I woke up a bit early and got ready. The snow is falling, so I was at the Great Clips at 0900 and got my complimentary haircut. Went over to Scooters and received my complimentary cup of black coffee.
Went home.
I am now watching Fury on History Channel.

Note I wrote "complimentary" since it was not "free".

RHINOSWO, Am I misinterpreting your post, or are you suggesting that honorable Veterans should be above accepting a thank you meal for their duty?

I am not a veteran. But here's what I did for Veteran's Day: I made a donation to the Wounded Warrior Project. There is also The Fisher House, which provides free, temporary housing for families of loved ones receiving treatment at a VA facility.

I also took a veteran (my son-in-law) to breakfast this morning.

This vet just got back from Applebee’s. Steak, baked potato, and two Buds on the house.

THANK YOU, APPLEBBE!

I came home from Vietnam the second time in 1971. I was not old enough to vote or purchase alcoholic beverages, but I held the Combat Infantryman Badge, Bronze Star, Army Commendation Medal, Purple Heart (3 oak leaf clusters, for those who know what that means), and a number of other decorations.

Military personnel were not welcome in many restaurants. Military personnel in uniform were routinely subjected to taunts and insults in public places.

For about 30 years the Purple Heart and a buck-and-a-half might get me a cup of coffee, maybe. I learned to never mention that I was a veteran at a nice party with "cool people" present.

Then, all of a sudden during the 1990's, camouflage became cool! Veterans were heroes! School teachers wanted me to talk to their classes (what could I tell them? It was a war, not a movie, not a social experiment).

Now many of the 'big box' stores flaunt their VETERANS DISCOUNTS, restaurants make a big deal out of feeding veterans at a discount (or even free on Veterans Day).

It is all about marketing their brand name, making a media splash, telling the public how wonderful they are because they truly care!

I call BS on all of it. Veterans Day is my birthday. I spend it with my family, not helping some business promote its public image.

Rant over.

For the past 20+ years there is a local pizza chain in Minnesota that has been offering Veterans Day meals; it is the only discount I take and there are a few of us that end up going together every year now.

Today when we arrived, the management was ensuring each Vet received one of these hand written notes with a lotto ticket in it. Thought it was a pretty classy move.

To add a little context to this thread, as I've done in past years, I had originally planned on just posting a simple thank you to our forum vets on this day of rememberance, in one of the several threads I expected to find.

There is a local radio show that comes on Saturday mornings, that primarily covers local restaurant and food topics, but also books, travel, politics, etc...
The host of the program is a former U.S. Army soldier. I don't know much about his service, other than he got out in the early to mid '70s and that he still occasionally gets together with friends he served with.

During his program he reminded his listeners that it was the U.S.M.C. birthday, wishing his Marine listeners a Happy Birthday and also reminding his listeners that the next day was Veterans Day and thanking them all for their service. He also made it a point to mention a few of the Veterans Day restaurant deals and listing a website that listed several more deals. One of the websites I listed in my OP was one he recommended.

He encouraged all our local veterans to take advantage of some of the offers, and it was at this point that I decided that I would start a post listing some of these deals.

For those who chose to take advantage I hope you enjoyed yourself and were appreciated by those who served you. Thank you for your service.

For those who chose not to take advantage of a deal, I hope you still enjoyed your day, and your service was appreciated. Thank you for your service.

quote:

Originally posted by LoboGunLeather:

...Then, all of a sudden during the 1990's, camouflage became cool! Veterans were heroes! School teachers wanted me to talk to their classes (what could I tell them? It was a war, not a movie, not a social experiment)...

Minor thread drift: IIRC, it was right after Desert Storm when "everyone" realized Viet Nam vets were treated, well...poorly. I remember reading about a big "Thank you Desert Storm vets" parade that turned into a "Thanks to ALL vets" event.

That sentiment continues to this day. Heck, I just got back from a free breakfast at the local supermarket, saw lots of pals and had a great time.