The crazy vet meme; PTS is such an easy answer
SIGO sends us a link to the sad story of a veteran, Benjamin Mayoles Dykeman, who was fatally shot by police in Broward County, Florida, and of course, everyone is an expert on PTS, even people off the street with no medical training;
Benjamin Mayoles Dykeman’s employer, Robert Rose, [Editor Note: I guess medical diagnosis are common at the place where Dykeman worked by the name Bansbach Easylift Gas Springs] says the man suffered post-traumatic stress disorder after deployment to Iraq, and that might have played a role in his interaction with law enforcement.
“I think it’s important to realize that while he had a record, a lot of the things within the record are a manifestation of PTSD,” Rose said. “While the Brevard County sheriffs did exactly what they were supposed to do, it really is a tragedy to lose a war hero like this.”
Of course, the PTS diagnosis by Dykeman’s employer is news to his mother;
When reached by phone, Dykeman’s mother, Rose, who lives in Virginia, said her son was involved in early deployments to Iraq but didn’t think he suffered from PTSD or came home from Iraq any different. She said he had an alcohol problem for which he was seeking treatment.
Although Dykeman was undergoing treatment at a VA facility, the article doesn’t mention why he was getting treatment, so of course, it must be PTS. And, oh, yeah, the gas springs owner guy is also an Army veteran, so that really helps.
Though the condition didn’t manifest itself while at work, Rose suspects it played a role in Dykeman’s interaction with police.
Yeah, I suspect that it might have been alcoholism instead, since he had no problems with PTS at work. Millions of veterans drive their cars without ramming a police cruiser every day, thousands of those veterans not ramming police cars suffer from PTS. It seems that sometimes we’re our own worst enemies when veterans like Rose, who has no medical training, allow ourselves to diagnose the syndrome for the eager media, who love nothing more than crazy-assed veterans to perpetuate the myth.
Category: Veterans Issues
Does anybody brother to read the medical journals on PTSD or keep folloeing Hollywood and the 60s media bullshit?
I am one of Ben’s closest friends. I knew him almost 20 years. I’m also a veteran who served in Iraq. I am here to tell you that Ben was receiving treatment for PTS at the VA center in Florida. Prior to him passing, he explained the whole evaluation process that he went through. He even told me there were times where he actually broke down and began to cry during sessions he had with the doctors. His mother may not have been aware of all of that, but these are things that he told me. By no means am I saying that what he’s accused of was a direct result of PTS. The PTS definitely contributed to his alcohol consumption, which as we all know can impair your judgement.