World War I, the supposed war to end all wars, ended with the Armistice signature of the Ally powers and Germany on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918. Thereafter, Congress called for a resolution for an annual observance of this historic day, and this particular day thereby became a national holiday known as Armistice Day in 1938. However, in 1954, Armistice Day was renamed Veterans Day, and so this is as it is known today.
The first thing to recognize about this name change is that Veterans and Armistice are obviously not synonymous terms. In regards to Veterans, this would typically be defined as all those that have served their country in a war and/or are members of the military service during peacetime; whereas in regards to Armistice, this would typically be defined as a truce and a formal agreement between countries that have been warring, to stop their warfare forthwith, and to begin the process of committing to a resolution that will bring peace between those formerly warring countries.
While there is something to be said about honoring our Veterans, a good case could be made, that Veterans are already honored via a holiday known as Memorial Day; of which, while it is true, that Memorial Day, especially addresses those honored dead that gave their last full measure of devotion to their country, it also is an expression of appreciation for all those that have faithfully served their country in their capacity of military service, now living or dead.
Because we no longer have a national holiday known as Armistice Day, we have subsequently done a great disservice to all those that fought, sacrificed, and honorably served their country, by not formally recognizing the most important attribute of the wars that America so fights; which is that America at its best, fights to make men and women free, to oppose injustice, to oppose tyranny, and to uphold the human rights that all are inalienably gifted with by our Creator.
Wars should be seen for what they are, which it is a living hell on earth. This means, that anytime the warring factions are able to get together to lay down their arms, and thereby to bring peace, with honor, to the combatants of that war, that this Armistice, should be rightly celebrated as something noteworthy and of significant merit.
In point of fact, the objective of any good and ethical government, is to do what can be done, so that there will be no more war; and if there is no more war, there will be no more memorials. So too, this will mean that the only Veterans still left, will be the ones that are part and parcel of being on the watchtower that assures peace and security for the people. All this surely signifies that a true Armistice, should be rightly celebrated for what it fundamentally represents, which is in a truly civilized world, there is no war, for there is no need or justification of war.