scholarly journals Medication by Proxy: The Devolution of Psychiatric Power and Shared Accountability to Psychopharmaceutical Use Among Soldiers in America’s Post-9/11 Wars

2020 ◽  
Vol 44 (4) ◽  
pp. 565-585
Author(s):  
Jocelyn Lim Chua
Keyword(s):  
Military Personnel ◽  
The United States ◽  
Medication Administration ◽  
Mental Health Stigma ◽  
Global War On Terror ◽  
Us Military ◽  
Army Personnel ◽  
Global War ◽  
The Military ◽  
Psychiatric Power

Abstract With the United States military stretched thin in the “global war on terror,” military officials have embraced psychopharmaceuticals in the effort to enable more troops to remain “mission-capable.” Within the intimate conditions in which deployed military personnel work and live, soldiers learn to read for signs of psychopharmaceutical use by others, and consequently, may become accountable to those on medication in new ways. On convoys and in the barracks, up in the observation post and out in the motor pool, the presence and perceived volatility of psychopharmaceuticals can enlist non-medical military personnel into the surveillance and monitoring of medicated peers, in sites far beyond the clinic. Drawing on fieldwork with Army personnel and veterans, this article explores collective and relational aspects of psychopharmaceutical use among soldiers deployed post-9/11 in Iraq and Afghanistan. I theorize this social landscape as a form of “medication by proxy,” both to play on the fluidity of the locus of medication administration and effects within the military corporate body, and to emphasize the material and spatial ways that proximity to psychopharmaceuticals pulls soldiers into relationships of care, concern and risk management. Cases presented here reveal a devolution and dispersal of biomedical psychiatric power that complicates mainstream narratives of mental health stigma in the US military.

Philippines-US Relations

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patricio N. Abinales
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
World War Ii ◽  
The United States ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Special Relationship ◽  
National Interests ◽  
Global War On Terror ◽  
Military Alliance ◽  
Global War ◽  
The Military

An enduring resilience characterizes Philippine–American relationship for several reasons. For one, there is an unusual colonial relationship wherein the United States took control of the Philippines from the Spanish and then shared power with an emergent Filipino elite, introduced suffrage, implemented public education, and promised eventual national independence. A shared experience fighting the Japanese in World War II and defeating a postwar communist rebellion further cemented the “special relationship” between the two countries. The United States took advantage of this partnership to compel the Philippines to sign an economic and military treaty that favored American businesses and the military, respectively. Filipino leaders not only accepted the realities of this strategic game and exploited every opening to assert national interests but also benefitted from American largesse. Under the dictatorship of President Ferdinand Marcos, this mutual cadging was at its most brazen. As a result, the military alliance suffered when the Philippines terminated the agreement, and the United States considerably reduced its support to the country. But the estrangement did not last long, and both countries rekindled the “special relationship” in response to the U.S. “Global War on Terror” and, of late, Chinese military aggression in the West Philippine Sea.

‘WARS ON TERROR’ AND VICARIOUS HEGEMONS: THE UK, INTERNATIONAL LAW, AND THE NORTHERN IRELAND CONFLICT

2005 ◽  
Vol 54 (2) ◽  
pp. 321-356 ◽  
Author(s):  
Colm Campbell
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
Foreign Minister ◽  
The United States ◽  
Berlin Wall ◽  
Global War On Terror ◽  
Northern Ireland Conflict ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Global War ◽  
The Cold War ◽  
The Military

The hegemonic position of the United States, and its implication for international law, are rapidly emerging as sites of intense scholarly interest.1It is a truism that the fall of the Berlin wall has been followed by a period of unprecedented American predominance in the military, economic, and political spheres. Replacing the bi-polar certainties of the Cold War is a world in flux, dominated, to a significant extent, by one remaining superpower, or, in the words of the former French Foreign Minister, Hubert Vedrine, by a ‘hyperpower’.2Some though, have emphasised the continuing importance of other loci of (lesser) power in a ‘uni-multipolar’ world.3That this domination posed critical questions for international law was obvious well before the 9/11 atrocities, as the debate over NATO's use of force in Kosovo illustrated. Since the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq, and with the global ‘war on terror’ reaching into ever-increasing spheres, the debate has intensified significantly.

scholarly journals Social Work with Veterans in Rural Communities: Perceptions of Stigma as a Barrier to Accessing Mental Health Care

