SSgt Private RallyPoint Member 118935 <div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>When I hear some individuals being offended by &quot;thank yous&quot; I want to throw a fit. Because these comments are NOT just about us and is NOT just combat veterans. It is about Veterans who never came home or disabled heroes (and yes I used that &#39;term&quot;) with no legs, arms and a voice box.<br /><br />If one of these veterans lose a leg to a land mine or a booby trap they come home to stairs. They may be called baby-killers or even...... spat upon.<br /><br />It is about Veterans dying from the effects of Agent Orange or the asbestos that causes lung cancers. It is also about the families who lost families and mothers who stayed behind and tried to raise their kids the best that they could.<br /><br />It is about young men who were drafted before they got to experience the many joys of life. There was once a song called, &quot;Billy Don&#39;t Be A Hero&quot;. A teenage girl is begging her boyfriend not to take too many risks and please come back. In the song he doesn&#39;t come back. She doesn&#39;t care about &#39;a medal&#39;. <br /><br />Those scenarios were all too common. Where the corpses of our predecessors lay deep upon jungle floors, twisted figures who will never hear the &quot;thank yous&quot; or some calling them a &#39;Hero&#39;.<br /><br />To the families, a letter and a postcard seem little consolation because those ribbons and flags will never be seen. So excuse me if false modesty seems so out of touch. Look at that older veterans who is fiercely proud that they joined. <br /><br />For those military members who fixed your meals or delivered your mail are heroes of a kind. Not one of you can tell me that those letters (especially from a sweetheart) didn&#39;t make your day.<br /><br />For all the young veterans who show no poise or respect-- please grow up. You dishonor yourself and your families and more than anyone you dishonor your brothers and sisters in the services.<br /><br />So you see, to the Vietnam Veteran is may be payback for the indignities of post-war receptions. Many of those protestors who sat at home smoking weed and getting high and then telling the veterans that they are stupid because they served.<br /><br />This is what those statements mean. It is not about them and it is not about you or I necessarily. It is about people who sacrifice and feel disgraced for their courage and their leaders resolve.<br /><br />So shake hands with the WWII Veteran and Korean Veteran because before too many years it all becomes hazy and remote.<br /><br />If a person thanks you be sure to stand tall and respectful because it matters. 2014-05-05T07:36:13-04:00 SSgt Private RallyPoint Member 118935

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>When I hear some individuals being offended by &quot;thank yous&quot; I want to throw a fit. Because these comments are NOT just about us and is NOT just combat veterans. It is about Veterans who never came home or disabled heroes (and yes I used that &#39;term&quot;) with no legs, arms and a voice box.<br /><br />If one of these veterans lose a leg to a land mine or a booby trap they come home to stairs. They may be called baby-killers or even...... spat upon.<br /><br />It is about Veterans dying from the effects of Agent Orange or the asbestos that causes lung cancers. It is also about the families who lost families and mothers who stayed behind and tried to raise their kids the best that they could.<br /><br />It is about young men who were drafted before they got to experience the many joys of life. There was once a song called, &quot;Billy Don&#39;t Be A Hero&quot;. A teenage girl is begging her boyfriend not to take too many risks and please come back. In the song he doesn&#39;t come back. She doesn&#39;t care about &#39;a medal&#39;. <br /><br />Those scenarios were all too common. Where the corpses of our predecessors lay deep upon jungle floors, twisted figures who will never hear the &quot;thank yous&quot; or some calling them a &#39;Hero&#39;.<br /><br />To the families, a letter and a postcard seem little consolation because those ribbons and flags will never be seen. So excuse me if false modesty seems so out of touch. Look at that older veterans who is fiercely proud that they joined. <br /><br />For those military members who fixed your meals or delivered your mail are heroes of a kind. Not one of you can tell me that those letters (especially from a sweetheart) didn&#39;t make your day.<br /><br />For all the young veterans who show no poise or respect-- please grow up. You dishonor yourself and your families and more than anyone you dishonor your brothers and sisters in the services.<br /><br />So you see, to the Vietnam Veteran is may be payback for the indignities of post-war receptions. Many of those protestors who sat at home smoking weed and getting high and then telling the veterans that they are stupid because they served.<br /><br />This is what those statements mean. It is not about them and it is not about you or I necessarily. It is about people who sacrifice and feel disgraced for their courage and their leaders resolve.<br /><br />So shake hands with the WWII Veteran and Korean Veteran because before too many years it all becomes hazy and remote.<br /><br />If a person thanks you be sure to stand tall and respectful because it matters.

