Where have all the veterans gone?

The 1955 folk song by Pete Seeger, "Where Have all the Flowers Gone," was not about flowers, but soldiers dying in war. Four years earlier, General Douglas MacArthur, one of the most well-known military figures of our country, addressed Congress at the conclusion of his 52-year military career and stated, "Old soldiers never die; they just fade away." Soldiers are still dying in wars, and veterans are fading away.

During WWII, the public overwhelmingly supported our military involvement. Although there was a draft, many volunteered to put their careers and families on hold to serve our country, including famous actors and sports figures. Over 16 million served in uniform during this conflict. When the war ended with victory, veterans came home to a grateful nation that provided benefits such as college tuition and living expenses, as well as low-cost housing loans.

This influx of veterans after WWII produced baby boomers like me. All my uncles were veterans, many of my adult neighbors were veterans, and many of my grade school and high school teachers were veterans. Popular WWII movies and TV shows during the early 60s, like "The Longest Day," "The Great Escape," "Combat," and "Twelve O'clock High," dramatized war for entertainment value but never questioned our country's involvement.

Although economics and the lack of motivation to attend college were factors resulting in my enlistment in 1965, I knew of my father's service in WWII and my grandfathers in WWI. As a result, I felt an expectation that I would also serve, as did many of my classmates from a large high school in Southern Illinois. My military service changed me for the better. Unlike my time in high school, I became focused on getting an education to better myself, and I had the discipline to pursue it.

But attitudes about military service were changing in the sixties. During the Vietnam War, we had the draft. However, of the 27 million who were subject to the draft from the mid-60s to the early 70s, only 2.5 million served in Vietnam. Perhaps the reasons for this decline in military service were the college student deferments, which did not exist during WWII, and the questioning of our country's military involvement in Vietnam. But whatever the reasons for this reduction, the draft went to a lottery in 1971; fewer inductees were selected due to the de-escalation of the war, and it ended in 1973 when the last combat troops left. We now have a volunteer military.

As circumstances and attitudes toward the duty to serve changed, the demographics of veterans relative to the general population likewise changed. An article, "The changing face of America's veteran population," published by the Pew Research Center a few years ago, highlights the significant decline in the veteran population. Unlike WWII, the military is composed of volunteers from a tiny fraction of our population. Today, the number of active members who will become veterans is less than 1% of the adult population.

This decrease exists in government leadership as well. Many WWII veterans continued their commitment to our country by serving in government. Sadly, most WWII veterans have passed, but in the seventies and eighties, they were prominent in elected positions. In 1975, 81% of US senators were veterans; now, only 17% are. In 1967, veterans constituted 75% of House delegates; now, only 18% are veterans. In all presidential elections from World War II until 2012, a period of 66 years, at least one of the major party candidates was a veteran. In the last four presidential elections, there were no veteran candidates who, if elected, would become the Commander-in-Chief of our military. According to the 2025 Judicial Demographics Report, authored by the Judicial Council, only 6% of the California judges are veterans. As with the changes in Congress and presidential candidates over the last decades, judges with military service are now rare.

So, what's the big deal? Why should we be concerned that veterans are no longer a significant part of our communities and are in short supply on the bar and bench? Today, young adults, although in fewer numbers than before, volunteer to enter the military with a sense of duty to our country. The first thing they do is take the same oath as judges and lawyers to defend the Constitution; they realize it could mean sacrificing their lives, and when put in combat, they are the front-line protectors of the rule of law. Once they lose a comrade in battle, they know that freedom is not free; the price to preserve the Constitution. Having this perspective firsthand can only make you a better lawyer or judge.

As stated in the Daily Journal articles in the last Veterans Day issue, veterans develop character traits of organization, ethics, leadership, teamwork and an unequivocal commitment to our Constitution. With veterans in our legal community, these traits can only enhance the bar and our judiciary. Yet, as General MacArthur so eloquently stated 75 years ago, "Old soldiers never die; they just fade away." Will we lose the priceless asset of veterans to uphold the rule of law because they are just fading away?