The Huffington Post

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Military Suicide Rate Surges To Nearly One Per Day This Year

The 154 suicides for active-duty troops in the first 155 days of the year far outdistance the U.S. forces killed in action in Afghanistan – about 50 percent more – according to Pentagon statistics obtained by The Associated Press.

The numbers reflect a military burdened with wartime demands from Iraq and Afghanistan that have taken a greater toll than foreseen a decade ago. The military also is struggling with increased sexual assaults, alcohol abuse, domestic violence and other misbehavior.

Because suicides had leveled off in 2010 and 2011, this year’s upswing has caught some officials by surprise.

The reasons for the increase are not fully understood. Among explanations, studies have pointed to combat exposure, post-traumatic stress, misuse of prescription medications and personal financial problems. Army data suggest soldiers with multiple combat tours are at greater risk of committing suicide, although a substantial proportion of Army suicides are committed by soldiers who never deployed.

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  15. howcloseis reblogged this from greenstate and added:
    :-(
  16. jillianomicon reblogged this from waswritinwater
  17. pacifistic-badass reblogged this from truth-has-a-liberal-bias and added:
    …Fuck man. I hope my friends are okay…
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  30. sunlitshadows reblogged this from deeperdream and added:
    The human psyche can only take too much pressure before it breaks. Between the rigidity of military life and the...
  31. merdedechat reblogged this from reagan-was-a-horrible-president
  32. deeperdream reblogged this from theprettynerdie and added:
    This is…disturbing. And sickening.
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  35. aidsdealer reblogged this from reagan-was-a-horrible-president and added:
    Maybe they know something we don’t?
  36. andasfortakingitinstride reblogged this from reagan-was-a-horrible-president and added:
    This makes me very sad :(