Time 'to give a damn' about vets' mental health - ex-gen.
BY RICHARD SISK
DAILY NEWS WASHINGTON BUREAU
Sunday, October 14th 2007, 4:00 AM
WASHINGTON - They were an unlikely bunch of soldiers to be making the case for the "talking cure" before Congress last week. They once dismissed it as a copout for shirkers and wimps.
"Absolutely, we've gone through a transition" over the years, said retired Marine Maj. Gen. James Livingston, who wears the Medal of Honor from Vietnam.
"Now I'm a believer in early intervention" by therapists in the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder, the diagnosis for what was called battle fatigue or shell shock in wars gone by, Livingston said.
He was with 12 other decorated heroes appointed to the special Veterans Disability Benefits Commission as they presented the findings of their two-year study to the House Veterans Committee.
The commission had 113 recommendations for reforming how the military and Veterans Administration cope with disabled troops. They called for hikes of up to 25% in disability payments, and increased funding and programs for PTSD treatment.
Retired Army Lt. Gen. James Terry Scott, chairman of the commission, said the current system "is so complicated that it's a wonder anyone can get a claim processed."
Another problem the commission uncovered, Scott said, was that "the VA really didn't know as much as they needed to know about PTSD."
The VA system is overloaded. Waiting periods for appointments at VA regional centers now average 177 days. At Veterans Benefits Administration offices, which assign disability ratings, the waits stretch to more than two years.
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This is who is speaking out for vetearns with PTSD.
Vietnam War Congressional Medal of Honor Recipient
Maj. Gen. James Everett Livingston USMC
Rank and organization: Captain, U.S. Marine Corps, Company E, 2d Battalion, 4th Marines, 9th Marine Amphibious Brigade. place and date: Dai Do, Republic of Vietnam, 2 May 1968. Entered service at: McRae, Ga. Born: 12 January 1940, Towns, Telfair County, Ga.
Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as Commanding Officer, Company E, in action against enemy forces.
Company E launched a determined assault on the heavily fortified village of Dai Do, which had been seized by the enemy on the preceding evening isolating a marine company from the remainder of the battalion. Skillfully employing screening agents, Capt. Livingston maneuvered his men to assault positions across 500 meters of dangerous open rice paddy while under intense enemy fire. Ignoring hostile rounds impacting near him, he fearlessly led his men in a savage assault against enemy emplacements within the village. While adjusting supporting arms fire, Capt. Livingston moved to the points of heaviest resistance, shouting words of encouragement to his marines, directing their fire, and spurring the dwindling momentum of the attack on repeated occasions. Although twice painfully wounded by grenade fragments, he refused medical treatment and courageously led his men in the destruction of over 100 mutually supporting bunkers, driving the remaining enemy from their positions, and relieving the pressure on the stranded marine company.
As the 2 companies consolidated positions and evacuated casualties, a third company passed through the friendly lines launching an assault on the adjacent village of Dinh To, only to be halted by a furious counterattack of an enemy battalion. Swiftly assessing the situation and disregarding the heavy volume of enemy fire, Capt. Livingston boldly maneuvered the remaining effective men of his company forward, joined forces with the heavily engaged marines, and halted the enemy's counterattack Wounded a third time and unable to walk, he steadfastly remained in the dangerously exposed area, deploying his men to more tenable positions and supervising the evacuation of casualties. Only when assured of the safety of his men did he allow himself to be evacuated. Capt. Livingston's gallant actions uphold the highest traditions of the Marine Corps and the U.S. Naval Service.
http://www.medalofhonor.com/JamesLivingston.htm
Are you any braver than he is? Do you think you are able to judge those who have had their minds wounded? Do you think that they are "phony soldiers" or "slackers" or "cowards" when this Medal Of Honor general does not? Are you still trying to search your brain for more reasons to dismiss this wound that every human on the planet can and does suffer from after trauma in different degrees? Have you gotten it into your head yet that they seek help and have trouble coping after their lives are no longer being risked by the military in combat? After combat is when everyone is just supposed to get on with their lives, but the men and women with PTSD cannot.
