Invictus games

I watched some of it last night on catch up. I think the idea is wonderful and the athletes are an inspiration. However, my thoughts turned to those servicemen who were wounded in Afghanistan, and who didn't become athletes. There must be many who sank into depression and for whom life became very difficult. For those people the sight of the athletes must make their own lives even harder. It's as if the althletes are saying 'I overcame this, so why didn't you?' I also wondered about the level of disability in some of the athletes. Their injuries must make it hard for the organizers to match 'like with like.'

I think they are a wonderful idea. Having been a serviceman Prince Harry knew just what was needed for the injured servicemen and women. I don't watch, similarly with the Paralympic Games I feel voyeuristic in a strange way. Difficult to explain. I know what you mean about servicemen who have been injured prior to the Invictus Games. Surely they could have become Paralympians if they so wished. You could ask what was there for disabled athletes before the Paralympics, when was that, 1948?

is it "normalising" the horrific injuries these men and women have suffered? Making them almost badges of honour .Should we not be striving to stop sending our young people to fight in senseless and often causeless wars ,rather than try to turn them into the living equivallent of the "glorious dead" ? Surely we should be supporting ALL war injured ,not just those who can be athletes ..sadly we dont .Many are living with stress and mental illnesses ,and on the streets with no support from the forces or country they "served"

I don't see it as 'normalising' the horrific injuries, more like acknowledging them and not hiding them away. I watched the Choir when Gareth Malone brought together a number of former service personnel, most of whom were suffering some kind of post trauma and others who had been badly physically injured as well. I found it very moving.

It goes without saying that we should be striving to stop sending our young people to fight, especially in wars that the majority of the population demonstrate against, like the invasion of Iraq. Watching what is happening in Syria is beyond awful but I'm relieved the UK parliament voted against our direct involvement.

The Invictus Games are run by charitable funding I believe. Ex service personnel are over represented in the prison, drug, alcohol and mental health population. That has always been the case. One of the major problems now is the cuts to those services, and the huge increase in homelessness as a result of that and the shortage of housing, lack of housing benefit to under 25's etc. We are not a poor country. We need to invest in all our people and I agree, those who serve deserve to be prioritised.

I think that anything that helps ( the injured servicemen) is a great idea.Choirs, games etc give a sense of purpose and restore pride.

They do lemon grove, they're also therapeutic in a holistic sense. The female senior officer involved in the Choir had been drinking heavily and sleeping on the streets when her baby was 8 months old. She didn't lack family support or personal and financial resources. She was intelligent, resourceful and extremely likeable. She put her decent into the gutter down to her experiences in Bosnia, specifically about a child she'd wanted but been unable to help. She had a loving husband, family, lovely comfortable home and lifestyle. She risked losing all of it and it seems it was the service charities that helped her begin to put her life back together. I do hope she continues to make well.