What is Digg?240 Comments
- chdodd2012, on 05/14/2008, -2/+51I think that would be changing the definition of the purple heart. Maybe a different award could be given- PTSD is an awful thing to live with.
- coffeebot, on 05/14/2008, -4/+39Shouldn't they receive the Purple Brain?
- chanop, on 05/14/2008, -4/+44"Here's a purple heart, now go deal with your problems elsewhere"
- crapmatic, on 05/14/2008, -8/+44"Can psychological traumas, no matter how debilitating, be considered equivalent to dismembering physical wounds?"
Gee, didn't we learn anything about shell shock in World War I? Seeing one of your buddies blown up surely is more traumatic in the long run than a gunshot wound through the arm. - inactive, on 05/14/2008, -39/+71Old Vet: "I have a bullet wound from fending off 50 Nazis"
New Vet: "Yeah? Well, I cried a whole lot" - jfarabaugh, on 05/14/2008, -8/+34You’re a Douche bag!!
Since my wife is a doctor on a PTSD unit at a VA hospital I can tell you how bad PTSD can mess up a persons life….little things like going to a barbecue can cause a mental breakdown since the smell of cooking meat reminds them of their friends bodies burning after a road side IED went off. - pershingdriver, on 05/14/2008, -1/+24Instead of a medal how about we live up to our responsibility as a nation to our combat veterans and get them the care they need to live full lives. As a nation we should hang our heads in shame for continuing to allow the VA hospital system to treat our veterns this way.
- jezsik, on 05/14/2008, -0/+16Instead of giving them bowling trophies, maybe we could, oh, I dunno, TAKE CARE OF THEM instead?
- exomni, on 05/14/2008, -9/+26***** you and everyone who's digging you up.
- exomni, on 05/14/2008, -1/+16How about we actually give them decent ***** medical treatment first.
- NailerNforce, on 05/14/2008, -3/+18"I got my psyche ***** up and all I got was this lousy medal."
- inactive, on 05/14/2008, -3/+19As someone who has served honorably for the Marine Corps in Afghanistan, I can tell you that, at least most Marines, don't look too kindly on purple hearts anyway, so let these fellas have them.
The idea of the purple heart is good, but for every Marine or Soldier injured by an enemy grenade, there are two who fell down and broke their ankle, or shot themselves in the foot that get one as well.
They really only mean something to civilians. - inactive, on 05/14/2008, -1/+14They support the troops, but only the ones that are in movies.
- BohicaTwentyTwo, on 05/14/2008, -1/+14PTSD is a serious problem that has been around as long as warfare, but that doesn't mean we should hand out medals for it. If a soldier is injured or killed in a non-combat related accident, he doesn't get a medal. I do not think this would have the effect they intend.
Life is unfair sometimes. Military life doubly so. Embrace the suck. - TheSavant, on 05/14/2008, -1/+13Rest assured I did not crack under the strain of battle. That is not how PTSD works. I'm not asking for a medal. I have enough. I would like people to know more about PTSD. The ***** is for real. Your post, and many others like it, are good examples of why we get treated like ***** by our peers and the general public. PTSD doesn't come from a "weak" mind. Your odds of getting it are the same as mine. Well, except for the combat thing. That ups the odds a little.
- HarryBauzonia, on 05/14/2008, -2/+15Great.
The Army made black berets mean nothing by giving them to everyone, and now they want to purple heart to either mean nothing or taint it with the stigma of mental illness.
We need tighter requirements for awarding medals, not looser ones. And while I'm on the subject, how about we stop automatically labeling as heroes people who are paid to do certain jobs. That term has no meaning at all anymore because of its over-use. I'm a vet, so I know all too well that wearing a uniform doesn't change your personality or make you an instant hero. Heroes jump on live grenades or throw themselves into a sea-state 4 ocean to save drowning kids.
Reporting to work in a clean uniform at the supply office at 8 every morning is not heroic. Writing speeding tickets or putting out a fire at a hardware store isn't heroic either.....but I digress.
