That is very true about the military taking care of its own...in fact I had times where I would use my taxi money at the end of a Friday night of drinking for more drinks....pick a fight or do something stupid to land muself in the civie jail....wait an hour or so till the MP's came and got me and usually they would just take me home with no charges laid....came to be a weekly ritual with many of us. MP's don't like paperwork at 3 in the morning and even as drunks we figured it out...sorta...they did keep tabs on us and that's how I ended up in the ARC 28 day rehab program....they gave me a chance and in the end I blew it. I blamed everyone but me at the time, but I, like many of you, learned how to deal with it and acknowledged it was nobodies fault but mine. The military went to great lengths for me.....its not their responsibility to make sure I didn't drink....they gave me ample tools and I missed out....those that tried to help me did me a favor by contacting padres, and even my divisional officers....they started the path of destruction I needed to get off the bottle....I am indebted to them. It must have been very hard to turn in a friend and hard worker...I had amazing performance reviews....I did everything to excess...I worked my a$$ off and drank my a$$ off, but being honest I was hammered many days I was at work...voldka caesars....mmmmm...still make my mouth water and I am having a virgin one as I type.....sorry side tracked. People need that kick in the a$$ and a resume of destruction in order to finally get help...Alcohol and drugs do not equal rational thought and even when sitting in cells a drunk or drug addict finds humor in it and it becomes a "Dude,you'llnever believe what happened to me last night....." story....when in fact its adding to the self destrauction resume that will become a harsh rality at some point. Reality is a big eye opener that we all experienced at some point....why deny a drunk or drug addict the opportunity to add to their self-destruction resume and get them one step closer to the realization they need....making a call to the padre hurts noone....and if it does...so what...they will take inventory at some point and maybe take a look at why someone cared enough to risk friendships and even family ties....again I simply say if kids are involved...its a no brainer.
Good Luck,
Chuck