Don't pick a fight with a squaddie

[mudskipper]

BBC News - 'Violence risk' after military tours

"Members of the armed forces returning from duty are more likely to commit violent offences than the rest of the population, a study suggests."

Or, maybe those with aggressive natures are more likely to join up in the first place?

[original PM]

or maybe your pikey townie chavs want to prove them selves by picking a fight with a squaddie...

only to find that *shock horror* squaddies are trained to kill???#

[The Spartan]

It's probably more to do with PTSD, when you're in away from home for 6-9 months and constantly wondering whether today is going to be your day it's bound to have an effect on your mental state. After one of my mates returned from Iraq for the first few months every time he heard a car door slam he'd dive to the ground.

[Old Hack]

It's probably more to do with PTSD, when you're in away from home for 6-9 months and constantly wondering whether today is going to be your day it's bound to have an effect on your mental state. After one of my mates returned from Iraq for the first few months every time he heard a car door slam he'd dive to the ground.

One of my Brothers was like this after his 3rd tour of NI. Another Brother came back from the first dust up in the sand and resigned his commission, and you have to get him fairly inebriated for him to talk about it. Even my father struggled coming to terms with life post Army. I know one friend who adapted immediately, so it's not everyone.

It's so different on civvy street than in the Army. I think a lot of it is down to going from having complete order in life, as such, to complete chaos, relatively. Having seen a lot of this first hand, I think it takes a longer, than you'd imagine, time to adjust and the army have an obligation to give a bit more support, to those that need it.

In a subtle way, it's similar to professional sportsmen who retire and there's a huge gulf in their lives. I was reading the other day about the huge amount of ex PL footballers who still come in to train at their old clubs most days.

[Ignis Fatuus]

I have heard this before: life in the Armed Forces may be demanding and dangerous, but it's not complicated. Normal life is, it's full of lots of tiny insignificant and totally unrelated things that you have to remember to do.

But that's not a problem of maladjustment of ex-service people as a result of unbearable stress while on active service, it's just a need for multitasking rather than intense focus.

[vetran]

very glib comment Ignis.

Just listening to LBC and the mum's in tears.

Friends of mine are not right after serving, there is a worrying sense of a hole in their morality and boundaries.

But many tell tales of being abandoned by the army with simple things, its funny we can teach people to parachute onto a coin but we can't get their discharge papers right etc.

[Ignis Fatuus]

very glib comment Ignis.

Just listening to LBC and the mum's in tears.

Friends of mine are not right after serving, there is a worrying sense of a hole in their morality and boundaries.

But many tell tales of being abandoned by the army with simple things, its funny we can teach people to parachute onto a coin but we can't get their discharge papers right etc.

Not in the slightest. Offence taken.

I wished to distinguish between 2 totally different effects, both of which ex-squaddies might be expected to suffer from, but which (being different) would have different needs. Both are important and both need to be addressed, but understanding them and the difference between them first would be a help.

Plainly:
1. if you've been shot at and and bombed/IEDed and only just got away with it, you're going to be nervy even back in peaceful life.
2. if you've been expected to focus, and been enabled to do so, you are liable to miss the second part of that as well as the first part of it, when both are gone, as they are in civilian life.

My drawing attention to one of those is no denial of the other. And I did so not because I have any special knowledge or axe to grind, but because I thought that the important distinction was unconsciously being blurred in the discussion.

<hackles back down>

[Mich the Tester]

or maybe your pikey townie chavs want to prove them selves by picking a fight with a squaddie...

Not just squaddies; a couple of well known figures in the England rugby set-up have had this problem, and of course when a 6'7" 18 stone ultra-fit athlete eventually loses his patience it's obvious who's going to get the blame for the chav lying on the ground with a broken jaw.

[vetran]

why offence taken? I fail to see how suggesting they are less capable than those that never served can be anything other than glib and ill informed.


The ex military guys I know are normally very good at multi tasking and looking after business.

If you are a technician on a nuclear sub you tend to be focussed on the little things. If you are a sniper behind enemy lines you take care of everything otherwise you don't come back. I see less of that discipline outside.

Not everyone is in the infantry and nowadays even foot soldiers have to be quite switched on.

Now I never served but know many who did, the ones that made the transition (success does tend to be based on intelligence and experience) are some of the most competent I have met.

Some will need more help, this should be part of the pact we make with our armed forces.I suspect many in need of help could be easily identified and would take little real investment to bring them back.

If you gave them counselling, a smooth transition into a decent job and housing this statistic would probably be better than the general population. But if we abandon them once they are discharged we feed their anger.

[Mich the Tester]

Some will need more help, this should be part of the pact we make with our armed forces.I suspect many in need of help could be easily identified and would take little real investment to bring them back.

If you gave them counselling, a smooth transition into a decent job and housing this statistic would probably be better than the general population. But if we abandon them once they are discharged we feed their anger.

Yep. Seems pretty logical and fair. I remember after the first Gulf War that there were defence cuts and some soldiers returned from Iraq to be made redundant. I took one message from that; don't join the forces unless you're prepared to risk life and limb, enter utterly terrifying situations that can screw your head up and then be thanked with a P45.