"Fake Military Vet Gets Busted on Black Friday"

[Jamaal510]

&feature=youtu.be

[NYC_SKP]

1. Do you think he was looking for special treatment from stores, or what?

I don't know why anyone would want to impersonate a member of the armed forces.

Is it even legal?

[Chakab]

3. Oh, it's illegal.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stolen_Valor_Act_of_2005


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stolen_Valor_Act_of_2013

[backscatter712]

20. How bout we punish this dumbass by enlisting him.

He wants the perks of being a veteran? Let's sign him up. He can start by going to boot camp, running his ass off while being screamed at by drill instructors, then he can be shipped to Afghanistan or whatever 3rd world hellhole the war profiteers want to rape this week and see how he likes being shot at or targeted with IEDs. He can cope with battle wounds, PTSD, the challenge of reintegrating in society once he finishes his service, etc. etc. etc.

Then he can see if a few discounts at the mall were worth it.

[riversedge]

25. I think he is too hefty to get thru basic training--might have

a heart attach.

[SummerSnow]

2. Bet he wouldn't even enlist

[ProudToBeBlueInRhody]

4. Everyone here is an asshole

Except for the poor wife whose husband is a lunatic interrupting time with his family to cause a scene.

[Quixote1818]

8. That was my impression too.

As for the pudgy guy, he strikes me as someone with some kind of military background. May not be what he was trying to pull off but he knew enough that he has probably spent some time in the military. Regardless, not impressed by either of them.

[Roland99]

14. ^^^ this

[PatrynXX]

23. don't entirely see a problem with it

basically akin to seeing someone key your car. except thats outside.. I forgive him for swearing.

[MADem]

5. He looks a bit chunky in a downsizing environment.

That's probably the first clue.

[Tiggeroshii]

6. Ranger school and basic training are two separate things

...lots of people went off to airborne school after fort Jackson. Your basic training location doesn't matter. But no E-6 would have his uniform that jacked up in public, as far as I know. Also if he wanted the guy really off his case, he would've busted out his ID. Also you dont walk and talk on your cell phone in uniform. But yeah even if he was a real soldier, no vet or battle buddy in their right mind would let that uniform go.

General Military Authority applies to all ranks, no matter where you are. Also considering the bullshit they have to go through in the military, these discounts are one of the few things they have to look forward to. So it really does piss them off when people who haven't gone through what they have, try take advantage of some of the small perks that their sacrifices have earned them. I don't have sympathy for the "SGT," I really don't.

[Spitfire of ATJ]

7. Let's see if the store where he bought stuff does the right thing and turn him in....

Wouldn't be too hard if the idiot paid with plastic.

[Quixote1818]

9. Most of what he said pans out

I was impressed with how quick he answered everything for a "fake". Turns out the guy questioning him didn't seem to know much about what he was asking.

For example there is a 2nd Battalion of the 75th Ranger Regiment that trains in Fort Lewis: http://www.soc.mil/Rangers/2ndBN.html

Also, from what I could find a CIB covers a time period in a region. If you cover two time periods you can get another CIB for the same conflict:

Snip> Subsequent awards of the CIB may be awarded provided the Soldier had met eligibility criteria in two or more of the following five periods. Link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Combat_Infantryman_Badge

I also didn't get the impression he was calling the guy on the phone "Staff Sergeant" he was answering the phone as "Staff Sergeant" which is what he said he is.

As for where he got his basic training I don't know but since the guy interrogating him had the first two things wrong he probably got that wrong too.

[Tiggeroshii]

11. Yeah he did. I've known plenty of infantry who started at Fort Jackson.

Like if you know you will be 11b from the beginning, you will start at benning. But if you switch from support mos to infantry, you usually don't go to another basic. You just do your schools which will likely be fort benning. I've also seen drill seargents wear uniforms the same way this guy had his with the CIBs. The only thing that really bothered me was his flag placement, which could have entirely been a simple mistake -which he admitted to. I would like to see the jerk who took the video called out, once it's even more obvious the soldier was legit.

[madamvlb]

16. You can only receive one CIB per campaign no matter how many times deployed.

[TrollBuster9090]

10. There's an equivalent 'stolen valor' law in Canada, too. And this poor bastard has now been charged

with impersonating a soldier. Frankly, I feel sorry for the guy. You must have some kind of mental issues if you think you can pull this off. Pretending to be a soldier is one thing. But thinking you'll actually get away with it when you're

1. Doing it on MEMORIAL DAY at the National War Memorial, when the area is swarming with REAL soldiers who'll recognize that your uniform is improper, and you're not allowed to have a beard like that,

2. Pretending to be a member of a unit that is so elite and so small that most of them actually know each other, and

3. Actually GIVE A TV INTERVIEW to the CBC that will be broadcast nation wide.

I think somebody who'd do all that must have some kind of mental competency issues, and I feel more sorry for them than anything else. At the very least I certainly feel sorry for this guy's family and in-laws who've now been dragged into it.

