Scandal probe ensnares commander of U.S., NATO troops in Afghanistan

[csziggy]

76. That fits with the Frontline piece last night

I only caught part of it but the main theme was how difficult it is for veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars to get treatment. I looked on the PBS web site for it but if it is there, the portion I saw is not in text format. A major problem is that their service records are incomplete or missing altogether.

These are the first wars for which records are being kept completely electronically. But for some reason most companies ERASE their hard drives before the men are shipped home. This means no history of the actions taken by the units in Iraq and Afghanistan. It also means when the men apply for veterans' benefits they cannot prove their service records.

One man who was assigned to be a clerk in Baghdad had been taken off his desk and sent to combat duty. He ended up with PTSD but back home it took hi8m five years to get treatment. The VA does not believe a clerk is exposed to conditions that will give a man PTSD and the Army had no record of anything other than administrative desk duty with no combat experience.

The lasting damage done to the men because of lack of treatment is horrible. The loss of military history and lack of accountability will haunt the military for decades to come.

From the Petreaus quote you cite, this could well be intentional. How can we fund out the truth of what happened in the countries we invaded if the records have been expunged?