Today, 11/11, is Veterans’ Day (USA). As well as Remembrance Day, and Armistice Day. Be sure to thank one for their service to their country, and honor those who gave it all. 
Thanks, everyone!
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In commonwealth counties and some other countries this is Remembrance Day (also Armistice Day which is on the same day), it is Veterans Day in the United States and Norway, and for Poland their independence day if I’m right.
Today marks 100 years since the armistice of World War 1 which ended that war.
World War 1 saw approximately 18 million military killed, wounded, or missing in action, and 7 million civilian deaths.
World War 2 saw approximately 24 million military killed, and 49 million civilian deaths. The Soviet Union and China took the brunt of the civilian deaths. This is also the time where Nazi Germany killed approximately 17 million people in the Holocaust if you include everyone they targeted and not just Jews.
This day is also for the remembrance of those who have lost there lives in further conflicts as well.
In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
(number from wikipedia)
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Lest we forget.
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Thanks for caring, L1TOf course! My father is a veteran. I love and respect him.
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I always think of my great grandfather today. His mother implored him to leave Russia before the revolution, which he did. He travelled from just outside Moscow to Vladivostok, on foot, before sailing to Japan. He stayed there for a while before he got a ship through China and eventually all the way to Australia…where he was promptly told he needed to enlist to fight to gain his citizenship.
So he gets on a boat and heads back to the nightmare that awaits him. Now there’s that trope about Russians doing crazy fucking shit, and apparently my great grandpa, traveller across fucking Siberia on foot, fully lived up to his heritage. He took out a machine gun post solo. took a couple of doses of mustard gas, awarded the second highest commendation of the Australian Infantry (probably because he was Russian), but the thing he remembered the most was when a Kiwi soldier standing in from of him was shot straight through the arse, bullet hitting my GGPa in the chest and sending him off to London for the rest of the war to recover. All he could talk about was this Kiwi bloke dancing around even though he had a bullet lodged in his lung (so my uncles tell me).
He was a different man when he came back to Australia. He settled down and raised a few kids but I was only lucky enough to meet his wife, who smoked the same Russian cigarettes that he did. It’s strange how your sense of smell can trigger memories. I remember him through my grandma who has since passed, but was the epitome of her father in most respects ; strict but caring, disciplined but prone to levity. She passed away 2 years ago.
I miss her and that connection to my heritage.
RIP.
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Thank you to all veterans.
My brother is a Marine veteran and is active duty Army right now. He’s having a pretty rough time dealing with the Army right now so my family all made sure to thank him for his past service as well as his current commitment.
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Thanks to all those who served.
My grandfather served during WWII, sadly never got to meet the man.
Thank you to all the Veteran’s on the forum. My Great grandpa served in WW1 for the US a decade after he immigrated from Germany. My grandfather served in WW2 in Sicily and Italy, my father served in Cambodia and Vietnam, and I had the privilege to serve from 2010-2012 but was injured state side during a field exercise a couple weeks before a deployment to Afghanistan. Thanks to all my friends who served and lost their lives from 3rd Combat Brigade, 1st Armored Division, US Army. You have not been forgotten and you are missed.
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We will remember them.
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thank you! and thank you all for remembering.
as a veteran myself I can talk about what we went through but its hard for people to imagine without us giving detailed information.
for many of us even talking about it can bring back some bad memories, But we all know that talking about it is also good therapy.
I tend too err on the cautious side in every thing I do only because of being on bomb disable and disposal. and that habit has seeped over into every aspect of my life since then.
It tends to make a lot of us a bit paranoid and somewhat testy
(I dont like surprises at all) and you can probably imagine why)
you would not believe how high strung we are because we have to be
knowing that people are there that thank us for our efforts makes things a lot easier for us to come down from that high strung state.
so thank you to all my brethren in service and to all my new friends on the forums!
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This was my great uncle, he was killed in August 1918 during the Second Battle of the Somme. He’s name is on a village war memorial in Dorset, England where he grew up and he is buried in France. My mum and uncle have visited the grave a few times, it’s a journey I plan to take at some point. He was actually part of the Canadian Army as he emigrated from England in 1913 and then came back to Europe with the Canadians to fight.
My brother and I both joined the Royal Signals (Reserve) as teenagers and whilst I never deployed my brother later joined the Royal Engineers as a regular once he finished school. He spent time in Basra and Baghdad and has been on UN peace keeping missions in Africa. He’s always returned fine but had a few close calls, I don’t think it affected him, he was crazy before and has no problem talking about it over several beers… I know a few of his mates who got through Iraq OK were later wounded in Afghanistan. A few of my own friends who took part in the 2003 Iraq invasion also returned somewhat jumpy and with minor injuries after being on the wrong end of an artillery bombardment.
My brother is somewhere in this Commando Veterans Association photo I took earlier this year at the home for Chelsea Pensioners (ex-armed forces) in London, UK. There was a lot of bling on display with a lot of interesting stories. The oldest there fought in Korean War:
Thanks to all of you who have served, and to those who did not come back, you won’t be forgotten.
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WW1 is probably the only major war that no one from my direct line served in.
Boer War - Driscoll Scouts - DSM + 2 bars, Campaign medal
WW2 - Royal Air Force - Lancaster Navigator (My Grandfather)
WW2 - All three of my Great Uncles served in the Pacific Theatre, Australian Army - 2 in Infantry, 1 in Tanks. All three survived but one came back severely affected by PTSD. He was in his tank (gunner) and a Japanese anti Tank shell pierced the side of their tank, took his best mates head off, dropped it in his lap, and blew out the other side. All other crew were ok.
Korea - One uncle from WW2 went to Korea as a Medic
Vietnam - Australian Infantry - No combat seen - War ended before dad rotated out of Australia
I served in the Australian Army 1RAR Infantry.
Also had a Great Great Grandmother serve as a Nurse in the British India wars. She received the highest honour a civilian can be awarded, the civilian version of the Victoria Cross for courage under fire. She refused to stop tending the wounded while under fire and under direct threat of their position being overrun.
My deepest respects to ALL who have served, on all sides.
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Thanks for the replies everyone 
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your welcome it was an honor to serve!