Janese Johnson

Tomorrow, I will say goodbye to my son who is heading for Iraq.

They have told him that he will be deployed six months or a year, it just depends. So this week he is making amends to everyone he has ever offended or harmed, just in case, he says.

He is 21 years old, and he is preparing for the possibility of dying. My heart is aching, and I wonder as many are wondering, why are we still there in Iraq?

It is not just the fact that our country has completely destroyed Iraq and their way of life as they have known it, but that so many people from all over the world have suffered. Some people have argued that life for Iraqis under Saddam Hussein was so bad that they should appreciate us. There are over 1.2 million Iraqi refugees that would disagree with that thought. Not only are they suffering, but also the countries that they have fled to now have to deal with the burden of helping so many people.

We are now seeing the results that the war has had on many of our troops who are returning. A recent New York Times article reported that there have been 121 Iraq and Afghanistan veterans who have committed homicide in the United States since arriving back from war. A large number of our veterans are coming back home with post-traumatic stress disorder. According to a non-public report from the Department of Veterans Affairs that was sent to the Government Accountability Office, 52,375 veterans who fought in Iraq or Afghanistan and are now home have been treated or evaluated for PTSD by the department.

PTSD can be very serious, and can have devastating effects on everyone around. PTSD has commonly been associated with those who have been in war, but anyone who has undergone trauma can experience it. The person with PTSD can have a difficult time dealing with minor stress or situations and sounds that are associated with the traumatic event. One veteran recently killed two people who wanted to fight him because he “snapped” and ended up back in Iraq, in his mind. Other times the stress of a job can be difficult for someone with PTSD to handle. This affects our economy and our safety.

Anderson Cooper of CNN did a recent news piece on veterans and homelessness. Currently there are 600 homeless Iraq and Afghanistan veterans, and 200,000 homeless veterans from all the wars. Many of these homeless veterans have PTSD or other disabilities that prevent them from going back into a functioning life. The man Anderson Cooper interviewed was getting only $280 a month for disability, and could not live on that, so he was living in his car. Fortunately for him, with the help of CNN, he was able to get the benefits that he deserved so that he could live in an apartment.

But what about the other 200,000 homeless veterans who are not being fought for? Will they have to live a life in squalor because they wanted to serve our country, and got the bad end of the deal?

So as I say goodbye to my son tomorrow, I feel the grief that many people feel at seeing their child, partner, friend, family member or neighbor go into an unsafe place. And if there was a purpose for this madness, then maybe that would feel better — but since there is not, I can only feel angry at how this “war on terror” has merely made things in our country worse, not safer. Our economy, our safety, our global relations, and our young veterans are just some of the areas that have been devastated.

I hear so many say that we need to support our troops. So if we really want to support our troops, then we need to get them back home, and get them the services that they deserve to have. These wounds that this war has caused go deeper and wider than I think anyone can truly understand and know just yet. Unfortunately, time will show us the great disservice that we have put so many through.

And for what?

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Janese Johnson has been doing intuitive counseling nationally for more than 20 years. She may be contacted at janesej-at-buncombe.main.nc.us.