Vietnam War Veterans

Roughly 2.5 million people have served in Iraq and Afghanistan. 30-75 percent of these

veterans have Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), after spending 10 years in Iraq and 14 in

Afghanistan so far. Almost 50,000 Afghanistan and Iraq veterans are at risk for homelessness,

while the veterans who served during the Iraq and Afghanistan wars still have difficulty finding

work and 9 percent of them were jobless in 2013. The number of homeless male and female

Vietnam-era veterans is greater than the number of service persons who died during that war.

Veterans still unknowingly suffer sixty years after the Korean War. VA administers a variety of

benefits and services that provide financial and other forms of assistance to Servicemembers,

As one veteran journalist, Constantine Von Hoffman, has

claimed, “There's no simple explanation for why the rates are so disparate, but some of it likely

has to do with the differences between working for the military and working as a civilian”

(Cbsnews.com). Hoffman is explaining how some people may or may not see veterans different

from civilians. No matter the person, people should still be offered jobs. There should at least be

some jobs categorically for the veterans, considering they are most likely used to other working conditions. Second, a big problem with veterans is the fact that the wars often affect them with an

anxiety disorder, Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Even though many of the veterans tend

to suffer from PTSD, only some of them end up seeking help or literally get help. The majority

of veterans turn towards drugs and alcohol to try and solve their problems, which alone makes

matters worse. “Studies show that there is a strong relationship between PTSD and SUD”

(Ptsd.va.gov). SUD is Substance Use Disorder, caused by drug or alcohol abuse. As the author

As

Kerriharmon has said in one article, "Wherever drinking is a problem with Veterans, the VA is

looking for solutions. Alcohol screening followed by brief alcohol counseling has been very

effective in helping Veterans with existing and potential drinking problems and is a national

prevention priority for the VA" (Texvet.com). According to Kerriharmon, the veterans are getting

help for alcohol abuse, but Kerriharmon doesn't mention any help for the drug abuse. Although

they are helping as much as they can with the alcohol problem, they should focus on the drug

abuse simultaneously.

Lastly, a way the veterans could be assisted is by keeping them off the streets. As it says in

DAV Magazine, "According to the 2013 report prepared by HUD, 57,849 homeless veterans

were counted on a single night" (Go.galegroup.com). Despite the fact the number of homeless

veterans is dropping, us people should still try harder. The people who are willing to help out our

veterans could build extra homeless shelters, making some specifically for the former veterans.
In another article, an Associate Director of the Center for Constitutional Rights, Bill Quigley,