Vets aren't victims.
Like many people of Celtic descent, I don't just have a temper – I have an Irish temper. (Hooray genetic enablers that double as rationalizations!) And one of the things that consistently stokes those mind-flames is the “vets are victims” fallacy.
We volunteered. In some cases, we volunteered because we wanted to go to war. That's not a concept American society as a whole is very comfortable with, because the sharper edges of warrior culture contrast so stridently with postindustrial societal norms. Killing is bad. (Unless those being killed are worse). Rough men are uncivilized and coarse. (Until they're needed). And service members are heroes best celebrated en masse and in the abstract, because veterans by themselves and in the flesh have, you know. Issues.
The latest numbers for Iraq and Afghanistan vets aren't pretty. Over 12 percent are unemployed, which translates to roughly 232,000 people in real numbers. The public sector has taken notice of this, as evidenced by President Obama's just announced New Veterans' Employment Initiative. But enacting things like the proposed tax credits for hiring returning veterans will take a unified effort in Capitol Hill – something that seems a bit unlikely right now.
A suicide epidemic continues to plague the military community, with 468 suicides occurring in 2010 – more than died in combat. Those are just military numbers too, since the VA (of which only about half of Iraq and Afghanistan vets are enrolled) doesn't track cause of death.
And, really, these are just the tip of the iceberg – we all need to remember that as these wars wind down, the military will likely downsize, as it usually does in postwar periods. A new surge of veterans will be coming home in the next couple years. That guy with the muscles and tattoos in the black tee shirt in the back of your local bar? He's spent 30 or so months in a combat zone and has a lot more to offer the community than just war stories, though even he may not know that yet.
Read more: http://battleland.blogs.time.com/2011/08/10/vets-arent-victims/#ixzz1UpDJzMAU
Like many people of Celtic descent, I don't just have a temper – I have an Irish temper. (Hooray genetic enablers that double as rationalizations!) And one of the things that consistently stokes those mind-flames is the “vets are victims” fallacy.
We volunteered. In some cases, we volunteered because we wanted to go to war. That's not a concept American society as a whole is very comfortable with, because the sharper edges of warrior culture contrast so stridently with postindustrial societal norms. Killing is bad. (Unless those being killed are worse). Rough men are uncivilized and coarse. (Until they're needed). And service members are heroes best celebrated en masse and in the abstract, because veterans by themselves and in the flesh have, you know. Issues.
The latest numbers for Iraq and Afghanistan vets aren't pretty. Over 12 percent are unemployed, which translates to roughly 232,000 people in real numbers. The public sector has taken notice of this, as evidenced by President Obama's just announced New Veterans' Employment Initiative. But enacting things like the proposed tax credits for hiring returning veterans will take a unified effort in Capitol Hill – something that seems a bit unlikely right now.
A suicide epidemic continues to plague the military community, with 468 suicides occurring in 2010 – more than died in combat. Those are just military numbers too, since the VA (of which only about half of Iraq and Afghanistan vets are enrolled) doesn't track cause of death.
And, really, these are just the tip of the iceberg – we all need to remember that as these wars wind down, the military will likely downsize, as it usually does in postwar periods. A new surge of veterans will be coming home in the next couple years. That guy with the muscles and tattoos in the black tee shirt in the back of your local bar? He's spent 30 or so months in a combat zone and has a lot more to offer the community than just war stories, though even he may not know that yet.
Read more: http://battleland.blogs.time.com/2011/08/10/vets-arent-victims/#ixzz1UpDJzMAU
Posted by Matt Gallagherhttp://battleland.blogs.time.com/2011/08/10/vets-arent-victims/
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