Stolen Valor--- Fake Vets should be kicked in the ......

From the Soldier side (and some cop stuff):  If you’ve been following the great public service they’re doing over at  This Ain't Hell

 you've seen the best version of game elimination…this is better than any TV Game show…because they’re busting fake military vets.   And take a look at  Stolen Valor

When I was talking to somebody about this, they said: “well, they’re not hurting anybody are they?” 

Yes they are.  (and they really piss me off) The fake vets are hurting the memory of those who have given their lives for the defense of our country.  They also tell such huge lies most of the time, that they confuse honest people.  After having been a cop in California for 32 years, I have run into a boatload of fake vets.  One was such an asshole, he had a VA hospital card in his wallet.  This card would allow him free medical care at the VA Hospitals and clinics.  However, when I hauled his ass down to the county mental health unit, I asked him what service he was in. 

He said he was in the Army…so of course as most who fake being Army Vets, he said he was a Ranger and suffers PTSD from Granada.  Well, being that I was Army to, I asked him what his MOS (Military Occupation Specialty)…and he told me he was: “0311”. 

I asked him to clarify that he had been a Ranger, and he said yeah.  Then I challenged him and said that the MOS 0311 is for the USMC- Riflemen.  The US Army grunts are 11-B- or 11-C (I was an 11-C many years ago.)  He then said: “I lied, I was never in the Army.  I took his VA medical card away from him and mailed it to the VA with a letter suggesting that they ask for a person’s DD -214 before giving out help.  I had to wait a friggen’ year after getting home from Iraq before they could even tell me how to go to the VA, and this crazy asshole homeless person was getting help. 

I’ve met several cops who either totally lied about their military service, or made it sound more important than it was.  I know one who retired as a police sergeant a few years ago.  When I first met him about 25 years ago, he told me he had been in the USAF and was only stationed in the States during Viet Nam.  Later, he’d start wearing Viet Nam service medals on his off duty jacket, and had the ribbon on the back of his truck.  Now, everybody thinks he’s a Nam vet.  What’s wrong with that?  He’s a total nut job and gives Nam vets a bad name. 

Many, many years ago, I was working graveyard for the Police Dept…. one of the towns nearby had a nut job who lived in their town and would pull knives on his family etc.  He told the cops he had been a US Army Ranger in Viet Nam etc.  They asked me about what type of training he might have gotten so they could better know how to deal with him if it came to something.  I asked how old the guy was….he was 5 years younger than I was…so after doing some really simple math (cops can’t do math very well) I explained that it would have been impossible for this guy to have been to Viet Nam unless he went when he was about 10 years old.  I also told them to ask him the next time what his MOS was and if they could see his DD-214.  Turned out he had never even been In the Army.  (they ended up  shooting this nut job later---and I’m pretty sure if he’d really been a Ranger, he would have taken a few of them out.) 

Fake Vets often get all kinds of free money and stuff that’s designed for real vets.  They can take jobs form real vets, they can act like idiots and give all vets a bad name.  So the next time you find a person faking being a vet, kick him in the balls….if he has any.       

Fake Vets can photo shop themselves into real action photos...