A marine, Abu Ghraib and alcoholism
NOVEMBER 2004
Amazing Antics: Stories of Alcoholism-Driven Behaviors
You’d better vote “right” or else!
Story from This is True by Randy Cassingham, with “tagline:”
“DEBATE TACTIC: Steven Soper, 18, tried to convince his girlfriend Stacey Silveira that she should vote for George W. Bush but, then he couldn’t get his point across, police say, he grabbed a screwdriver and held it to her throat. Police in Boynton Beach, Fla., say he threatened that she “won’t live to see the next election” unless she changed her voting preference. Police, called by a neighbor who heard the ruckus, arrived to find him holding the screwdriver to her throat, and refused to drop it. They Tasered him to subdue him. Soper, who recently enlisted in the Marine Corps, will likely be discharged, a Marine spokesman says. He is being held without bail on charges of aggravated battery, false imprisonment and resisting arrest. (South Florida Sun-Sentinel)
…Though if Bush is re-elected, Soper expects to be pardoned. ”
Although drinking isn’t mentioned in the story, since 90% of convicts are alcoholics (and Soper, based on the evidence thus far, certainly deserves a conviction) the odds are, Soper is an alcoholic. If true, there are several interesting aspects to the story.
First, alcoholism has no preference for conservative, liberal, libertarian or socialist leanings. Intolerance of others’ beliefs is a terrific clue to alcoholism, regardless of political or religious persuasion. Second, Soper is only 18. If he’s alcoholic, this is just one more example proving that age and illegality of drinking do not impede alcoholism. Third, Soper recently enlisted in the Marines. By some estimates, half of enlisted men have had alcohol or other drug “problems” by the time of enlistment. This can be explained by the fact that, due to the alcoholic’s need to inflate his or her ego, heroism is more common among alcoholics, and especially by those who take reckless risks and unnecessarily put oneself in harm’s way. There are plenty of opportunities for such risk-taking in the armed services. This is not meant to demean the brave men and women serving our country. It does, however, explain atrocities such as those occurring at Mi Lai and Abu Ghraib. Most important, understanding the sometimes-grotesque manifestations of early-stage alcoholism suggests ways of avoiding such tragedies: early intervention and required abstinence by those in the armed forces. While such a goal may be considered a pipe dream, such treatment of likely addicts could be made part of the program for those who display the more egregious behaviors.
(“This is True” is copyright 2004 by Randy Cassingham, used with permission. See http://www.thisistrue.com for free subscriptions.)