Thank a Veteran today

cgrab said:
Title says it all
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Yes I agree..but...

I recently found an article that suggests thanking a veteran, while it may seem appropriate, actually causes some anxiety.

Article here.

Maybe, instead of thanking a veteran, the alternative course would be to "attend" a veteran today. Listen to their stories, show them you care by being there. Maybe that is what you implied in your post and if so, awesome. I just find the phrase "Thank you for your service" to be hollow and almost automatic to almost remove all the benefit it was meant to convey.

The veterans of this country (and others) put themselves before everyone else to ensure the safety of their nation and deserve respect and recognition for their actions. By no means was this post meant to be argumentative or contrary to your original intention, as I quite agree with it, I just would go one step further.
 
Caramon13 said:
Yes I agree..but...

I recently found an article that suggests thanking a veteran, while it may seem appropriate, actually causes some anxiety.

Article here.

Maybe, instead of thanking a veteran, the alternative course would be to "attend" a veteran today. Listen to their stories, show them you care by being there. Maybe that is what you implied in your post and if so, awesome. I just find the phrase "Thank you for your service" to be hollow and almost automatic to almost remove all the benefit it was meant to convey.

The veterans of this country (and others) put themselves before everyone else to ensure the safety of their nation and deserve respect and recognition for their actions. By no means was this post meant to be argumentative or contrary to your original intention, as I quite agree with it, I just would go one step further.
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That article is so ridiculous. All the old Vietnam vets that read that stuff just shake their heads. They came back and got treated like crap. They’d give anything for a simple thank you.

Instead of the thank you, it says to “get involved helping vets” Yeah I get a retirement paycheck starting at only 38 years old while the rest of the world, vets either don’t get a check or it comes starting at 60. Free college, free medical, military discounts, etc. We’ve got plenty of help already, believe me.

These me, me, me, touchy feely vets these days just make me embarrassed to be a vet sometimes. They gave you a job with no experience, got good pay and benefits and now whine about people thanking them. Get over it.
 
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I wasn't in long enough to get a check, all I qualify for is VA care, and that would only be used as a very last resort. It was an interesting experience with interesting people, but that was a long time ago...
 
Bill Jennings said:
I wasn't in long enough to get a check, all I qualify for is VA care, and that would only be used as a very last resort.
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No check for me, either, and I don't even get VA care. The only veterans benefit I ever got was ~35 years ago, when mortgage rates were in the double-digits, and I got a VA loan a few points below that for our first house. Didn't even use the pilot training provisions of the GI Bill.

Sure, all-volunteer these days. But the *type* of service is never an option. A volunteer fireman can look at a blaze, say "**** that ****" and walk away with only their conscience to deal with. Military members who do this can be put up in front of a firing squad. That hasn't happened for ~75 years, but a number have ended up in prison. Two year draftee, four year enlistee, career military, it doesn't matter. If you're in, you go where they tell you, or suffer the consequences. "Growl ye may, but go ye must."

My four easy years of commissioned service ended almost 40 years ago, office environment in Colorado, the only drawback was shift work and the fact that I was working in the first target that would be hit if WWIII started. My best friend is still in, has served ~8 overseas tours in Bosnia, Afghanistan, Kuwait, and Iraq, with a few decorations and PTSD to show for it. Yes, he'll draw a pension and get VA care when he retires. I figure he's earned it.

For it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' " Tommy, wait outside ";
But it's " Special train for Atkins " when the trooper's on the tide
The troopship's on the tide, my boys, the troopship's on the tide,
O it's " Special train for Atkins " when the trooper's on the tide.

- "Tommy", by Rudyard Kipling

Ron Wanttaja
 
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Ron Wanttaja
 
Oddly, the practice of publicly thanking veterans is a relatively new thing. 5 years after WW 2, the veterans had pretty much blended back into the population, and avoided looking back.

The Vietnam War and the foul way both active duty and returned soldiers were treated resulted in those that respected the servicemen, regardless of their opinion of the actual war, resulted in people actively showing respect.

My service in the '50s was involuntary, I served with integrity, to the best of my ability. I separated as soon as the law allowed. That is ME, a person who does not care for a regimented life. I have many friends and relatives who have had careers in all branches of the military, and they have my full respect. They are also rather better compensated for their service, as my military time provides less than a dollar a month to my Social Security check.

This morning, I went out for a free breakfast at Denny's, the service was great, and my wife was good company as she bought her breakfast.

Two weeks ago, I had lunch at the next table from a WW 2 vet, he drove a Duck onto the beach at Normandy. We had an interesting conversation, mostly about the B17's that bombed the beach before and during the invasion. He felt that he would not have made it to the beach without the damage done to the fortifications ashore. He personally saw what destruction the Germans had endured before the invasion, as he fought inland.

