The Brown & White

About 120 American veterans kill themselves each week, a number that is likely to grow as two wars in the Middle East continue and soldiers are called for their fourth and fifth tours of duty, according to a November 2007 CBS News investigation.

Speaking to a sparsely filled room of Lehigh students, veteran Scott Allen, who served in the merchant marine, said he supports Barack Obama because of his promise to pull troops out of Iraq, among other qualities of the Illinois Senator, such as his understanding of the Colin Powell Doctrine, which is a comprehensive list of questions for the justification of war.

Allen said the majority of the doctrine's requirements have not been satisfied. He said Obama understands this and plans to respond by removing combat brigades within 16 months of inauguration.

Veterans for Obama visited Lehigh on Tuesday in Maginnes 102 to talk about the ongoing war on terror and why they support Obama in the upcoming election.

Allen said people need to learn from and remember the Vietnam War.

"Indeed, history is repeating itself," he said, in regards to the current war in Iraq.

Allen also said he dislikes Republican candidate John McCain's war policy goals.

"In my opinion John McCain has forgotten the lessons learned in the Vietnam War," Allen said. "He has forgotten them or he has ignored them."

Allen also said the economic impact of the Iraq War has not yet hit home but will be manifested in higher gas prices.

The next speaker was Rhode Scholar and Colonel Richard Klass.

Klass's talk began with a reference to Robert McNamara's documentary "The Fog of War." Klass also echoed the importance of remembering and learning from the Vietnam War.

Post-traumatic stress disorder is the diagnosis given to veterans who display severe anxiety after war. PTSD leads to suicides, and Klass said this war is sparking the disorder in veterans from Vietnam.

Klass also expressed concern over the costs of the war.

"Not 1 cent of the war has been paid for," he said. "We're getting into a situation that's just not sustainable."

Klass said the current administration has handled the war irresponsibly.

"I just don't understand how they can be so shameless," he said.

Klass also said Veterans Affairs is forcing injured soldiers in hospitals to re-register or file for absentee ballots in order to vote in the upcoming election. The extra hassle discourages votes from wounded soldiers who may likely be anti-war.

Klass said Obama is concerned about veterans' needs.

"Barack Obama is the only candidate who served on the Veteran's committee," he said. "It was his first choice of committees upon entering Congress."

The next speaker, Noel Koch, wrote speeches for Nixon in the seventies and served as assistant secretary of defense.

"There's danger you don't see," Koch said. "The danger from PTSD is that it may not come for three or four years, it may not come for 10 years."

Emmaus high school graduate, two-tour Iraq veteran, and current Bucknell student Chuck Voikert spoke on this point.

"In order not to be considered for recall you need over 30 percent disability and most PTSD guys get 10 percent," he said. "These are guys that are being forced to leave their families."

Voikert said Obama pushed back the post-diagnosis recall to five years from two.

Koch said although some say Obama lacks experience, candidate's experience is only as good as what a person does during the experience.

"Some people have 20 years experience," he said. "Some people have one year experience repeated 20 times."