Coming Home: A History of War Veterans

Special - Coming Home: A History of War Veterans

11/11/2009 at 12:00 p.m.

Most news coverage of the U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan focuses on troop movements, suicide bombings, and the various geopolitical developments at work. But only rarely do we hear the stories of individual men and women fighting there, and hardly ever do we hear what it's like for those Americans when they return home. Has it always been thus? How much attention have war veterans gotten in previous wars? How much depends on the politics of the war – are vets only as popular as the wars they've fought in? These are some of the central questions on the table as the History Guys consider the experiences of American war veterans through three centuries of American life.