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New Study Shows Only One-Third of Vets Say the Wars Since 9/11 Were Worth It

New Study Shows Only One Third of Vets Say the Wars Since 9/11 Were Worth It

A decade later, a new study conducted by the Pew Research Center shows some disheartening reflection from the brave men and women that have served our country on battle fields overseas since 9/11. The new survey on “War and Sacrifice in the Post-9/11 Era,” found that only 1 of 3 post-9/11 veterans say the wars since 9/11 were worth it:

“The overwhelming majority of veterans of the post-9/11 era (96%) are proud of their military service. At the same time, more than four-in-ten (44%) report that they have had difficulties readjusting to civilian life, and 37% say that – whether or not they have been formally diagnosed – they have suffered from post-traumatic stress. While post-9/11 veterans are more supportive than the general public, just one-third (34%) say that, given the costs and benefits to the U.S., the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq have both been worth fighting.”

If the military regret may be a shock, the service men and women polled are not surprised. The study also found that 84 percent of modern-era veterans say the American public has little or no understanding of the problems that those in the military face. 71 Percent of the general public say that assessment is accurate.

The study was based on two nationally representative surveys, one of military veterans and the other of the general public, conducted between July 28 and September 15. A total of 1,853 veterans were surveyed, including 712 who served in the military after the attacks of 9/11, the general public survey was conducted among 2,003 adult respondents.

Chart compiled by the Pew Center showing the breakdown of rewards and burdens carried by those who have served:

New Study Shows Only One Third of Vets Say the Wars Since 9/11 Were Worth It

The Pew Research Center describes themselves as a nonpartisan “fact tank” that provides information on the issues, attitudes and trends shaping America and the world.


Post-9/11 Wars 10 Years Later

Comments (16)

  • westernmass
    Posted on October 7, 2011 at 11:12pm

    Bring the troops home, end the wars, focus on Americans and the economy. When Obama is voted out, no matter who we elect, they’d go down in history as one of the best Presidents in our country if they:

    1) Ended all proxy-wars in the Middle East
    2) End corporate loopholes and remove the unnecessary regulations on businesses.
    3) Repeal the costly Obamacare mandate.
    4) Restructure the tax code.
    5) Strengthened social security, medicare and medicaid
    6) Abolished NAFTA
    7) Abolish or strictly limit the power of the Federal Reserve and the IMF.
    8) Abolish and remove all wasteful bureaucracies (EPA and the Dept. of Education at the top of the list)

    I could go on, but I don’t want to be annoying…it’s a fairly clear message…CUT OUT THE PORK, END THE WARS, REMOVE OBAMA AND THE CZARS, HELP BUSINESSES!

    Report Post »  
  • hempstead1944
    Posted on October 7, 2011 at 8:43am

    Truth is, it is higher than a 1/3……

    Report Post »  
    • JediPatriot
      Posted on October 7, 2011 at 8:02pm

      @ hempstead1944 – Indeed. There are more than a few of us vets that were never included in this study. I guess they conveniently forgot about us.
      Peace

      Report Post » JediPatriot  
  • Centralsville
    Posted on October 6, 2011 at 2:51pm

    I disagree with Paul that if we leave them alone they will leave us alone. That is naive and stupid. Islam has started wars all over the globe in many countries. The course we took was one of a few choices. We fight back over there, which is what we are doing. We sit back here and bomb the crap out of them from here every time we are attacked, kind of like Clinton did and like Israel does. We treat it like a police action, absorbing the hits and trying to jail the perpetrators in our courts, kind of like we were doing as the attacks became bigger and bigger killing more and more people. We outlaw Islam and kick them all out of the country, this could never happen in our P.C. culture. Or we just sit back and take the attacks and plead with them to stop, the European approach, the Ron Paul approach. Or we all convert to Islam and turn all the Jews and remaining Christians over to them to be destroyed.

    Report Post »  
  • bruce_baker
    Posted on October 6, 2011 at 2:10pm

    “Greater love hath no man, than he lay down his life for his friend.” Conversely, to me there is no greater sin than abusing the trust of our fighting men and asking them to support a corrupt cause.

    Vietnam was wrong. If the government there had really been a freedom loving democracy, it would have won, especially with our help. It wasn’t a freedom loving democracy, but an abject tyranny. Our government didn’t know that, at least at first. Communist or not, the people of the country kicked out a corrupt regime.

    Afghanistan is the same story, except I‘m not sure that this time our government doesn’t know that it’s supporting a corrupt dictator. All the signs are there for anyone with two eyes and a brain, but that lets out most of our government officials. None is so blind as he who will not see. That means that it’s up to us, we the people, to MAKE them see that American blood and treasure are not to be thrown under the bus of tyranny, corruption and dictatorship. Ron Paul is the only presidential contender to have that position.

    The question for 2012 becomes, “Do you want your children to live in a communist country, or not?”

