BEHIND THE GLAMOUR - THE REALITY

Every day you can see the adverts on television and in the newspapers telling you what an exciting life can be yours by joining the army, but here are some sobering statistics. 'As many as 12 active-duty soldiers committed suicide in November, pushing the Army above last year's record number of suicides with one month left to go in the year, officials said today. With the deaths in November, of which one has been confirmed as suicide, the Army has now had 177 suspected suicides among active-duty soldiers this year. Last year's total of confirmed suicides was 165. Of the deaths this year, 113 have been confirmed and 64 deaths are still under investigation. Typically, about 90 per cent of suspected suicides are confirmed.' (Army Times, 13 December) We would warn all unemployed workers who in desperation may be considering joining the army that the adverts might claim "It's a man's life in the army", but it can just as easy turn out to be a man's death. RD