I can name a few pubs in this town who used to close their doors to soldiers and one that even have the neck to put another sign up saying "bikers welcome". I have nothing against bikers but what a dam disgrace when there is a welcome for them and not our service personnel.
Yes we can blame the squadies for the fighting, but it takes two to tango and more often than not it is the local yob who wants to have ago to show how big he is to his mates. The pubs sell drinks to local yobs that get absolutely legless and want to fight the world week in week out, when did you ever see a sign out side a pub "No Local Yobs"
Then of course it is a lot simpler for the publican to ban the squadies, they are easy to pick out and end up on a charge if they break the ban, there is discipline for them.
I once came home from N. Ireland on leave went into a Dover Chinese restaurant with my wife on a quite night out, to be told she is welcome but I was not. I said I lived in Dover, only to be greeted with ""Out Out you soldier"
Never been in there since and that was around 1970 and I never go in any pub that bans squadies.If a service personnel's money is not good enough them neither is my own.
Yes you are right Howard it is a free society and who dam well protects it. Not the publican or the yob who wants to fight the world as long as he can go home to mummy after.
My point is you ban trouble makers no matter where they are from, you do not ban service personnel just because that is the easy option.