Quote:
Originally Posted by retiredguy123
I rewrote this thread because I just wanted to get opinions about the mission change for the Tunnel to Towers charity, not to create a controversy. I have always considered this charity to be one of my favorites because of their focus on helping veterans with severe physical disabilities suffered in combat to get housing, and because of their exceptional cost efficiency. Now, Frank Siller is appearing in TV commercials asking for donations to help homeless veterans with PTSD. I don't deny that some veterans suffer from PTSD, but I just don't view veterans with PTSD in the same way as veterans who lost their legs in combat. I also believe that some disability claims for PTSD may be fraudulent and I don't trust the current screening process for PTSD claims. Please provide opinions.
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I understand the current skepticism regarding "PTSD," but I have a little different perspective. Many members of my family view my dad's "shell shock" as having contributed to subsequent violent behavior after surviving a Japanese air attack on his boat in the Pacific. (We were made aware of it through a family friend.) He was a Seabee on his way to New Caledonia when a serviceman just above him on a ladder was killed. I don't think he ever got over it and also didn't talk about it. He was a vicious domestic abuser who was subsequently shot and killed by a family member as my dad was trying to kill his family (my mother, brother, two of my sisters, granddaddy, grandmother and myself) that had taken refuge with my grandparents. Sounds traumatic, but I consider myself so fortunate to have lived in a time where one could protect oneself and will be forever grateful to my granddaddy for doing so, even though his life was never the same. I've always wondered how my dad's life could have been so much different had he been able to have the help available to veterans now, but that experience also made me the resilient and self-reliant person I am today. Yes, I would support T to T new mission change.