Whatever decision the President makes, he needs to make it with consideration of the larger issues that go beyond behavioral health.

If he extends this letter to those that commit suicide having been exposed to combat, does he extend this letter to all who have committed suicide? What if they commit suicide the day after they enter basic training? What if they commit suicide long after they left service as a homeless veteran 30 years after this conflict has ended?

Often times when one looks at the details of a case, it appears the prominent precipitating factors aren’t directly deployment related. Contrary to what is read in the newspaper, it is not easily said in many cases that “If he/she hadn’t deployed, if he/she hadn’t seen combat, then this wouldn’t have happened.”

So if the President extends this letter to Soldiers’ families whose loved ones commit suicide, I would assert then that this letter should be written to any servicemember who dies during their active duty obligation for any cause of death to include Myocardial Infarction, Lupus, Cancer, and Motor Vehicle Accidents. What about when the Soldier dies years later from cancer that he/she attributes to exposures he received while deployed? The argument extends to this example as well.

If you’re willing to commit to extending this letter by the President to all Soldiers who die while on active duty for ANY reason, that’s reasonable and consistent with the basis of the argument. But expect push back from those that disagree with you… those that do believe that some soldiers deaths are more worthy than others. Right or wrong, this is a belief that permeates our society as well as the armed forces. Some deaths are seen as more glorious / righteous / respected than others. The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier sends this implicit message. Its not rocket science to understand that “300″ is a popular movie among deployed Soldiers.

Is the judgement that some deaths more worthy than others wrong? right? I don’t know. Regardless, it is commonplace and it is this concept that will primarily drive pushback against this move.