The first fatality of my high school graduating class died in Korea. Others died later in Vietnam. I served in the time between, just luck.

During my time in service, duty took me to Casa Blanca, Italy, Switzerland and France. I have seen openly hostile locals, and been welcomed other places with open arms. Oddly, my civilian job was more dangerous than my service in the Army.

I feel that I am fortunate to live free, and the country has an effective fighting force to keep it that way. I do thank all on here who do serve in our armed forces, just as I expect them to recognize that my service in peacetime was not without risk.
 
I gratefully acknowledge the thanks I get.

The only money I got was peanuts for the four years I was active duty, but the training and maturity I got was priceless and set me up for a successful career.
 
I'm never sure whether or not to say thank you in person any more. I know quite a few vets, and more than one has told me that it makes them uncomfortable at best; two of them genuinely hate being thanked and have their reasons. That doesn't stop me from being extremely grateful... just not sure how to express it respectfully in a manner that will always be taken in the sincere manner it's meant.

To all of the vets on this board, know that my family and I appreciate what you've sacrificed, whether it be some of your personal freedoms in return for protecting some of mine, or much, MUCH more. May you have a measure more happiness on this Veterans Day.
 
To all who have served thank you! My 22 years active duty and reserve service encapsulate some of my fondest, most cherished memories and some of the absolute worst experiences of my life. Some of the women and men with whom I served are or were the best examples of courage, leadership, and ability. A few were outstanding examples of how not to do things.

To those who aspire to be their best welcome and keep on trucking! To those who have sacrificed for the good, thank you!
 
James331 said:
I agree, but it’s also laughable to ask me to thank someone who I’m forced to pay and who does work most Americans don’t agree with. It’s also odd vets don’t thank taxpayers for their all the money, I mean you made the choice to work for the mil, I didn’t get the choice in giving them sooooo much money.
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Every time I wear my USCG Retired hat and hear "Thank you for your service" I say "Thank you for the check every month!"
 
Bob-that's great!

James331-now you know how I feel about most of the people in DC. And thank you for my check and health benefits!
 
4 years active duty during which I told people I fought in the Battle of the Atlantic during the Vietnam war. I was the Supply Officer aboard what turned out to be the last cargo ship in the Navy, and the mission was to shuttle missiles (in shipping containers - we had no way to launch them) and all sorts of equipment and supplies between Charleston SC and the overseas submarine bases in Rota, Spain and Holy Loch, Scotland. It was more or less "McHale's Navy" but still a valuable learning experience for me.

I am proud to have served. I get no check or benefits. Always my hat is off for those who served in-country Vietnam or in other dangerous locations and deployments. Happy Veteran's Day to all!

-Skip
 
Having grown up in a military family, thanking veterans (and service members) always seemed odd, as, that's just what we did. I didn't sign up out of a sense of service and commitment, I signed up because it was the way of life I knew and plus I got to play with some really cool toys.

That said, I won't turn away the free haircut. My head is a couple pounds lighter right now.
 
The most awkward "thank you for your service" I get is from the airman on the gate as I go to work. They are wearing a uniform too, why thank me? They also call me by my retired rank which is a little weird as well. I'm a "Mister" now.

Since I'm working today, I'll guess I'll just bite my tongue at the gate this afternoon.
 
MuseChaser said:
I'm never sure whether or not to say thank you in person any more. I know quite a few vets, and more than one has told me that it makes them uncomfortable at best; two of them genuinely hate being thanked and have their reasons. That doesn't stop me from being extremely grateful... just not sure how to express it respectfully in a manner that will always be taken in the sincere manner it's meant.

To all of the vets on this board, know that my family and I appreciate what you've sacrificed, whether it be some of your personal freedoms in return for protecting some of mine, or much, MUCH more. May you have a measure more happiness on this Veterans Day.
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When in doubt just offer to give them a hug. That generally makes them more uncomfortable than the whole vet appreciation topic.

but seriously I only directly thank people I know very well. In general I avoid interacting with people I don’t know well, especially about anything personal such as military service.

my general appreciation is shown through my support of a couple veteran service organizations who’s missions I agree with but I don’t go around talking about it with folks. Generally.
 
I’ve said it before, the whole “thank you for your service” comes in 3 varieties.

First, you have those who have no clue about military service and really don’t care about vet issues. But, they find out you’re a vet and out of some sort of perceived obligation, they thank you. It’s a hollow statement with no weight to it but who cares? I’ll still reply with a thank you in return.