[Enrique]

12. the guy asking the questions seems to have psychological problems

I believe the guy answering the questions was legitimate.

[ctsnowman]

13. X2

[madamvlb]

15. Big one for me was the guy calling himself a staff sergeant, we always say sergeant or sarg!

[LP2K12]

17. It's easy...

Pull out your ID card. If he was real and wanted to stop the accusations that's all it takes.

[zeemike]

18. That is what happens when adoration of the military gets out of hand.

And it has gotten out of hand.
In the old days no one would wear fatigues to the mall to shop...in fact in those days it would be considered out of uniform because you could only wear them on base.

But I experienced it myself with a guy who was chunky like this guy who told me he was a Navy Seal sniper...total bullshit...but he thought he would impress me with it.
Enough with this cult of heroes.

[Victor_c3]

19. The guy is totally full of crap

CIB with multiple stars on it from Iraq/Afghanistan, messed up flag placement, fat rolls, hands in pockets, On cell phone in public, pens in sleeve of shirt (even though there are pockets there, no self-respecting NCO would put a pen there). His demeanor and attitude is unlike that of any SSG I've ever seen when I was an Infantryman. Maybe the Army has gotten a little softer since I got out in 2007, but I doubt it.

The guy may have gone through basic training and did a little bit of research on the internet, but he is an glaringly obvious fake. Like the guy taking the video, I find things like this extremely offensive. As a veteran and a former Infantryman I take "stolen valor" very personally.

[yuiyoshida]

21. Shouldn't he have a

Military ID? Green colored, I believe.



Pink colored if he's on active reserves.

[Tanta]

22. We have switched over to CACs

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_Access_Card

Common Access Cards. Retired have the old style of ID cards but active and reserves use the same type of CAC Cards

[bluestateguy]

24. I'm not sure whtat he was doing was illegal

The stolen valor act of 2006 was held to be unconstitutional. Just wearing a uniform in a mall cannot be illegal.

Lying on official government documents to say that you are a veteran is obviously another matter.

[4Q2u2]

26. Title X makes it illegal, but is never enforced

Stolen Valor Act was a response to the lack of enforcement of the Title X Law. The new version of Stolen Valor Law stipulates that if the individual used that stolen valor to enrich themselves, it is illegal. More on the lines of Fraud. Many States have their own versions also.
Look into the back round of many of these phonies and you will see that is usually just the tip of the ice berg and most have engaged in many of unsavory acts.



http://www.dailykos.com/story/2007/05/31/341273/-The-wear-of-the-uniform-when-is-it-illegal-updated#


Just one of the more vile instances.


http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/facebook-fraud-dead-soldiers-picture-woo-women-online/story?id=12595006

[Renew Deal]

27. Is there proof that he isn't anything worse than a slob?

[flt rsk]

28. With twenty years

as a civilian employee of DOD, I had a lot of contact with Rangers, Seals, Green Beret, Marine Recon, and a group or two that don’t exist. People generally think of these types as big and muscle bound. Sometimes, that is true. However, a good many of the big guys are rear support troops. They are in the rear with the beer and the gear. They have access to gyms and plenty of food. The actual snake eaters are, generally speaking, fit, but due to eating whatever the military provides in the field or they can scarf up from the local flora and fauna don’t get enough fat and protein to maintain a big build. Add to that, they don’t have access to gyms and exercise equipment, unless you consider the bush a gym and 150 plus pounds of ammo, weapons, food, water, medical gear, radios, body armor, etc. to be exercise equipment. Yes, they do get to bulk up a bit between rotations, but that bulk is temporary as most of these guys are doing six months rotations.

Below are two sites that out posers. Below that are two cases of prosecution in The United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama.

http://www.fakewarriors.org

http://www.stolenvalor.com/Target.cfm?sort=date

http://guardianofvalor.com/huntsville-man-indicted-for-fraud-and-wearing-acu-and-unearned-awards/

http://blog.al.com/breaking/2010/04/federal_judge_calls_skyler_smi.html


Simper Fi

[midnight]

30. In Wisconsin Gov. Walker friends set up a fake charity for orphans of Vets. Is this stolen valor?

http://host.madison.com/news/opinion/editorial/walker-owes-wisconsin-s-veterans-some-answers/article_cac07424-a6ac-11e1-b1a9-001a4bcf887a.html

[zebonaut]

29. I think its a ruse to get to the head of the line