Michael Savage Is Sick

I was going to use the whole title from this article.  But, I realized that it works much better in an abbreviated form. Michael Savage who never served a day in the military nor a day in combat is tired of our combat troops whining about PTSD.  PTSD as it turns out is relatively easy to get, you can get it in several ways. The most common way is to be directly exposed to a violent event either manmade or natural. But, there are other ways, seeing a person you care about treated violently so another words maybe seeing your best friend or someone in your unit blown up. It can happen if you hear about an act of violence as well such as hearing your mother was murdered by your father. So fortunately it is not a common thing to get, 11 percent of U.S. combat troops get it, 5 percent report having it before being deployed for combat operations. It isn't so surprising that 5 percent already have it given the rates of domestic violence in this country. I can only imagine how difficult it is to come from a violent background only to be put into an even more violent situation that sounds like a surefire way to end up with severe PTSD. 

According to Savage we need men like him who never served by the way in case I forgot to mention it, to save the country.  Now I personally don't care if someone dodged the draft or didn't join the military. The military is not for everyone, nor should it be. In fact I think it is honorable to be a conscientious objector that also takes courage. I am happy that a number of men went to Canada. In fact violence is not usually the best policy. However, if you didn't serve and didn't otherwise object to the war, but refused to serve and instead say went to some other country and grew herbs for a failing business, then you are a sick person and no we don't need people like you to save the country. We need the opposite of people like this. 

It takes courage to talk about the stigma of being labeled with a mental illness. It takes courage to talk about PTSD. What doesn't take courage is to yell at someone who has PTSD. It doesn't take courage to try to knock someone down who is struggling with the trauma of being shot at, or who has seen someone they care about killed in action, or who has been through the explosion of an IED bomb.  That is truly a sick behavior. Of course this makes me wonder what kind of mental illness Michael Savage has, he has admitted to some sort of dysfunctional upbringing. I can do a bit  more than imagine what that was like having been raised in a dysfunctional family myself. However, my experiences with violence have instead of making me react callously and brutally has given me a measure of compassion. Unlike Savage I will not say he is the problem with this country and try to lay a guilt trip, he is clearly ill and in need of help and compassion despite his violent and sick outburst. I would instead ask the people close to him, his family, his friends, his employers, to implore him to seek help. It takes more courage to examine why one would be so brutal with a vulnerable person than it does to continue to bully and smear the reputations of people who serve this country and then suffer for it.