Then you have those who also don’t know much about the military but are very patriotic. They’re people who care about vets and support Veterans’s programs. A thank you from them has heartfelt meaning even if it’s partially out of ignorance. I always appreciate it and return a thank you.

Finally, there are those who either served or know a lot about military life because of association or a family vet. They understand the sacrifices made because of intimate knowledge of the subject. The thank you has weight, it has meaning and I reciprocate the thank you.

I don’t care about how you served or what benefits you think you deserve after the military. Someone that you vowed to protect took the time to thank you. Stop overthinking a simple statement and just be grateful you got it.

Happy Veterans Day.
 
My wife spent Veterans Day in pain management hooked up to intravenous ketamine for 6 hours, fahked up as a moon chicken. We'll miss the Denny's meal, she's to loopy to be in public. It helps with her pain from service connected injuries.
 
Timbeck2 Said:

The most awkward "thank you for your service" I get is from the airman on the gate as I go to work. They are wearing a uniform too, why thank me? They also call me by my retired rank which is a little weird as well. I'm a "Mister" now.

Since I'm working today, I'll guess I'll just bite my tongue at the gate this afternoon.

Beat him to it.....Thank him for HIS service.....It will make his day.
 
Well I was all about it until the guy in front of me had something wrong with his pass. When that happens the guard usually walks to the vehicle behind the guy, take their ID card and walk back to the first guy and direct him around the gate and out the other side. This forces the person who's ID has been kept hostage to stop and wait for the guard to give it back to him.

I said nothing but "have a faboo day" and drove on in.
 
I find it awkward. I know they mean well though which is cool.
 
Thank a combat vet. The rest of us poges need to thank those guys and gals, and thank our families for sticking around at home while we went out on deployment to support the ones doing the actual fighting.
 
I want to know where this "thank a vet" stuff was 20 years ago, when I was just out of the Navy and looking for work. A 22 year old with a BA stood a better chance of getting a decent job than I did. With 22 years experience, I wound up making $15.50/hr doing the same thing did as a junior avionics tech in the Navy.
 
wilkersk said:
Thank a combat vet. The rest of us poges need to thank those guys and gals, and thank our families for sticking around at home while we went out on deployment to support the ones doing the actual fighting.
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This.

I get thanked on occasion but tbh I try not to draw any attention. Ironically, I get thanked a lot more on Memorial Day. Either way, I humbly and graciously accept it. But I didn't do anything. Many sacrificed more. Me? I ended up riding around the back of KC-135s over CONUS and spent a few nice weeks near Panama City FL.
 
wilkersk said:
Thank a combat vet. The rest of us poges need to thank those guys and gals, and thank our families for sticking around at home while we went out on deployment to support the ones doing the actual fighting.
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Yeah but in a lot of cases, there’s no telling if that “combat vet” actually saw any combat. Plenty of people deploy to a combat zone and are in non combat roles. Even those of us in a combat zone, in combat roles and logging combat time, might not actually be fighting.

I’ve only said “thank you for your service” to a few vets. These are people who I knew experienced real warfare and hung it out on the line for their comrades. Last person I said it to was LTC Dick Cole. Pretty sure he deserved it.
 
wilkersk said:
I want to know where this "thank a vet" stuff was 20 years ago,
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1973, Friday afternoon. I was all of 14 years old and walking home from the military school in uniform. A green VW bug with flowers painted on it pulled up next to me. Someone threw a beer can at me as a hippie chick leaned out the window....''baby killer, baby killer'', and sped off.

Things have changed and for the better.
 
Zeldman said:
1973, Friday afternoon. I was all of 14 years old and walking home from the military school in uniform. A green VW bug with flowers painted on it pulled up next to me. Someone threw a beer can at me as a hippie chick leaned out the window....''baby killer, baby killer'', and sped off.
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I was a cadet in Civil Air Patrol from '68 to '76, and in college ROTC during the later portion of that. Definitely these kinds of problems, though not as bad in the Dakotas where I grew up.

Later, I think there was a bit of backlash against such attitudes. I remember during the first Gulf war, there was a lot of emphasis on "Don't blame the military members for political decisions." That's about the time, I think, that the "thank a vet" concept began.

Must remember, too, how prevalent veterans were, in the post WWII environment. Less likely to have a thanking-a-veteran movement when practically every male adult you knew was a veteran. Not that they didn't deserve it, but it was still a sizeable proportion of the adults. Not as likely to make a big deal about it. I think my dad was the only one in the neighborhood who WASN'T a veteran (I come from a long line of 4-Fs).

Groups like the American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars cropped up like crazy, then, but are suffering now. Just not that many veterans in the population anymore.

Ron Wanttaja
 
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