    Report Post » bruce_baker  
  • Centralsville
    Posted on October 6, 2011 at 1:49pm

    I have mixed feelings on the wars. Part of me doesn’t think there is any hope for any Islamic country no matter what we do. I don’t think Islam and freedom can live together. I have also read that Chrisitan minorities are persecuted even more in the Middle East than before we went in, even in the countries we occupy. On the other hand I am happy we finally fought back after taking attack after attack with no response. Their attacks on us were getting bigger and bigger right up until 9-11 until we fought back. We see their leaders gettting their just rewards. I like that. I don’t think the Middle East was safer with Saddam in power either. He had already invaded two countries and was threatening others. I can’t believe anyone would miss him being in power. It isn’t really up to the soldier anyway. A soldier’s job is to follow orders. Soldiers don’t get to choose which wars they will participate in. If you don‘t like that don’t become a soldier. We have a civilian government not like a banana republic run by it’s military. I didn’t agree with the war under Clinton when we fought on the side of spreading Islam in Europe.

    Report Post »  
  • V-MAN MACE
    Posted on October 6, 2011 at 10:16am

    Returned and retired vets are being targetted by Homeland Security as a threat.

    They’re gonna make them out to be terrorists because they fought hard and long for our freedom and now they know a lot of it was based on lies, and that the commies are taking over our country when they came home.

    Vets aren’t happy at all. They’ve been treated like detritus.

    Report Post » V-MAN MACE  
  • swankyc
    Posted on October 6, 2011 at 9:18am

    I’m a 10 yr veteran of the USMC. I’m a veteran of Desert Storm and Somalia. My Dad is a 23 year veteran of the Army and he served in Desert Storm. He was awarded the bronze medal for his service there. We served very proudly and I still miss being in the big green machine. I have always talked to my family about the honor of serving our country thru the military.

    With that said, I’ve been having debates with a good friend of mine this week about whether I would allow my son to register for the draft… I am seriously wrestling with this but I believe our military are being used as cannon fodder pawns for nothing but partisan political purposes. I cannot in good conscience allow my sons to be used that way.

    Report Post »  
    • Dismayed Veteran
      Posted on October 6, 2011 at 12:07pm

      Thank you for your service.

      My grandfather fought in the Spanish American War and WWI. My dad fought in WWII, Korea and Viet Nam. I was in Nam. My oldest son is on his third deployment. Sometimes we ask too much from our youth. Bin Laden is dead. Time to bring the troops home.

      Report Post » Dismayed Veteran  
    • swankyc
      Posted on October 6, 2011 at 1:33pm

      Semper Fi Dismayed Veteran. I agree, bring them home.

      Report Post »  
  • Arc
    Posted on October 6, 2011 at 3:49am

    The SEC’s watching porn.
    The DOJ is selling guns to criminals.
    The Dept of Energy apparently doesn’t have enough energy to power a calculator.
    The Dept of Education is allowing marxism and socialism to be taught in schools.
    The Dept of Interior is selling PUBLIC Land.
    The FCC would like to monitor & control all internet traffic.
    The White House is providing loans to Brazil to explore for oil off the South American coast.
    The State Department is dragging its feet on a show of support for Israel
    The Commerce Dept is moonlighting by selling HEALTH insurance.
    Protesters on Wall Street can’t tell you WHY they are there.
    The Union is supporting the protesters in their stupidity.
    MoveOn.Org is supporting both protesters and Unions.

    And the American Soldier is in a foreign land, giving up a few personal rights to ensure that their fellow countrymen can engage in the items listed above.

    What’s wrong with that picture?

    Report Post » Arc  
    • rabblechat
      Posted on October 6, 2011 at 8:51am

      Great points; I’ll add we send our armed forces to places like Afghanistan to “protect our freedom” but the reality of it is, our freedom doesn’t need defended from the Taliban in Helmand; its the folks in D.C. which are trampling the constitution and our civil liberties.

      Report Post » rabblechat  
  • YepImaConservative
    Posted on October 5, 2011 at 9:43pm

    God Bless the men and women of the United States Armed Forces who fought and died in Iraq and Afghanistan. God Bless our Military who have sacrificed so much since 9/11. God Bless those of you who bear the scars of war for our nation. God Bless you all.

    May history be kind to your time spent in harms way and that you did not fight, or get injured, or die in vain. May your sacrifices bear the fruits of success that cannot be fully measured at this time. We understand you are weary, and have every right to be.

    You have our respect.

    I don’t think anyone in thier right mind can disagree with that.

    Thank you all.

    Report Post » YepImaConservative  
    • Jpcannon
      Posted on October 5, 2011 at 11:51pm

      Thank you for your support…

      OEF 2006-2007
      OEF 2011-

      Report Post »  
    • pamela kay
      Posted on October 6, 2011 at 3:19am

      I agree 100% The only comment I might have is that this has been a very long war. I can understand the frustation of being deployed so many times. If we had more support from other countries and could go in and do the job with enough troops to get the job done it might have been less stressful on our troops. It makes me so angry when I watch the protest on Wall St. right now . While our brave men and women fight for their freedom these punks whine and complain because they don’t feel they should have to pay their school loans. And they want to become a socialist country. Punish the rich, really? The professors at many universities brainwash these kids to hate the USA. I think that takes allot of nerve at the time when we have our military men and women in harms way. Its like saying that all who have fought and all who have been injured or even killed have done so in vain. It’s our duty to do our part here and protect the same freedoms that they are fighting for.

      Report Post » pamela kay  
    • crazymed
      Posted on October 6, 2011 at 6:37am

      thank you
      OIF II, 2008-2009, 2011 UTC

      Report Post »  

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