Command Message - Veteran's Day 2019

Monday, November 11, 2019

6:29 AM

Happy Veteran's Day to current Service men and women, Veterans, and the family and friends who support us. It is a dreary cold day in the Midwest but still great to see neighbors' flags flying, small town parades, ceremonies and businesses with their "Thank You" signs out offering a free meal or haircut. 

 The past few years, I've either posted my speeches or written from 'down range' but this year, being an Engineer, I'd like to take a quick run at the numbers. In today's society, I'd dare say just about everyone knows a Veteran. Looking through different websites, I think you will truly be impressed at just how small those numbers are. I am not pointing this out as some form of elitism, but really just to emphasize my gratitude to all of our Nation's Soldiers, Airmen, Sailors, Marines and Coast Guard…but especially to my Grandpa (WWII - New Guinea), Great Uncle (WWII POW), Father (Vietnam Era Army Reserve), Step-Father (Army -Vietnam Era (4-yrs), Air Force - 34 yrs), Father-in-law (Vietnam Tour- Air Force), and now my son. Various websites have slightly differing stats, but I'd say these are pretty reputable.

1.  There are 18.8 million veterans living in the U.S. today, 7.6 percent of the population. From <https://www.ncsl.org/blog/2017/11/10/veterans-by-the-numbers.aspx>
2. Currently, only 0.5% of the adult American population are serving our armed forces. From <https://www.cfr.org/article/demographics-us-military>
3. 9% of Population served in WWII: 12,209,238 Americans were in military service by September 2, 1945, representing 9% of the 131,028,000 U.S. population. From <https://www.historynet.com/what-percentage-of-the-population-served-in-ww2.htm>
4. 9.7% of the Vietnam generation: 9,087,000 military personnel served on active duty during the Vietnam Era (Aug 5, 1964 – May 7, 1975) From <https://www.uswardogs.org/vietnam-statistics/> 
5. The share of the U.S. population with military experience is declining. In 2016, 7% of U.S. adults were veterans, down from 18% in 1980, according to the Census Bureau. This drop coincides with decreases in active duty personnel. Over the past half-century, the number of people on active duty has dropped significantly, from 3.5 million in 1968, during the draft era, to 1.3 million (or less than 1% of all U.S. adults) in today’s all-volunteer force. The military draft ended in 1973. From <https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/11/10/the-changing-face-of-americas-veteran-population/> 
6. Gulf War-era veterans now account for the largest share of all U.S. veterans, surpassing Vietnam-era veterans in 2016, according to Veterans Affairs’ 2016 population model estimates. As of last year, there were 6.8 million American veterans who served during the Vietnam era and 7.1 million who served in the Gulf War era, which spans from August 1990 through the present. (Some veterans served through both eras.) There were also around 771,000 World War II veterans and 1.6 million who served during the Korean conflict, the VA estimates. About three-quarters (77%) of veterans in 2016 served during wartime and 23% only served during peacetime.  From <https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/11/10/the-changing-face-of-americas-veteran-population/>
7.  Veterans keep on serving: I have the privilege (in The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers) to work with thousands of Veterans who continue to serve. Many of these 'civilians' are still heading 'down range' or traveling hundreds of countries in support of the warfighter.
8.  The Military has a deep lineage: Although a little dated, A Pentagon report detailing 2012-2013 recruits shows that 86% of new Air Force airmen had a close relative (parent, grandparent, sibling, aunt, uncle or cousin) who had served. The Navy rate was 82%; Army, 79%; and Marines, 77%. From <https://time.com/4254696/military-family-business/>

 Again, thank you to all those who have served, continue to serve and those that support us.

 God Bless,

COL Jung