Back on October 14th, radio host windbag Michael Savage had a hot take directed towards military veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, including calling them “weak,” “narcissistic,” and “losers.” It’s a pretty moronic, ignorant, and P.O.S. thing to say. The whole thing came out of a conversation with a caller about Robin Williams suicide, which caused Savage to launched into a rant about he’s “so sick and tired of everyone with their complaints about PTSD, depression.” Here’s the recap that’s making its way around the Internet. Via:
After a lengthy argument, Savage hung up on the caller and proceeded to attack him. “I am so sick and tired with everyone with their complaints about PTSD, depression. Everyone wants their hand held and a check, a government check. What, are you the only generation that had PTSD? The only generation that’s depressed?”
He then blamed America’s problems on those who “cry like a little baby” over depression: “If the whole nation is told, ‘boo-hoo-hoo, come and get a medication, come and get treatment, talk about mental illness,’ you know what you wind up with? You wind up with Obama in the White House and lawyers in every phase of the government, that’s what you wind up with. It’s a weak, sick nation. A weak, sick, broken nation.”
Savage continued that veterans with PTSD are a “bunch of losers” and recommended that they be more like Michael Savage.
“You need men like me to save the country,” he said. “You need men to stand up and say stop crying like a baby over everything.” He continued that “men are so weak and so narcissistic” that it is “no wonder ISIS can defeat our military.”
The “toughen up” and “just get over it” attitudes have been detrimental to the fight against mental illness. Fortunately, they’ve started to erode over the last 15 years. There’s a big difference between “whining” — as Savage is accusing veterans who served their country — and admitting something is psychologically wrong following one’s experience in war. Before puffing his chest about how big of a “man” he is, maybe Savage — who has no military experience — should show just a little respect for those willing to risk their lives in battle? Just a thought. Listen to the rant below: