A Wounded Afghanistan Veteran Asks: ‘Was the War Worth It?’
In May 2008, a Taliban sniper round hit the top of a wall just inches from my head.
The photos of me reeling back and falling to the dirt were shared by the Pentagon to show the sacrifice of bravery of Americans on the Helmand Province frontline—even though there were already signs we didn’t want to win the war.
A little more than two years later, in October 2010—nine years after I watched the Twin Towers fall at the end of my training at Camp Lejeune—I woke up with my head duct-taped to my fridge with an I.V. drip in each arm. I had just downed two liters of tequila as fast as I could, and left a note for my wife saying goodbye.