Our Blog
Study Published on the Unmet Needs of Soldiers
Last month, Oxford University Press’ Military Medicine published a study about military service members who seek medical services, including mental health services, outside of the military. With approximately 20 veteran and 1 active duty suicides per day, serious...
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Inspire to Serve or Conspire to Conscript?
What does this photo say to you? What do you think it is advertising? What is the meaning of its creative internet address, “inspire2serve.gov”? What if I told you it is inextricably linked to convincing young people to serve in the military? Are these fun, go-lucky...
read moreChild Soldiers and the Transformation of a Navy Petty Officer
In December 2016, we received a call from a sailor who wanted our support as she applied for conscientious objection. Petty Officer Allen’s* story provides a powerful example of a military member who was transformed through her experiences and found the courage to...
read moreFrances Crowe–Vietnam Era Conscientious Objector Guide
I had the most delightful telephone conversation about a week ago with Frances Crowe. In Quaker House’s last newsletter (Winter 2017/2018), I asked people to share stories about their experiences with conscientious objection, from any war, any moral basis (any...
read moreSpiritual Re-Awakenings
One of the most exciting areas of our work is helping conscientious objectors (CO) obtain discharge from the military. We do not go out and convince people to become conscientious objectors. By the time they contact us, most have already had a sincere change of...
read moreThe Story of the Afghan Children
The opportunity to witness the court-martial of Bowe Bergdahl allowed me to hear another story in that military courtroom. Retired Navy SEAL James Hatch testified of the circumstances under which he was shot in the leg during a search and rescue operation for Bowe....
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Torture–Its Relevance Today
Last week, Quaker House attended public hearings about flights and airplanes that were used to transport prisoners to black sites around the world where they were tortured, mainly from September 2001 to September 2006. These hearings were about airfields and a flight...
read moreBergdahl, Moral Injury, and Our Responsibility
Bowe Bergdahl likely suffers with moral injury. Symptoms of moral injury include feelings of shame or guilt for events that are in conflict with a person’s essential inner moral code and that may have occurred outside of that individual’s control. Nonetheless, the...
read moreBergdahl’s Compassion for Animals Now a PTSD Trigger
Since returning from Afghanistan, on his own time, Bowe has worked with an organization that rescues feral cats, and the lady who runs the rescue calls him the cat whisperer because, for some reason, these cats trust him. He has been able to successfully work with the...
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