Thank you.

[Joelski]

Didn't see a Veteran's day thread, forgive me if I missed it.

I try to never miss an opportunity to recognize vets, active duty and everybody else who puts on a uniform and theirself in harm's way to protect us, our property and our way of life. On the birthday of the United States Marines and Veterans Day, I'd just like to say you all have my deepest respect and a place to stay if you're ever over my way. In honor of those who made the ultimate sacrifice I pray that God sees our warriors to a special place at his side and hope they know many of us are eternally grateful for the price they paid.

Love, Respect, and PEACE, Brothers and Sisters.

[Jerry R]

Nicely stated.

[WHSmithIV]

Thank you for the support.

[BoilerUp]

I wrote this 4 years ago:


It’s Veterans’ Day again and that is always a bit of an awkward day for me because inevitably someone says something like “thank you for your service.” It’s a lovely sentiment and a polite gesture, but it makes me uncomfortable. Why? Because I didn’t chose to “serve” for your sake: I did it for me. I didn’t make a sacrifice, I made a choice. If anything, I should be thanking you for paying for my rent in Germany, my bullets and det cord at the range, my airfare to get me to Schofield Barracks (in Hawaii), and the JP8 for UH-60’s that I got to ride in. It was awesome, and I couldn’t have done it if you hadn’t worked hard in the productive part of society that generates enough wealth to pay a sufficiently high level of taxes to support young men and women in search of adventure. You were probably holed up working in an office in suburban hell while I was jumping out of airplanes or on a 3 day pass in Budapest. I’m pretty sure I got the better end of that deal. Granted, I volunteered in a time of peace and I never had to fire a shot in anger. I did have a nice camping trip to the Balkans in the late-90’s, but the Boy Scouts probably took more risks in the 90’s than a Clinton-era general.

I don’t pretend to speak for all veterans, but, really, you don’t need to thank me. Instead, and since we don’t have a holiday that honors those who pay a lot in taxes (to the contrary, we vilify you and chastise you for not paying enough), I thank you for subsidizing my four years of adventure.