Texas Labor Against the War

Hoodstock Flashback to benefit Under the Hood
6-11 p.m., Sunday, November 14, 2010 at Jovita’s, 1617 South 1st St., Austin, Texas. $10 requested.

Featuring Barbara K., Karen Abrahams, Sugar Bayou, Thom Moon 10, Andrew Crosby, Jim Patton & Sherry Brokus, Sally Allen, Chris Van Loan, Daniel Cioper, Will T. Massey, Beth Galiger, and Richard Bowden!

In the spirit of the Oleo Strut, Under The Hood is a place for soldiers to gather, relax and speak freely about the wars and the military. Support services for soldiers include referrals for counseling, legal advice and information on GI rights.

In Killeen, near Fort Hood, Under The Hood needs your donations and support!

http://www.underthehoodcafe.org/

Fort Hood suicide rate four times the national average?  Austin activist and Under the Hood Cafe volunteer Jim Turpin takes another look at the escalating crisis of GI suicides and PTSD.

Under the Hood Café near Ft. Hood in Killeen Texas is a place where active duty GIs and veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan can discuss the debilitating effects of war. Photo from Under the Hood / Flickr.

Texas’ Fort Hood sets the pace:

PTSD and suicides in the military
are at an all-time high

By Jim Turpin / The Rag Blog / October 27, 2010

KILLEEN, Texas — Even with the spin from the current administration that the “war is over” in Iraq, it is well known that 50,000 combat-ready troops remain in the country. Add to that a recent deployment of 2,000 troops from the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment from Fort Hood in Texas. At present almost 100,000 troops remain in Afghanistan.

With the total number of U.S. military personnel cycling through both Afghanistan and Iraq at almost 1.8 million, and with the RAND corporation estimating that 18% have PTSD (which is deemed low by some experts), this would put the returning numbers with PTSD at 324,000.

A recent article in The New York Times confirms what the organizers of the Killeen-based GI coffeehouse Under the Hood Café have been battling at Fort Hood for the last year and a half: suicides are at the highest point since 2008, with 14 confirmed suicides since the beginning of 2010. In one recent weekend, there were three suicides and one murder-suicide at Fort Hood.

With the population at Fort Hood ranging from 46,000 to 50,000 soldiers at any given time, the rate of suicide is four times the national average, based on Center for Disease Control and Prevention estimates of 11.5 suicides per 100,000 people.

The repeated deployment of military personnel who suffer from both physical and psychological wounds has led to these all-time high suicide rates. A recent article in the American Journal of Public Health studied 2,500 New Jersey National Guardsmen and determined “deployed soldiers were more than three times as likely as soldiers with no previous deployments to screen positive for post traumatic stress disorder.”

Despite these staggering statistics, the Fort Hood command continues to find ways to deny soldiers their right to receive necessary mental health services. Several soldiers have come forward recently with reports of harassment, undue punishment, and interference when seeking these necessary services.

A number of examples include:

• The imprisonment of SPC. Eric Jasinski in March 2010. Jasinski, who was suffering from PTSD, refused redeployment to Iraq based on this condition. It was feared that Jasinski’s confinement could interfere with his ability to receive his prescribed medications. Eric’s attorney James Branum stated, “He was seeing a psychiatrist for his condition and prescribed Zoloft for depression and Trazadone to get to sleep, and they handed him his gun and told him to go back to Iraq.”
• The deployment of 50 soldiers from Ft. Hood with physical (knee, back, and shoulder issues due to bomb blasts) and psychological (PTSD/TBI) issues in June 2010 to the National Training Center at Ft. Irwin, California. Combat training for those soldiers with verified PTSD and other anxiety disorders runs counterintuitive to generally accepted psychiatric practices.
• Recent reports from soldiers at Ft. Hood suffering from PTSD and substance abuse who are being given extra work loads or are being kept from dealing with additional personal crises at home. Issues they are confronted with include being given medication only (instead of counseling) or being ignored by the chain of command when they request assistance.

Veteran deaths also surge after discharge from the military and are often the result of vehicle accidents, motorcycle crashes, drug overdoses, or other causes. An article this month in The New York Times discusses the huge number of veteran deaths attributed to destructive, risky, and lethal behaviors:

“The data show that veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan were two and a half times as likely to commit suicide as Californians of the same age with no military service. They were twice as likely to die in a vehicle accident and five and a half times as likely to die in a motorcycle accident. These numbers are truly alarming and should wake up the whole country,” said United States Representative Bob Filner, Democrat of San Diego, who is the chairman of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee.

“They show a failure of our policy.”

