Dear Biden Administration and Democratic “Leaders”,

For many Afghanistan veterans, especially combat veterans, this past week has been one of the hardest of their entire lives.

When the decision was executed to pull out of Afghanistan there should have been a fully formed plan in place and there is nothing you have shown us thus far that makes it seem like this was the case.

If I had done anything near what the you did when I was leading a squad of Marines in Afghanistan I would have been fired immediately without question. In fact the squad leader that preceded me was fired when someone in his squad lost a non encrypted black gear radio.

You didn’t just get thirteen innocent service members killed, you also:

• Completely disrupted the lives of the Afghan people.

• Gave power and weapons to the Taliban.

• Gave the Taliban a Large and steady income source by allowing them to develop a relationship with Communist China.

• Allowed over 800,000 Americans that served in Afghanistan to become distraught with absolutely no concern for their mental health.

• Allowed Afghanistan Veterans to believe that their service to our country doesn’t matter.

• Are directly responsible for any and all Afghan Veteran Suicides in the foreseeable future…

In the past week I have:

• Hyperventilated thinking about the fallen and the veterans struggling 3 times.

• Had to stop what I was doing and get away from people so I could cry my eyes out almost every single day.

• Had multiple discussions with veterans that just couldn’t muster up the energy to leave their homes.

•Had conversations with three really great veteran friends that all stated that in the past year they considered and made a plan to commit suicide.

• Consoled a friend after his friend committed suicide.

• Called K-LOVE everyday for a prayer for the fallen and their families just so I could feel like I was doing something.

• Wore sunglasses Indoors because I couldn’t stop crying and had to be around people.

• Ran 30 miles a day with an American flag on my back just to give some kind of attention to the people that we owe our lives to.

And you refuse to say there’s nothing you could have done better.

That is absolutely infuriating because as a leader of Marines I was always aware that regardless of what happened I was to be held responsible for what happened on my watch.

In November of 2020 I made a plan and was seconds away from committing to taking my life. It took months of family and friend support, therapy, and medication to climb out of that dark place.

If this had happened then there is no way I would be alive today. It’s just too much..

I don’t believe you care about us and I can’t wait until the entire administration is removed from office.

We the American Veterans of this great nation demand Accountability from our government.

Sincerely,

Russell Larkins

A seriously distraught Veteran