Originally Posted by
NutLoose
I do not consider myself as a veteran, simply an ex serviceman, a veteran to me is some one that ran up the beaches in France or fought in Afghanistan etc.
I feel that way too. I think Veteran is not the best choice of name.
A couple of years back I was out for a ride-along in Las Vegas, with a retired vso in the local police. We had occasion to contact the duty officer in a police office, and my pal calls the non emergency number, and identifies himself by his registered number. The girl on the phone asks him two verifying questions, then deals with him as if he was still in the job. They have systems in place in their control room to handle that kind of call.
He carries a retired police officer's ID which is accepted as proof that he used to be a cop, and gets access to certain things based on that.
Amercian service people have a retired service ID card which allows them access to base facilities (the bar) as if they were still serving.
Some of that, like our Defence Discount Card, gets you money off at the till in some places. Mostly it is a way of quickly authenticating to current service & police people, that you have served, and therefore are likely to know how many beans make five.
I suspect that the next step in the UK gov drive to be everyone's pal, while refusing to actually pay some of them a decent wage, will be to offer a driving licence with a big E for emergency services staff, or a 999 logo on it for anyone working in the blue light trades.
That leads us to an advanced Paramedic asking why the old fart in Patient Transport service or the control room gets one as well.
The cops out dealing with angry drunks, asking why the Inspector in charge of the Fixed Penalty Office gets one.
The sharp end Firefighter going into burning buildings as a matter of routine, asking why the guy on Community Education or Local Authority Liason gets one.
Of course it's all pish, but like everything else, Westminster has decided to do it, so we just accept it and move on.
Don't forget that they are the same shower of self serving fokkers who wanted to have a vigil outside Parliament, heads bowed, to mark the fact that the work to be carried out on "Big Ben" was somehow worthy of their time and respect.
We didn't see them all standing outside with heads bowed at the funeral for Keith Palmer. He gave his life protecting them, and what they should stand for. What they actually want to stand for is a clock tower, and of course, four more years.
One day soon, when the many stop fearing the few, the few will need to fear the many. That's what it will take for the UK Government to actually appreciate those who serve, and have served in the military.