Veterans Of Wars And Their Battle After The Battles: Israelis and Americans

 Nadene Goldfoot                                             

Golly gee whiz!  It looks like every citizen in Israel happens to be a veteran!  Everyone has been expected to serve; women for 2 years and men for 3.  When I lived in Israel from 1980 to the end of 1985, I saw bent- backed white haired men leading their unit up the street who were defending Safed, where I lived and taught students in juniors high!  All the younger men teaching in my school had been called into serving as they were the younger veterans. All were in uniform, carrying M1 rifles.  Even I went through a 3 day training course on how to shoot an M1 rifle. We adults were all expected to pitch in. 

Israel's equivalent to Veterans Day is Yom HaZikaron, Israel's Memorial Day, which honors fallen soldiers and victims of terrorism. It is observed on the 4th of Iyar in the Hebrew calendar, which typically falls in late April or early May. The day is immediately followed by Yom Ha'atzmaut (Israel Independence Day). Being today is Veteran's Day in the States, I thought I'd mention it sinceIsrael just got back a deceased soldier killed in battle in 2014 in tradefor 200 war prisoners held for serious war offenses .  

The hardest times for veterans in Israel are generally considered to be the periods immediately following major, high-casualty conflicts, such as the 1973 Yom Kippur War and the ongoing conflict since October 7, 2023, due to the severity of the trauma and initial lack of adequate mental health support.  I would say that this has given the whole state PTSD.  

For almost 50 years, veterans of the Yom Kippur War suffered in silence with symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) due to a culture that emphasized strength and discouraged sharing feelings of vulnerability.                        

 

Today is Veteran's Day in the USA.  It makes me remember that our servicemen fought for us so that women weren't forced to enter the services unless they wanted to, and some were in the WACS and some in the WAVES.  

The hardest times on Veterans in the USA were Vietnam veterans who faced hardship upon returning home due to societal rejection, poor treatment from the government, and struggles with physical and psychological injuries. Many were met with hostility or indifference instead of the parades that greeted previous generations, and they often had to deal with trauma of PTSD, addiction of drugs and alcohol, and unemployment alone because the support systems were inadequate or nonexistent at the time.

As of late 2023, there are about 18 million American veterans, a number that is decreasing over time. The veteran population is aging, but it is also becoming more diverse in terms of gender, race, and ethnicity, and the majority of living veterans have served during the Gulf War era or later. Support for veterans is provided by organizations like the VA and Disabled American Veterans (DAV), and the annual Veterans Day on November 11th honors all who have served in the U.S. Armed Forces.   Thank you for what you just did for Israel, guys, you are Israel's big brothers.