> to war veterans who suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder because it is not a physical wound.
By the same logic, mental illness is not really an illness. And if it happens as a result of war, it’s not serious enough to deserve a Purple Heart.
What a backward finding. The hack who decided this ought to be bastinadoed.
I have to agree with the Pentagon on this. The Purple Heart is awarded for physical wounds serious enough to require the attention of a medical officer (sorry, John Kerry). It also shows the recipient was under enemy fire.
A friend of mine had PTSD when she returned from Operation Iraqi Freedom. She never saw combat, was never under fire. She was an MP guarding isolated crossroads and looking for roadside mines. Yes, it was stressful.
I believe the whole purpose of the move to include PTSD is so it will be classed as a wound, and the number of wounded our esteemed media report can be increased.