In
case
The
following are some statistics that are at once depressing yet, in a larger
sense, should give
Of
the 2,709,918 Americans who served in
So,
if you are a
These
statistics were taken from a variety of sources to include: The VFW Magazine,
the Public Information Office, and the HQ CP Forward Observer - 1st Recon
STATISTICS
FOR INDIVIDUALS IN UNIFORM
9,087,000
military personnel served on active duty during the Vietnam Era
(August 5, 1964 - May 7, 1975).
8,744,000
GIs were on active duty during the war (Aug 5, 1964 - March 28,1973).
2,709,918
Americans served in
3,403,100
(including 514,300 offshore) personnel served in the broader Southeast Asia
Theater (Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, flight crews based in Thailand, and sailors
in adjacent South China Sea waters).
2,594,000
personnel served within the borders of
Of
the 2.6 million, between 1-1.6 million (40-60%) either fought in combat,
provided close support or were at least fairly regularly exposed to enemy
attack.
7,484
women (6,250 or 83.5% were nurses) served in
Peak
troop strength in
CASUALTIES
The
first man to die in
Hostile
deaths: 47,378
Non-hostile
deaths: 10,800
Total:
58,202 (Includes men formerly classified as MIA and
8
nurses died -- 1 was KIA.
61%
of the men killed were 21 or younger.
11,465
of those killed were younger than 20 years old.
Of
those killed, 17,539 were married.
Average
age of men killed:
Total Deaths: 23.11 years
Enlisted: 50,274 - 22.37 years
Officers: 6,598 - 28.43 years
Warrants: 1,276 - 24.73 years
E1: 525 - 20.34 years
1B MOS: 18,465 - 22.55 years
Five men killed in
The oldest man killed was 62 years old.
Highest state death rate:
Wounded: 303,704 -- 153,329 hospitalized + 150,375
injured requiring no hospital care.
Severely
disabled: 75,000, -- 23,214: 100% disabled; 5,283 lost limbs; 1,081 sustained
multiple amputations.
Amputation
or crippling wounds to the lower extremities were 300% higher than in WWII and
70% higher than
Multiple
amputations occurred at the rate of 18.4% compared to 5.7% in WWII.
Missing
in Action: 2,338
POWs:
766 (114 died in captivity)
As
of
DRAFTEES VS. VOLUNTEERS
25%
(648,500) of total forces in country were draftees. (66% of
Draftees
accounted for 30.4% (17,725) of combat deaths in
Reservists
killed: 5,977
National
Guard: 6,140 served: 101 died.
Total
draftees (1965 - 73): 1,728,344.
Actually
served in
Last
man drafted:
88.4%
of the men who actually served in
86.3%
of the men who died in
12.5%
(7,241) were black; 1.2% belonged to other races.
170,000
Hispanics served in
70%
of enlisted men killed were of northwest European descent.
86.8%
of the men who were killed as a result of hostile action were Caucasian; 12.1%
(5,711) were black; 1.1% belonged to other races.
14.6%
(1,530) of non-combat deaths were among blacks.
34%
of blacks who enlisted volunteered for the combat arms.
Overall,
blacks suffered 12.5% of the deaths in
Religion
of Dead: Protestant -- 64.4%; Catholic -- 28.9%; other/none -- 6.7%
SOCIO-ECONOMIC
STATUS
76%
of the men sent to
Three-fourths
had family incomes above the poverty level; 50% were from middle income
backgrounds.
Some
23% of
79%
of the men who served in
63%
of Korean War vets and only 45% of WWII vets had completed high school upon
separation.
Deaths
by region per 100,000 of population: South -- 31%, West --29.9%;
DRUG USAGE
&CRIME
There
is no difference in drug usage between
85%
of
WINNING
&LOSING
82%
of veterans who saw heavy combat strongly believe the war was lost because of
lack of political will.
Nearly
75% of the public agrees it was a failure of political will, not of arms.
HONORABLE
SERVICE
97%
of Vietnam-era veterans were honorably discharged.
91%
of actual Vietnam War veterans and 90% of those who saw heavy combat are proud
to have served their country.
74%
say they would serve again, even knowing the outcome.
87%
of the public now holds
INTERESTING
CENSUS STATISTICS
RELATIVE TO
THOSE WHO
CLAIM TO HAVE "Been There"
1,713,823
of those who served in
During
that same Census count, the number of Americans falsely claiming to have served
in-country was: 9,492,958.
As
of the current Census taken during August, 2000, the surviving U.S. Vietnam
veteran population estimate is: 1,002,511. This is hard to believe, losing
nearly 711,000 between '95 and '00. That's 390 per day.
During
this Census count, the number of Americans falsely claiming to have served
in-country is: 13,853,027. By this census, FOUR
OUT OF
OTHER
The
Department of Defense Vietnam War Service Index officially provided by The War
Library originally reported with errors that 2,709,918
Isolated
atrocities committed by American soldiers produced torrents of outrage from
anti-war critics and the news media while communist atrocities were so common
that they received hardly any media mention at all. The
From
1957 to 1973, the National Liberation Front assassinated 36,725 Vietnamese and
abducted another 58,499. The death squads focused on leaders at the village
level and on anyone who improved the lives of the peasants such as medical
personnel, social workers, and school teachers. - Nixon Presidential Papers.