War Breeds Drinking, Violence in U.S. Military Towns

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http://www.jointogether.org/news/headlines/inthenews/2007/war-breeds-drinking-violence.html

 

September 4, 2007

 

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Alcohol-fueled violence has increased at bars and restaurants in towns near military bases and hospitals as the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have worn on, the Washington Post reported Sept. 2.

Some of the fights arise from interservice rivalries, and involve veterans recovering from combat wounds. Experts see the rising violence as a byproduct of repeated, extended tours of duty and unresolved mental and addiction issues. Binge drinking also has skyrocketed among service members in recent years, Pentagon surveys show, and more vets are returning with traumatic brain injury, a condition that leaves them prone to violent outbursts.

Soldiers exposed to the trauma of war "are often hyper-alert, quick to respond and susceptible to a loss of impulse control," said clinical psychologist Jeffrey Jay of the Center for Post-Traumatic Stress Studies in Washington. "The brain is actually altered by these experiences -- it's part of a survival mechanism, and it's very confusing for them."

R.J. Bentley's, a bar and restaurant near Walter Reed Army Hospital, has seen its business change since the start of the war. "We've seen a massive rise in customers, thanks to Walter Reed," a bouncer said. "But we've also seen a rise in fights."

Media reports have shown similar problems near Fort Stewart, Ga., Fort Lewis, Wash., Nellis Air Force Base in Las Vegas, and Fort Carson, Colo. In Washington, D.C., the bar Hawk 'n' Dove has banned Marines from entering unless they have female dates. The Norfolk County (Mass.) district attorney's office has been flooded with requests for its "Beyond the Yellow Ribbons" training program, aimed at helping police and others deal with returning veterans and their problems.

 

 

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