Even Soldiers Hurt

Mental health, never before a priority for the Pentagon, has become a full-scale operation

Deep inside the Pentagon, past hallways that still reek of burned metal, a windowless first-floor conference room has been transformed into a fully operational command center. Color-coded floor plans and organizational charts of key personnel adorn the walls, and teams of sturdy men and women wearing fatigues swing in and out, ready to be deployed. Air Force Lieut. Colonel Steven Vieira oversees the operation, dispatching troops swiftly but carefully. His goal is "100% contact and saturation." The enemy is not human but ghostly, flickering here and there on the faces of the nearly 20,000 Pentagon employees who once thought their building...

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