Bangladesh, Aug. 15 -- The reports emerging this week about multiple American sailors on the USS Abraham Lincoln “attempting to go overboard”, amid the war in Iran, are not isolated incidents of stress. Multiple family members and accounts describe crew members trying to jump from the aircraft carrier in the context of an extended deployment that has already stretched into its ninth month, with a record stretch of more than 250 consecutive days without making land.

As conditions on the ship deteriorate, lawmakers have begun demanding answers, while the US Navy and CENTCOM push back against the most alarming claims. Yet the details that have surfaced paint a picture of exhaustion, shortages, and desperation that goes far beyon...