Editorial: Military Mental Health

While military prosecutors in California were charging five Marines with murder in the killing of Iraqi civilians last year, Pentagon officials were holding a hearing on mental health services after reports that soldiers at Fort Carson, Colo., were not receiving adequate treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder. The murder charges, while extreme, are an example of how the uncertainty, daily violence and frustration of the Iraq war can cause soldiers to act in reprehensible ways. It also shows why mental health services are vital and that soldiers should not be punished for using them. On Nov. 19, 2005, a roadside bomb exploded as a convoy was passing through the village of Haditha. One Marine was killed. Twenty-four villagers died that day. The Marines initially said the death came from roadside bombs and a firefight between villagers and U.S.

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