2014-05-05T07:36:13-04:00 2014-05-05T07:36:13-04:00 MAJ Private RallyPoint Member 118949

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>Whenever I&#39;m &quot;thanked for my service&quot;, I just take it to mean that they&#39;re thanking everyone serving or who has served. I definitely don&#39;t take it as a personal &quot;thank you&quot;.

2014-05-05T08:00:40-04:00 2014-05-05T08:00:40-04:00 SGT Private RallyPoint Member 118950

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>Sometimes it happens to me and there are times I&#39;m caught completely off guard or the situation is very awkward and I just don&#39;t know what to say. So what it winds up being is just a short Thank you or a vow to return the favor to some other servicemember past or present.

2014-05-05T08:01:28-04:00 2014-05-05T08:01:28-04:00 MSG Private RallyPoint Member 118952

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>I just say &quot;thank you for your support&quot; and move on. And when I see a hat on someone that indicates a veteran I thank them. As MAJ Dews mentioned I don&#39;t see it as a personal thanks but a thank you to all the people dressed like me.

2014-05-05T08:09:16-04:00 2014-05-05T08:09:16-04:00 MAJ Private RallyPoint Member 118955

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>I know this has already been written in the post but it is what I do as well. Most always I will return with &quot;Thank you for your support&quot;. It takes a bit of courage for some people to even speak up and say that much, treat them with respect and dont take it personally.

2014-05-05T08:20:50-04:00 2014-05-05T08:20:50-04:00 MAJ Private RallyPoint Member 119000

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>While I always appreciate the sentiment and tell them I appreciate their support, I would be lying if it doesn&#39;t always give me an uneasy feeling.

2014-05-05T09:35:42-04:00 2014-05-05T09:35:42-04:00 SPC Christopher Smith 119052

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>I needed this message today. I spoke with a Nam Vet last night for three hours, and learned so much about history, and military history. I learned of his struggles when he came back from Nam wounded, and the disrespect he endored upon return.<br /><br />I always am taken back by someone saying &quot;Thank you for your service&quot;, I get choked up and really don&#39;t know how to answer, because to me I haven&#39;t done anything special. Now I see that there is a greater meaning that comes from some of those who approach me. The unseen tears from lost loved ones, the appreciation that I, myself, or my family could be in a similiar situation. I&#39;ve always said, &quot;No, thank you for your service, because in a way we all help this country pull together&quot;, but now I know the importance of my place and how I need to respond in the future.

2014-05-05T10:43:57-04:00 2014-05-05T10:43:57-04:00 Col Phillip Harding 119081

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>Mystifies me how anyone could be offended by a thank you. When someone takes the time to offer a thank you, I typically return their thanks and follow with something along the lines of &quot;It&#39;s been an honor serving our nation and the cause of freedom.&quot;

2014-05-05T11:17:31-04:00 2014-05-05T11:17:31-04:00 SPC David Wyckoff 119088

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>My go to line is usually, &quot;You&#39;re welcome, we veterans are grateful for your support&quot;.<br /><br />I always shake the hand of someone in uniform and I never let a veteran hat walk by me without shaking their hand. Best encounter yet was an offsite VA physical therapy Dr&#39;s office. I am getting in the elevator to leave the building. I step inside and a guy in a wheelchair, wearing a Vietnam Veteran hat is there with his wife. <br />I extend my hand to him and say, &quot;I just wanted to say not only thank you for your service but to welcome you home as well&quot;. It looks like he is getting misty so I face front quickly. <br />As the door opens in the lobby, he rolls out and around the corner and his wife steps up and hugs me. She has tears in her eyes. &quot;No one ever says that to him, thank you so much. You have no idea what it means to him.&quot;<br />My own father was in the Navy in Vietnam, so it means something to me to try and heal the wounds that were caused when I was still in diapers.<br /><br />I said all that to say that I think it&#39;s very important for us as younger veterans to recognize the WWII, Korean War, and especially the Vietnam Veterans. To say thank you and welcome them home. As it was pointed out in another thread, we are all family.

2014-05-05T11:23:13-04:00 2014-05-05T11:23:13-04:00 MAJ Private RallyPoint Member 119362

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>I agree with you SSgt Olson, and I actually have “conflicting” positive feelings when someone thanks me for my service. On one hand I feel appreciated for how I try to carry my fair share to give back to this incredible country and be part of something bigger than myself. On the other hand my heart wrinkles and I feel humbled because it makes me think of those that came before me and paid the ultimate price for the freedom I now have to pursue a military career.

