by Larry Minear
Mueller, Tyler J. USA. 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment, 7th Infantry. 172nd Infantry (Mountain) Regiment. I. 66, 117.
Mullins, Demond. USA. New York National Guard. I. 133.
Murphy, Patrick J. Staff Sergeant, USA. 1st Battalion, 12th Infantry Division, 2nd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division. I. 42.
*Nappier Jr., James N. USN. Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 14 (Seabees). 71.
*Neely, Mathew Sean. Sergeant, USA. A Battery, 1st Battalion, 5th Field Artillery, 1st Brigade, 1st Infantry Division. I. 22.
Neville, Daniel. Lieutenant, USN. Task Force Hurricane. I. 89, 109.
Pacanowski, Jennifer. USA. Medic. I. 153.
Pascalis, Michael. Master Sergeant, New Hampshire National Guard. A. 33.
Paulson, Adam. Sergeant, USMC. 5th Battalion, 11th Marine Regiment. A, I. 193.
*Paxson, David James. Staff Sergeant, USMC. 2nd Assault Amphibious Battalion, 2nd Marine Division. I. 173.
Pickett, Abbie. Specialist, USA. 229th C Combat Support Engineers, Wisconsin National Guard. I. 54, 133, 144, 178.
Pink, Steve. Sergeant, New Hampshire National Guard. 172nd Infantry (Mountain) Regiment. USA. I. 35, 37, 56, 67, 109, 137.
Raymundo, Mario. Specialist, New Hampshire National Guard. 27, 29.
Resta, Patrick. Pennsylvania National Guard. 252nd Artillery, 1st Infantry Division, USA. I. 77.
*Rieger, Timothy. Major, USMC. Judge Advocate General (JAG) Office, 25th Infantry Division. A. 26.
*Riley, Ralph. Colonel, 155th Brigade Combat Team. Miss. National Guard. I. 33, 51.
Ringo, Tracey. Major, Ohio National Guard. 126.
Rizza, Steven. New Hampshire National Guard. 176.
Ruiz de la Torre, Antonio. Lance Corporal, USMC. Marine Aircraft Group 39, Combat Assault Battalion, 3rd Marine Division. I. 127.
Schelhouse, William J. Lance Corporal, USMC. Marine Air Support Squadron-1. I. 74, 76.
*Schulte, Gregory James. Specialist, Missouri National Guard. 235th Engineer Team, 4th Infantry Division. I. 23, 92.
Schwab, Jennifer. Specialist, USA. New Hampshire National Guard. A. 21, 26, 178.
Shangraw, Kevin. New Hampshire National Guard. I. 81.
Shelton, Brian. Staff Sergeant. New Hampshire National Guard. A, I. 36, 71, 92, 93, 133.
Slager, Shane. Sergeant, Nebraska National Guard. 128.
Smith, Matthew S. USCG, Petty Officer First Class. I. 32.
Sosnicky, James. Captain, USA Reserve. 354th Civil Affairs Brigade. I. 60, 108.
*Spencer, Terrell W. Sergeant, USA. Detachment 1, 392nd Chemical Company (Reconnaissance). I. 20, 29, 100, 103, 148.
*Stenberg, Shawn Russell. Staff Sergeant, USA. 30th Engineer Battalion, 3rd Infantry Division. I. 187.
Sutton, Derek R. First Lieutenant, USA. 113th Engineer Battalion. I. 35, 67, 108.
Thomas, Michael A. Sergeant, Colorado National Guard. I. 126.
Thomas, Philip. Third Class Petty Officer E-4, USN. USS Trenton. I. 150, 184.
Thompson, Justin C. Sergeant, USA. 2nd Battalion, 20th 2nd Special Forces Group (Airborne) Mississippi National Guard. 108, 195.
Torres, Johnny. Corporal, USA. Army Ranger Regiment. A. 184.
Townsend, Joshua J. USA. 1057th Light/Medium Truck Company, Nebraska Army National Guard. I. 35.
Trouern-Trend, Jonathan. Sergeant First Class, Connecticut National Guard. 118th Area Support Medical Battalion. I. 59.
Tulley, Julius. Sergeant, National Guard, USA. I. 48.
Turner, Brian David. Captain, USA. Fox Battery, 2nd Battalion, 10th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division. I. 112.
Van Zanten, Jack C. Specialist Five, Master Warrant Officer (CW5). Army Security Agency, 509th Radio Research Field Station. I. 135.
