I Got Soul But I'm Not A Soldier

[poliphilo]

This has been a tough week.

I've been keeping quiet about it because- well- I guess because I wanted to make sure it was really happening before I committed myself to print.

My son- the one who moved in last week- is in dispute with his employers.

Popularly known as the British Army.

His case is that he's too ill to work for them any more.

Their case is "Get back here at once you disgusting little oik or I'll have you up on a charge."

I don't know exactly how much bearing it has on things (I would submit quite a lot) but he did do his six months in Iraq a couple of years back.

We're in the thick of it right now, but we've got our medical back-up in place and we're trusting the Army will be smart enough not to insist on his return when it's being a soldier that's making him sick.

Comments

[airstrip.livejournal.com]

we're trusting the Army will be smart enough not to insist on his return when it's being a soldier that's making him sick.

Eep. Is it the actual job or just becoming tired of it to point of malaise? I mean, both are understandable (few other jobs require many years of contractual obligation).

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I think Iraq has a lot to do with it. He was in Basra for six months and it was pretty horrible.

I haven't wanted to dig too deep, but I think it's got so that everything about the life- the monotony, the institutionalised brutality, the stupidity- now revolts him.

[airstrip.livejournal.com]

This doesn't surprise me. I had a cousin who returned to Iraq and left for Tahiti for about three months to put himself back together and, as he put it, "disarm."