WEB RESOURCES: Support our Troops

See the following web resources to learn more about issues facing soldiers in the war and vets coming home. The Bush Administration's surge will only exacerbate the situation by pushing harder on an already exhausted and overstretched military.

Visit Paul Rieckhoff's website, where you can learn more about Chasing Ghosts (2006). You can listen to the entire first chapter read by the author at the website. Paul is an Iraq War Vet and the Executive Director and Co-Founder of the Iraq Afghanistan Veterans Association. See this great report on treatment of vets and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) called Mental Health Problems among Iraq and Afghanistan Vets.

VoteVets.org is encouraging veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars to get more involved in policy making in the United States after seeing the effects of policy making first hand. Our media release features Jon Soltz of VoteVets.org.

We are also featuring many members of Military Families Speak Out, who are giving their personal stories to help us understand how policies are affecting soldiers and vets, and their families.

Joshua Kors wrote an incredible article about Vets services that will be coming out in the April 9th, 2007 copy of The Nation, called "How Specialist Town Lost His Benefits". This article details how vets are being underhandedly shut out of services.

Visit the Strauss Military Reform Project at the Center for Defense Information.

Lawrence Korb at the Center for American Progress has written an in depth report about stop loss orders and repeat deployments of troops, as well as a lack of equipment and training for troops. The report is called "Beyond the Call of Duty: A comprehensive review of the overuse of the army in the Administration's war of choice in Iraq"

Citizen Soldier out of New York is working on soldiers' issues and rights. Recently, the Different Drummer Cafe was opened. This is an internet cafe that is dedicated to helping soldiers get counseling and assistance.

Ray Scurfield recently finished the last of three books about PTSD in soldiers, entitled War Trauma: Lessons Unlearned from Vietnam to Iraq (2006). Ray is a Professor of Social Work at University of Southern Mississippi and specializes in the psychological effects of war on soldiers.

Dr. Judith Broder, a member of Physicians for Social Responsibility, is the Founder and Director of The Soldiers Project, which provides free psychological counseling to returning soldiers and their families, for smoother reintegration into family life and society.