[Marxism] Imperialist war in this week's New England Journal of Medicine

[Andy Coates <esquincle@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

The July 1, 2004 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine contains 
four articles which marxmailers may find useful.

The lead 'original article,' a truly unique study, “Combat Duty in Iraq 
and Afghanistan, Mental Health Problems, and Barriers to Care,” reports 
a “linear relationship between the prevalence of PTSD and the number of 
firefights in which a soldier had been engaged.”   (I hope to say more 
about its findings.)
http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/351/1/13

Its companion lead editorial “Acknowledging the Psychiatric Cost of 
War” calls for “better methods of detecting and treating war-related 
psychiatric disorders,” but not before enumerating many reasons why the 
study may have underestimated the problems hugely.
http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/351/1/75

Two “Perspective” articles also delve into issues of U.S. warmaking:
In “Semper Fi” Pamela Grim, M.D. reflects upon her “two roles” as 
“doctor and member of the Marine training team” – caring for the sick 
recruits while working with drill instructors whose task is to ensure 
“that once a recruit becomes a Marine, he will not crack up, become 
insubordinate, or ‘go postal’ at a critical moment.”
http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/351/1/3

Finally, but most germane to the larger question of the fundamental and 
yet modern sickness of war-- and also potentially useful to activists-- 
is an article  called "Surviving Torture" by Richard F. Mollica, M.D. 
of the Harvard Program in Refugee Trauma.
http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/351/1/5

Appearing under the heading “Global Health: Surviving Torture” 
Mollica's article begins: “The shocking, unfiltered images from the Abu 
Graib prison in Iraq have focused the world’s attention on the plight 
of torture survivors.”  This piece discusses torture as an 
under-recognized, prevalent and debilitating phenomenon among human 
beings.  A photograph from inside Abu Graib Prison accompanies the 
article, along with this table of the most common forms of torture:
http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/351/1/5/T1

Andy Coates


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