Wagner, Lynn Tustin. Captain, USA Reserves. 129th Transportation Company; 349th Chemical Company; 737th Transportation Company, 70th Reserve Ready Command; United States Army Medical Research Institute of Chemical Defense. I. 142, 152, 186.
Walotka, Christopher Lawrence. Sergeant, USA, 459th Transportation Company, 495th Transportation Battalion. I. 59.
*Walton, Todd B. Sergeant, USA. 1057th Truck Company; 1618th Transportation Company, Nebraska National Guard. I. 116, 128, 169.
*Warnecke, Mark Robert. Colonel, NG/USA. 2nd Battalion, 108th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division. I. 25, 35, 58, 171.
Watada, Ehren K. First Lieutenant, USA. Fire Support Officer, 5th Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division. 75, 77.
*Welch, James R. Specialist, USA. 4th Infantry Division, B Company, 3rd Brigade Combat Team (BCT). I. 36, 38, 66, 69, 187.
Wells, Andrew M. Captain, USA. 1st Battalion, 1st Infantry, 1st Armored Division. I. 20, 86, 130, 134.
White, Charles. Specialist E-4, USA. 947th Engineer Company; 361st Engineer Battalion. I. 82.
Wilbanks, Stephen. Corporal, USMC. I. 23.
*Youngs, Aubrey Shea. Specialist, NG/USA. A Company, 113th Support Battalion, 76th Infantry Brigade. A. 48.
*Zambrana, Maria. Photographer’s Mate Third Class, USS Shenandoah. USN. I. 178.
INDEX
Abu Ghraib, 67, 73, 78–80, 108, 111, 115, 120, 174, 187
Afghanistan
attitudes of U.S. soldiers toward, 34
Soviet invasion of, 70, 170
U.S. relations with Karzai government, 7
U.S. troop strength in, 5, 9, 10
African American veterans, 14, 177, 179
Al Qaeda, 5, 6, 7, 26, 70, 80, 91, 94
American Folklife Center (Library of Congress), vi, xii, xiii, xviii
American Legion, 42
Arts, the, 120–24
Band of Brothers, 185
Bin Laden, Osama, 5, 49
Blackwater, USA, 101, 104
Bosnia, 29, 42, 81
Bush, President George H.W., 34, 101–02, 113
Bush, President George W., 102, 120
opinions of veterans toward, 32, 34, 139
policies of, 7–8, 42, 80, 96, 156–57, 191–92
views of the Global War on Terror, 4–5, 163
casualties, 7
among local civilians, 192
See also civilian population
among U.S. military personnel, xvii, 11-15
effects of improvements in battlefield medicine on, 171–72
civilian population
casualties among, 51, 55, 65, 76
children, 65–67, 74, 76, 81-83
impacts on veterans’ relations with their own children, 81, 131, 139, 186
mothers and fathers, 40, 61–62, 74
U.S. military attempts to assist, 41, 88–93, 110
See also hearts and minds
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), 80
Cheney, Richard, 101–102, 139
children, 25, 139, 184,
of Afghani and Iraqi civilians, 40, 41, 55, 62, 65–67, 74–75, 76, 81–83, 88–93, 110, 139, 140
of soldiers, 38, 76, 116, 117, 128, 131, 135, 161, 168, 186
civic action. See hearts and minds
Clinton, President Bill, ix, 34
Cold War, 20, 40, 49, 156, 168–169, 170, 172, 181, 193
Combat Diary, 121
Commanders Emergency Response
Program (CERP), 86
Commission on Care for America’s Returning Wounded Warriors, 159–60
cultural differences, 47–54, 56, 60, 62, 82, 138–39
efforts to overcome, 58–64, 89
Department of Defense (DOD), 8, 12, 15, 53, 95, 72, 100, 150, 158, 177
initiatives on veterans’ health, 154, 160
See also private contractors
deployments, 9, 67, 100
extended, 67
multiple, 3–4, 141, 145, 149–50, 154–55, 163
National Guard, 7, 27, 120
women, 13, 15
See also stop-loss
Dignity for Wounded Warriors, Act of 2008, 161
Disabled American Veterans, 157
Do
le, Senator Bob, 159
See also Dole-Shalala Commission
Dole-Shalala Commission, 150, 158
enlistment
influence of economic need, 19–22
of non-U.S. nationals, 29, 55
relevance of family and family traditions, 20, 23, 26, 39
role of educational opportunities, 21, 100
standards, 21, 145
See also patriotism
ethical challenges, 65–83
behavior of private contractors, 101–102
disciplinary treatment of Americans, 69
