The recent mass killing in Afghanistan involving Sergeant Robert Bales is a tragedy. Whenever something this horrendous occurs it shocks the psyche and people struggle to understand how it could happen. They also long to distance themselves from the act and hasten to assess blame. It scares people to believe that any human being is capable of this type of behavior, and therefore tries to view them as essentially different from the rest of humanity. I will try and make some sense out of the behavior and look at this situation objectively.

Humans have a violent nature. Killing is both natural and unnatural for us. Therefore, nations at war have always tried to demonize “the enemy” in order to lessen the guilt. Once the process of depersonalization starts, though, it tends to grow and the line of who the enemy is begins to blur. This especially occurs when dealing with civilian enemies where the line of who is a real combatant becomes indistinct. This certainly seems to have happened in this case.

War is traumatic no matter how many tours of duty a soldier has had and all soldiers have a potential to experience PTSD or Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Basically, PTSD is delayed grieving. The mind essentially dissociates the logical part from the emotional part of the brain. When the trauma is over the two parts of the brain should become associated again, but in PTSD the dissociation remains. This can cause depression, vivid and excessive dreaming, irritability, visual or auditory flashbacks, chemical dependence to deal with the stress, and acting out behaviors. Many people that develop PTSD have an underlying psychiatric disorder or past traumatic stress history. The more overwhelming the shock or trauma, the higher the likelihood that the person will develop the disorder.

From what I understand about this case, the soldier in question was on his fourth tour of duty after being promised that he would work stateside. Any tour would be stressful, but the stress would build with each successive tour and if the soldier believed it was really over that would add stress as well. It is common knowledge that the United States armed forces are stretched to the limit because of the small size of the force and the areas of armed conflict that the government has committed to. Therefore each soldier is being asked to do more tours than were experienced in other wars.

This makes PTSD more likely, but it is not a guarantee that it will happen. More than that, most people with PTSD do not react with this level of violence. It is rare but it can happen, one example being the My Lai Massacre in Viet Nam. The question of responsibility is unclear.

In some ways a person suffering with PTSD is not fully in control of themselves. You could say the same of someone with psychotic bipolar disorder. I worked for years in acute psychiatric hospitals. Most of these people, even under the stress of psychosis, were able to remain peaceful and they were able to choose who they did not like and who they did.

I do believe that in this case the responsibility needs to be shared. Although this soldier was put under enormous stress and should not have been overloaded in this way, he is responsible for his actions. However, he is not alone. If you would like to learn more about Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder check out our Book on PTSD titled “Is that the reason why I cannot deal with stress after a traumatic experience?”  Or read about our psychology video on Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder: “PTSD: Living In a Stressful World – Understanding and Overcoming Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.”

I have only watched Jersey Shore once, but once was enough. So called “reality shows” focus on the sensational side of reality. Unfortunately, sex for sex’s sake and bizarre and abusive behavior seem to captivate a large TV audience. It is the shock and awe factor. No one can believe that people really act like that.

In general the “stars” of these shows are narcissistic, immature, and abusive. They have not grown up and matured. Now one of the worst offenders, Snooki, is pregnant. Having a child is the most sober and demanding task imaginable and it should only be attempted by people who are mature and truly available. You can’t be needy and be a good parent. Having a child should therefore be planned.

None of those criteria are met in Snooki’s case. Years ago I had two separate clients and their mother’s come into my office, all in the same week. Both girls were 15 and pregnant. Both did not want to have the father involved and both wanted the child rather than adopt or have an abortion. To me none of the choices were good. When I asked the girls why they wanted to have a child they both said the same thing: “Then I will always have someone who will love me.” That isn’t a good reason to get a pet let alone make a person. I feared for those children then and I fear for this one now.

From Entertainment Online: Just because pregnant Snooki was once a hard-partying single gal who never met a cocktail she didn’t drink, that doesn’t mean she’ll be a bad mom.

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