For those of you that have not read "Stolen Valor" by B.G. Burkett and Glenna Whitley, it is a must read. I must warn those on the site who have been known to have a "Short Fuse" to be sure to take your meds before reading this great book. By the end of chapter one your blood pressure will be up. By the middle of the book, your blood will be boiling and by the end you will be ready to lock and load and declare open season on some of these bastards.
Just to give everyone an idea of how large the lie goes here are some numbers that will blow your mind. During the Vietnam era which is from 8-5-64 till 5-7-75, 9,087,006 people served in the military. Of that number, 2,709,918 served in Vietnam. Vietnam veterans represent 9.7% of their generation. The census taken in August 2000 showed an estimate of 1,002,511 Vietnam veterans were still alive. From that same census, 13,853,053 persons claimed to have been in Vietnam. From these figures an estimated 4 out of 5 lied about their service. The two highest claimed jobs by the Wannabees are either some type of Special Forces guy, operating behind enemy lines with secret orders or believe it or not a door gunner on a helicopter. Very few claim to have been a crew chief because of their lack of knowledge to the jobs on a helicopter or its just easier to say door gunner then crew chief.
To help fuel the Wannabees needs to create their lie, our good friends on e-bay now supply them with patches and other military documents to help them. Not being able to tell the difference between the real stuff and fake ones has made the job of finding these bastards easier. As you will read in "Stolen Valor" the authors continue to track down each of the Wannabees and uncover their lies.
Since my book came out, I have received several hundred e-mails from veterans. Most are guys that were there during my time frame or were involved in Operation Wayne Grey. A few have been the Wannabees looking for information to help fuel their stories. When ever I have a doubt about someone I ask a few questions like what was their MOS or where what unit they were with. Most of the time I will get the "I forget" answer from the Wannabees. Others have gone to great lengths to research units and time frames to help with their stories.
When I first got out of the service, I found it easier not to tell anyone about my service in Vietnam. I went so far as not to actually tell my family what I did over there. My mother is still is mad at me for not tell her the truth until after my book came out. I guess things have really changed since those days when we left the land of no blank adopters.
Right now, I am searching e-bay for a first flight platoon patch with a sniper/cook tab. If anyone finds one let me know.