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| Robert Dilenschneider |
Honor to the soldier and sailor everywhere, who bravely bears his country’s cause. Honor, also, to the citizen who cares for his brother in the field and serves, as he best can, the same cause.
— Abraham Lincoln
World War I ended with a ceasefire, known as an armistice, that went into effect on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918. Exactly one year later, our nation marked its first Armistice Day to honor all those who served in that terrible conflict.
In 1954, following World War II and the Korean War, Armistice Day was renamed Veterans Day to honor all the men and women who had served their country in uniform. (This is distinct from Memorial Day, which is dedicated to those who have died in military service.)
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And so now as we approach Veterans Day 2025, the 106th anniversary of that first commemoration, let us once again pay special tribute to those many millions who have taken the oath to defend America.
This brave service goes on, as it must. There are 1.3 million members of the U.S. Armed Forces now on active duty:
- Army, 450,000
- Navy, 334,000
- Air Force, 322,000
- Marine Corps, 170,000
But it is not only those on active duty we salute on this special day — it is all veterans who were honorably discharged from service. The number of veterans now living in the U.S. and its territories is estimated at between 15.8 million and 16.2 million.
Our nation is doubly blessed by these dedicated men and women, great numbers of whom use the training they received and the experiences they acquired in the military to improve our communities as police officers, firefighters, school teachers, technicians, community volunteers and in countless other roles.
They richly deserve, now and forever, our gratitude and our admiration.
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Robert L. Dilenschneider is the Founder and CEO of The Dilenschneider Group, an international communications firm.
In this holiday season, let us all remember the surest way to overcome the name-calling, mistrust and entrenched divisions which now trouble our nation, and the world is for each of us to exercise civility in our daily lives.
Events in the last month have revealed stunning displays of hypocrisy among the left and the right, demonstrating that both groups are now caricatures of themselves operating outside of reality.
