A majority of younger veterans said they feel uncomfortable when they are told “thank you for your service,” a new poll found.
Ahead of Veterans Day on Saturday, a survey found disparities between young military members and their older counterparts in how they prefer to be recognized for their service.
Among younger military members and veterans — age 18 to 29 — 70 percent said they feel uncomfortable or awkward when they are thanked for their service. Only 24 percent of older members, 65 years and up, say the same, the Endeavor Analytics and YouGov poll found.
“This data shows that military service members and our veterans want Americans to go beyond small talk to connect with them on a deeper level, including learning more about their service, honoring each veteran’s service in ways in which they feel comfortable talking about it,” Robert F. Whittle Jr., retired Army major general and United Services Automobile Association (USAA) chief of staff, said in a statement.
You misunderstand. I rarely thank someone for doing their chosen job, maybe a social worker or medical professional but still rarely.
My comment was in surprise because I thought this had turned into a meme and/or joke — it has in my social circles. The only time I hear anyone use this line is when we’re doing it to annoy our friends who were in the military as a vector of jovial ribbing and shared mockery.
Perhaps I have just aged to the point where I’ve passed the irony and ribbing and I sincerely mean that I am thankful for someone’s service. (This all being said, I’ve maybe said that to someone once or twice in my life.)
At some point, I can’t control how other people take it, but my meaning is clear to me, at least.