This year, Veterans Day falls on Wednesday, Nov. 11, and federal government offices will be closed in observance of the day on Monday, Nov. 9, as directed by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management.
However, state and local government offices, including all schools, are not required to close but may do so on any individual basis. Additionally, non-government businesses may decide whether or not to close. Maybe it's appropriate for there to be this freedom of choice regarding a day of recognition for those who served to ensure such independence.
As a reminder, Veterans Day is the day set aside to thank and honor all who served honorably in the military. Take a quick quiz:
Choose the correct spelling of Veterans Day: A) Veterans Day, B) Veteran's Day, or C) Veterans' Day. Choice A is the correct answer. As further verification, I spoke with a representative at the American Legion headquarters, who confirmed that Veterans Day does not include an apostrophe but it does include an "s" at the end of the word because it is not a day that belongs to veterans. It is a day for honoring all veterans, regardless of when or where they served. The key factor is that they served honorably.
When we think of Veterans Day, the word "patriotism" typically comes to mind. Patriotism is defined in the Webster's dictionary as meaning "love of and devotion to one's own country." Additional words commonly associated with patriotism include allegiance, duty, honor, country, steadfastness, faithfulness and nationalism.
Surprisingly, some people are having a problem with the concept of patriotism. Here are several examples of patriotic problems that you're likely unaware of because they didn't make their way onto the 6 o'clock news.
1) A northern state city council voted to ban the pledge of allegiance because of respect for people who weren't born American citizens. I have no clue what they were thinking;
2) A TV station on the east coast ordered all flags removed from their newsroom and all news anchors / reporters were required to remove red / white / blue ribbons from their lapels or anywhere on their clothing because these could be construed as patriotic and might cause the station to appear biased toward America. Gosh, wouldn't that be a shame;
3) A university in the southeastern part of the country allowed the library director to order the removal of "Proud to be American" signs from all locations on the campus fearing they might offend the international students and thereby result in a decline in library use and follow-on academic problems. That entire group of people needs to grab a clue from former baseball legend Yogi Berra: "If people don't want to attend the games, we can't stop them." His analogy is directly applicable to students who aren't going to the library;
4) A retired military service member living in a homeowner-ruled community was sued and had a lien placed on his home for flying an American flag from a pole in his front yard. The homeowner's board ruled that a flag must be flown from a pole attached to a residence because it might be too visible and potentially offensive to passers-by if flown from a freestanding yard pole. Apparently, these people have nothing better to do than harass an honorably retired veteran rather than change a stupid human rule.
The debatable politically correct mindset remains pervasive throughout our society. Given the aforementioned objections, why don't we hear them complaining about oblivious parents who lug their crying infant that's tired and sleepy into a busy restaurant in mid-evening, or the teacher who encourages the burning of flags as a Constitutional right? I'll wonder if these people would complain if they were delayed for several minutes at an intersection while a Veterans Day parade passed through.
Veterans continue to defend and die for our American way of life, and this surely incorporates patriotism. For those of us who served in the military, patriotism is an inherent way of life. From the perspective of the majority of Americans, it's also an integral part of our culture.
It's OK to be patriotic and proud of it without having to ask permission from anyone else about how you go about it. Cherish your freedom and may God Bless America, the land of the free and proudly patriotic.
