In My Opinion: Shatan Should Be Celebrated for His Successes. “Happiness Is A Warm Gun” Was Not One of Them

Abstract

ABSTRACT Dr. Levin compares Dr. Shatan’s position in “Happiness Is a Warm Gun” that military training is a basic cause of combat posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) with two other authors: Jonathan Shay writes out of his experience as a Veterans Affairs Hospital (VAH) psychiatrist, while Heonik Kwon is a Korean-born social anthropologist who has lived and done research in Vietnam. Levin sees their positions, alongside his own military experience, as more helpful in understanding why anyone, irrespective of gender, ethnicity, nationality, and whether they are civilian or military, can become traumatized by war itself. In his opinion, it is the lack of agency and the constant threat of death that drive warriors as well as their victims to act as heroes, vile perpetrators of horrible atrocities, or both. He additionally references acts done recently by military veterans to demonstrate that positive behaviors can and do flow out of military training, especially in these current difficult political times.