So, hi, I'm Rick and I'm a 24 year old retired (yes, pension and all) combat veteran of the Afghanistan Campaign (OEF IX-X). I served four years with one combat tour as an infantry rifleman, maintaining that MOS from start to finish, even after being wounded in an engagement on Black Friday of '09 which left me with Traumatic Brain Injury on top of PTSD after an IED was command wire initiated two to three steps in front of me while patrolling on foot with my platoon in my company's area of operations: The Tangi Valley, Wardak Province, Southeastern Afghanistan. I was diagnosed with Asperger's at age 11 following an IQ test administered in second grade which revealed a quotient of 149. Although my intelligence was well within the gifted range, I was clearly socially lacking and found myself not only ostracized constantly but instead of being admitted to the Gifted Program as was planned I found myself in the special education system for emotional support. After graduating in '07, I took a year off and then decided to enlist as an infantrymen in the US Army, eventually serving with the 10th Mountain Division's 2nd Battalion, 87th Infantry. I'm sure many of you will be skeptical about how I was able to.enlist with a diagnosis of Asperger's syndrome. Most of what I can do is speculate that because we were shifting focus to Afghanistan and the infantry is always undermanned, the surge required bodies, abs at this point, people who were convicted o manslaughter, murder (Kenny Eastridge), theft, robbery, and many other violent felonies were receiving waivers for their offenses to enlist. I believe that even after screening me medically and performing a background check, that the bottom line was.they needed men to go to the frontlines. One thing I can state is that despite having to release my medical records tk be screened, I never voiced that I had any diagnoses and this was explicitly omitted throughout my term of service. So, I can promise I do have Asperger's and I did serve in the military even after my diagnosis of it.
01 Nov 2013, 9:39 pm
