[Peace-discuss] statistics on veterans
Jenifer Cartwright
jencart13 at yahoo.com
Mon Dec 3 01:18:22 CST 2007
A very high percentage of homeless are veterans. That would be a good stat to include at the top of the list about the homeless. http://www.nchv.org/media.cfm
--Jenifer
Marti Wilkinson <martiwilki at gmail.com> wrote:
This is good information to have. I'm really concerned that the longer we stay in Irag the more likely we will be unable to bring our soldiers home. I have a feeling the ramifications of this will end up being much worse than Vietnam.
On Dec 1, 2007 3:46 PM, Karen Medina <kmedina at uiuc.edu> wrote:
The flier I was putting together (about statistics on veterans) ended up far too long (4 pages). I will cut it down, but I thought I would share my first draft.
When the Troops Come Marching Home -- in our dreams, having them home was much happier (If you thought this war doesn't affect you, think again)
The Army has canceled its traditional holiday early release program again this year. National leaders are calling this the "Long War". For some soldiers, it is already a second, third, or fourth tour of duty. The result is much more than just the unprecedented levels of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and life-changing physical injuries.
• In 2005, there were 120.3 suicides per week for veterans
• 25% of all homeless people are veterans (veterans make up 11% of the US population). In 1996, 23% of the homeless were veterans.
• desertion rate is up 80% since 2003
• 100,000 vets are seeking treatment for mental health issues
• 28% of vets experience mental health problems
• 52,000 vets are seeking treatment for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
• Exposure to physical trauma (brain injury is just one example), chemical exposure
• Anxiety and depression untreated lead to full blown PTSD which may lead to job problems, family problems, drug and alcohol abuse, suicide, involvement in petty crime in order to get money, unemployment, homelessness (CBS News, 2007b) and incarceration (see below).
Older studies show that domestic violence is high in the military.
• Rates of marital aggression are considerably higher than civilian rates, from two up to five times higher.
• Substantiated spousal abuse involving members of the military is predominantly perpetrated by male active duty personnel (according to a 1996 report).
• Victims of domestic violence may not report abuse because they perceive a threat to their spouse's career.
• Husbands are also victims of physical and mental abuse from the wife
Keep in mind that we have sent 1.5 million soldiers to these two wars.
Of homeless veterans , a 1996 report said that:
• most are males (4% are females)
• 89% received Honorable Discharge
• 45% were suffering from mental illness
• half had substance abuse problems
• 76% experienced alcohol, drug, or mental health problems (some suffered from substance abuse and mental health problems)
• 67% served for at least 3 years
• 33% were stationed in a war zone
• The VA estimated that nearly 200,000 were homeless on any given night
• 400,000 were experiencing homelessness in a given year
• 79% were in central cities, 16% in suburban, 5% in rural areas
In 1998 (National Coalition for Homeless Veterans citing several reports, (this may not have been updated since the invasion of Iraq)):
• over 225,000 veterans were in national prisons or jails
• only 1 in every 6 was not honorably discharged
• Among state prisoners, 53% of the incarcerated veterans were white non-Hispanics (compared to 31% of non-veterans).
• Among Federal prisoners, 50% of the incarcerated veterans were white (compared to 26% of non-veterans).
• Among state prisoners, incarcerated veterans were about 3 times more likely to have attended college than non-veterans.
When troops return from long deployments, social service agencies -- on and off military posts -- have to prepare for outbreaks of family trouble and dangerous behavior as combat-weary soldiers try to readjust.
Just as an example of the turmoil that expresses itself in violence, in the first week of November, 2007, the 82nd Airborne form North Carolina had four returned troops involved in murders, including a murder of one military wife and a murder-suicide which left two toddlers as orphans. "He told me he had seen a lot of things that he couldn't even talk to me about," said the father of the 23-year-old who committed the murder-suicide.
Family stresses show up in calls for help. Even civilian run hotlines like the Quaker's GI Rights Hotline have seen even more calls this year . The worst part of the conversations is that there is no end in sight for most of the soldiers – the troops will return again to Iraq or Afghanistan. Troops are being deployed repeatedly in combat zones for longer and longer periods of time.
The families are affected. Just as an example, one soldier is a father of three daughters: a 9 year old who is old enough to understand that her father is leaving again, a 3 year old who barely knows her father because he has been gone most of her lifetime, and a 7 month old who barely recognizes her father because he left a few days after she was born and was gone for a short 4 month deployment. Their lives will continue like this till they are grown. (Fager, 2007)
In addition to the now well-publicized issues at Walter Reed National Army Medical Center neglect scandal , the VA has other problems:
• The VA has a Don't Look Don 't Find policy (CBS News, 2007a).
• Some Veterans Administration employees have also been ordered to deny all claims without even processing until the individual veteran files an appeal.
