A Pink
I 
You
Posted on 05/29/2008 12:57:57 PM PDT by KatyLoraleyVidales
I ran across an article in the Army Times regarding the issuing of giving Purple Hearts to individuals suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) sustained during combat. This appears to be the origin of much debate…
It seems to be that many members of the military want to continue distributing the award based on "singularly meritorious act of fidelity service" and that "a wound which necessitates treatment by a medical officer and which is received in action with an enemy, may, in the judgment of the commander authorized to make the award, be construed as resulting from a singularly meritorious act of essential service”.
Although I do think that PTSD is a side effect of battle, and deserves as much attention as other combat related injuries, I do not believe that a Purple Heart should be award solely on that basis. Personally, a few members of my family have been diagnosed with PTSD & they agree that what they endured during battle, does not warrant a Purple Heart.
It is my opinion that another medal, if the case need be, should be created to honor those individuals, but simply sticking them under the umbrella of the Purple Heart recipients, does not work to fit what George Washington meant when he created it.
John Stavast survived nine different North Vietnamese POW camps over his six years in captivity…
G.R. Williams was at Pearl Harbour, aboard the battleship West Virginia during the day that will forever live in infamy …
Roy Benavidez a Purple Heart & Medal of Honor recipient, came out of the Vietnam War as the most decorated veteran who served during that time.
Let us know what you think…at RightUpFront.Org...should the requirements for the Purple Heart be changed to include servicemen and women suffering from PTSD?
(Excerpt) Read more at rightupfront.org ...
PTSD is not a Purple Heart injury.
See I heart it was a “you forgot to DUCK!!” badge...Hmm interesting.
See I heard it was a “you forgot to DUCK!!” badge...Hmm interesting.
A Pink
I You
That just might work....
And I concur with them.
Why not? It can completely destroy the lives of some of its victims, and Purple Hearts have long been awarded for minor physical injuries that heal completely and have no long term impact on the person’s life. If PTSD is severe enough to require medical treatment, it’s every bit as significant as a bullet wound.
Purple Hearts = Enemy Marksmanship Badge
I call mine my dummy award. I was doing something dumb at the time.
Sometimess lasts a lot longer, too.
The Air Force and Navy Times newspapers are running articles about CONSIDERING this, but I was not aware that a decision had been made, one way or the other.
My opinion, whatever little it's worth, is that this is bogus; I have a son-in-law, an Air Force PJ (combat EMT) who was badly injured in a CH-47 crash in Afghanistan and, since it was due to equipment failure, not direct enemy action (although the reason they were in the air WAS as a direct result of enemy action), he does not get a Purple Heart. You oughtta see his scars and the xrays of the number of bones they put back together with titanium rods!!
Not only that, but he was so busted up after the crash that couldn't help a fellow serviceman who was begging for my son-in-law's help, by name, as he died; my son-in-law was forced to lay there in the wreckage and listen to his buddy pass away. What a bi*ch!
....but no Purple Heart....
Kerry could have gotten 4 purple hearts
Thankfully I’m not the ruling authority on this one, because itis a tough call...but I think ultimately I’d have to decide against it. Establishing that the PTSD was the direct result of enemy action would be next to impossible, and the retroactive claims from WWII, Korea, Vietnam, Grenada, Lebanon, Somalia, etc. would be an administrative nightmare.
I don’t think this should be done. create a different one for ptsd. ph is for spilled blood in enemy action. it’ just that simple.
That sounds like a totally inappropriate decision, and it’s hard to believe any medical doctor would actually diagnose PTSD resulting from that sort of work. But REAL PTSD can be completely disabling, in some cases permanently. Its physiological symptoms can be measured. And it has often broken up families when it’s unbearable and/or physically unsafe for a spouse and children to live with someone who keeps having sudden severe flashbacks causing violent or otherwise dangerous actions.
Para Rescue Ooh Rah!
You are right about the inappropriate decision, his son and I laugh about it.
I did drug and alcohol abuse counseling when I was in School, social sciences extra credit, after I got back from Viet Nam, I saw a lot of BS. I was an NCO in an Infantry Unit and did two tours, I will admit I was rather psychotic when I got back as were all of the people I grew up with, most of the people I knew were in Viet Nam.
We out grew it in a very short time but there were a few that blamed all of their problems on the military and their so called experiences, I am kind of a skeptic on this issue.
I completely agree with you on some aspects. PTSD can be, on some level, more harmful psychologically and emotionally than a scar or a lost arm...but the whole reason why the Purple Heart was brought in does not match the reasoning behind awarding the PH for PTSD.
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