Supporting the troops…

…means hanging in long after leaving the battlefield. I've heard forever, though I can't cite a reliable source off the top of my head, that more Vietnam vets have committed suicide since their return than died in country. Maybe it's not so, but it certainly sounds credible, and no one has ever challenged in over my years of barroom punditry.

It's even more credible in light of this…

The Army says its overall suicide rate in 2003 was 12.8 per 100,000 active-duty soldiers, while the rate in the general U.S. population was 10.5 per 100,000, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

With rotation, how many hundred thousands of troopers have cycled through the Bush war? How many extra dozens of deaths?

Damn.


Hat tip to Holden at First Draft.