Before I get the numbers lady here to talk, you mentioned the numbers coming out of Afghanistan. One of the phenomena, and that's my word, coming out of Afghanistan, even from the clinical staff, is that individuals are coming home from Afghanistan and may present a problem, and it has been a trigger for people from other instances--Kosovo, the Balkans, even going back further, maybe to Somalia, and so forth--who say, “Gee, I have a problem”. In fact, it's wider-ranging.
One of the strengths of having the closing of the ranks in DND and VAC is that some of these veterans from the Korean War and a couple from the Second World War are saying that they think they have those problems too. I don't know what the numbers are that are banging on the doors of the district offices. It's risen dramatically in regard to.... They're not worried about the payoff or the money. The money's nice, but fixing it.... They want it to be fixed, okay? That's where the strength is.
As for numbers, I emphasize to you.... In Afghanistan, we've lost a lot of troops, and there are a tremendous number of wounded. Remember, we're not just dealing with the families of the fallen. Put yourself in the scenario where there's a vehicle blown up, such as with the young trooper from the Strathconas. What about the other people who were “not hurt” in that vehicle? Horse feathers! They were hurt! It may not come to pass for the four to six months that Brigadier-General Jaeger has indicated--and that's a good guideline, in our opinion--but it may be four or five years. Who do they talk to first? It's Cyndi or Shawn or McArdle. Sometimes at Tim Hortons they've heard about them and they want to know how to seek them out.