Opening up the standards for receiving a purple heart is stupid. Chest candy is supposed to mean something, but the desk-sitters think it's supposed to make your uniform look pretty.. - removesstains, on 05/14/2008, -17/+31This is lame. So that means the purple heart will lose its meaning. Another slap in the face to people that got physically wounded in war.
- JoeVet, on 05/14/2008, -4/+15At least he did his duty unlike you GOP chickenhawks.
- Charun, on 05/14/2008, -0/+9In WW2 the RAF called it Lack of Moral Fibre. They wanted to attach a stigma to it so it wouldn't be reported.
- litkaj, on 05/14/2008, -1/+10Seeing on a screen where you know it's fake and experiencing in person are completely different things. I'm surprised you haven't been dug down yet.
- Tyr7BE, on 05/14/2008, -7/+17Indeed - I'm pretty sure a lot of solid old dudes who performed ridiculous acts of bravery would be pissed to see kids getting the same award that they did, but because they couldn't take the heat.
- ellabee, on 05/14/2008, -3/+11That was ***** heartless and narrow-minded. Hope you stay in Happy-Land for the rest of your life.
- socalmarine0311, on 05/14/2008, -1/+9I've been diagnosed with PTSD and I would feel horrible if they gave me a purple heart for it. That's *****. Mental problems are not the same thing as being hit by an IED or small arms fire. They need to keep the regs the way they are, or make them tighter. Just like when my unit started handing out Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medals like candy...they stopped meaning anything. It was just like, "Oh, you have a NAM, too? Cool, 17 of my friends have those."
- matschig, on 05/14/2008, -2/+11How?
- spaceddaisy, on 05/14/2008, -0/+9PTSD is not cracking under the stress of battle, PTSD and many of the other psychological problems they are dealing with come AFTER the battles, after trying to fit in 'at home' again, dealing with memories of seeing your buddies die, of trying to save someone, but being just too late.
Thanks TheSavant for your service and I hope picking up your life again is going well for you. I know from second hand what it's like, trying to get my man back on his feet and living life again after two tours in Iraq. - jezsik, on 05/14/2008, -4/+13Well, in that case, I suppose ol' Bushie will want to create a pre-traumatic stress medal for those who bravely avoided traumatic stress by ducking out of action completely.
- Anonchrist, on 05/14/2008, -4/+13I know of quite a few soldiers that dislike the purple heart. To them it is a sign of shame and a reminder that they failed. (Then again that is probably a result of a psychological disorder.) Still, if they made it a different award then it might be insulting... Well, here is your you are a ***** nut-case award... Sad yes, but would someone laugh at it?
- inactive, on 05/14/2008, -2/+9Many choose the lead bullet medication.
- pennvneff, on 05/14/2008, -0/+8You can take that purple heart and shove it up Dubya's ass.
You want to do right for our brothers and sisters who risk everything to fight for Iraqi freedom? Get them the kind of tools that make a difference, things like armor for the troops. Don't send our bravest and the best into do a job unequipped.
And make sure they get all the proper treatment once they get back home. There are way too many of them coming back with PTSD that goes unchecked which is leading to way too damn many suicides. And how about make sure that our vets get all the proper medical treatment for their wounds too? Our VA hospitals are a joke and it's really embarrassing how ***** we treat our soldiers after they come back.
Also McCain how about signing off on that new GI bill?
They deserve better. - orbcolin, on 05/14/2008, -10/+17It's not being considered for crying, but for lifelong debilitating emotional pain. There is a big difference.
- maldovix, on 05/14/2008, -0/+6do they cure physical ones either?