2014-05-05T16:01:53-04:00 2014-05-05T16:01:53-04:00 MSgt Michael Brewer 119375

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>A lot of the answers here talk about what the individuals answering do when they receive a "thanks" for service, but no one really seems to have answered the questions as to WHY someone may feel offended when being thanked. <br /><br />Everyone has different experiences, and everyone reacts differently to events during war. Some of have seen and done things that we are ashamed of or feel guilty for. When you're living in a state of poor mental health, possibly feeling like you've let down your brothers-in-arms, your country, or even yourself, being thanked for perceived "failures" feels like being slapped in the face. It tears open old wounds and brings out emotions that you've tried to bury. It's not so much being offended, as it is the frustration of being reminded of a past experience when you weren't expecting it.<br /><br />I personally have had to LEARN to NOT be irritated. It still hurts, like being slapped on a burn, but if nothing else, I try to be polite. I simply say "thanks" back, or, if at a bar, raise my glass in acknowledgment. There is no "you're welcome" and there is no "my pleasure" because those would be lies.

2014-05-05T16:16:16-04:00 2014-05-05T16:16:16-04:00 SSG Mark Ives 119469

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>The only reason I can fathom for being offended when thanks for your service is if it&#39;s perceived as being insincere. So many people have &#39;Support Out Troops&#39; ribbons on the vehicles and &#39;thanking&#39; troops &amp; vets for their service seems politically correct. When I joined the Army in 1978, the anti-Vietnam sentiment was still pretty common. While in dress greens in JFK airport waiting for a flight to Germany, I got quite a few glares from the youth of the day. I guess the irony is that many of those people who despised those of us in uniform at that time, now have those ribbons on their vehicles and perhaps have grandchildren in uniform. Personally, I appreciate the thanks more from other vets or SM&#39;s, since they have similarly served. I still appreciate thanks from &#39;civilians&#39; but it seems awkward for many people.

2014-05-05T18:22:26-04:00 2014-05-05T18:22:26-04:00 SFC Stephen Hester 119557

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>I was never offended by when a civilian thanked me for my service but it always made me a bit uncomfortable because that wasn&#39;t what I was in for. So I always said &quot;You&#39;re welcome&quot; and something about it being a privilege to serve and went about my business. I know they&#39;re showing their support for the military and I appreciate that. My dad never got as much when he came home from Vietnam.

2014-05-05T19:52:33-04:00 2014-05-05T19:52:33-04:00 SGT Craig Northacker 119802

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>I kind of miss the old "babyraper" terms of endearment, along with the cups of coffee that those folks shared with us, shared spittle and other epithets-they let us know where we stood right from the beginning. (sic.)

2014-05-05T23:36:38-04:00 2014-05-05T23:36:38-04:00 Jason Brown 120190

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>As someone who has never served, but as a son of a Vietnam Vet and grandson of two WWII Vets- I give my thanks to all who have ever taken up arms for the cause of freedom. I see the sacrifices years later and the wounds both mental and physical that haunt you all. I see the unwavering love of country and ideals that drove many of you and countless others throughout our history to put yourselves in such a perilous position. I thank you for doing something I did not do. My gratitude I give you all and most importantly to my soldier, my father as long as I live. Thank you.

2014-05-06T12:43:30-04:00 2014-05-06T12:43:30-04:00 SFC Christopher Perry 122859

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>There are folks who would have loved to have heard those simple words when they came home. I just smile and thank them for their support. The only one that did catch me off guard was the little old lady that jumped off the handicap cart at the airport to hug me. It would have been okay had she waited for the cart to stop.

2014-05-09T17:55:00-04:00 2014-05-09T17:55:00-04:00 MSG Sean Milhauser 126382

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>Interesting question! From my personal perspective, I get a little embarrassed. I am proud of my service, of course, but it is what I chose to do and continue doing. But I'm never offended. I used to be unsure of how to respond. But then I got a good piece of advice from a veteran. When someone says "thanks for your service", reply with "thanks for your support!"

2014-05-13T23:32:09-04:00 2014-05-13T23:32:09-04:00 SFC Private RallyPoint Member 189312

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>The best thing I can ever say in response to "thank you for your service" is: "It's my pleasure"

2014-07-29T17:28:07-04:00 2014-07-29T17:28:07-04:00 PO1 Mary Vermont 7918683

<div class="images-v2-count-0"></div>Because some people just have to be offended

2022-10-07T23:33:52-04:00 2022-10-07T23:33:52-04:00 2014-05-05T07:36:13-04:00