It was called Armistice Day for thirty-five years. Then in 1954 President Eisenhower signed legislation to rename the legal holiday. Now it is Veterans Day. November 11, 1918 marked the end of World War I hostilities, making today the 90th anniversary of the conclusion of this massive world conflict. The conflict ended on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month.
Today we honor the approximately 24 million living men and women that have donned the country's uniform. These are the citizens who answered a call of duty and by doing so gave more than just a passive meaning to the democratic principles upon which this great nation was founded. In a feat of role reversal, our veterans elevated our dignity by telling us through their sacrifice that our rights were worth defending. While in truth they are the ones most worthy of dignity.
Most of the living veterans served us in the Vietnam, Gulf, and Iraq Wars. Only about 4 million served in the Korean War and slightly less than 3 million served in World War II (many served in both wars). Our WWII veterans are in their eighth decade or beyond and are dying at a rapid rate.
There is an American named Frank Woodruff Buckles. He lives in Charles Town, West Virginia. Mr. Buckles is up in his years. He is 107 years old. He enlisted to serve in WWI in 1917 at age 16. Later in life, as a civilian working in the Philippines in 1942, he was captured by the Japanese and was held three years in a prison camp. Frank Buckles is the last known living WWI veteran. Raise a glass to Mr Buckles and be ever-thankful for the very best that our country has to offer - our veterans.
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