As with every generation defined by war, ours is often showcased both on the silver screen and in popular media. Whether we like it or not, much of how the civilian population sees us is derived from what they are able to glean from the movies and shows that Hollywood feeds them.
One of the most significant differences today as opposed to previous generations is the way service members are portrayed on the screen. In John Markert's book, Post-9/11 Cinema: Through a Lens Darkly, he writes, "The negative depiction of war-related events is something that did not occur during WWII or Korea, but was also atypical during the highly contentious debate that raged in the public arena during the Vietnam conflict."
Among recent films about veterans and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the 2008 movie The Hurt Locker was nominated for 9 Academy Awards, and won 6, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Original Screenplay. Unfortunately, the screenplay, the director, and all of Hollywood got the movie completely wrong. The film is centered around a main character whose thirst for adrenaline and propensity to unnecessarily court danger with every unexploded ordnance (UXO) situation he encounters couldn't be further from the truth. In real world situations, Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) personnel are highly risk averse from a personal standpoint. They've become that way based on experience and professional competence, understanding intrinsically that most UXOs can be detonated or rendered inert without ever coming anywhere close to the ordnance at all. The very concept of identifying risk and mitigating the potential threats through risk controls is hammered into their concept of operations from the very beginning. The soldier upon whose experiences the film was loosely based would tell you the same. Master Sergeant Jeffrey Sarver, who ended up filing a multi-million dollar lawsuit against the movies producers, would tell you that their depiction of EOD personnel in the film was ridiculously outlandish. Yet, the movie was critically acclaimed as an excellent portrayal of the Iraq war and EOD personnel.
It is no wonder that our civilian counterparts see us as reckless, dangerous, and rabidly Type A personalities with sloppy impulse control. They have been indoctrinated to think that way.
Adding to all of these misconceptions about veterans and their suitability for civilian life is a belief that most veterans are secretly suffering from some type of post traumatic stress disorder or other mental illness brought on by the wars' effects. The truth, however, is that most veterans don't suffer from those conditions. As was highlighted in the last blog post, the NBC Today show did a piece about war related illnesses and the fact that most returning veterans are actually quite normal and well adjusted. That fact is often lost among stories of veterans who are facing difficulties, but are part of a 20% minority.
In October of 2011, the House Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity held hearings on the plight of returning veterans and their employment issues. The hearings, led by Rep. Marlin Stutzam (R-Ind) and Rep. Bruce Braley (D-Iowa), found that there was a "disconnect between businesses, the VA Department, and the veterans themselves...."
For businesses, the ability to absorb the potential cost of turnover, retraining, and loss of an employee due to redeployment, it is difficult. As a result, many employers have shied away from hiring their country's veterans for those very reasons. For reservists and national guard personnel, whose livelihood depends on being able to effectively manage a civilian employer relationship with their service commitment, it is doubly difficult. These are only some of the contributing factors for why we see such high unemployment numbers among our veterans today.
For our disabled veterans, the situation can be even more exacerbating. Often, smaller companies simply are not willing to take on the cost of accommodating a war-injured veteran, who might otherwise be a perfect fit for the company and it's culture.
The way forward has to include a collaborative effort between the VA, the nation's employers, and our returning veterans. Through civilian education initiatives, and helpful question and answer seminars, potentially spearheaded by groups such as Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR) and the like, we might still be able to rectify this popular misconception about who we are.
The bottom line is this: Our country's veterans are the most capable, professional, competent, and conscientious prospective workforce in our nation today. What they bring to the table for a prospective civilian employer far outweighs any perceived negatives. They are reliable, they are motivated, they are respectful, and they have an ingrained understanding of what it takes to get the job done. Their focus and attention to detail is second to none. We simply need to find a way to properly communicate that to our civilian employers around the country.
(Some information in this post was derived from the April 2012 VFW Magazine as a secondary source)
Resources:
Beyond the Yellow Ribbon Campaign
www.btyr.org
Hire Veterans
www.hireveterans.com
Employer Partnership of the Armed Forces
www.employerpartnership.org
Wounded Warrior Project's Warrior to Work program
www.woundedwarriorproject.org
Able Forces
www.ableforces.org
America's Heroes at Work
www.americasheroesatwork.gov
One of the most significant differences today as opposed to previous generations is the way service members are portrayed on the screen. In John Markert's book, Post-9/11 Cinema: Through a Lens Darkly, he writes, "The negative depiction of war-related events is something that did not occur during WWII or Korea, but was also atypical during the highly contentious debate that raged in the public arena during the Vietnam conflict."
It is no wonder that our civilian counterparts see us as reckless, dangerous, and rabidly Type A personalities with sloppy impulse control. They have been indoctrinated to think that way.
Adding to all of these misconceptions about veterans and their suitability for civilian life is a belief that most veterans are secretly suffering from some type of post traumatic stress disorder or other mental illness brought on by the wars' effects. The truth, however, is that most veterans don't suffer from those conditions. As was highlighted in the last blog post, the NBC Today show did a piece about war related illnesses and the fact that most returning veterans are actually quite normal and well adjusted. That fact is often lost among stories of veterans who are facing difficulties, but are part of a 20% minority.
In October of 2011, the House Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity held hearings on the plight of returning veterans and their employment issues. The hearings, led by Rep. Marlin Stutzam (R-Ind) and Rep. Bruce Braley (D-Iowa), found that there was a "disconnect between businesses, the VA Department, and the veterans themselves...."
For businesses, the ability to absorb the potential cost of turnover, retraining, and loss of an employee due to redeployment, it is difficult. As a result, many employers have shied away from hiring their country's veterans for those very reasons. For reservists and national guard personnel, whose livelihood depends on being able to effectively manage a civilian employer relationship with their service commitment, it is doubly difficult. These are only some of the contributing factors for why we see such high unemployment numbers among our veterans today.
For our disabled veterans, the situation can be even more exacerbating. Often, smaller companies simply are not willing to take on the cost of accommodating a war-injured veteran, who might otherwise be a perfect fit for the company and it's culture.
The way forward has to include a collaborative effort between the VA, the nation's employers, and our returning veterans. Through civilian education initiatives, and helpful question and answer seminars, potentially spearheaded by groups such as Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR) and the like, we might still be able to rectify this popular misconception about who we are.
The bottom line is this: Our country's veterans are the most capable, professional, competent, and conscientious prospective workforce in our nation today. What they bring to the table for a prospective civilian employer far outweighs any perceived negatives. They are reliable, they are motivated, they are respectful, and they have an ingrained understanding of what it takes to get the job done. Their focus and attention to detail is second to none. We simply need to find a way to properly communicate that to our civilian employers around the country.
(Some information in this post was derived from the April 2012 VFW Magazine as a secondary source)
Resources:
Beyond the Yellow Ribbon Campaign
www.btyr.org
Hire Veterans
www.hireveterans.com
Employer Partnership of the Armed Forces
www.employerpartnership.org
Wounded Warrior Project's Warrior to Work program
www.woundedwarriorproject.org
Able Forces
www.ableforces.org
America's Heroes at Work
www.americasheroesatwork.gov
