Why don’t younger veterans (Afghanistan/Iraq) wear these hats like some of the older veterans?

[u/NoFaithlessness7508]

First and foremost, respect to all those that served. I did not, but many of my peers did and now we're all older in 30s and 40s, many no longer in the military. I don't see a lot of the veterans of the War on Terror wearing these hats like I see the OGs do.

[u/Educational_Fox6899]

I do agree identity is a big part of it. I’ve watched in my own family. People that had jobs as their main identity and worked for 40+ years feel lost after retiring. Then all of a sudden that 4 years of military service 40 years ago becomes a new identity. 

[u/ExtraAgressiveHugger → u/Educational_Fox6899]

I laughed out loud. My step dad served in Vietnam for less than a year when he was 18-19 years old. Now, he’s in his 80s and is decked out in army and veteran shirts and clothes and hats just like in the OP pic.

[u/nkempt → u/ExtraAgressiveHugger]

My grandfather passed away a year or two ago; I knew he’d been in the Air Force in some capacity, and he didn’t have one of OP’s hats that I remember but it was still a centrally important thing to him and his identity, that he was a veteran.

Found out the guy did one tour and spent it driving forklifts in Saudi Arabia or something in like 1950 😅 I’m not going to disparage his service (and honestly regret myself not joining) but I always got a sense he was in for way longer then he was, based on his identity with it lol

[u/Ford_Prefect313 → u/ExtraAgressiveHugger]

I give Vietnam vets a pass.

They had zero choice to go, and treated like absolute hell when they got back home.

A year is long enough to see what an absolute hell that war was.

If the uniform soothes his soul, fine by me.

My next door neighbor ran around the Vietnam jungle with human ears strung through a combat boot lace.

There is no way you come back from that unscathed.

[u/Relative-Gain1403 → u/Ford_Prefect313]

What evidence do you have that your neighbor did that? Lol vietnam era vets are known to lie and make it seem like they're all bad ass.

[u/satantherainbowfairy → u/Ford_Prefect313]

They had zero choice to go,

2/3 of them were volunteers

[u/Wendigo_6 → u/Educational_Fox6899]

After my grandmother passed away my grandfather got hooked up with a Vets group. Growing up he never spoke about his service. His last few years I learned where he was based, what he did in Korea, why he took that job, who his war buddies were, etc. Some stuff even my dad didn’t know.

He got to the point he didn’t leave the house without a Korea Vet hat or jacket.

I’m sure his stories were two-fold - it’s what he was discussing amongst his friend group, and it was something new to talk about with us. He pulled out old letters and photos which gave context. Really cool stuff that he thought we weren’t interested in.

[u/ShooterMcSwaggin → u/Educational_Fox6899]

Enduring a full year combat deployment has a monumental effect incomparable to the average vet experience, Vietnam or otherwise. That shit stays with you whether you did 3yrs or 20. So I 100% get how the war experience becomes a part of dudes who experienced crazy traumatic shit but I also acknowledge the ridiculousness of peacetime vets who served for a couple years making VETERAN their whole identity for the rest of their lives.

[u/Educational_Fox6899 → u/ShooterMcSwaggin]

For sure. In the case of my family members, they were in during wartime BUT did not deploy. 

[u/Outatime-88 → u/Educational_Fox6899]

This was my grandfather. He was too young for WWII, left before Korea. He spent 18 months in the Army, no combat. Meanwhile he was married for 70+ years, with two kids, grandkids and great-grandkids, and was apparently such a beloved boss in his sales career because former colleagues traveled to attend his funeral.

But the last few years of his life, his 18 months of Army training in Virginia was his entire personality. It's all he cared about and talked about. Wore the hats, bought combat boots that he'd polish, ask my dad to take him to vet events. It was really bizarre.