Sebastian Junger's video, "Why veterans Miss War," is a TED Talk designed to educate the audience about a veterans state of mind. Sebastian Junger made a documentary out of the hours of footage he shot while with the 173rd Airborne in the Korengal Valley. In his presentation, Junger presents his knowledge and experiences about 173rd Airborne in Korengal, Afghanistan. Junger also shares a few stories from his time in the Korengal Valley with the Soldiers that are the subject of his documentary.

Sebastian Junger starts off his talk by stating that he has a long record covering war, over 20 years. One thing he has found over his long career is that many of the soldiers he has covered miss the war when they get sent home. He moves on to say that "any sane person" would hate war, and never want to be near it; however, he bets that most people in his audience have paid to see a war movie. Junger says that people must understand that if "peace loving" people can be entertained by war, then 20 year olds who have been trained in combat will be entertained by partaking in it.

Junger moves on to explain the environment that he was in while in Afghanistan. The Korengal Valley was one of the most (if not the most) hotly contested areas in Afghanistan. In the small outpost that he stayed at during much of the deployment, there were no amenities: phones, showers, electricity etc. He then explains that these soldiers, without any thing to occupy them, eventually began to enjoy the rush for combat. They began to wish for the rush and thrill of combat. Junger also made a point of saying that these men, mostly around 20 years old, made the same risky choices of an average young adult male, but are subject to combat regularly.

Towards the end of his talk, Junger also brings up how he feels that the men of the unit he was with miss something else besides the adrenaline rush. He feels that they probably miss the brotherhood and camaraderie that they built while with each other in Afghanistan. These men spent months together in a confined space, all the while trusting each other with their lives daily. The sense of brotherhood that was built between these men was taken away when sent back to the safety of the United States. These men were suddenly taken away from their closest friends, and some felt they had no purpose. Also, without action, and an adrenaline rush, to occupy them (a rush that some became addicted to), many became depressed or, in some way, psychologically disturbed.

Throughout his presentation, Junger uses various strategies to persuade the audience of his points. One of the first things he does is build his credibility by giving his background and how he has 20 years of experience covering war. This, coupled with his appearance at a TED event ( a well-known organization), give the audience confidence that Junger is an expert on his subject. He also gives first hand accounts of his time in Afghanistan, to build his credibility even more, and to build an emotional tie with the audience. Junger also gives stories of the men he was with during the deployment. With the limited accounts he provides, he shows that these men did want combat to quell boredom, and do "miss it" as one Soldier put it.

Junger tells stories and statistics to show and establish both credibility, and an emotional connection. He tells that while he was there, 20% of all combat in the country was occurring in the valley. This simple statistics show the danger of the valley, and that death was a daily danger. Junger also tell a story of a Soldier's near-death experience and how it made another man depressed, knowing he could do nothing to protect his friends. This story has little to do with his main point, but builds, very effectively, his emotional connection with the audience. This story draws his audience in and makes them care about the Soldiers he is speaking about, while also making them realize how close to death Junger was himself.

Early on in his talk, Junger establishes that the majority of these men were in their early 20's. This, combined with the emotional connection he just established, draws the audience's attention in and starts to make them care about the men, the subjects of Junger's talk. This also serves to create another connection with a portion of the crowd, as a large portion of the crowd were of the age of being parents; this story (and the youth of these men) could appeal to a parent's emotional side, making them think of their own kids in these situations. The talk then shifts to some of his experiences with the men while they are back home in the US. One of the Soldiers said that he "missed every part" of being in Afghanistan; this definitively shows that Junger isn't just speculating, he knows these men on a personal level, and knows that they miss war.

About halfway through his talk, Junger shifts to facts and logic to convince his audience. He asks the audience to forget about the morale aspect to war and combat, and to think about it neurologically. He states that during combat, people tend to be not afraid at all, due to the massive amounts of adrenaline a person experiences. This absence of fear can lead to more risky situations that these Soldiers would get themselves into. Among other things, when the Soldiers "missed" the feeling of the adrenaline rush, they would go to "great lengths" to experience it again. The Soldiers "missing" the adrenaline rush of combat is made even worse by the lack of any sort of entertainment.

Another shift, a few minutes later in the talk, appeals to the audience's emotional side. This shift shows that Junger rotates between logic and facts, and emotion to convince and persuade his audience. This story was one of him almost being killed. He tells this story not for the audience to care about him, but to say that as he came close to death that day, all of the men up there came close to death many times. He moves on to say that due to moments like this, many of the men returned home with severe psychological problems. He makes this point to show that the men did not miss "combat" per se, but everything involved with it; the adrenaline, the adventure, the danger, and the brotherhood. Many of these men missed almost everything about their deployment, and would go back willingly, but suffer from it greatly.