- socalmarine0311, on 05/14/2008, -0/+6"Here mister pussy ass bitch boy, heres your purple heart because you got scared and it gives you nightmares"
If you're calling us pussies, you have no idea what it's like. - inactive, on 05/14/2008, -2/+9"next thing you know they will be given out Purple Hearts to soldiers that have fell out of trucks"
They already do. - FlagrantDrugUse, on 05/14/2008, -1/+7While I agree with you about not expanding the criteria of the Purple Heart, I don't agree that they should receive "recognition" (in the form of a medal or award or something like that) for mental wounds. Rather, they should receive counseling and treatment. I'm not trying to downplay the severity of PTSD, it's indeed just as traumatic if not more so than being grievously injured, but to me it seems like more of a thing that needs to be treated by doctors and counselors, not something you get a brain-shaped medal for. If it were me in that situation, I don't think I would want a medal signifying the mental illness I am trying to recover from.
- coffeebot, on 05/14/2008, -0/+7i got a sticker when i voted!
- inactive, on 05/14/2008, -1/+7Purple heart. AKA the enemy marksmanship medal.
- Marinium, on 05/14/2008, -0/+6Wow. Congratulations! I don't usually slam the individual for their comments but that has got the be one of the most sincerely stupid things I've ever seen anyone post. Good Job on that at least.
- jasdf, on 05/14/2008, -4/+9This is a horrible thing to do. This will greatly diminish the significance of the Purple Heart just like the significance of the Air Medal has been diminished. Back in WWII thousands died before they could fly 20 combat missions to receive an Air Medal and here I am with 6 air medals and I have never been shot at once. It really is a shame that our highest military decorations have been diluted so much.
- ElectricC0wb0y, on 05/14/2008, -0/+5If they gave this award out, then it would be to make the American people feel better (or even just the soldiers families). Not the soldiers themselves.
- yunus, on 05/14/2008, -0/+6I would not be offended if it was given out to people truly suffering from it but this would open a flood gate of medals handed out and degrade the medal to just something that is given out for going to the shrink. I know at least 1 people who faked PTSD to get out of work, this was while I was Active duty Air Force.
- ReligionOfPeace, on 05/14/2008, -0/+5no blood, no ribbon. I don't want one. I just wish they'd pick up the tab for the anti-psychotics.
- inactive, on 05/14/2008, -8/+14The purple heart never had much meaning, for every combat wounded veteran, there was some idiot who broke his ankle ***** around in a combat area, or shot himself in the foot that gets one as well.
- TheSavant, on 05/14/2008, -0/+6Actually yes, things are picking up. I had a rough few years, but things are getting better. Thanks for saying something! I hope your troop is getting the hang of things again.
- SgtBulldog, on 05/14/2008, -0/+6Semper Fi, fellow devil dog. I served in Iraq and certainly agree. There are some people who were truly injured by enemy fire, but many who receve Purple Hearts have done so by just doing something stupid like picking up and throwing around unexploded ordnance.
- akula89, on 05/14/2008, -1/+6Source?
- jessehadden, on 05/14/2008, -0/+4I am for this, but I have a better idea... end the war, and bring those poor bastards home. "Like the rat said, 'Keep the cheese -- I just want out of the maze.'"
- Sinscriven, on 05/14/2008, -1/+6The purple heart is symbolic of honoring a person's sacrifice in service of their country; I'd bet that if there was a "pink heart" it'd be more like a brand of insanity than one of respect. Who's going to be proud of wearing the "I'm not mentally stable" medal?
I don't see why it should be separated. One's sanity is just as valid a sacrifice as one's shot arm, or amputated leg, probably even more so. You can live with a lost limb, or even get a new one, but nobody can fix your mind and emotions; and medications are just a way to keep you in a sedated dreamland and out of your own reality. - DavidS9, on 05/14/2008, -0/+4No one should ever be OK with losing a friend or killing someone but it is a necessary evil of war. You just learn to deal with it.
- hakluytbean, on 05/14/2008, -0/+4Interesting to see the views that this award may be devalued by widening eligibility; to foreigners the Purple Heart already looks devalued through over-use. Many cultures seem to think that if you're wounded you've been a:) unlucky or b:) careless, and not everyone understands why either is deserving of a medal. 'Wound stripes' on the uniform maybe, but not a medal. I say if wounded = medal and psych injury = wound then what's the problem? Unless maybe some see an underlying problem with the award itself.
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