Happy Veteran's Day! Thanks to all our vets and active duty servicemen/women.

[vkhmini]

Originally Posted by Reads2MUCH

Oh, well in that case, we should just call off this holiday all together. Oh, but wait a minute, there are still a lot of veterans from WW2 and even more who fought in Vietnam who are still alive today. Many of which were DRAFTED into service. In fact, during WW2 66% of the armed forces were drafted into service. Not to mention the 25% of our armed forces who were serving "in country" in Vietnam were also drafted into service. Around 500,000 WW2 vets were still alive in this country as of 2017. As of 2004, there were around 2.5 million vets still alive who had served "in country" in Vietnam. Those are some pretty high numbers. I'd be willing to guess there are still hundreds of thousands of veterans alive today who were actually drafted into military service and served our country. And they absolutely deserve your thanks.

Amen and thank you.

[newtovenice]

Originally Posted by Reads2MUCH

Oh, well in that case, we should just call off this holiday all together. Oh, but wait a minute, there are still a lot of veterans from WW2 and even more who fought in Vietnam who are still alive today. Many of which were DRAFTED into service. In fact, during WW2 66% of the armed forces were drafted into service. Not to mention the 25% of our armed forces who were serving "in country" in Vietnam were also drafted into service. Around 500,000 WW2 vets were still alive in this country as of 2017. As of 2004, there were around 2.5 million vets still alive who had served "in country" in Vietnam. Those are some pretty high numbers. I'd be willing to guess there are still hundreds of thousands of veterans alive today who were actually drafted into military service and served our country. And they absolutely deserve your thanks.

It is terrible for those who were drafted. They deserve an apology, not thanks. I'm sorry you were sent away from home, and forced to kill other people. It's whatever lies beyond sadness, just absolute, stunning, horrific grief there.

[Old Gringo]

It was an honor to serve.

[TigerLily24]

Originally Posted by Galvatron99

They are not owed a thank you. They are doing a job that they signed up for and they get a lot of benefits for that job. If they were drafted, that would be a different story.

Interestingly, my son, who is going on 22 years active duty, feels exactly the same.

But I say "thank you" just the same.

[TigerLily24]

Originally Posted by vkhmini

Gee, one of the benefits my husband got was Parkinson's disease, likely from using water from wells on base that were contaminated by jet fuel.


I'll convey your thanks to him for his service.

I read an in-depth report not too long about the contamination on many installations.
It's just horrible how little regard has been given to these issues.

[lilyflower3191981]

Originally Posted by Galvatron99

They are not owed a thank you. They are doing a job that they signed up for and they get a lot of benefits for that job. If they were drafted, that would be a different story.

This is just lame as hell.

So if they were drafted, that would be a different story? How so?

Saying Thank you is just a nice gesture, some people shouldn't over analyzing it.

My veteran family members and friends believe if one has a problem when civilians saying "thank you" to him/her, this one person much have a giant chip on his/her shoulder. lol It is always nice to thank them back for being supportive. People just want to be nice, what is wrong with that? Most civilians certainly don't know anything about va benefits, and such and such. So why giving them an attitude?


I am not saying this to be mean. If one knows military history, you know militaries are prone to groupthink and prone to get stuck in ruts. An infusion of bright competent people from outside can be a plus. So i certainly believe there are both pros and cons for drafted and volunteer soldiers. But this is another topic.

The bottom line is that they both deserve to be treated with human decency. One is certainly not better than the other.

Yikes.

Oh, by the way, For anybody who have to express their anti military opinions on Veterans' day, your opinions certainly need to be respected, and you obviously have the right to express your opinions. But consider the DATE you chose to express that negative opinions, you probably are a person with very bad manners. It is like going to John McCain's funeral and telling the relatives that you don't consider him a war hero. It is the same damn thing.

[Floorist]

Too bad veteran's benefits have been held up for the last two years. Oh well, I guess lip service is better than actually doing something.

[donsabi]

If our government cared for vets as they should they why are there so many independent veteran charities? Not a week goes by that I don't receive at least one request via the mail for donations to help our vets. This is not a complaint it is a fact. What would it be like if these many veteran charities were not here to help?

There are some posts here stating that many vets who volunteer for active duty are well aware of what there are getting themselves into. Nothing could be further from the truth. Most who enlist do so at an young age. They have no idea what combat is like except from some heroic nonsense movie. Most kids today have not even met a veteran. No one takes a job to have their legs blown off, lose their vision, or die at age nineteen. Anyone who speaks of combat and has never experienced it has nothing to say of any sense or value.

38% of the homeless are veterans. Many suffer from PTSD with claims that go on for years while the government does it best to avoid approving those claims. The main thing provided by the government is lip service, "thank you or your service." However on Veterans Day a vet can get a free coffee or donut, well, maybe, but for me, they were out.
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