First of 2 parts
This is the pervasively pathos-enriched story of an authentic latter-day American military hero and the tribulations that even Culver City heroes must endure:
For a fellow who leads a high-speed life, who had just triggered a lightning bolt across the community with an arresting Letter to the Editor, David McCarthy, a deputy attorney in the City Attorney’s office, looked mighty relaxed in the early afternoon sunshine
Fighting off a windy breeze whistling down Culver Boulevard, across the street from City Hall, he was attempting to ignite a massive, obviously mature and inarguably fragrant Arturo Fuente cigar, measuring out somewhere between 6 inches and 6 feet.
[img]116|left|Lt. Col. McCarthy||no_popup[/img]
Which gave the nearly vanquished stogie — disappearing from American culture faster than cigar store Indians — equal stature with the strapping, bluff-faced Irishman, who is even larger, 6 foot 3 inches above the ground, packaged within 235 well-cared-for pounds.
He has been back at his third-floor desk at City Hall — from his latest terrifying war zone ventures — for barely a dozen weeks, and therein lies a chilling tale.
At a thundering 50 years old, he can remember the old days when “military” and “hero” were interchangeable and young enough to absorb the negative slings against the present military generation.
Ever since the World War II-era attitude of military man as automatic hero was wiped out with the onset of the brutally unpopular Vietnam War, military veterans have been skating uphill in America, many of them maintain, when it comes to obtaining fair treatment or even equitable recognition from fellow citizens.
Among the more cynical veterans, nearly everyone, they complain, seems to rank ahead of them on any barometer of prestige.
Which swings the focus back to Mr. McCarthy, a onetime New York cop and longtime U.S. Marine reserve who has been to war zones more often than many Angelenos have been to San Diego.
A Brittle Matter
The slightly awkward, extremely delicate subject of the three-way meeting among Mr. McCarthy, his favorite cigar and a visitor concerned the state of mind of both military veterans returning home from war zones and, even more importantly, the state of mind of their employers.
Owing to his own decidedly negative experience inside of City Hall, Mr. McCarthy decided to put his thoughts down on paper this week after both the Los Angeles Times and the Torrance-based Daily Breeze carried stories on the plight of returning service members.
“I wanted to let people know what my plight was,” he said, “and perhaps see that the same thing did not happen to others.”
Two days ago, the following intriguing, carefully constructed Letter to the Editor by Mr. McCarthy appeared in the Daily Breeze:
Vets Avoid Stress Screening
“With regard to ‘Depression, post-traumatic stress hitting hard’ (published last Friday), I am a reservist with the U.S. Marine Corps, having been recalled to active duty, deployed and conducted ground combat operations with U.S. forces in Afghanistan and in Iraq.
“I had heard that many servicemen and women returning from combat zones will refuse to seek out post-combat stress counseling, or if made by their commands to undergo psychiatric screening, they will say that they are fine. The fear is that if they do otherwise, they will be affixed with a derogatory label. If my experience after my latest recall and deployment is any indication, I can see why.
“Upon returning from Baghdad, I took advantage of the offer by the Marine Corps for post-combat stress counseling, and after undergoing a series of counseling sessions I notified my employer that I was ready to get back to work.
“My employer replied to me that I was being placed on administrative leave and that I would have to see a civilian forensic psychiatrist and undergo a series of psychiatric tests before I would be allowed back.
“The forensic psychiatrist pronounced me fit to return to my civilian job; however, the entire episode was demoralizing and degrading. It appears to me that the myth – long ago debunked – of the crazed veteran returning from combat and going postal is alive and well in the minds of ignorant and/or hurtful people.
“I truly feel sorry for young soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines who would like to see a counselor, and who would benefit immensely from doing so yet won't go for fear of facing an experience like mine.
“- DAVID M. McCARTHY
“Culver City”
Reaction
In Mr. McCarthy’s view, confronted by the conflicting wishes of his military command and civilian employer, the returning veteran is vulnerable. He feels hamstrung, forced into what Mr. McCarthy calls a no-win situation.
Taking his cue from superiors, from peers and from his own experiences, Mr. McCarthy said that every returnee “who has been engaged in ground combat operations” should embrace two words:
Get help.
“The Marine Corps stresses getting counseling,” he said. “A sergeant-major I know, Fred Kasal, wrote a book called ‘My Men Are My Heroes.’ I had met him several times, well before the Iraq War. We had made liberties together. Great guy. One of the things he said was, ‘Get help.’
“No one thinks they need it. But go for it. Get counseling.
“Between the Marine Corps saying, ‘Counseling is available,’ and Fred Kasal saying, ‘Go for it,’ that is the thinking. But not everybody, as I said, may need it. You have to understand that a lot of people overseas never leave the base. They probably don’t need it.
“On one hand, young servicemen should get help, if they need it. But on the other hand, I understand, especially now, the feeling of many — they call the shrinks The Wizards — that they’re not going to see The Wizards for fear that they will be labeled. They will be maligned.”
Question: How do you avoid being pinned with a label?
“I don’t know. It’s not up to you. It’s up to the people you interact with if they want to affix a label to you.”
Question: Can you hide, or somehow mute, the fact you have had counseling?
“In my situation it was impossible. The Personnel Dept. (at City Hall) wanted to know when I was due back (from his latest tour of active duty). They wanted a letter from the Counseling Office saying I was going through counseling.
“After I came back, I was made to go see a forensic psychiatrist.”
Question: What was the difference between the two experiences?
“ It was all very professional. The post-traumatic stress counselors help you come to grips with what you have been through and lead a better life after what you have been through.
“The forensic psychiatrist, his sole job was to judge whether I was fit to return to work here. He stated to me, and I have no reason to doubt him, that he has worked a lot with veterans, a lot with law enforcement, and he’s under contract with a lot of police departments. He seemed to know all the right things to say, the right phraseology. Clearly, he knew what he was doing. I saw him one time, for 6 hours. It was very intense.”
Question: How did you feel afterward?
“I felt humiliated, disheartened, demoralized.”
(To be continued)