• Cuts in VA services and closing of VA hospitals
• The VA does not have enough psychiatrists and psychologists
• VA is inflating the numbers of veterans served by using practices such as collecting social security numbers (and thus funding) from prisoners who are vets. The VA informs the incarcerated vets of services for which they are not eligible)
Ordinary soldiers have been prosecuted for government policies/crimes in which they may have participated, but in which officials above them in the chain ordered or encouraged them to do.
Recruitment levels are low so this affects those currently in the military. Aside from the huge financial costs of this war, there are limits on the supply of human beings for the Long War. Even with the military's practices like the stop-loss policy, the offering of re-enlistment bonuses, and offering salary incentives (to keep military people from leaving and joining private militia groups like Blackwater), and other such tactics, the military is having troubles supplying troops.
All school children are affected. The military has been introducing combat simulations to elementary school students as "field trips". The military is often the singular presence at high school career and job fairs. In 2002, the No Child Left Behind Act conditioned high school eligibility for federal funding to the school's willingness to surrender contact information for its juniors and seniors – this information is used to call and mail the students for recruitment. In 2005, the opt-out was not being publicized to families, it had an early deadline, and if a student opted-out the student was removed from the school's directory.
Movies intended for children are also used by military recruiters. Shrek the Third and the Bee Movie are two examples where the previews shown before the movies included violent images of soldiers busting down doors in Baghdad, gun battles, footage of tanks and helicopters, and songs by groups like "3 Doors Down".
Recruiters actively target working-class youth giving these young people the belief that they have little choice but to join the military. In reality, money for college is hard to come by after joining the military, and there is no guarantee of job placement after one has served. In fact, studies show that unemployment is actually higher among young veterans than among non-veterans. Blacks make up 13 percent of the national population but they represent 29 percent of military personnel. The same paradox has been documented for Latinos and Native Americans.
There is an upcoming deployment of the local troops to Afghanistan.
• The largest deployment of Illinois National Guard since WWII.
• 2,700 members being deployed
• The Urbana brigade, the 33rd Infantry Brigade, is one of eight units from across the country being readied.
• Based in Urbana, but comes from across Illinois.
• Will leave as early as Summer 2008 and no later than November 2008
• They will expect to be gone 13 to 14 months (shorter than previous deployments, because the Guard as a whole was asking for shorter deployments)
• Composition: Aurora, Bloomington, Carbondale, Champaign, Chicago, Crestwood, Dixon, Effingham, Elgin, Galva, Kankakee, Kewanee, Litchfield, Machesney Park, Marion, Marseilles, Mattoon, Mount Vernon, Pontiac, Salem, Springfield, Sycamore, Urbana, West Frankfort, and Woodstock Illinois.
More and more military people are speaking out. In August 2007, seven sergeants published an Op-Ed in the New York Times arguing that the war was hopeless and should be ended. In October, twelve captains, all Iraq veterans, wrote a similar piece for the Washington Post. About the same time, a California reporter found no less than twenty recently retired generals were speaking out about the pointless waste of US troops' lives, the devastation in Iraq, and the ruining of US credibility around the world. Such revolts from within the military itself have rarely happened in this nation's history.
Iraq Veterans Against the War are asking the US government to bring soldiers home from active duty in Iraq, make restitution and reparations to the Iraqi citizenry for the destruction incurred during the US occupation, and to secure benefits and adequate health care for returning servicemen and women. IVAW has also launched a truth-in-recruiting campaign.
Resources Used
* The Final Report on the Study of Spousal Abuse in the Armed Forces. (1996). Caliber Associates for the Department of Defense: Washington, DC.
* CBS News (Writer) (2007a). U.S. Veterans Face Challenges [On air and also Internet], CBS News Investigates. United States: CBS News. http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/i_video/main500251.shtml?id=3503612n
* CBS News (Writer) (2007b). Veteran Health [i_video]. In C. News (Producer), Eye to Eye. United States: CBS News. http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/i_video/main500251.shtml?id=3498254n
* Fager, C. (2007). Quaker House: Front-Line Peace Witness Since 1969 (newsletter). Fayetteville, North Carolina: Quaker House. URL for the organization: www.quakerhouse.org
* Interagency Council on the Homeless. (completed in 1996 and updated in 1999). The Forgotten Americans-Homelessness: Programs and the People They Serve. www.huduser.org
* Miles Foundation. (2002?). Domestic Violence in the Military. Retrieved November 29, 2007 from
* National Coalition for Homeless Veterans citing several reports. ((this may not have been updated since the invasion of Iraq)). Background & Statistics. Retrieved November 29, 2007, from http://www.nchv.org/background.cfm
This cites the Interagency Council on the Homeless report.
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