People say to me, “Thank you for your service” all the time. Someone at the security station on post said it to me yesterday, when I was getting a temporary pass to go on post because I had forgotten my ID card.
If I remember, I say, “And thank you for your support!” Usually, I don’t remember, so I just say “Thank you!”
I think that military personnel get a lot of support. Many businesses offer military discounts—I went to a Burger King drive through the other day, and when I got up to the window to pay, the clerk saw me and said “Oh, military!” and gave me a HUGE discount on the order. Every Hard Rock Cafe I have visited gives military discounts.
The fact that most people have not served and have no personal experience of service is not going to change. Only a limited number of people can join, and with the services drawing down, that number is decreasing. OTOH, the military can afford to be very picky about whom it allows to join—for the most part, only the best get in. I can truly say that I have never worked with a bad soldier (or airman or sailor).
You realize what this is. We are to expel at the foot of a post who only wants our energy here. There is war and they know our language. Please understand this.