. he had found a way to live with it, not well but at least no longer harming himself or anyone else. And the awful part is he WAS treated by the VA! They don't have a CLUE how to treat PTSD. They're just flailing in the dark.
It’s high time humanity puts an end to war. War has never solved anything and it’s insane to keep it up. Not only does it ruin the lives of thousands of people in the US but millions in the world. It has to stop now and if men and women will refuse to fight (or enter the military) it would stop immediately. I can’t imagin that the old men who instigate the wars would actually pick up a gun and continue it. 😒
Both my parents served. Most of my family have served. We are one effed-up bunch. Thanks, US military. THat golden ticket promise of training and/or GI Bill suckers us in and then some rich guy gets richer and we get dead. Even alive, we're still dead....
This is horrific. We NEED to do better. We should be falling all over ourselves to help these people.
Shocking that the main reason of death seems to be not only on the battlefield (which would be bad enough), but because of suicide.
Idiots wanted a pat on the back for posting such a stupid tweet and got hard truth they didn't expect because they're idiots. Are these replies even up, or did the Army only keep the patriotic s**t to inspire the naive to serve?
Twitter doesn’t work that way. The Army Twitter account holder only controls its own posts. Everyone replying to them is entirely separate.
Load More Replies... Oh, and let's not forget the injections of venereal diseases into black surface men, or the refusal to help out those who suffered from our go to chemical of the day "Agent Orange". Or the navy guys who wiped down their aircraft carrier after wiping out an island of people, who were told nothing bad would happen. Every time I see that horrific burst of flame that killed 8000Japanese instantly, and left countless others to suffer and die, I cry. I cry for how much we play fast and loose with the lives of others while safe underground playing a very scary game of Risk or Battleship. Shame on anyone who ever thinks it's the cost of doing business. Not by my standard ever. Men waving d**k to see which one is the biggest, as Carlin said. I value my loved ones more than the biggest d**k you got to wave. The potential life it delivers will be killed by some other idiot whipping it out while killing lions who think they are enjoying retirement , not being shot like fish in a barrel.
This is the most shoking thing i have ever read :o I dont understand how people still go and serve even knowing they are risking their lives
The answer is in the posts. They send recruiters to poor areas to tell kids they'll get a college education if they enlist. Then the stuff in the rest of the posts happens. If your whole life is poverty it's a seductive pitch. They don't tell you that you'll be crippled or die because of it.
Load More Replies... This has so many replies... Makes me sad and how lucky am I of not being an usa citizen. I'm so sorry for all the families that were broken cause of this.
Well you get hurt the ARMY treats you like you don't matter after I got hurt left waiting while my leg I was about to loose wait was three weeks send me to military hospital so I paid get it fixed so I could keep my leg Filed with VA they said I never had the accident on active duty. Very shameful ARMY As today on SSI disability still waiting on VA and got 9 shots at $1000 each and 3 left in three months waiting on 12 for my left knee THANKS FOR THE DISHONOR ARMY
Veterans are returning homeless and forgotten. Is this what we have become? A machine that takes our youth and casts them aside when we don't need them? Brave men and women fight and die for us, and they still have their benefits cut, receive very low pay, and are cast aside with no regard to their detiorating mental health. I am ashamed of what our country is becoming. One man in uniform has a hundred times more courage than the orange man-child in office today.
Veterans are returning homeless and forgotten. Why? Is this how we treat our brave men and women in uniform? We forget about them, cut their benefits, and cast them aside with no regard or treatment for their mental health? I am ashamed of what our country has become.
My father was recruited from college to play for the Philadelphia Eagles in 1957. Uncle Sam drafted him the same week. Guess who got him? He died this year, still hating the military.
OMG, that's the f*****g worst. I can't even imagine going from that high to that low in one week.
Load More Replies... I burned my draft card...and I am still proud to have done it. -Dr. M
God, these are awful. Thank you to all those who have served, or who are serving, in all countries.
I am forever grateful for those who fought so that we can be free. But the wars should never had been allowed to happen! Our world leaders should have been forced to talk to each other and find a peaceful solution. It breaks my heart to read how the veterans are treated. They sacrificed all and should get all the help they need. They are the real heroes. No more wars!
"Our world leaders should have been FORCED to talk to each other and find a peaceful solution.". I don't like war any more than you do, but please reflect on what you said.
Load More Replies... My dad served for 20+ years in Air Force. Saw travesties in the Gulf War, Bosinia War, rebuilding water sources in remote Turkey, Rwanda, and Saudi Arabia. Has so many medical problems know we cant keep up with the meds he is on. Doesn't help that tricare costs them so much each month. Suffers PTSD from his service and the abuse and neglect he suffered from his father and step being in nam. Yay military.