distinguishing combatants from civilians, 51, 65
fidelity to international law, 66, 72–78
protection of assets from attack, 66–67
uneven application of law and rules of engagement, 68–69
use of torture to extract information, 71–72
Eustis, Oskar, 121
Fahrenheit 9/11, 60, 120
families,
communications through email and blogs, 114–18, 167–68
impacts of veterans’ service on, 26–27, 58, 61, 127, 128, 161, 188
See also re-entry
female veterans, xvii
casualty rates, 11, 13–14, 177–78
discharge of lesbian veterans, 178–79
expanded roles in Iraq and Afghanistan, 177–78
hearts and minds activities, 88
proportions of OEF/OIF veterans represented by, 12
sexual abuse, 178, 179
Freedom Calls organization, 115
Friedman, Matthew J., 131, 159, 189
Gates, Robert, 103, 107, 114
gay and lesbian veterans, xvii, 53, 174, 178–80
See also female veterans
Generation Kill, 120
Geneva Conventions, xix, 6, 66, 75–78
GI Bill, 21, 164
Global War on Terror (GWOT)
cost, xvii, 8
evolution and duration, 4, 8, 79–80
GWOT Expeditionary Medal, 100, 153, 184
GWOT Service Medal, 153, 184
principal theaters, 5–8
use of term, 4, 27, 29–30, 34, 181
Gold Star Mothers, 43
Guantanamo, 45, 80, 180
Guardians, The, 120
hearts and minds activities, 85–96
channeling of donated items from the U.S., 59, 85, 89, 90
element in counterinsurgency, 93–94
ensnaring villages in the conflict, 93–94
private contractors, involvement of, 100–101
Provincial Reconstruction Teams, 86
vehicle for involvement with locals, 86–87
See also local populations
Homebody/Kabul, 120
homelessness, 155–56
International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), 5, 7, 110, 169
See also North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
Iraq
attitudes of veterans toward people of, 56, 59–64, 67, 71–72, 109
attitudes of veterans toward waging war in, 34–37, 41, 50–51, 171, 173
U.S. troop strength in, 6–7, 9
Iraq-Afghanistan experience, assessment by veterans of 22, 34–35, 37–38, 76, 88, 90–95, 99–100, 127, 136–37, 183–85
Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA), 43, 118, 164
Iraqi Campaign Medal, 184
Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW), 43
Islam, 28, 35, 49, 59, 60, 61, 71, 75, 85, 112, 191
Karzai, President Hamid, 7, 70
Kellogg, Brown, and Root, 97–98, 101–103, 169
Kerry, Senator John, 41
Korean War, 171
Kosovo, 81, 173
Kuwait, 47–48, 79, 98, 163
Library of Congress, x, xi–xiii, 9, 25
See also Veterans History Project
local populations, 47–54
efforts to reach out to, 58–64, 85–86
human terrain teams and, 53
negative attitudes toward, 62, 138–39
role of interpreters in relating to, 52
See also hearts and minds activities
Marine National Training Center, 53
Massachusetts, 74, 159
media, 107–115
inaccuracy of reporting, 107–111
photographing repatriation of bodies, 113–14
role in shaping public opinion, 112–14
methodological issues
selection of veterans for study, xix
Military Families Speak Out (MFSO), 43, 44, 118
military policies
effects on gays and lesbians, 53, 179
impact on those with interpreter skills, 53, 55, 178
incidents of sexism and military sexual abuse, 178
response to difficulties of waging asymmetric wars, 194
treatment of racial and ethnic minorities, 179
military strategy and tactics
counterinsurgency, 176, 194
deployments, 10, 67
features of all-volunteer armed forces, 166–67
impacts on combat and support roles, 57–58, 170
insurgent tactics in Iraq and Afghanistan, 71–75
Minnesota, 161
Mullen, Admiral Mike, 41–42
Murphy, Congressman Patrick, 42
National Guard, 26. See also New Hampshire National Guard; Vermont National Guard
involvement in Afghanistan and Iraq, 10, 11, 125, 147, 170
mobilization for Operation Noble Eagle, 7
recruitment literature, 91–92
Nebraska, 125–26, 128, 130
New Hampshire, 11, 190
