LETTER: Most veterans don’t expect special privileges

In response to Victor J. Moss’s Jan. 27 letter to the Review-Journal:

I am a veteran who served in the military twice — once in peace, and once in war. Because I was the only son, I didn’t have to serve at all because of the Sullivan Act. I served because I felt that I owed it to my country. However, I never considered myself a hero. I have a friend who was awarded the Medal of Honor. He does not consider himself a hero.

Eating establishments that offer a free meal to veterans on Veterans Day do so as a courtesy and as a way of offering their thanks. Veterans do not ask for or expect this courtesy. The idea that veterans expect these free meals is ludicrous.

Mr. Moss considers himself a veterans advocate in his community. But his letter says otherwise. It reads like an anti-war, anti-veteran diatribe that would fit quite well with the draft card burners of the 1960s. I and most citizens appreciate his lifetime service and his many years in the military. But his attitude toward his fellow vets could use an adjustment.

I am a decorated Vietnam veteran who expects no special privileges.