And thus is NOT any news. Its been known for at the least since ww1 that war is litterarly tearing people apart weather you survive the war itself or not. How come people still doing that stupid thing?
Tragic. These people, full of wonders and life, dying because they are viewed as expendible pawns. War is like a vampire, slowly draining the life out of the victims.
I have PTSD from Iraq, not an American, and in a bi-kcombat role, but still broken. I am currently being treated by a psychologist, using an eye movement therapy. It's going well, but the in between times are tough. To everyone out there suffering, war related or not, it's ok to not be ok. It's ok to ask for help. It's ok that the biggest thing you achieved today was having a shower- well done for getting that far! I hope you find hope, I hope you know you are loved, and I hope.... I hope the hurting stops. It hurts so bad
I served 4 tours in Afganistan, Somalia, and 2 in Iraq as an Army Ranger. I believe that people who enlisted went through because they wanted to serve. Why else would they join? They were assigned to go on a tour somewhere because that is what they signed up to do. While doing the process, they would have read the terms and contracts and they knew the risks. With the living veterans, all we can do is offer support, and with the deceased, all we can do is remember what they sacrificed, thank them for their lives and our freedom.
It is quite sad to read these experiences. I served in Vietnam in combat for 2 years, had command over 150, did not know of any with PTSD. My younger brother died of Agent Orange effects. War obviously effects some more than others. I have gone on to have 7 successful children, 24 grands and 35 great-grands. I may be the some soldiers come in too young. Our nation needs to assure better care for those and their families who suffer. Colonel-St...d9ce9d.jpg
I agree. My Dad enlisted right after Pear Harbor at age 29. He served in 2 invasions. He spoke generally of the war but not specifically of his experiences. He was a great husband, father, grandfather. Will say that the VA and the system to help veterans let him down on his return - but he was strong and just kept going. I do think age has something to do with it and the fact that the US was attacked. I think that veterans should be able to go to any doctor and any hospital to get good care.
Load More Replies... No help or rememberance or thanks or public holidays for Australian Vietnam Vets..my biological dad just bottled it up and had zero treatment. He’s a jerk because of it..nobody talks about it at all and it’s a damn shame :
One thing I don't understand, why is the US army is still attractive to people as they are treated as canon meat.
I served during peace time (Ha! Ha!) , but the one thing that really stuck home for me was during my in briefing at RAF Upper Hayford 1981. The whole room was told that as far as any one there was concerned was that we are above all else "MERCENARIES", because we accepted money to serve a government in its defense. After I later was discharged from service I could feel the eyes of people following me, and when searching for work hearing "Oh, I see you were in the military. We'll back to you", an sometimes hearing under there breath things like "Babykiller, psycho, or my least favorite.... Walking dead". Then you are expected to be proud of the country that you have sacrificed so much for either in peace, or battle. My apologies for rambling on, but it infuriates me to no end about honoring our service men, when so few even have a clue what we go through. What's the difference between RIGHT and WRONG, when even our own self-serving government doesn't know?
I don’t know a sane person who was or is in the military. Every single one who was deployed came back different.
Many people in the comments complain about how upsetting this is to read. How is it to live through? To die through? These people had to face all this. The least you can do is wish them well, and stop whining for your virtual tears. To anyone who has had to face this; I hope things get better one day.
Yes, the soldiers are treated horrifically by the government and it's a shame. That said, I have an honest question: What the f**k were these people expecting? Glory? Thrills? It's war. It's watching your friends die and seeing the absolute worst in humanity and it's always been that way and before going in they knew it was life-and-death etc. I'm sure they all heard about "shell shocked" WWI soldiers, so again, to all the undrafted volunteers who went willingly: what the f**k did you expect? To see dudes arms and legs get blown off and to kill people who are just as scared as you are , only to come home and mow the lawn and go to PTA meetings?
Sorry if I may be ignorant, but what exactly is agent orange? Also, I know many here love Pixie and Brutus, so if you go to pet_foolery on Instagram the author posted some great fan comics related to Brutus's PTSD
"Agent Orange was a powerful herbicide used by U.S. military forces during the Vietnam War to eliminate forest cover and crops for North Vietnamese and Viet Cong troops. ... Agent Orange, which contained the deadly chemical dioxin, was the most commonly used herbicide." (https://www.history.com/topics/vietnam-war/agent-orange-1)
Load More Replies... I’m so glad that military families in Australia is nowhere near as common as In US. I told my hubby that if he ever enlisted for the military it is bye bye. Thankfully he has zero interest. I know of 2 people who have fought in the war, one came back in a box and the other has significant hearing loss and was discharged. I don’t know any other effects coz I barely know him. Whilst I feel extremely sad that these lives have been taken or people suffering ill effects. the fact of the matter is this is a choice that the individuals made (except for compulsory enlisting).
