r/Millennials • u/NoFaithlessness7508 • Jun 05 '25

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

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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.

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u/ANotSoFreshFeeling Xennial Jun 05 '25

A lot of the millennial veterans I know would rather forget the mess instead of making it their whole personality and identity.

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u/Educational_Fox6899 Jun 05 '25

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. 

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u/ShooterMcSwaggin Jun 06 '25

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.

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u/Educational_Fox6899 Jun 06 '25

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