Is Camp Liberty the tragedy that will end the excuses?

by
Chaplain Kathie

Is this the tragedy that will end the excuses? Is this the moment in time when the military invests the same kind of training and time they put into sending soldiers into combat to make sure they are sending them home with the help they need to heal from it?

The military has finally come a long way from the days of chain of command not only ignoring this wound but taking it out on the wounded. Sadly, there are still too many either dismissing it or still taking it out on the men and women serving. You'd think they would all open their minds to learn about this wound they cannot see as they do when it comes to learning how to use weapons but too many still don't.

Some of the programs the military has are not working and in some cases making things worse, but they still use them. Battlemind training tells the troops they can train their brain to be "toughened" and in the process telling them anyone wounded by PTSD is wounded because they are just not tough enough, didn't prepare for battle and it's their fault. This is the beginning of the program and then they address what PTSD is but it's too late. The message has already been delivered. The only message that will sink in has been implanted. This adds to the stigma and brings a sense of shame onto their shoulders. They actually believe they can train their brains.

Instead of seeking help to heal as soon as they begin to experience the symptoms of PTSD, they try to fight it off. They have the ammunition to support this because of Battlemind and they go into denial. Anger comes out while pain sets in. They are wounded and feeling guilty because they are. Then they feel as if they are just not good enough, strong enough, tough enough to be able to stand next to the others not touched by what they also witnessed. They look at the men and women they serve with and wonder why the others are better than them. After all, the military can't be wrong about PTSD and they just must have not done a good enough job to prevent this. The problem is, the military has been totally wrong about PTSD for all these years. They have a lot to make up for.

What about today? What about the soldiers still thinking it's their fault? What about the families without a clue what PTSD is and what they can come home with? Military spouses will be the first to tell you they don't want to even think about this as they have so many other things to worry about. Yet this "worry" is something they can do something about if only they would learn what it is. Some units have begun to set up programs so that the soldiers and the spouses become fully aware of it but time will tell if these programs are any better than Battlemind training or not. How much time do we have? How many more will commit suicide because they were not trained to heal properly? How many more families will be left to grieve over needless deaths? This happened at a crisis center and there are more things coming out about this offering some clue as to why. Sgt. Russell will be able to speak on what was going on and what was behind this but there seems to be he had a sense of denial about what was going on with him. If this career solider had the wrong idea about PTSD, could that have been so embedded within him that he was willing to do anything to prove the doctors wrong and stop them from "insulting him" because of this denial? We'll have to wait to hear what he has to say as the investigation goes on but the five dead were either seeking help or trying to help, so clearly, they understood the need to seek help, but Russell still didn't.

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE BUENO-GALDOS FAMILY
Sgt. Christian E. Bueno-Galdos, 25, was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 66th Armor Regiment, 172nd Infantry Brigade, Grafenwoehr, Germany. He was a Paterson resident and one of the victims of the deadly Monday soldier-on-soldier shooting.

Paterson soldier slain at Camp Liberty shooting wanted to study medicine
by Tomas Dinges/For The Star-Ledger
Wednesday May 13, 2009, 1:44 PM




The Department of Defense today identified Paterson resident Sgt. Christian E. Bueno-Galdos as one of the five victims of the deadly shooting Monday at Camp Liberty in Iraq.

Bueno-Galdos is survived by his wife, Greisyn Bueno, his mother, Eugenia Galdos, his father, Carlos Bueno, two brothers and a sister.

"We will never forget him," said his mother. "He was always a very good kid, and we love him a lot."

Bueno-Galdos, 25, the second youngest of four children, emigrated from Mollendo, Peru when he was about 7 years old.

"He was a great kid, very studious," said Carlos Bueno, his father. "Almost everything that he wanted, he achieved."

Bueno-Galdos was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 66th Armor Regiment, 172nd Infantry Brigade, Grafenwoehr, Germany; this was his second tour in Iraq.

"SSG Bueno-Galdos was an excellent leader," said Bruce Anderson, a spokesman for the U.S. Army, in an e-mail. "His dedication to duty, to his family and to his faith was an inspiration to us all. His love for country and friends were a model for all of us to follow. His presence will be missed by all the soldiers of the Task Force Black Knights."

Bueno-Galdos's awards include: Army Commendation Medal (Two Oak Leave Cluster), Army Good Conduct medal, National Defense Service Medal, Iraqi Campaign Service Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon, and Overseas Service Ribbon.

Camp Liberty, where the deadly shooting took place in Baghdad, is operated by the 55th Medical Company, a Reserve unit headquartered in Indianapolis.
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