WASHINGTON — As public support for the Iraq war declines, veterans are being tapped to display their patriotism and help military recruitment.

The Department of Veterans Affairs has asked veterans to wear their military medals publicly on Nov. 11, Veterans Day.

And the Army National Guard, which had problems reaching its recruiting goals from 2003 to 2005, has begun to deputize its military retirees to help recruit new soldiers. Under the program, recruiting assistants can receive up to $2,000 for each soldier they help enlist.

VA Secretary James Nicholson announced the medals program last week, saying it would help spark patriotic spirits.

"Wearing their medals will demonstrate this deep pride our veterans have in their military service and bring Veterans Day home to all American citizens," he said. Nicholson is an Army veteran who served in Vietnam and was a former chairman of the Republican National Committee.

Local veterans had varied answers when asked whether they would wear their medals on Veterans Day.

Stanley M. Akita, a Kahala resident and 83-year-old World War II veteran, said he is against the push, especially if it is to gain support for the war in Iraq.

"I don't think it's really going to work among the World War II veterans," said Akita, who is opposed to the Iraq war. He also said pinning his Purple Heart or other war medals to his aloha shirt would be inappropriate, and perhaps even disrespectful.

"If it's going to a gathering and all the veterans wear a medal, it's not too bad," he said. "Just walking around with a medal in Kahala Mall, they're going to say, 'What's wrong with that fellow?' "

'SHOW OF PATRIOTISM'

Retired Marine Sgt. Maj. Bob Porter, who was on active duty for 30 years, and for the past 33 has worked at Marine Corps Base Hawai'i at Kane'ohe Bay, said he intends to wear his full uniform and medals on the holiday.

Porter disagreed that it's disrespectful to wear medals pinned to aloha shirts, especially with veterans who cannot wear snug uniforms and do not belong to any veterans groups that issue group shirts.

Noting that his uniform issued in 1952 still fits, the 81-year-old Porter said, "I'm lucky. I'm in pretty good shape."

Howard S. Okada, a veteran of the Korean and Vietnam wars, frequently wears a Korean Veterans Association shirt and medals to formal veterans-related functions at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific at Punchbowl and elsewhere.

"It's a show of patriotism. The medals are for valor and service," Okada said.

IDEA FROM DOWN UNDER

In response to those criticizing the call to wear medals as a thinly guised effort to boost support for the war in Iraq, Okada, 77, said, "They're obviously against the war and will look for any opportunity to say something about that."

VA secretary Nicholson, who retired from the Army reserves, said he got the idea when he attended ceremonies April 25 in Sidney, Australia, which honored all Australian and New Zealand veterans. On that day, the veterans and surviving family members wear their medals and campaign ribbons.

But some veterans see the call for wearing the medals as an effort to shore up public support for the war in Iraq, which is becoming increasingly unpopular.

A CNN poll this month found that public support for the war has dropped to 34 percent compared with 64 percent who said they opposed it.

Garett Reppenhagen, a Washington, D.C., Army veteran who served a year in Iraq, said the call to wear the medals may be a response to anti-war sentiment gaining more momentum.

To Reppenhagen, the call to express patriotism by wearing the medals, "is an abuse of the American sense of values, patriotism and bravery because it's a tactic to thump up some of the heroism that goes along with the war. It gives a false idea about what realities of warfare are today."

Other veterans might consider wearing the medals a good idea but aren't comfortable pinning them to civilian clothes.

William Willard, who served a year in Vietnam as a Marine Corps company commander, said he would not wear his medals unless he was wearing his uniform.

"I think they are a part of your uniform," said Willard of Clarksdale, Miss., who was awarded a Navy Commendation Medal for valor, a Navy Achievement Medal and a Combat Action Medal, among others. "If I were still able to put my uniform back on ... I would be pleased to have all my medals on it.

PERSONAL CHOICE

Some veterans groups, such as the VFW and Disabled American Veterans, are supporting the idea.

Joe Davis, an Air Force veteran who is a spokesman for the VFW, said that veterans don't mind being recognized and thanked for their service, but they usually don't go out of their way to draw attention to themselves.

Personal choice will be the deciding factor on whether they will wear their military decorations, said Davis, who received Gulf War Service medals, an Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal for Somalia and a Humanitarian Service Medal for Rwanda, among others.

Davis said he will not be wearing his medals, choosing instead to wear his VFW cap to a Veterans Day ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery.

Reppenhagen also said he won't be wearing his medals on Veterans Day.

"I'm thinking about going over to the White House and throwing them over the fence, especially that stupid Global War on Terror Medal," he said.

Reach Dennis Camire at dcamire@gns.gannett.com and Mary Vorsino at mvorsino@honoluluadvertiser.com.