Quote Originally Posted by JMA View Post
I dunno... this is an exceptional case surely? Bergdahl is but one soldier out of how many hundred thousand soldiers who rotated through Afghanistan over the years.
It's exceptional insofar he was captured by the Taliban. But he wasn't the only one to have ever walked off a FOB or attempted to do so. I don't know the full numbers but I count at least four between Iraq and Afghanstan. I think what's unexceptional is the stress, poor discipline, and 'breaking point' - most soldiers who reach this point seem to prefer to kill themselves or abuse a spouse rather than hike the Hindu Kush. One soldier notably stole thousands of digital documents. When someone is away from the security of home, ostracized by their comrades in close quarters, and disillusioned by their role in what's going on, unpredictable things happen.

I'm in no way excusing Bergdahl's behavior but I firmly think that the causes are more complex than the competing media narratives of his alleged Taliban sympathies or his mental state.