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White House to lift ban on military suicide condolences

No one was saying that.

Yes, someone did:

I think it's really disturbing that they ever put a ban on these letters. Servicemen and women are more likely than any other group to attempt suicide...perhaps there's some cause and effect going on there. How the hell does, "I'm sorry we're probably partially to blame for your family member trying to kill themselves...but since they did, **** you and your grief" make any sense?
 
Again, "Probably partially to blame" is not "omg, military, it's all your fault"

The military isn't to blame for these troops losing their marbles and offing themselves.

To answer the question, as to why the military didn't send condolence letters, it's because suicide is considered cowardice and the military doesn't reward cowardice, or any other substandard behavior. Soldiers who commit suicide dishonor themselves, their unit and their service.
 
To answer the question, as to why the military didn't send condolence letters, it's because suicide is considered cowardice and the military doesn't reward cowardice, or any other substandard behavior. Soldiers who commit suicide dishonor themselves, their unit and their service.


The Pentagon disagrees with you. The military didn't send letters to their familes because they feared it would encourage more soldiers to commit suicide.

As I pointed out, some peole think that mental illness is a character flaw. Some of these people are so deluded that they imagine the Pentagon shares their delusion
 
The Pentagon disagrees with you. The military didn't send letters to their familes because they feared it would encourage more soldiers to commit suicide.

As I pointed out, some peole think that mental illness is a character flaw. Some of these people are so deluded that they imagine the Pentagon shares their delusion

Now, where in the hell did you get that from? :lamo
 
Now, where in the hell did you get that from? :lamo

White House Changes Military Condolence Letter Policy « VOA Breaking News

In the past the military had not sent out condolence letters for suicides because authorities feared recognizing such deaths would encourage more suicides.

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/2011/07/president-reverses-course-on-condolence-letters.html

The decision reverses a longstanding policy that had been implemented based on fears in some military circles that recognizing such deaths would encourage more suicides.

:lamo :lamo :lamo :lamo
 
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The military isn't to blame for these troops losing their marbles and offing themselves.

To answer the question, as to why the military didn't send condolence letters, it's because suicide is considered cowardice and the military doesn't reward cowardice, or any other substandard behavior. Soldiers who commit suicide dishonor themselves, their unit and their service.

Well that is certainly a good description of the tradition, apdst. Suicide has been kept in the realm of taboo by most western cultures I think.

I do think that since tradition is being broken in our military where winning is no longer the goal there is bound to be terrible confusions for soldiers trained to fight and win. We have a president, you know, who doesn't like the *wince* word "victory." So arrogant. . . so barbaric. . . Better send the soldiers to make friends.

I'm sure he preferrs T-ball to baseball too so that every child has a chance to hit the ball.
 
Yes, someone did:

Again, "Probably partially to blame" is not "omg, military, it's all your fault"

See the explanation that I think pretty much every one else understood except you? A better way to put what she said, and possible even closer to being what she meant, was that the stress of being in the military and all that goes with it was probably partly to entirely part of the reason the suicide happened. it's not that the military did something wrong, but that does not change that being in the military, especially in the last 10 years or so, is a high stress environment that can lead to people committing suicide.

I don't think she meant her comment as "OMGzorz, the military is so terrible, they are making our young people kill themselves", but that she was acknowledging the role being in the military might have in people killing themselves.
 
The word victory has little meaning in a situation where there is little to win. We're nation building in both Iraq and Afghanistan, and we have spent a lot of time refereeing in Iraq. But any actual fight where winning was relevent was over early in both countries.
 
See the explanation that I think pretty much every one else understood except you? A better way to put what she said, and possible even closer to being what she meant, was that the stress of being in the military and all that goes with it was probably partly to entirely part of the reason the suicide happened. it's not that the military did something wrong, but that does not change that being in the military, especially in the last 10 years or so, is a high stress environment that can lead to people committing suicide.

I don't think she meant her comment as "OMGzorz, the military is so terrible, they are making our young people kill themselves", but that she was acknowledging the role being in the military might have in people killing themselves.

Right, which means that there was probably something wrong with those soldiers, before they enlisted. Their time in the service only brought it to the surface.
 
Right, which means that there was probably something wrong with those soldiers, before they enlisted. Their time in the service only brought it to the surface.

If they died from a cancer that was present before they joined the military, you'd be singing a different tune.
 
If they died from a cancer that was present before they joined the military, you'd be singing a different tune.

Yeah, because they obviously didn't make the concious decision to kill themselves.
 
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