Do you miss war/combat?

2015-06-27T21:38:15-04:00

I just watched a TED talk with Sebastian Junger talking about how veterans miss war. I realized that I fit too well into what he was talking about. Sebastian was embedded with the soldiers in Afghanistan at Restrepo. I hate to say it, but there are definitely times that I miss being in Iraq, because how uncertain things are in the civilian world. At least there I knew who I could trust and my goals were clear. Here on CONUS, these lines are far too blurry.

http://www.ted.com/talks/sebastian_junger_why_veterans_miss_war?language=en#t-368038

Why veterans miss war

Civilians don’t miss war. But soldiers often do. Journalist Sebastian Junger shares his experience embedded with American soldiers at Restrepo, an outpost in Afghanistan's Korengal Valley that saw heavy combat. Giving a look at the "altered state of mind" that comes with war, he shows how combat gives soldiers an intense experience of connection. In the end, could it actually be "the opposite of war" that soldiers miss?