(USA) Why are we so obsessed with letting vets into everything for free?

I’ve been to so many restaurants that have a big sign on their door that says “free dessert for all veterans and active troops!”<br><br>And I’ve been to so many events with paid admission that also have a “free admission for all vet’s”.<br><br>Even some gyms give free workouts to vets.<br><br>I’ve been in the military and also in combat. It’s a great honor and a lot of fun. You also get paid really well. As an enlisted I was making around $70k over there and was also collecting combat pay.<br><br>I was just at a show the other day that was $25 per ticket. The day after, I read an article about the show and the singer said “we waived our fee for tonight and gave free admission to all veterans, because THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE!!!” (They also waived the fee for everyone else, because they wanted a full crowd, but whatever)<br><br>I’m just wondering why we give all these free things to vets all the time? What did we really do to deserve all that? I’m not really complaining, but I’ve noticed it’s a trend and I don’t see the reasoning behind it.