The 22 A Day Veteran Suicide Myth

[RobesonsRme.com]

My SF friend, Pete Crittenton has posted this on a closed Special Forces Facebook group, but has kindly allowed it to be shared outside the group.



“I hate suicide - it is so destructive and unnecessary; a permanent solution to a temporary problem that permanently affects everyone around it.

Regarding the "22-a-day" thing – can we ever put that to rest? It has never been 22 a day, it never was - not even after the worst wars we had: Civil War, WWI, WWII, Korea, Vietnam. The 22-a-day number is a completely flawed statistic derived from the VA taking a sample of numbers (from an incomplete and inaccurate sample set) and extrapolating it out, then the Left-Leaning Lamestream Media taking that number and running with it to prove that all us veterans are a pack of crazy Rambos - an extension of the old "Vietnam Flashback" myth (which they also made up) which validates their view that America is bad because America makes wars that turn all veterans into ticking time bombs.

Where “22-a-day” came from:

The statistics come from the VA’s 2012 Suicide Data Report. The VA analyzed death certificates from 21 states from 1999-2011. Looking at the certificates, they identified which individuals were veterans and came up with 22% of all suicides were by veterans within those 21 states. They then extrapolated that number to the national number of suicides (~38,000), divided by 365.25 for days in a year, and voila: “22-a-day”!

Issues with this:

• The statistical sample did not include California or Texas, the two states with the largest veteran populations

• Does not account that the majority of veterans (67.7%) are over the age of 55

• Not all deaths are correctly identified as suicides

• Hunting accidents and/or accidental shootings (cleaning weapons etc) may be listed as suicide but are not the same thing as an intentional suicide

Not all veterans are the same – here are some numbers:

• 18.2 million veterans, 5.5% of the US population, 7.25% of US population aged 18+

• 3.5 million post-9/11 veterans, 19.4% of veteran population

• 1.6 million veterans aged 18-34, 8.9% of veteran population

But not all veterans are the same, and not all suicides are the same:

A WWII vet who served 3 years and went through the horrors of the D-Day landings, Battle of the Bulge etc, is not the same thing as a guy who served in admin or support and never saw a shot fired in anger, who is not the same as a post-Vietnam/GWOT guy who did 20 years in combat arms with multiple combat tours, who is not the same as a guy who did less than 2 years and got kicked out as a private E-1 for being a substandard soldier, dope smoker whatever – but statistically they are all veterans.

A suicide by a WWII or Korean War vet in his 90s suffering from cancer who just wants to end the pain is not the same thing as a young vet in his 20s or 30s distraught from any number of life events (divorce, alcoholism, etc) plus the effects of PTSD and/or clinical depression, and not at all the same thing as the substandard individual who barely served and ended his life for whatever reason that had absolutely nothing to do with his minimal time in service.

Any suicide is a tragic thing – even one is too many. However, taking all of the above into consideration, the real number of veteran suicides among the post-Vietnam/GWOT generation is closer to 2 a week.”

To be honest, the “22/day” thing never struck me as reasonable. I think Pete has explained it to my satisfaction.

[Ridgegrass]

RR: Thanks for that rational explanation of a number that I too, never gave any credence. I just finished reading STOLEN VALOR by B.G.Burkett and Glenna Whitley. The authors also rip into the inaccurate statistics from the VA. Seems the VA needs to justify it's budget, and shows a willingness to manipulate data to that end.
Suicide is a terrible thing, especially for those of us left to deal with it. Lumping all suicides in the same class helps no one. Again ,thanks for showing some courage in your analysis. J.O'.

[FRJ]

Thank you for posting that information, Charlie.
I don't know that I have ever heard that statistic. I probably would have dismissed it anyway.
There is scarcely any report on veterans that is fair.
Each of us veterans know our own history. A history no one else will understand; no matter the conflict.
And from there we must guide our lives, as best we can, to a stable place in our family and society.

[Ripster]

Thank you Charlie for posting the info from your community.
Joe , your words are so true . We all have our own story. It’s what we do with it that can make the difference!
The VA is showing 20 a day now in a recent search on suicide numbers .

[1967redrider]

Thanks, Charlie. When will the MSM realize the truth always eventually comes out?

[RobesonsRme.com]

Even today, I have seen ads on the internet claiming a veteran commits suicide every 85 seconds.