Veterans used to routinely start their own businesses. Not anymore.

Veterans are not opening their own businesses like they used to.
(Image credit: Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Roughly half of World War II veterans went on to own or operate their own business, as well as 40 percent of Korean War veterans, Inc reports. But so far, only 4.5 percent of the more than 3.6 million people who have served in the U.S. military since Sept. 11, 2001, have launched their own company.

Some of this dramatic decrease can be chalked up to broader trends — entrepreneurship is down overall in America. And then there's this:

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