“Find your lonely road and follow it…follow it through everything to the end of the road and then let go of that road…put it behind you…”
In the past three years, 50 recognized Canadian Forces veterans have committed suicide directly related to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as a result of their tours in Afghanistan. Put into perspective, there were 158 Canadian Soldiers killed in combat in Afghanistan over the 12 year campaign. If the current rate of suicides continues, then 200 Veterans of the Afghanistan war will die by their own hand in Canada in the same time frame.
PTSD has been wounding people in the Canadian Forces, and veterans, for some time—but it seems to be taking an ever-increasing toll as Canadian veterans die by suicide and family members raise questions about the supports needed but not offered or available.
New Democratic Party Member of Parliament Murray Rankin (Victoria) recently put forward a motion in the House of Commons calling for the mandatory labeling of food products containing ingredients that have been genetically modified. The New Democrats take the position that consumers have a right to know what they are buying, that labeling genetically modified foods will allow people to make their own choices.
May is Physiotherapy Month and also Bike to Work Month.