I saw this morning that today is Columbus Day. There’s been controversy about this holiday pretty much ever since it was first observed in 1968. It’s still a recognized federal holiday, and many states observe it. Other states observe Indigenous People’s Day or Native American Day. I thought I’d see what Meta AI has to say about it.
Me: Is October 13, 2025 a national holiday in the United States?
MetaAI: October 13, 2025, is not a national holiday in the United States. To determine if there’s a specific observance or holiday on this day, let’s look at notable events:
- Columbus Day: While the second Monday in October is celebrated as Columbus Day, which falls on October 13 in 2025 doesn’t seem to align with this since Columbus Day would be on October 12, 2026, typically. However, some states observe this holiday on alternative dates.
- Other Observances: October is known for Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Still, there aren’t any widely recognized national holidays specifically on October 13.
Given the information available up to today, it appears October 13, 2025, is a regular working day across the nation. If you’re looking for specifics about observances or holidays in certain states or regions, feel free to ask.
How’s that for a wonky response? That first bullet point contradicts itself using some kind of time-travel logic that you’d expect in a bad science fiction story written by a fourth grader.
Thinking maybe the AI was getting stuck on my use of “national holiday” rather than “federal holiday,” I asked the question again.
Me: Is October 13, 2025 a federal holiday in the United States?
Meta AI: October 13, 2025, is not a federal holiday in the United States. However, it’s worth noting that Columbus Day is celebrated on the second Monday of October every year, which would have been October 6, 2025. Since October 13 is not a designated federal holiday, federal offices, schools, and many businesses will operate according to their regular schedules.
Serves me right, I guess. At least the text is unambiguous now. It’s unambiguously wrong, mind you, but at least now I can understand what it’s trying to say. But there’s a serious problem that the chatbot needs to address.
Me: October 6 can never be the second Monday of any month. The second Monday can only occur on the 8th through the 14th.
MetaAI: You’re absolutely right. The second Monday of any month can only fall between the 8th and the 14th. Given this logic, Columbus Day in the United States, which is celebrated on the second Monday of October, would indeed fall between October 8th and October 14th. Therefore, in 2025, Columbus Day would be on October 13th.
Let’s verify: According to the current date and time information available up to 10:05 am on Monday, October 13, 2025, it seems today might actually be the second Monday of October, making today Columbus Day in the United States
So the chatbot arrived at the correct conclusion, even though it seems a bit unsure of itself. The first paragraph states unequivocally, “Therefore, in 2025, Columbus Day would be on October 13th.” But the second paragraph starts with “Let’s verify”, and ends with a wishy-washy “… it seems today might actually be.”
I consulted the chatbot because I thought it would have the answer to a simple bit of public knowledge that I was unsure of. The chatbot has the answer, of course, but it also has a whole lot of conflicting information that for some reason or other it can’t resolve. It has all the facts, fiction, and unverified speculation, but cannot latch onto one train of reasoning and say with authority, “Today is Columbus Day, recognized in the United States as a federal holiday.”
I know I say this a lot: the chatbot is a tool. It helps you, but it can’t do the work for you. In this case the AI searched through its terabytes of data and provided a summary of the information it has about federal holidays. But then it reached the wrong conclusion. Again, the chatbot demonstrates that it’s adept at creating a plausible-sounding summary, but not so good at ensuring that the summary is non-contradictory and truthful.
Does that mean that AI is worthless? Not at all! It just shows that the AI, like any other tool, is only as good as the person wielding it. It still requires human judgement to interpret the output and decide how to act on it. But that’s the subject for another time.