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James Woods Launches Rescue Effort After Vet Tweets He Is Going To Kill Himself

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Actor James Woods employed his Twitter account to call attention to a military veteran who said he was contemplating suicide.

Woods engaged in a back-and-forth with a Florida man named Andrew MacMasters, who tweeted, “I’m on Twitter every day, I retweet all the time but this is the first tweet I’ve ever written.”

“I’m a good guy, I’m a veteran, I love America,” MacMasters continued. “I’m gonna kill myself tonight. I’ve lost everything. I have nobody, nobody cares. Im in a parking lost with my dog and everything I own. Bye.”

Wood responded wondering where the man was, and asking if they could talk.

“We can talk. I don’t care what anybody thinks. Do you? Let’s have a conversation. Just you… and I,” Woods said in one tweet to MacMasters, then adding in another, “I’m following you now, so you can DM (direct message) me. We can talk privately. Or we can talk openly right here. Lot of people worried about you right now.”

The “Casino” actor continued to try to engage the veteran, who has since deleted his tweet.

Do you appreciate Woods going the extra mile to help this veteran?

“So think about this. A lot of vets, I understand, have come to where you are tonight,” Woods wrote. “If you could just push this decision off tonight, at least, maybe you would also inspire another vet to seek help. You could save another man, too. By waiting to do this.”

After MacMasters did not communicate with him and deleted his original tweet, Woods reached out on Twitter and learned the veteran is from the Orlando, Florida area.

Woods then used Twitter to try and make authorities in Orlando aware of the situation.

Eventually, Woods learned through people who know MacMasters that he is from Maitland, just north of Orlando.

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Woods, who played a Vietnam veteran in the 1972 film “The Visitor, said via Twitter that he called the Maitland Police Department.

“The dispatch supervisor there was terrific,” Woods wrote. “He’s confident they will find him. I gave Billy, the dispatcher, Andrew’s home address and the info a reliable source DMed me. They are all over this.”

In a subsequent tweet, Woods said he was encouraged by the number of people who were trying to help MacMasters.

Woods continued to provide updates on Twitter, sharing tweets from those who had notified MacMasters’ family, including his mother and brother, USA Today reported.

Maitland Police Public Information Officer Lt. Louis Y. Grindle told the paper on Tuesday morning that authorities were able to reach MacMasters, though his whereabouts were still unknown.

“Our agency was able to make contact with him by phone earlier this morning, where he advised he was OK but did not wish to have contact with law enforcement,” Grindle said in a statement. “Our officers are still working to try and physically locate him to determine his well-being.”

Radio talk show host and Marine Corps veteran Jesse Kelly also reached out to MacMasters, urging him to direct message him.

Kelly later tweeted, “Thank you to all who were praying and helping. I’m hearing he’s home safe and sound asleep. Praise God.”

Woods wrote in response: “I’m hoping this is true. I think now he probably needs less focus on him from all of us, while his loved ones give him the solace he needs. Thanks to all of you who worked to save a valuable life. My heart breaks for the other 21 vets and others who didn’t make it tonight.”

Stars and Stripes reported a combined total of 20 veterans and active duty personnel take their lives each day, based on the most recent statistics by the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Craig Bryan, a psychologist and leader of the National Center for Veterans Studies, said, “The key message is that suicides are elevated among those who have ever served.”

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Randy DeSoto has written more than 3,000 articles for The Western Journal since he began with the company in 2015. He is a graduate of West Point and Regent University School of Law. He is the author of the book "We Hold These Truths" and screenwriter of the political documentary "I Want Your Money."
Randy DeSoto wrote and was the assistant producer of the documentary film "I Want Your Money" about the perils of Big Government, comparing the presidencies of Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama. Randy is the author of the book "We Hold These Truths," which addresses how leaders have appealed to beliefs found in the Declaration of Independence at defining moments in our nation's history. He has been published in several political sites and newspapers.

Randy graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point with a BS in political science and Regent University School of Law with a juris doctorate.
Birthplace
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Nationality
American
Honors/Awards
Graduated dean's list from West Point
Education
United States Military Academy at West Point, Regent University School of Law
Books Written
We Hold These Truths
Professional Memberships
Virginia and Pennsylvania state bars
Location
Phoenix, Arizona
Languages Spoken
English
Topics of Expertise
Politics, Entertainment, Faith




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