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Letters to the Editor

Downrange funds wasted

I think the Marine Corps Times should do a story on how much money is wasted in Afghanistan.

I am currently stationed on Camp Dwyer. I know a lot of gear and equipment is lost and unaccounted for, but I don’t know how much. I tried to find an inspector general report on the issue but could not.

I am also concerned about how pampered we are as a military. Do the three chow halls on Camp Dwyer really need four kinds of dessert at every meal? We really don’t need five options for a main course. It is all wasted money. How much money is spent on one chow hall for one day?

The American chow hall in Kandahar is disgusting. The service line is about three tents long with every kind of deep-fried food you can think of. There is no way Marines, or any other service members, need this. It takes 60 to 90 days to get parts to fix our vehicles, but there is never a shortage of corndogs, chicken nuggets, egg rolls, ice cream or cookies at the chow hall. I really think the truth about this would surprise a lot of people.

The Defense Department could probably pay for all their budget cuts if they pulled the deep fryers out of Afghanistan and Iraq. This is an issue that I have talked with numerous Marines about, and they all agree.

— Sgt. Patrick Doll, Camp Dwyer, Afghanistan

Women deserve to fight

As a 10-year active-duty Marine, 10-year Navy Reserve Fleet Marine Force corpsman and veteran of Operations Desert Storm, Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom, I know how tough it can be in the field — but I believe women should be allowed in combat units [“Congress prods DoD to revisit ground-combat ban for women,” Jan. 17].

They have earned the right. In all the operations I have participated in, women were there and were wounded or died just like everyone else.

However, I also have to say that such a change must be made in the right way. For example, no longer can there be different grooming regulations for males and females. These are set due to the combat environment. Short hair is required for males for field hygiene and the use of gas masks. To not require the same for females is changing standards.

Also, there can’t be different physical fitness standards. A flak jacket, weapon or pack’s weight is not concerned with what gender you are.

My worry is that policymakers will want women in combat units but also want to keep our current standards for women. That will not work. It would, in the end, cause conflicts between the sexes and degrade unit and service morale.

— Chief Hospital Corpsman Thomas Mendenhall, Cedar Hill, Texas

It’s about time. Discrimination is wrong and should not be tolerated. Women have proved that they can fly planes and helicopters as well as their male counterparts. They have participated in Iraq and Afghanistan, in jobs that were once only done by men. Women are allowed to serve on ships and in submarines. Why not open all jobs — including those of grunts — to whomever can qualify?

In addition, let’s continue this trend of equality for all and require women to sign up for Selective Service, which is currently only required of their male counterparts.

— Master Sgt. Bill Easter (ret.), Twentynine Palms, Calif.

Dreary outlook for 2011

The scheduled cuts of up to 20,000 personnel, the elimination of the Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle, and the delay of the F-35B Joint Strike Fighter are indeed serious setbacks to the Marine Corps’ future force projection capabilities [“Cuts to the Corps,” Jan. 17].

The elimination of the ban on open homosexuality within the ranks and the possible inclusion of women in combat arms will also adversely affect the Corps’ cohesion and ability to fight, and therefore threaten the security of the United States.

The year 2011 is looking to be a very, very bad year for the United States Marine Corps.

— Maj. Greg Sheehan (ret.), Altoona, Pa.

Meditation studied in 1985

In the article “Transcending trauma: Group hopes to teach 10,000 vets to meditate” [OFFduty, Dec. 27], Dr. Matthew Friedman, executive director of the Veterans Affairs Department’s National Center for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder was quoted as saying, “There are no published randomized clinical trials testing transcendental meditation for PTSD.”

Perhaps Dr. Friedman is unaware of a random assignment study on Vietnam veterans, published in the Journal of Counseling and Development in 1985. This peer-reviewed study by the University of Colorado School of Medicine found the transcendental meditation technique effective because it directly affects neurobiological aspects specifically touched by post-traumatic stress disorder.

Instruction in the technique, followed by three months of regular TM practice, significantly reduced emotional numbness, anxiety, startle response, depression, alcohol consumption, insomnia and family problems.

The TM group also reported improvements in sleep and obtaining and keeping employment. Seventy percent of meditators reported that they no longer required the services of the veterans center.

Research on TM indicates that it produces effects on mind and body opposite those of chronic stress. To more effectively and efficiently treat the wounded minds of warriors protecting our nation, we need to add innovative approaches into the healing mix of provided services.

TM offers a “do less, accomplish more” approach that can help those precious minds and lives and also save money in the process.

— Col. (Dr.) Brian M. Rees, U.S. Army Reserve

— Dr. David R. Leffler, Center for Advanced Military Science