After the recent tradgedy in Ft. Hood and the increased suicide statistics I have to wonder if we are pushing our troops too hard. With high pressure assignments, back to back deployments, extreamly tough standards to keep a career going. Opinions?

Absolutely!

But keep in mind there are veterans from other wars with PTSD also!

I personally am too 'mad' at the moment about comments and other things related to this topic. So, my opinion may not be a professional and rational one at the moment.

Yea I am having a real hard time with my anger at the guy who did this. Once you are part of the Army "family" this kind of betrayal is hard to process.

I know the Muslim community not far from where I live is terrified by the reaction some people will put out there. So sad they are not supporting what he did anyway.

Since the change to an all volunteer force, the armed services has been advertised as if they were just another career choice, like working for General Motors or any other large company. It's not.
People joined up with the idea that they were going to work as mechanics or technicians, paid well, and given gobs of money to continue their education. This is especially true for people who signed up for the guard and reserves, and who thought they would only have to play Army for one weekend a month and get a nice check to help them raise their kids.
The military is not a boys club. It can be a very high stress, extremely dangerous way to make a few bucks and perhaps see a bit of the world.
Now with fighting going on for over eight years and no end in sight, people who thought they were going to have a free ride on the government are finding out that war truly is he!!. And of course some of them are cracking under the pressure.

91 lima here 25th I.D. 86-92...... the unfortunate thing is the reality why the military does push so hard! it's to protect the ones who can keep up and weed out the ones who can't. the cruel reality is it saves lives even though it costs some!

the incident you speak of though had nothing to do with military and everything to with an islamic whacko! forever RED WHITE and BLUE! huah!

The welfare of the many outranks that of the few.

I don't know if we are pushing our troops to hard that is hard to answer, but with all the stress that is going on right now it could just be alot of pressure to deal with.

As I was at work I heard that there was another shooting incident in orlando but last I heard the suspect was caught.

What is this world coming to.....

I spent 2 years in the army in country, combat is HELL!!! The Majpr that snapped just had too much and told his superiors so, NO ONE can prepare U for the horrors of war, It NEVER goes away!!

Yea that is why I do not support ROTC programs. High school students and college students are too young to be enlisting in the military. I think they should at least be 21.

I also blame the pressure on recruiters. I do know a recruiter told my son he could suppress his long mental health record and actually enlisted my profoundly handicapped 19 year old. It was his call from boot camp that I knew he was even in.

I am fairly sure his older wife who had been discharged was hopeing he would pass long enough to collect his life insurance. She was really peeved that she did not collect his enlistment bonus.

Thankfully they pulled him out of his bunk where he openly admidtted he was planning to kill his DI and burn down the barracks. It was pretty frightening that had the Army not put him in medical hold until he was discharged and bussed home many young soldiers could have died. (Also had he not been adopted by an Army guy and his extensive medical issues documented in their system they would have probably discounted my demands to had him evaluated. It would have taken much longer for me to provide them. Thankfully I had Officers who could also call and back what I reported or it may
have been totally ignored. )

Which is pretty much what they do with any of their mental health discharges. Since they can't force treatment after discharge it saves a lot for the insurance company that underwrites Champus insurance.

then you can't blame the few.

I was in a conversation with someone about this topic last night.

He and I agreed, the Army especially, is under so much pressure. There is not enough support for military staff and soldiers; there isn't enough money to fund their mental health, and they are left to internalize the consequences of policy makers, their mistakes, and the aftermath.

I LOVE my country but I do not always trust my government.

Homeland Security will be investigating this incident -- make no mistake about that -- but for now, we need to mourn those we lost, and who were injured, due to his horrible display of domestic terrorism.

Perfectly said, thank you!

hard not to assume when you think so secular of your own beneficiaries, open minded is the ability to view a situation from the perspective of the opposing factions. i don't think your all the way there yet.. really close though just gotta keep chipping away at those bloody Islams, boy would the world be just a super awesome rainbow carnival ride if we got rid of those fellas.

Yea, wouldn't it be fun if we were all exactly the same?

yep i motion all television broadcast be in the color of red white and blue.

It would be great if EVERYONE was as perfect as us, HUH? Maybe we should include Hitler, Stalin,and all the other perfect "white" people that has spread their idea of perfection in history!!

hitler and hollocaust never happened

We are not fighting a war agaist Islam we are fighting a war against
terrorists that happen to be useing the Islam as one of there many devices to hide their activities. Just like they do schools, hospitals, banking, and computers. Just the way Christianity has been used to spout bigotry and politics from the pulpit rather than Christ's teachings. Calling this guy and "Islamic"- whaco is offensive.

Is this a serious comment?

oh dear lord, never!