10.18060/1891 ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca L. Stotzer ◽  
Julia M. Whealin ◽  
Dawna Darden
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Rural Communities ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Mental Health Stigma ◽  
Global War On Terror ◽  
Community Issues ◽  
Global War ◽  
Armed Services ◽  
The Military

The nearly decade long efforts in the Global War on Terror have led to increasing numbers of Veterans of the armed services returning to rural locations, but little is known about their needs. However, recent research suggests that rural Veterans face a host of issues, but perhaps more importantly, are facing heightened levels of stigma in rural areas related to their health and mental health. This paper examines how mental health stigma in the military may feed into stigma in rural communities and serve as an additional barrier for Veterans in rural areas who are struggling with mental health concerns. Recommendations for the unique role of social workers in serving these Veterans, as well as addressing community issues around stigma, are addressed.

scholarly journals Helminth infections in the US military: from strongyloidiasis to schistosomiasis

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alyssa R Lindrose ◽  
Indrani Mitra ◽  
Jamie Fraser ◽  
Edward Mitre ◽  
Patrick W Hickey
Keyword(s):  
Military Personnel ◽  
International Classification Of Diseases ◽  
Data Repository ◽  
Military Health ◽  
Intestinal Nematode ◽  
Us Military ◽  
Helminth Infections ◽  
The Us ◽  
East And Southeast Asia ◽  
The Military

Abstract Background Helminth infections caused by parasitic worms, including nematodes (roundworms), cestodes (tapeworms) and trematodes (flukes), can cause chronic symptoms and serious clinical outcomes if left untreated. The US military frequently conducts activities in helminth-endemic regions, particularly Africa, the Middle East and Southeast Asia. However, the military does not currently screen for these infections, and to date, no comprehensive surveillance studies have been completed to assess the frequency of helminth diagnoses in the military personnel and their families. Methods To determine the burden of helminth infections in the US Military Health System (MHS), we conducted a retrospective analysis of International Classification of Diseases (ICD)-9/10 diagnosis codes from all medical encounters in the MHS Data Repository (MDR) from fiscal years (FY) 2012 to 2018. Chart reviews were conducted to assign ICD diagnoses as incorrect, suspected, probable or confirmed based on the laboratory results and symptoms. Results Abstraction of MHS data revealed over 50 000 helminth diagnoses between FY 2012 and FY 2018. Of these, 38 445 of diagnoses were amongst unique subjects. After chart review, we found there were 34 425 validated helminth infections diagnosed amongst the unique subjects of US military personnel, retirees and dependents. Nearly 4000 of these cases represented infections other than enterobiasis. There were 351 validated strongyloidiasis diagnoses, 317 schistosomiasis diagnoses and 191 diagnoses of cysticercosis during the study period. Incidence of intestinal nematode infection diagnoses showed an upward trend, whilst the incidence of cestode infection diagnoses decreased. Conclusions The results of this study demonstrate that helminth infections capable of causing severe morbidity are often diagnosed in the US military. As helminth infections are often asymptomatic or go undiagnosed, the true burden of helminth infections in US military personnel and dependents may be higher than observed here. Prospective studies of US military personnel deployed to helminth-endemic areas may be indicated to determine if post-deployment screening and/or empirical treatment are warranted.

scholarly journals Organizacyjne i personalne ramy „globalnej wojny z terroryzmem” w świetle orzecznictwa sądów amerykańskich

Poliarchia ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (9) ◽  
pp. 51-95
Author(s):  
Dariusz Stolicki
Keyword(s):  
Use Of Force ◽  
The United States ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
Federal Courts ◽  
Military Force ◽  
Islamic State ◽  
Military Operations ◽  
Global War On Terror ◽  
Global War ◽  
The Impact

The Organizational and Personal Framework of the “Global War on Terror” in the Light of the Decisions of the United States Courts The article analyses the law of military detention applicable to the ongoing conflict with Al‑Qaeda and associated forces, to the extent that that law emerges from the jurisprudence of U.S. federal courts, and particularly of the D.C. Circuit. It discusses four major issues: the types of organizations against which military force can be used in accordance with the Congressional authorization, the range of persons subject to military detention in connection with such use of force (in terms of both legal categories and factual predicates), the scope of the battlefield on which the use of force is authorized, and the extent to which American citizens or foreigners lawfully present in the U.S. territory enjoy special immunity from military detention. The article concludes that the impact of the D.C. Circuit decisions on those questions extends beyond the issue of military detention, and provides the general legal framework applicable to other military operations directed against terrorist organizations in the Middle East, such as target strikes or the campagin against the self‑styled Islamic State.

