Interesting article on Veterans growing feeling of Entitlement

[em2nought]

Hell, I'm not even sure I can get health care anymore. Paid for BCBS for decades, found I could get VA, then Obamacare came along, found if I have Obamacare I have to drop VA. Hard to guess which one may turn out worse so it's VA for now. I'll probably just go to Thailand, I trust them more than I trust American medicine now.

[Eichhörnchen]

From a British perspective (for now, at least, a 'foreigner') we don't have the complex issue of Vietnam added to this. But nowadays, when each and every serviceman or woman serving in a Middle Eastern warzone is automatically awarded the epithet of "hero" by the press, I do kind of feel for the people who were called up and thrown into past conflicts, having basically been civilians all their lives.

If you join the service voluntarily as a job, then you join knowing what might lay ahead; it still takes a lot of courage for sure, which I don't have, but don't the conscripted 'vets' of the past deserve a special kind of respect?

[August]

Originally Posted by Eichhörnchen

.. but don't the conscripted 'vets' of the past deserve a special kind of respect?

You mean somebody that had to be forced to serve their country in it's time of need as opposed to someone who volunteers? All vets who did their duty and served faithfully deserve respect but it's the ones who volunteer to march toward the sound of the guns deserve the greatest respect.

[Eichhörnchen]

Originally Posted by August

You mean somebody that had to be forced to serve their country in it's time of need as opposed to someone who volunteers? All vets who did their duty and served faithfully deserve respect but it's the ones who volunteer to march toward the sound of the guns deserve the greatest respect.

I don't think anyone would argue that people who volunteer in time of war deserve the most credit of all, but I was comparing conscripts to those who are already professional soldiers.

[August]

Originally Posted by Eichhörnchen

I don't think anyone would argue that people who volunteer in time of war deserve the most credit of all, but I was comparing conscripts to those who are already professional soldiers.

Well we ended the draft back in the mid 1970's so for purposes of this discussion they'd all be considered professionals *. I can't speak to how foreign nations that still have conscription treat their vets.

* Although professional would not be my first choice to describe most of the young troops I met when I joined the Army back in the 1970's (and I include myself in that!). I mean how professional is an 18 year old at anything?

[Oberon]

Originally Posted by August

I mean how professional is an 18 year old at anything?

Extremely, if you are to believe them.

[Wolferz]

Well, it's not like all of us who served were press ganged into it.
We got paid to do a job. We were fed, clothed and housed while training and or serving.
If any vet deserves a little entitlement, it's the ones who lost a piece of themselves during their service. Not the ones who reached their ETOS without a scratch.

I once overheard a conversation between a vet and a VA rep. The rep was trying to talk him into applying for government benefits for a service related injury and the vet telling him that the only physical problem he was having was related to his stomach. Ulcers or some such nonsense. An ailment that can be caused by any number of things. But the rep was insistent that he could assist him in bilking the government for his intestinal distress.
I almost offered my opinion of disgust with both of them but kept my mouth shut.
I can't say that I have witnessed any vet using his former service for his own gain.But, if I do, I may not be inclined to stay quiet about it.

[Osmium Steele]

"We" are entitled to no more than our contract guarantees. And all we ask above this is the occasional "thank you".

That being said, as long as the service member is wearing the appropriate uniform for what they are about, if someone wants to comp them or give them some other perk, more power to them.

I have not personally experienced any current or former service member displaying any type of entitlement attitude or behavior, and I hang with them alot. The vast majority in my circles are pretty damn humble truth be told.

[August]

Apparently there are more than a few instances of civilians putting on a military uniform and posing as a serviceman in order to get those perks.

There are several organizations dedicated to naming and shaming them.

http://guardianofvalor.com/military-posers/

https://militaryphony.com/

http://www.people.com/article/milita...c-says-soldier

[Oberon]

Over here I believe those types who like to pretend to be military are known as 'Walts':
http://www.arrse.co.uk/wiki/Walts

[Commander Wallace]

Originally Posted by Eichhörnchen

From a British perspective (for now, at least, a 'foreigner') we don't have the complex issue of Vietnam added to this. But nowadays, when each and every serviceman or woman serving in a Middle Eastern warzone is automatically awarded the epithet of "hero" by the press, I do kind of feel for the people who were called up and thrown into past conflicts, having basically been civilians all their lives.

If you join the service voluntarily as a job, then you join knowing what might lay ahead; it still takes a lot of courage for sure, which I don't have, but don't the conscripted 'vets' of the past deserve a special kind of respect?

^ Well said.


In keeping with what you, August and others have said, Vets that have served, whether drafted or enlisted, answered the call and served and earned respect. It's not a gimme.

Sadly, a lot of the Vietnam Vets received no respect at all. They neither expected nor received the hero's welcome their fathers had received upon returning from WW2. Further, most in the Vietnam war didn't believe in fighting in it but did so because it was asked and expected of them. The treatment of those returning vets was reprehensible with regards to access to medical care and in general. PTSD was generally unknown then or ignored and those vets suffering from it were left to languish in deplorable conditions in poorly equipped vets hospitals.

Many vets, because of their experiences were left homeless upon their return or worse, took their own lives. I'm guessing the Korean war was little different.

With regards to what Platapus has said as a veteran, most vets quietly go about the business of their lives like that gentleman you met in Florida. I'm sure this gentleman who is a WW2 vet would rather forget the war and not think of those friends he lost. I have personally seen people walk past vets in a VA hospital without even saying hello. One particular gentleman named Jim was a vet with both legs amputated. People wouldn't even look at or acknowledge him. I thought, " what would it have cost them to say hello to this man or give him a few moments of their time" as you did in Florida with that elderly gentleman. I got to know Jim and many others during my visits to the VA and I'm richer for it. The men I met didn't feel any sense of entitlement that I could see and were always grateful for any little thing that you did for them. It goes without saying that they were certainly entitled to the best medical care for their respective conditions. In the military, it's called " keeping the faith "

War is an ugly thing and that's good. That's what makes it something to be avoided and only engaged in as a last resort.