An Unrecognized Cost of War

I've always believed that war isn't good for anyone. The true cost is never known, at least never considered, especially when preparing for the next one. And the winner doesn't bother to consider the cost they have paid, except for the soldiers that didn't come back or the amount the nation has gone into debt financially. But in this present war there are costs that are especially obvious that goes beyond body count and billions of dollars.

The cost that seems to be for the first time recognized by the nation that considers itself the winner are the thousands of soldiers that are suffering mental and emotional disability. I have heard one third as the percentage of combat troops who are disabled or crippled by mental trauma. And another figure I heard today is that last year 140 military personnel commited suicide. This year they project the number to exceed that. This number does not include veterans, only those presently still in the armed forces. Plus each one of these casualties represents families, mothers, fathers, spouses, children, and others who whose lives are damaged or devastated by the agony of grief and added burden.

The armed forces admit that they do not have enough trained counselors to handle the number who need help. Further, one counselor who was interviewd on PBS said the purpose of their counseling was to return them to their unit as soon as possible. If being in their unit is the source of their problem how can they hope to regain mental health by returning?

It seems to me that clear thinking people who are considering the use of war as an effective instrument of dealing with problems would say that perhaps war has a cost that makes it too expensive to use, at least when there is another option available. The manufacturer whose equipment seriously injured one third of its employees would be forced to devise another way of making its product or close down.

I would be ready to help paint the sign: War Closed Until It Becomes Safe.