The Under the Hood Café and Outreach Center, the GI coffeehouse located near Ft. Hood, Texas, the largest military base in the U.S., offers GIs a free speech zone. It provides a non-military environment that allows active duty GIs and veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan to discuss the debilitating effects of war. Under the Hood offers free referrals for medical and psychological services and legal assistance for those soldiers who are resisting redeployment to war zones.

To benefit its ongoing efforts in support of GIs, veterans, and military families, Under the Hood is having a “Hoodstock Flashback” concert (see graphic below) on Sunday, November 14, from 6-11 p.m. at Jovita’s in Austin. Admission is $10 at the door and includes such artists as Barbara K, Karen Abrahams, Will T. Massey, and Richard Bowden.

[Jim Turpin is a native Austinite and member of CodePink Austin. He also volunteers for the GI coffeehouse Under the Hood Café at Ft. Hood in Killeen, Texas.]

At Under the Hood, Memorial Day 2010 was a day to remember two friends who were mainstays of the Texas peace community. Nick Travis III, 55, passed away suddenly early Monday morning, May 24, in Austin. Lisa Morris, 28, passed away unexpectedly the next day in Copperas Cove.  Nick, a long-time peace activist, was known to show up at Under the Hood with his guitar and infectious smile.  People couldn’t help but be a little happier with Nick around.  Lisa, a regular at Under the Hood, always made sure to stand in protest with fellow soldiers, veterans and family members at the gates of Fort Hood.  She leaves behind many friends.  Both will be missed dearly.  Our work continues on in their memory.

Under the Hood needs YOUR support now!  This is a critical time and we won’t be able to keep our doors open without your sustaining donation. Please consider signing up for a recurring donation today. If you believe in the work we do at Under the Hood, show us your support by considering a monthly donation.  As little as $10.00 a month can go a long way toward making Under the Hood sustainable.   Two hundred supporters contributing $10 a month will help us ensure that we can continue to provide these important services.  It’s easy to become a sustainer through PayPal.  The first 100 supporters to sign up for a sustaining donation will receive their choice of a poster or 12 oz. bag of Under the Hood coffee!

We would like to thank our most recent UtH supporters. A special thanks to our newest sustaining donors.We now have 16 sustaining donors toward our goal of 200!   We also want to thank Lee & Hardy Loe and Sue & Walter Long for their generosity.  Because of these two families, we had two very successful fundraisers in Houston and Austin in May.  We are also very grateful for a $1,000 grant from the Nonviolent Action Community of Cascadia in Seattle, Washington.

The Fort Hood Support Network (FHSN) operates Under the Hood Café and Outreach Center.  FHSN is a Texas non-profit corporation with 501(c)(3) tax exempt status. Donations may be treated as tax-deductible.

Under the Hood has had a steady stream of soldiers reaching out to us for support. For the first time, however, a group of military spouses recently contacted Under the Hood for assistance. As the U.S. heads into its tenth year of combat in Afghanistan and continued combat missions in Iraq, the number of soldiers facing multiple redeployments and resulting physical and mental health problems is reaching unprecedented levels. Soldiers and families are increasingly finding that the Army is doing little to address these and other health issues soldiers face. In fact, right here in Fort Hood, the Army is violating its own regulations by training soldiers for deployment despite their non-deployable status.

RISE TOGETHER: IVAW national convention is coming to Austin July 8 – 11, 2010. IVAW and Under the Hood mutually support each other’s efforts to end the war, one soldier at a time!  We look forward to seeing many of our IVAW brothers and sisters this July.  For more information about the IVAW convention, check it out here.

Or visit Under the Hood on the web at

Under the Hood is pleased to announce that Eric Jasinski was released on April 24, 2010. On March 30, 2010, Spc. Eric Jasinski was sentenced to 30 days confinement in the Bell County Jail.  Jasinski, 23, who is a member of Iraq Veterans Against the War, went AWOL in 2009 to seek help for his PTSD.  According to his attorney, James Branum, “He was seeing a psychiatrist for his condition and prescribed Zoloft for depression and Trazadone to get to sleep, and they handed him his gun and told him to go back to Iraq.”  Branum went on to say, “We, as Americans, need to see how combat vets are treated today. Eric is in jail because he has PTSD and was denied the care he needed. His ‘desertion’ was an act of desperation, the act of a soldier who had no other options.”   Eric’s supporters held a vigil on the evening of March 30th outside of the East Gate.    Vigils were subsequently held every Saturday at the Bell County Jail Annex, 113 West Central Avenue, Belton, Texas until Eric was released.

