More OEF OIF have no religious affiliation

This is stunning. At a time in our history when combat veterans need to heal spiritually and emotionally, fewer of them have ties to a faith base. This is a sad commentary on how the churches have failed to reach out to them to let them know they are forgiven, for whatever they believe they need forgiveness for and above all, they are loved.

The best healing comes from addressing the spiritual issues of combat. Considering families are fractured, dealing with a lot of stress from repeated deployments and financial stress, this is the worst time to leave them with no spiritual help.

One in three view the wars as a waste according to the poll from Pew research. They also say they are proud of their service, as they should be because when they were in combat, they were fighting for each other. They also say that the general public has little understanding adding to their hurt. Considering how little coverage they receive it is hard to imagine they would feel otherwise. The rest you can read for yourself, but unless we focus on these factors, we will see more and more heartaches in more and more families that did not need to happen.

Poll: 1 in 3 Vets Sees Iraq, Afghan Wars as Wastes

October 05, 2011
Associated Press
by Robert Burns

WASHINGTON -- One in three U.S. veterans of the post-9/11 military believes the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan were not worth fighting, and a majority think that after 10 years of combat America should be focusing less on foreign affairs and more on its own problems, according to an opinion survey released Wednesday.

The findings highlight a dilemma for the Obama administration and Congress as they struggle to shrink the government's huge budget deficits and reconsider defense priorities while trying to keep public support for remaining involved in Iraq and Afghanistan for the longer term.

Nearly 4,500 U.S. troops have died in Iraq and about 1,700 in Afghanistan. Combined war costs since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks have topped $1 trillion.

The poll results presented by the Pew Research Center portray post-9/11 veterans as proud of their work, scarred by warfare and convinced that the American public has little understanding of the problems that wartime service has created for military members and their families.

The survey also showed that post-9/11 veterans are more likely than Americans as a whole to call themselves Republicans and to disapprove of President Obama's performance as commander in chief.

They also are more likely than earlier generations of veterans to have no religious affiliation.
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This is from CNN

Poll finds pride in military, but not for Afghanistan, Iraq wars
By Moni Basu, CNN
updated 9:26 AM EST, Wed October 5, 2011
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Only one-third of post-9/11 veterans say the wars have been worth the costs
Four in 10 vets say they had a hard time adjusting back to life after war
Veterans say civilians don't understand their problems; the public agrees
Both military and nonmilitary respondents oppose a return of the draft

A U.S. soldier secures a landing zone for a Blackhawk helicopter in the Shigal district center in Kunar province, Afghanistan.

(CNN) -- America marks the 10th anniversary this week of the Afghanistan conflict, the longest running war in the nation's history. And since the first U.S. troops headed to the mountains and valleys of the Hindu Kush in October 2001, the United States entered yet another war in Iraq.
"These wars, this time period has been unique in our history," said Paul Taylor, one of the authors of a study published Wednesday by the Pew Research Center. "This has been the longest period of sustained conflict in our history and the fight has been carried by the smallest share."
While Americans remain supportive of their all-volunteer military (only one half of 1% of the population has been on active duty service in the past decade), the length of the conflicts has reshaped attitudes toward war and sacrifice, the survey found.

"The ambivalence that many post-9/11 veterans feel about their military mission has a parallel in the mixture of benefits and burdens they report having experienced since their return to civilian life," the report said.

On top of that, veterans -- 84% -- said most Americans do not understand the myriad problems they and their families have had to face including long separations, physical and psychological injuries and stress. Some 71% of the public agreed.

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