19. Religion

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lee Marsden
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Policy ◽  
The United States ◽  
Public Affairs ◽  
Us Foreign Policy ◽  
Emergency Plan ◽  
Global War On Terror ◽  
Christian Zionism ◽  
Global Affairs ◽  
Global War ◽  
The Cold War

This chapter examines the influence of religion on US foreign policy. It first considers how religion affected American policy during the Cold War, from the time of Harry S. Truman to George H. W. Bush, before discussing the bilateral relationship between Israel and the United States. It then looks at the rise of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), a US-based interest group, and how its work has been complemented by conservative evangelicals and fundamentalists who ascribe to Christian Zionism. It also explores the ways in which religion has intersected with the global war on terror and US foreign policy, how the US resorted to faith-based diplomacy, the issue of religious freedom, and George W. Bush’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) in Africa. The chapter concludes with an analysis of the Office of Religion and Global Affairs (ORGA), created by Barack Obama.

Eyes in the Sky

The Drone Age ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 96-130
Author(s):  
Michael J. Boyle
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Organizational Structures ◽  
The United States ◽  
Us Military ◽  
The Us ◽  
The Military ◽  
Organizational Costs

Chapter 4 argues that drones accelerate the trend toward information-rich warfare and place enormous pressure on the military to learn ever more about the battlefields that it faces. Today, for the United States, war is increasingly a contest for information about any future battlespace. This has had an organizational effect as the ability for the United States to know more through drone imagery has turned into a necessity to know more. The US military is becoming so enamored of its ability to know more through drone surveillance that it is overlooking the operational and organizational costs of “collecting the whole haystack.” Using drones for a vast surveillance apparatus, as the United States and now other countries have been doing, has underappreciated implications for the workload, organizational structures, and culture of the military itself.

US Military Spending: A Perspective on the Restructuring Dynamics of the Defense Sector

2019 ◽  
Vol 51 (4) ◽  
pp. 606-628
Author(s):  
Eleonora Gentilucci
Keyword(s):  
Military Spending ◽  
The United States ◽  
Jel Classification ◽  
Defense Spending ◽  
Social Spending ◽  
Us Military ◽  
Vested Interests ◽  
Military Security ◽  
Military Expenditures ◽  
The Military

The political economy of defense spending is enormously important given its magnitude and its global implication. Since the late 1990s, world and US military spending has being rising. This trend appears to be in sharp contrast to the long-term forecast about the so-called “peace dividend” formulated after the fall of the Berlin Wall. In order to explain this trend of military expenditures in the United States, the restructuring of the defense sector (in terms of concentration and financialization), the shift from a focus on “defense” to “security,” and the role and influence of “vested interests” in this process leading to the creation of the military-security system, are taken into consideration. The relation between social spending and military expenditures is also discussed.JEL Classification: H56, H5, B5, F52, L16

scholarly journals The Politics of Sex Abuse in Sacred Hierarchies: A Comparative Study of the Catholic Church and the Military in the United States

Religions ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 281
Author(s):  
Carolyn M. Warner
Keyword(s):  
Catholic Church ◽  
The United States ◽  
Sex Abuse ◽  
Us Military ◽  
The Us ◽  
Privileged Status ◽  
Child Sex Abuse ◽  
The Military ◽  
Patterns Of Abuse ◽  
The Catholic Church

The paper explores similarities in patterns of abuse and in patterns of how the known abuse cases are handled by the Catholic church and the U.S. military and develops preliminary explanations of why. The paper considers how the two organizations deal with external efforts by civil authorities at oversight and prosecution, and the extent to which they invoke their sacred status authority to evade responsibility and civilian oversight. The paper finds that the handling of sex abuse in each organization has been affected partly by the institutions seeing themselves as sacred, as something apart from the secular state, beholden to alternative authorities. The paper highlights the fact that child sex abuse by religious officials and sexual assault of soldiers by fellow soldiers and officers constitute profound challenges for democracy in the US and elsewhere, as the institutions claim and may be accorded separate and privileged status, beyond the reach of democratic laws and procedures. It is a warning about the costs of public deference to other institutions. The study utilizes documentation of Catholic church clergy child sex abuse cases in the US, and documentation of sex abuse cases in the US military.

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