Stolen valor. Annoying, but also amusing.

[Sylvain]

Not having served myself, I would say “no,” with the caveat being that you don’t buy a whole uniform and purport yourself to be that person with that rank or similar. Most surplus shops sell the BDU clothing without insignia or nametapes anymore anyway.

Besides, wearing an old God’s plaid (M81 woodland) top with jeans or carhartt’s is just a level of pimptasticness that’s hard to beat.

You can wear a full accurate uniform and not commit stolen valor.
Just like actors in movies, or people doing historical reenactment.
We have quite a few around where I live ... of course based on their age people know they are not real soldiers or veterans.

Of course if you wear a full modern uniform to Walmart to get military discounts that's another story.

And the same way you can commit stolen valor without wearing any uniform or insignia.

It just depends what you tell people.
Or even what you don't tell people when they assume you're military.
You even have folks who never served who have "military" tattoos ... Like Seal's tridents and frogs.

 

[Brad69]

I survived the battle of hooker hill several times!

 

[femurphy77]

The kid of a former co worker routinely introduces himself as a navy vet, never even made it to boot. He was puking sick crying for momma so they packed him off home and released him before ever boarding.

 

[04FXSTS]

I enlisted in Jan69. Requested an infantry MOS (11B) & volunteered for Viet Nam ONE time. I spent a year in the States & 2 years driving an ammo truck in West Germany.

The service sent you where they wanted you to be and it did not have to make any sense. I was going to link a video of George Goble on the Johnny Carson show telling the story "Why the Japanese never made it past Tulsa." It was super funny and had Dean Martin and Bob Hope. Couldn't because every where I tried it had been removed for a copyright issue, too bad. Jim.

 

[Expat]

Jack Carr interviews Clint Smith on Vietnam.

 

[therewolf]

3” or 5”? Those 5” are loud!!

Oh, it was a special, super secret 6 inch Navy gun, still in development! The CIA had special welding rods, at the time, which would help absorb the recoil of the Navy deck guns, welded to the door of a helicopter. Of course, to offset the weight of this enormous marine cannon, on a chopper, we had to retrofit a special double turbocharger to the huey's engine. It stuck way out of the left side of the chopper, 6 feet, and the gun stuck 7 feet out of the door, on the right side. Our helicopter had it's own airfield, at a secret location just outside Saigon, because it was a super secret R&D special weapon. Then, President Johnson took a ride on my chopper, back in '65, and test fired that special gun himself! He shook my hand, and I haven't washed my hand, since that day...

 

[femurphy77]

Oh, it was a special, super secret 6 inch Navy gun, still in development! The CIA had special welding rods, at the time, which would help absorb the recoil of the Navy deck guns, welded to the door of a helicopter. Of course, to offset the weight of this enormous marine cannon, on a chopper, we had to retrofit a special double turbocharger to the huey's engine. It stuck way out of the left side of the chopper, 6 feet, and the gun stuck 7 feet out of the door, on the right side. Our helicopter had it's own airfield, at a secret location just outside Saigon, because it was a super secret R&D special weapon. Then, President Johnson took a ride on my chopper, back in '65, and test fired that special gun himself! He shook my hand, and I haven't washed my hand, since that day...

 

[KellyinAvon]

Oh, it was a special, super secret 6 inch Navy gun, still in development! The CIA had special welding rods, at the time, which would help absorb the recoil of the Navy deck guns, welded to the door of a helicopter. Of course, to offset the weight of this enormous marine cannon, on a chopper, we had to retrofit a special double turbocharger to the huey's engine. It stuck way out of the left side of the chopper, 6 feet, and the gun stuck 7 feet out of the door, on the right side. Our helicopter had it's own airfield, at a secret location just outside Saigon, because it was a super secret R&D special weapon. Then, President Johnson took a ride on my chopper, back in '65, and test fired that special gun himself! He shook my hand, and I haven't washed my hand, since that day...

Now THAT'S a quality post!! Welcome to 50.

 

[actaeon277]

language warning

 

[Sylvain]

language warning

I'm not sure it belongs in that thread.
If all that is true it is more than just annoying and not amusing.

Hopefully she will be in jail soon.

 

[HoughMade]

language warning

I watched that this morning. Bold. So bold it's monumentally stupid. This isn't the mentally or emotionally compromised guy with a jacked up uniform wandering around (who vets seem to like to yell at while filming themselves). Those guys are pathetic. This is several levels of criminal fraud.

Ever notice that the stolen valor people never do the menial or boring jobs in their service or have average service records? (all of which, if real, people would respect) They all have to be seals or SF or Rangers or such and all have to have at least a Bronze Star, if not a MoH.

I'm waiting for a stolen valor guy to claim to have been a lower enlisted in the Michigan (Army) National Guard in the early '90s that never deployed so I can call him out.

 

[actaeon277]

I watched that this morning. Bold. So bold it's monumentally stupid. This isn't the mentally or emotionally compromised guy with a jacked up uniform wandering around (who vets seem to like to yell at while filming themselves). Those guys are pathetic. This is several levels of criminal fraud.

Ever notice that the stolen valor people never do the menial or boring jobs or have average service records? (all of which, if real, people would respect) They all have to be seals or SF or Rangers or such and all have to have at least a Bronze Star, if not a MoH.

Yup.
That's why when someone says they did __________ , I just nod.
First, if you served, and you were "just a cook", you served. You volunteered. You danced the dance.
Maybe not heroic dodging bullets, but you served. Take pride.
At work some of the guys were on the communication system (combination party line and radio system) talking about a Marine. And I heard them state that they told him off, he was "just a cook".
So I got my lazy butt, meandered my way down 2 flights of stairs, walked into the control room, and said something along the line of "just a cook? What did you do?"
That line of talk decided to change directions.

