When the War Comes Home

By Scott Galindez, Reader Supported News

21 July 14

ur military prides itself on training the best killing machine in the world. Training prepares young men and women for the physical and psychological needs of a soldier. Then those who actually go into combat, especially in elite units, are further programmed to kill or be killed.

What happens when they come home? For many, the adjustment is difficult. PTSD and other disorders scar them for life. I have a friend that I play an online game with. He co-founded a chapter of Iraq Veterans Against the War. He recently started a blog to express his emotions, to help him cope.

It wasn’t enough. On Saturday night my friend was in a fight in a local bar, defending himself against three others, when a police officer grabbed him from behind. He did not know it was the police and figured that more people were jumping into the fight against him. My friend is a Navy SEAL who spent an extensive amount of time in combat. His training kicked in, and the results were not pretty. Although he didn't receive many injuries from the original fight, it was the ensuing beating he received by the police that did the damage. Ultimately, he lost vision in one eye, amongst multiple injuries, and at this time a police officer lies in a coma.

As he said in his blog, the military’s answer is medication. That may work for some, but not all. My heart goes out the police officer and his family and friends. However, the police officer was not the only victim here. My friend was beaten down by the police for defending himself, and is now facing 40 years in prison. The prosecutor called him a loaded weapon that is unsafe to society. Who loaded that weapon?

My friend is a victim of our nation’s war machine. The wars are not just fought overseas. Our young men and women bring the wars home with them. We must do better to treat PTSD – and better yet, do just as good a job at preparing our young people for peace as we do for war.

Scott Galindez attended Syracuse University, where he first became politically active. The writings of El Salvador's slain archbishop Oscar Romero and the on-campus South Africa divestment movement converted him from a Reagan supporter to an activist for Peace and Justice. Over the years he has been influenced by the likes of Philip Berrigan, William Thomas, Mitch Snyder, Don White, Lisa Fithian, and Paul Wellstone. Scott met Marc Ash while organizing counterinaugural events after George W. Bush's first stolen election. Scott will be spending a year covering the presidential election from Iowa.

Reader Supported News is the Publication of Origin for this work. Permission to republish is freely granted with credit and a link back to Reader Supported News.