Ever since the formation of the military, there has always been negativity and poor treatment aligned with it. They come back from war and receive inadequate care, they are paid very poorly, and the overall recognition of their issues once they’ve returned is non-existent. Everything that somebody in the military does is out of sight, out of mind. They are over seas fighting and we forget that they even exist. Along with that, even when they are home, we forget that they are active parts in our society as well.
It is very unfortunate that the overall awareness of veterans in our society is non-existent. We are subconsciously glad for what they do, but we do not recognize and accommodate for them at all. We expect them to transition back to civilian life on their own and just deal with it; and it’s not fair or just.
Although it is an unintended consequence, there are things we do as civilians that can be a trigger for veterans. Seemingly harmless fireworks, and celebration cannons are two things that are fun for us, but bring back unpleasant, stressful, hurtful memories for combat veterans.
I was at a football game this past weekend, and the host school, whenever they got a touchdown they blew off a cannon that jumped everybody at the field, and at the end of the game, fireworks were shot off. This is a seemingly harmless act. They are celebrating for their team, which is great. However, there is little to no consciousness here about who may be in the crowd innocently trying to watch their son/grandson/daughter/granddaughter at this football game. If they have a problem with it, they just have to suck it up and deal with it.
Although they are not meaning to upset or trigger combat veterans, the awareness is not there. I am not asking anybody to drastically change, but at the very least be more aware. Be aware of who is possibly at a sporting event. Be aware of who may be living on your block before you shoot off firecrackers and fireworks. Be aware in general of combat veterans and anybody who serves, because when they are out of sight, out of mind, they are doing things you could never imagine doing.