[taxcontrol]

No it does not irk me. In fact, I will walk up to a service member who is traveling in uniform (I spend a lot of time in airports) and I will thank them for their service.

[mylife]

Sometimes I buy them a beer or a meal.
They have been around the world and are coming home for a rest or for good.
The least I can do is thank them.

[ASA Vet]

At the JFK airport terminal, while traveling in Class A Uniform, I walked up to very young soldier, also in uniform. He was a slick sleeve, and I assumed on his way to his AIT station. I was only going to be friendly and ask. The darn kid jumped up, and snapped to attention.

After I assured him that I wouldn't be yelling or dropping him for pushups, he explained that he was fresh out of basic and on his way home for a couple weeks.

Poor kid, I hadn't thought about how he'd react, or the trauma I could cause. I was probably the first senior NCO who'd treated him as a fellow soldier.