We can’t support soldiers and veterans without YOUR support! Become a sustainer, sign up for a recurring donation today. Please consider a monthly donation of $10.00.   Two hundred supporters contributing $10 a month will help us ensure that we can continue to provide these important services.  It’s easy to become a sustainer through PayPal.  The first 100 supporters to sign up for a sustaining donation will receive their choice of a poster or 12 oz. bag of Under the Hood coffee!   The Fort Hood Support Network (FHSN) operates Under the Hood Café and Outreach Center.  FHSN is a Texas non-profit corporation with 501(c)(3) tax exempt status. Donations may be treated as tax-deductible.

Under the Hood has recently received copies of the Fatigue Press. The Fatigue Press was published every other month in Killeen, Texas during the days of the Oleo Strut, predecessor of Under the Hood.

Karen Stansbery sent three 1970 issues of the Fatigue Press to Under the Hood with this message: “I found them the other day when cleaning out an old trunk. My husband was stationed at Fort Hood in the late sixties. The Oleo Strut was very important to us just like Under the Hood is to many G.I.s now. Thank you for all you do.”  Thanks to Karen Stansbery for sharing this piece of history!  Check out the issues here.

Under the Hood Cafe - House Party and Fundraiser, Saturday, 5/15

Hear the stories of active duty soldiers and veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and learn about the work being done to support them at Under the Hood Cafe near Fort Hood. In the spirit of the “Oleo Strut”, Under the Hood is a pro-soldier, anti-war gathering place for soldiers to relax and speak freely about the wars and the military. Support services for soldiers include referrals for counseling, legal advice and information on GI rights. Since its doors opened, the staff and volunteers with Under the Hood have supported a number of soldiers and veterans dealing with the devastating after effects of war.
Live music, food and drinks. Suggested donation $10.
Location: 211 W. Live Oak, Austin

On Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/event.php?eid=105710566138521&index=1

On the Web:  http://www.underthehoodcafe.org/

We would like to invite everyone to join us April 10 and 17 @ 1pm to protest Eric Jasinski’s incarceration. We will be at 113 West Central Ave. Belton, TX 76513. Sorry it’s such short notice but we were hoping the brass would honor what they have been saying about not punishing soldiers with PTSD. As of yesterday (Fri., April 9) they had not even LOOKED at the clemency request!

Spc. Eric Jasinski, a soldier with severe post-traumatic stress disorder, turned himself in to the Army at Fort Hood last December.  He was court martialed and sentenced to 30 days in jail.  Spc. Jasinski went AWOL in late 2008 when stop lossed and faced with a 2nd deployment to Iraq.

“With a military health care system over-stretched by two ongoing wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, more soldiers are deciding to go absent without leave (AWOL) in order to find treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).”  (Courage to Resist, 3/31/10.)     References below.

March 31 rally at Fort Hood east gate supporting Eric Jasinski (photo from Killeen Daily Herald, 3/31/10).

http://www.underthehoodcafe.org/news/nr20100331.

http://www.kdhnews.com/news/story.aspx?s=40379

http://www.facebook.com/underthehoodcafe#!/underthehoodcafe?v=wall

Friday, May 7, 2010, 6:00 – 9:00 pm

at the home of Lee and Hardy Loe, 1844 Kipling Street, Houston

(View Map)

Hear the stories of active duty soldiers and veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts with Special Guest Cynthia Thomas, Military Wife and Manager of Under the Hood Café.

Snacks, beer, wine and non-alcoholic beverages will be served.

Suggested $10 donation at the door

“Under the Hood Café” items will be available for sale including the new “Under the Hood Café” poster and organic/fair trade “Under the Hood Café” coffee.

“Under the Hood Café” (UtH) has been open since February 1, 2009 at 17 S. College Street in Killeen, Texas about one mile from Fort Hood, the largest military base in the U.S.

In the spirit of the “Oleo Strut”, UtH is a place for soldiers to gather, relax and speak freely about the wars and the military. Support services for soldiers include referrals for counseling, legal advice and information on GI rights. Since its doors opened, the staff and volunteers with UtH have supported a number of soldiers and veterans dealing with the devastating after effects of war.

The Fort Hood Support Network (FHSN) operates “Under the Hood Café” in Killeen, Texas. FHSN is a Texas non-profit corporation with 501(c)(3) tax-exempt. All proceeds benefit “Under the Hood Café”.

Join us and hear how “Under the Hood Café” is making a difference in the lives of these young men and women.

Sponsored by FHSN Jim Turpin Fundraising Committee UtH (512) 965-3726. The Loes: 713-524-2682 [email protected]

www.underthehoodcafe.org

Facebook page for this event:  http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=111719738854964&ref=mf