National Guard, 21, 27, 31–32, 33, 35, 36, 37, 38, 47, 48, 51, 56–57, 58, 60, 61, 63, 67, 68, 71, 81, 86, 91–93, 101, 102, 109, 116, 117, 131, 133, 141, 150, 151, 153, 172, 176, 178, 190
state agencies, 151–55, 160, 162
New York, 22, 23, 25, 29, 33, 35, 47, 155, 161, 171
No End in Sight, 120
North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), 5, 7, 110, 114
One Bullet Away, 120–21
Obama administration, 7, 96, 113, 156, 164, 181, 192, 194, 196
Obama, Barack
as president, 45, 180, 189, 196
as senator, 40, 161
Operation Desert Shield, 32, 168, 169
Operation Desert Storm, 20, 32, 39, 81, 82, 112, 113, 168, 169, 172, 185
Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF), 5, 8, 34, 168, 195
casualties, xvii, 11–13
Operation Iraqi Children, 90
Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF), 34, 52, 164
casualties, xvii, 11–13
Operation Noble Eagle, 7, 9, 10
Patriot Act, 8
Patriotism, 126
as reflected in post-re-entry civic activities, 41–42
impacts of service in Iraq and Afghanistan on views of the U.S., 165
impacts of service on views of the conflicts, 34–38
in enlistment decision, 21, 22–30,
of military families, 44–45
Peace Corps, 68
Petraeus, General David, 93, 192
politics
and the Iraq-Afghanistan experience, 22–30
political activism, cautions against, 45
political activism, examples of, 38–46
private views of veterans, 33–34
professionalism in remaining apolitical, 31–46
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
coming to terms with, 134, 138, 153, 156–57, 175–77, 194
correlation with exposure to violence, 45, 151, 154–56
improvements in treatment of, 172
incidence of, 4, 9, 45, 151–52, 154–55, 157–58, 188, 190
long-range challenges of, 138, 140, 148, 157–58, 177
private contractors, 73, 95, 97–106
See also Kellogg, Brown, and Root; Blackwater
RAND Corporation, 157–58
Redacted, 120
Re-entry, 125–46
adjustment to peacetime settings, 133–35, 137
attractiveness of re-enlisting, 141–45
difficulties of re-establishing communication with families, 128–32, 139
new/renewed appreciation of family and community, 185
rapidity of the transition, 126–29
role of the arts in, 120–22, 139–41
seeking psychological help, 135–36
Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC), 20, 29, 32
Reserves, 11, 27, 40, 125, 141, 147
Rhode Island, 120
Rhode Island Project, The, 120
ROTC, 20, 29, 32, 86, 110
Rumsfeld, Donald, 6, 29
Rwanda, 81
Saddam Hussein, 5–6, 36, 49, 70, 76, 108
September 11, 2001
influence on decisions to enlist, 22–23, 25, 37, 42
resonance with veterans, 187
response of George W. Bush
administration, 4–9, 70, 180–81
views of Obama administration, 196
Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, 43, 118
Shalala, Donna, 159–60
See also Dole-Shalala commission
Somalia, 81, 173
State Department, 79, 89, 97, 104, 144
Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA), 6, 104
stop-loss, 126, 141, 166
Stuff Happens, 120
Taliban, 4, 5, 33, 35, 49, 70, 75, 86, 91, 94, 192
training, 78, 79, 82, 99, 139, 154, 184, 196
changes over time, 170
communication skills, 48
cultural, 60, 63, 138
for military police, 80
for veterans, 162
traumatic brain injury (TBI), 55, 134, 138, 148, 156–58, 176
Tricare health insurance, 147, 150–51
United Nations, 96, 110, 173
Baghdad headquarters bombing, 95
Security Council, 5, 6
USA Patriot Act, 8
Valley of Elah, The, 120
Vermont, 11, 113, 140, 162, 190
Bradford, xv, xxi, 38
focus group, 58, 136–37
National Guard, xxi, 20, 28, 33, 44, 47, 50, 60–61, 131, 134, 136, 190–91
Veteran
age, 12, 15
education levels and aspirations, 12
gender, 12, 15
marital status, 12
non-U.S. citizen component, 14
racial/ethnic backgrounds, 14
use of the term, xviii, 3–4
Veterans Affairs, Department of (DVA), 27, 40, 41, 43, 44, 50, 56, 81, 131, 150, 156–57, 158–59, 164, 177
Veterans for America, 118
Veterans for Common Sense, 156
Veterans History Project, ix–x, xi–xiii, xviii, xx, 7, 9, 14, 19, 25, 32, 44, 174, 183, 190