Army says morale down among troops in Afghanistan

Matthew Henderson

11/13/2009

The morale of troops in Afghanistan is declining. This may be partially attributed to the shooting at Fort Hood that took place last week. According to surveys done every two years this year has been specifically bad for soldiers in Afghanistan. Morale levels in 2005 and 2007 were significantly higher than they are this year. The wearing effect of long deployments is beginning to show more. Troops are showing more marital problems than before. Troops in their third and fourth tours are showing more stress and psychological problems. Those in their third and fourth tours are also using a lot more medications. Troops that spent a little time surfing the internet or playing video games showed positive psychological impact from these activities. This was also found to be true for soldiers who worked out on a regular basis. The mental health care system in Afghanistan is understaffed.

I feel like this article deserves a big ‘Well duhh!’ What the fuck did they expect? After eight years of war with basically no signs of accomplishment should morale be skyrocketing? Ummm no! They act like it’s a surprise that troops in their third and fourth tours are having more stress problems and mental health issues. Also when divorce rates are crazy high among regular Americans, would it be expected that someone who keeps getting sent to Afghanistan can have a successful marriage? I don’t blame the army for that one but rather the married people, I just don’t know what they were thinking. Then there is the guys who play video games and work out, of course when you do something to take your mind off of the shit it is going to have a positive impact on your mental state. I know for a fact that the only way to fix this morale problem is to bring them home. Dispatch sang “I have discovered that this fight is not worth fighting”. For the sake of our soldiers and our country, we need to have a similar epiphany.

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