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The spark of just how to express this came to me today, which is why this appears now - yet this has been my opinion on the matter for some time. I am a Navy veteran, somewhat recent. I use "we" a few times here, but not claiming to speak for all.

I hate "thank you for your service" and Veterans Recognitions ("would veterans and active-duty please stand to be recognized?" "For tonight's halftime we honor _____, a wounded soldier...").

I think deep down, most of us don't want to express just how much we hate it. I think, as a corrollary, that most veterans are at the very least uncomfortable with it; feelings ranging from that to hatred.

I think we don't fight it because we consider it a continuation of our service NOT to allow the public to know "what it really was like."

"What is really was like" to serve depends on when and where you serve(d) and what your job was; what you were asked to do or experienced. But the manner in which it departs from the generalized civilian concept of service (decades of movies, even realistic ones, have developed a small set of archetypical service) can probably be selected from the following:

  • Didn't see combat / in support roles / most of service was at a desk / never deployed (this is more and more common; a lot of bloat... fatties and prego women getting cushy jobs and all the benefits & societal credit for "service") - these folks are (or should be) embarrassed that their service was nowhere near as dangerous or exciting as what is imagined by the person uttering "thank you for your service")

  • Saw people die or get mutilated / killed a lot of people and now brain is fucked (this is as bad or worse than the archetypes... "shell-shock" and explains a big part of why WW2 vets didn't want to talk about anything... don't let the public know the true nature of the war)

  • Realized, or now realizes, that the "service" was not noble or necessary (this may be a redpilled individual, knows about "fighting for the jews" or maybe it wasn't for Israel, it was the other side of the world spying on someone we have no discernable reason to be angry at or suspicious of... "why are we here?" - it may be too classified or just too complicated to explain that the "service" was doing really shady things)

Engaging someone with a good intention/heart telling you "thank you for your service" and attempting to explain any of the above is just not, by and large, something a veteran tends to want to do. We like to keep it in the past and make decisions TODAY with all of YESTERDAY's knowledge. Not worth the time and not worth coming off as an ungrateful asshole, or a crazy person. So generally I respond with as neutral an acknowledgement as I can think of:

"I appreciate the sentiment."

I stand and get clapped at with other vets. I probably don't know them or anything they did; the public assumes there is some lingering "bond" between vets. Not unless you knew them personally. I try to look appreciative and sit back down (not too early or not too late) to speed along the public's forgetting my service once again.

What would we veterans want from the public then? Don't know exactly. Start with destroying VA healthcare system and paying for the amount of statutory care we earn (based on disability or retirement or whatever), but we can choose whatever civilian clinics or doctors or hospitals to attend. Stop putting us on a pedestal and/or using servicemembers as advertisements or "good PR"; take "us" out of the spotlight.

What are your thoughts?

The spark of just how to express this came to me today, which is why this appears now - yet this has been my opinion on the matter for some time. I am a Navy veteran, somewhat recent. I use "we" a few times here, but not claiming to speak for all. I hate "thank you for your service" and Veterans Recognitions ("would veterans and active-duty please stand to be recognized?" "For tonight's halftime we honor _____, a wounded soldier..."). **I think deep down, most of us don't want to express just how much we hate it.** I think, as a corrollary, that most veterans are at the very least uncomfortable with it; feelings ranging from that to hatred. **I think we don't fight it because we consider it a continuation of our service NOT to allow the public to know "what it really was like."** "What is really was like" to serve depends on when and where you serve(d) and what your job was; what you were asked to do or experienced. But the manner in which it departs from the generalized civilian concept of service (decades of movies, even realistic ones, have developed a small set of archetypical service) can probably be selected from the following: * *Didn't see combat / in support roles / most of service was at a desk / never deployed* (this is more and more common; a lot of bloat... fatties and prego women getting cushy jobs and all the benefits & societal credit for "service") - these folks are (or should be) embarrassed that their service was nowhere near as dangerous or exciting as what is imagined by the person uttering "thank you for your service") * *Saw people die or get mutilated / killed a lot of people and now brain is fucked* (this is as bad or worse than the archetypes... "shell-shock" and explains a big part of why WW2 vets didn't want to talk about anything... don't let the public know the true nature of the war) * *Realized, or now realizes, that the "service" was not noble or necessary* (this may be a redpilled individual, knows about "fighting for the jews" or maybe it wasn't for Israel, it was the other side of the world spying on someone we have no discernable reason to be angry at or suspicious of... "why are we here?" - it may be too classified or just too complicated to explain that the "service" was doing really shady things) **Engaging someone with a good intention/heart telling you "thank you for your service" and attempting to explain any of the above is just not, by and large, something a veteran tends to want to do.** We like to keep it in the past and make decisions TODAY with all of YESTERDAY's knowledge. Not worth the time and not worth coming off as an ungrateful asshole, or a crazy person. So generally I respond with as neutral an acknowledgement as I can think of: **"I appreciate the sentiment."** I stand and get clapped at with other vets. I probably don't know them or anything they did; the public assumes there is some lingering "bond" between vets. Not unless you knew them personally. I try to look appreciative and sit back down (not too early or not too late) to speed along the public's forgetting my service once again. *What would we veterans want from the public then?* Don't know exactly. Start with destroying VA healthcare system and paying for the amount of statutory care we earn (based on disability or retirement or whatever), but we can choose whatever civilian clinics or doctors or hospitals to attend. Stop putting us on a pedestal and/or using servicemembers as advertisements or "good PR"; take "us" out of the spotlight. What are your thoughts?

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[–] • 1 pt

But again, who would do the work if defense contractors didn't. It's all part of the often maligned 'defense industrial complex', but it isn't those folks who are gaming the system. Does the system often stink ... sure ... does contractor X rip off the government by underbidding and then going over budget ... all the time. But that isn't on the guy building the guidance system or training troops how to operate a new advanced radar system. That's all I'm saying.

[–] • 1 pt

Nowhere have I claimed it was an activity without which our defense could be possible.

I just want no part of it anymore.

[–] • 0 pt

Hey, you were right on point on the first part. I absolutely hate that, too, when people say 'thanks for your service' as if they have a clue. Some folks like that, but I never have myself, and never know what to say.

And again, it was in your comment reply where you dissed folks like myself that your argument fell apart for me. It was your comment where you said "you wouldn't be able to live with yourself working as a defense contractor" ... as if that's something unthinkable. That's a bit over the line, especially if you come from a family of folks who worked as contractors as you said. It's as if you think we're somehow leeching off the government. I made a good living, but I also I worked my ass off for all those years, so you hit a sore spot. I grew up a lower middle class country boy. The AF and my follow up years as a defense contractor transformed life for me from being maybe a small town guy and some factory laborer to being someone who actually did things that made a difference. In the process, I made things much better for my own family. So I'll never apologize for how I got to where I have ... I worked all the way through to make it happen and no one gave me anything, but a chance.

[–] • 1 pt (edited )

Look I don't think there's anything wrong with being a defense contractor.

I DO think there is something wrong with ME being a defense contractor.

It's just like your situation: you didn't want to be a "a small town guy and some factory laborer" because they don't "actually do things that make a difference". Maybe that's what I do, but I think I make a huge difference; much more than I would have in defense.

I worked hard not to be what I came from, too.

[–] • 1 pt

you dissed folks like myself

Take offense if you must. I'm the one who has to live with my decisions. If you think I'm shitting all over you and my family members, you are misinterpreting.