My ex is in the Australian army, and they're definitely treated better here than in the US post tour. He has been to Afghanistan twice, and was well looked after upon his return. It's not exactly a bed of roses, but from what I've read and seen, much more care is taken in regards to mental and physical health for our military here. Between the US's lack of available healthcare (unless you've got the $$), and the debt incurred from student loans, I'm so incredibly glad to be Australian.
Load More Replies... This both gives me HUGE respect for all veterans and takes away any sense of pride in my country. When we treat our young men as objects to be tossed in front of a bullet and/or driven insane by being tossed in front of said bullet, we lose all sense of humanity.
My grampa on my dads side ofught in africa in ww2. Ive never met him and im pretty sure hes dead. If he is, my dad doesnt ever really tell me how he died. By now i dont want to know.
All I could was read these posts . I can't even give up votes because it would feel like I were saying "Yeah!", when that feels wrong because there are no yeahs or no applause or no....words. I am just so sorry ....so sorry that so many had to suffer. So sorry
People keep saying that we need to take care of our veterans like we can "fix" them after they come home. There is one way to avoid the problem, and one way only. The leaders of our various countries need to stop sending innocent men and women to fight obscene and evil battles in the name of "freedom"or "defending our country" when it's almost always about control of natural resources. (Did you know about fossil fuels in Vietnam? Look it up.) We need to stop war. We need to stop selling the idea of war as something that brave and selfless people do. It's a cattle train of slaughter and the people that survive it are left irrevocably broken. The stories above are the most real stories, but they are the ones we don't hear. Even when the cause of a war seems valid (WWII for example), the fallout from it is always horrific and problematic: think, the Iron Curtain, rise of "Communism", Holocaust denial, Israel/Middle East issues. Sorry for the long post. I have strong feelings on this.
I am completely wrecked with these testimonies. How is it possible that the people do not see through this trap? US politicians waging endless wars across the Planet, hurting, maiming, killing, destroying everyone, the soldiers and the civilians, entire families, and for what? To keep 400K young men yearly off the US streets, since they have no access to higher education and jobs? To keep the military industry complex churning more billions every year on destructive weaponry and invented made up conflicts? All that remains is pain, destruction and lies, too many people being left behind for profits, a blood trail of suffering, PTSD and damaged families. Too sad, too savage, too primitive for this day and age. We should do better, as humans, and decide to abstain from participating in this criminal madness.
Going to go see some cat memes, that's the only thing that can cheer me up, wish I could say the same for the affected.
And to just think that the U.S.A. army has 1,375,000 active people and 875,000 people in reserves.
I am grateful that my father fought in 'Nam, came back and re-enlistsed twice. 23 years he server his country, I got a wonderful education, Dad's job wasn't easy, but he loved his country and served it well. My BF also served in Navy, his father the AF, my nephew the AF .. all have been to war. All have shadows, yet I don't think one regrets it for a moment. They all cope differently, it changed them yes.. Does our country need to step up after care, f**k yes they do. But we as a community and family need to also step up, learn and help when we can ..even if it's just being there with them. My father's last duty station, his job.. to inform the families their loved one wasn't coming home. Took me along time to understand how hard that must have been for him. I will stand and support every service man - no matter his Creed, color, religion or reason for joining. You signed that blank check.. I am in your debt and I have your so here at home.
My granhid dad, served in the wwll when he came hom hise he began to drink beat and a child molester, in 82 he was arrested for molesting me, and went to a state hospital where they put him under hypnosis, and they told me mon, that he was not who we thought he was, but never told us who he was because it was against the private act as a patient.
That’s why it’s called “serving” it’s not pretty and it’s why we are supposed to thank our soldiers and veterans.
Are you being serious? This is one of the stupidest things I have ever read
Load More Replies... You so do not know what you are talking about! Apartheid South Africa was propped up by the USA to fight a proxy war to keep the USSR out. Meanwhile up in Zaïre, Mobutu Seseseko was installed by the USA and he killed his rivals mercilessly.
Load More Replies... ....The actual Army's Twitter posted this ahead of Memorial Day. Would a better time be Halloween or something?
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