Section 8 (military)
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The term Section 8 refers to a category of discharge from the United States military for reason of being mentally unfit for service. It also came to mean any serviceperson given such a discharge or behaving as if deserving such a discharge. The term comes from Section VIII of the World War II-era United States Army Regulation 615-360, which provided for the discharge of those deemed unfit for military service.
In the 1950s, Section 8 discharges were commonly given to service members found guilty of "Sexual Perversion," and it was classified as an undesirable discharge, depriving the serviceperson so discharged of veteran's benefits but not resulting in the loss of any citizenship rights, such as the right to vote.[citation needed]
Discharge under "Section 8" is no longer a military reality, as medical discharges for psychological/psychiatric reasons are now covered by a number of regulations. In the Army, such discharges are handled under the provisions of Army Regulation 635-200, Active Duty Enlisted Administrative Separations. Chapter 5, paragraph 13 governs the separation of personnel medically diagnosed with a personality disorder.[1]
[edit] In popular culture
In the movie Basic Starring John Travolta West's company was part of an organization called "Section 8". It is referenced to as being the crazy house in the movie but in the movie "Section 8" was code name for a drug organization.
In the Stanley Kubrick movie Full Metal Jacket, Pvt Joker tells Pvt Cowboy that he believes Pvt. Pyle is a "Section 8", after witnessing him speaking to his rifle. After being reunited with Joker, Cowboy also mentions a Marine who is suspected of being crazy, and started masturbating in the hospital waiting room. "Boom! Instant Section 8."
A running gag from the television show M*A*S*H has Corporal Maxwell Klinger constantly trying to convince his commanding officers that he is mentally unfit for duty (crazy) and requires a Section 8 discharge. Klinger would dress in women's clothing and perform dangerous and ridiculous stunts, such as attempting to eat a Jeep piece by piece or wear a rubber-lined sweatsuit for 24 hours straight on a hot summer day.
In the novel A Separate Peace Leper Lepellier deserts the Army because they were going to give him a Section 8 discharge. Leper does not want one because he would be prohibited from getting a job.
The video game Section 8 directly refers to Section 8 within its title. In the game the player is taking control of the military unit Section 8 which members are preceived as insane by other military units, because of the dangerous and near-suicidal mission they usually take part in.
[edit] Notes
- ^ "Active Duty Enlisted Personnel Separations Active Duty Enlisted Administrative Separations" (PDF). United States Department of the Army. 2005-06-05. http://www.apd.army.mil/pdffiles/r635_200.pdf Active Duty Enlisted Personnel Separations. Retrieved on 2009-01-03.
