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The Wright Perspective℠
Social Commentary from the C-Suite to Main Street℠
A Blog by Gary Wright II
Our Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans
Monday, March 26th, 2012
Our veterans need your assistance! The hardest thing for warrior is to ask for help.
Our troops are coming home as broken spirits and each and every one of them will need support from their loved ones and their communities.
A friend from Atlanta just told me about an incident involving her boyfriend who just got back from Iraq. They were driving on I-285, which is a huge bypass around Atlanta, when her boyfriend slams on the brakes in the middle of the interstate. There was some debris on the side of the road and he thought it was an IED. Luckily, no one ran into them and they didn't cause another accident.
The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are like no previous wars. In Vietnam, they were fighting in jungles, so there aren't many things here to make them flash back to the war. In Iraq, they are fighting in cities, so after coming home they are surrounded by buildings that can cause a flash back at any time.
As our troops return home to us, please give them extra attention and help them make the transition back to civilian life.
Every veteran needs to seek counseling. If you go to a group session at the VA there are Vietnam era soldiers still struggling with the horrors of war. Many of our veterans will have to live with these burdens for the rest of their lives. It is just something you can never really "get over."
They fought on our behalf, so we should make every effort to see they are treated with dignity and are healed as much as possible, both physically and mentally. Just saying, "Thank you!" to them can go a long way.
Best regards,
-- Gary Wright II