Armistice Day vs. Veterans Day

November 7, 2025 - W. D. Ehrhart
l. to r. Frank Corcoran, US Marine Corps, Purple Heart in Vietnam; Mike Felker, US Navy Corpsman assigned to Marine Corps infantry in Vietnam; Art Sharon, US Air Force, Vietnam-era; Bill Ehrhart, US Marine Corps, Purple Heart in Vietnam; Gene Cleaver, US Marine Corps, Purple Heart in Vietnam. Photo courtesy of Mike Felker.

I’ve never paid much attention to Veterans Day. None at all, really. The day I’ve always noted, at least in passing, is November 10th, which is the birthday of the US Marine Corps. I have a very curious relationship with the Corps, which is not worth trying to explain here; suffice it to say that, for better or worse, the three years I spent in the Marines were instrumental in shaping who I am today.

But being a veteran means nothing to me. I certainly didn’t serve my country, let alone the greater good for humanity. Quite the contrary. On the orders of my government, I went halfway around the world to kill, maim, and make miserable people who had never done me or my country any harm, nor ever would or could.

When people say to me, “Thank you for your service,” it is all I can do to keep from shouting in their faces, “My ‘service’? You have no freakin’ idea what you are thanking me for. If you did, you would be ashamed of yourself for thanking me.” I long ago lost patience with such empty and empty-headed vacuity. Nothing I did while in uniform deserves either honor or commemoration.

Armistice Day, on the other hand, was something very different. It was first declared on November 11, 1919, to commemorate the first anniversary of the end of the Great War, which wasn’t called World War I until a second world war made clear that what had become known as “the war to end all wars” didn’t. After 1945, in the U.S. at least, Armistice Day became Veterans Day. That people should honor and revere the end of the greatest carnage powerful elites had ever visited upon ordinary human beings—at least up until World War II—was a great idea. It still is. I would very much like to see Armistice Day restored to its original meaning and intent: a celebration of peace.

Even in a world where war seems to be the perpetual state of affairs, a day to remember and celebrate peace seems to me both worthwhile and instructive. I really don’t need a free dinner at Appleby’s or NFL coaches wearing military-style camouflaged jackets or the false thanks of posturing politicians.

But a little peace? That would be nice.

W. D. EHRHART is an ex-Marine sergeant who received the Purple Heart Medal, Navy Combat Action Ribbon, and a Division Commander’s Commendation. An active member of both Vietnam Veterans Against the War and Veterans for Peace, he is author of multiple books including Vietnam Perkasie: A Combat Marine Memoir and Thank You for Your Service: Collected Poems.