I could understand it a bit though, the guy could be difficult to deal with.



Second, I hear a LOT of "Oh, I was a (Sniper, SEAL, Ranger, airborne, etc.)
Everyone does. And most of the guys (probably all) from my sub got to hear it even more.
But.. One of my shipmates got tired of New York (State) anti gun stuff, so he moved to Kentucky or Tennessee, I forget.
He was at his new job, either mentioned the name of the sub, or he had his ship's ball cap, and a woman told him, "Oh, my husband was a SEAL that was on that sub for a deployment".
So, as usual, he made small talk, but thought "Yeah, right".

Then, the next day he went to work, she (the coworker) brought in a picture of the SEALs shooting off the back of the sub in the Med, and in the pic was ME.
I didn't even know the pic had been taken, I was firing a M-16.
So he sent me a copy.
And someone on the sub ACTUALLY met an ex-SEAL


(Just to be clear. I DO NOT claim to be a SEAL. They were allowing ship's personnel to shoot, and I was "Ship's personnel".)

 

[Sylvain]

I watched that this morning. Bold. So bold it's monumentally stupid. This isn't the mentally or emotionally compromised guy with a jacked up uniform wandering around (who vets seem to like to yell at while filming themselves). Those guys are pathetic. This is several levels of criminal fraud.

Ever notice that the stolen valor people never do the menial or boring jobs in their service or have average service records? (all of which, if real, people would respect) They all have to be seals or SF or Rangers or such and all have to have at least a Bronze Star, if not a MoH.

I'm waiting for a stolen valor guy to claim to have been a lower enlisted in the Michigan (Army) National Guard in the early '90s that never deployed so I can call him out.

I think a few stolen valor folks actually served in the military and just pretend to have had a more interesting career than they actually had.

They caught a real WW2 vet a few yearss ago who committed stolen valor for decades.

He pretended to have landed during D-Day, he actually landed a few days after that (and so no, to little combat) but he shared his name with another soldier who actually landed, and died on D-Day.

He pretended to be that hero for decades, gave speeches and was given many honors, monuments named after him here in Normandy etc ...

That article is about another vet with a similar story ...

96-year-old vet hailed as a D-Day ‘hero’ admits to being a fraud

A 96-year-old World War II veteran hailed as an American D-Day war hero after surviving a fierce battle against the Germans on the cliffs of Normandy has admitted he was actually in northern Irelan…

nypost.com

Airborne In Normandy

Welcome to Airborne In Normandy researching WWII Soldier's who were killed in action.

www.airborneinnormandy.com

 

[actaeon277]

I think a few stolen valor folks actually served in the military and just pretend to have had a more interesting career than they actually had.

They caught a real WW2 vet a few yearss ago who committed stolen valor for decades.

He pretended to have landed during D-Day, he actually landed a few days after that (and so no, to little combat) but he shared his name with another soldier who actually landed, and died on D-Day.

He pretended to be that hero for decades, gave speeches and was given many honors, monuments named after him here in Normandy etc ...

That article is about another vet with a similar story ...

96-year-old vet hailed as a D-Day ‘hero’ admits to being a fraud

A 96-year-old World War II veteran hailed as an American D-Day war hero after surviving a fierce battle against the Germans on the cliffs of Normandy has admitted he was actually in northern Irelan…

nypost.com

Airborne In Normandy

Welcome to Airborne In Normandy researching WWII Soldier's who were killed in action.

www.airborneinnormandy.com

And some have claimed the Medal of Honor, though they earned the Silver Star... which is impressive enough all on it's own.
But, most people don't know what the Silver Star is, so they "upgrade".

It's sad.

 

[Brad69]

Home of Heroes - Medal of Honor & Military History

Home of Heroes has the largest database of Medal of Honor, Silver Star, and Distinguished Service Cross recipients. Over 3500 Citations!

homeofheroes.com

No S%#& you have a Sliver Star or Service Cross wow a MOH!

What is your name?

 

[actaeon277]

language warning

update

 

[OurDee]

Sweet!! I was door gunner as well, only on a submarine.

Don

I placed my M-60 and three ammo cans of 1,100 rounds in the left side of the huey. Pilot told me not to fire that gun from his ship. If I needed to shoot, he would land and let me out. He must have drawn short straw that day. Then he got in the way of an F-4 on final. Almost had some excitement.

 

[OurDee]

I agree.
Through the years from the time I was a kid I've bought usgi field jackets, cold weather parkas, pants, etc, simply because they're well made, reasonably priced and last for many years before wearing out.
And if they get dirty or torn it's no big deal.

But I would NEVER wear one that has insignias, badges of rank, etc, as the closest I came to serving in the military was enlisting, being sworn in, and failing my final physical because of a bleeding ulcer the day I was ship out for boot camp.
(Though I did get an Honorable Discharge for this, it seems totally absurd to me! )

Thank you for your service all the same.

 

[Creedmoor]

I survived the battle of hooker hill several times!
View attachment 145049
View attachment 145050

 

[actaeon277]

I placed my M-60 and three ammo cans of 1,100 rounds in the left side of the huey. Pilot told me not to fire that gun from his ship. If I needed to shoot, he would land and let me out. He must have drawn short straw that day. Then he got in the way of an F-4 on final. Almost had some excitement.

Why would he ever say that?