U.S. troops' stress level debated

[deadparrot]

WASHINGTON, July 12 (UPI) -- With the U.S. military investigating five alleged murder cases by troops in Iraq, debate is increasing over how much stress soldiers can endure before snapping.

Lawrence Provost, who deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq with the Army Reserve, told the Christian Science Monitor he suspects stress from repeated deployments played a role in the rise in criminal behavior.

"War can make you do terrible things," Provost said. "Multiple tours can be a catalyst for these sorts of things."

But author and retired Army Lt. Col. Ralph Peters disagreed, telling the Monitor that blaming repeated deployments "is trying to paint as an absolute something that is one factor among many," and "immediate stresses are much more important than the repeated deployments."

http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/view.php?StoryID=20060712-124327-3899r

[BOSSHOG]

1. The real stress is on bush's base

They have to clean their underwear to go to the next pro-war rally. they have to change their drive to town to avoid the recruiting station. They have to resist the temptation to touch his little daughter before the wife gets home from her second shift job. They have to avoid getting too drunk on Saturday so they can smell kinda good in church sunday morning. "Multiple tours" is exactly the cure for chickenhawkism.

I read an article yesterday where some yahoo conservative think tank says soldiers are faking PTSD to get benefits and because doctors are telling them to.

[Avalux]

2. Lt. Col. Ralph Peters loves to kill those insurgents -

he's a regular on Fox News, guest on the Bill O'Reilly show. He's also written many books - including "New Glory: Expanding America's Global Supremacy". :eyes: Anything this shill says is coming from a pro-war, pro-imperialism stance.

[saigon68]

4. He'd LOVE TO KILL this guy

[Jim__]

5. His response doesn't sound very well thought out.

What Provost said: "Multiple tours can be a catalyst for these sorts of things," doesn't sound at all like what Peteres claims: "... trying to paint as an absolute something that is one factor among many ...".

Calling something a catalyst doesn't sound like painting it as an absolute to me.

[tabasco]

3. Raaalf Peters never fired a shot in anger.

He was in a program in which he served in infantry as a lieutenant for maybe two years and then went to military intelligence.

He was never in combat but he claims to be an expert on it.

Typical Faux News phony, Bush ass-licker.

[frylock]

6. shtraight up REMF..

fuck him.

[Az_lefty]

7. LTC Peters is full of it...

"immediate stresses are much more important than the repeated deployments."

No way is this true. I've been in that Hell hole and it's the daily grind that gets to you. 24x7 for 12 months, it absolutely sucks. We had some scary shit happen but it was done and over with.

[Monkeyman]

8. 30,000 in Iraq with PTSD ON MEDS

Ya right Peters no stress