The Military-Civilian Gap: Fewer Family Connections | Pew Social & Demographic Trends

Russ Hoyle has been working on a project he calls The Divide - the growing gap between those who serve in the military and the rest of us. Both my mother and father are WWII vets (Navy - both!). For people of my generation the WAVE is the only surprise. WWII was a mass mobilization. So was Korea, and Vietnam. Three of my college classmates died in Vietnam. My dear friend John and my neighbor George were there too - and a lot of my peers. In the 2d Iraq war two of my second cousins served (one in combat): but I have no ties to any others. The Pew foundation reports. - GWC

The Military-Civilian Gap: Fewer Family Connections | Pew Social & Demographic Trends: "The Military-Civilian Gap: Fewer Family Connections
By Kim Parker

A smaller share of Americans currently serve in the U.S. Armed Forces than at any time since the peace-time era between World Wars I and II. During the past decade, as the military has been engaged in the longest period of sustained conflict in the nation’s history, just one-half of one percent of American adults has served on active duty at any given time. As the size of the military shrinks, the connections between military personnel and the broader civilian population appear to be growing more distant."

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