I'm sorry. That's a difficult question.
I think everyone in your room knows, intuitively or first hand, that our system is not perfect. We still fail. We still have human frailty. However, it's absolutely night and day when comparing the treatment of victims of PTSD 17 years ago to now because back then they just ignored and denied that there was even a problem.
There's much more to be done, as the Australians said, for our veterans. In my personal experience, we have been befriended. We've been supported, and we've been helped by the veteran community. Most of them wear their hearts on their sleeves. They are absolutely the finest of people, and they will always have my respect and my love. They just deserve so much more.
I'm not familiar enough now with the system to get into the intricacies of which parts of it need to be changed, enhanced or improved. However, I would underscore that some years ago, the American military funded research in the universities in California. One of the findings, when they did brain scans on victims of PTSD, was that typically the brain had shrunk 10%, and the hippocampus, which controls impulse control and all that stuff, had atrophied. Of course, military members were getting into trouble for impulsive behaviours. It was part of their injury. It was a discipline issue, and it wasn't going to be cured or shouldn't have been addressed as a discipline issue.
I'm sorry. I completely support what your witnesses are saying and the efforts they're making, and all of the others who have come forward to help move the needle on this. I thank the committee and everyone else who has done anything to support our veteran community. They are absolutely deserving. It's not a gift to them. It's not something we throw to them as a charity. They have absolutely earned every medical assistance and every other help possible.
I thank you for the question.