TLS Veterans

Dear friend of TLS,

Please take time to read “War and Sacrifice in the Post-9/11 Era,” a study from the Pew Research Center that focuses on the attitudes of veterans and the general public toward military service.

I recently came across it and thought I’d pass some highlights on to you:

• A majority of the nation’s post-9/11 veterans (61%) consider themselves more patriotic than most other Americans; just 5% say they are less patriotic (the remainder say they are about as patriotic as everyone else).
• An overwhelming majority of veterans are proud of their service (96%) and eight-in-ten feel they did important work for their country.
• About 84% of post-9/11 veterans feel the public does not understand problems faced by service members, veterans and their families; 71% of the public agree.
• 44% of post-9/11 veterans say their readjustment to civilian life was difficult. However, only 25% of veterans who served in earlier eras say the same.
• About half (48%) of all post-9/11 veterans say they have experienced strains in family relations since leaving the military.
• 47% say they have had frequent outbursts of anger.
• One-third (32%) say there have been times where they felt they didn’t care about anything.

The study reaffirms my conviction that the work at TLS is highly important and that we as a nation must never stop supporting our veterans. The return from war, to paraphrase Sen. Bob Dole, takes longer then the plane ride home.

Best regards,

Alan Belcher, M.S.
Executive Director