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the Wannabees...but NeverWillBees
Leatherneck75
Member Posts: 19 ✭✭
Note: I meant to post this to the "Fake Ranger" thread...not sure what happened. No Bill Gates am I.
So many of these clowns have been busted wearing medals for valor. It used the be the Medal of Honor, but in an effort to fly under the radar, they have downsized to Navy Crosses, Silver Stars, DSCs, etc.
While on recruiting duty in the Marine Corps, I was amazed at the ones who would tell me Vietnam stories. I would ask their units and they would give me some unit that never left the States...like they didn't think I would know (and I wasn't even in Vietnam--that ended the month I graduated high school). Of course, as long as they bought they drinks, I would patiently nod and smile...
There is something wrong with these folks, something missing in their lives. When the Vietnam Wall was erected, you would have thought that everyone who served there was Ranger, SF, SEALS, Force Recon, etc. Where were the guys who drove trucks, cooked the chow, etc.? I recently heard someone say, "There were about 30,000 SEALS in Vietnam, and I have met all 300,000 of them."
Every job is important, as long as it is honest work. The infantryman can't do without the supply guy, the tanker can't do without the refueler, etc. Anyhow, they are pathetic and to be pitied.
So many of these clowns have been busted wearing medals for valor. It used the be the Medal of Honor, but in an effort to fly under the radar, they have downsized to Navy Crosses, Silver Stars, DSCs, etc.
While on recruiting duty in the Marine Corps, I was amazed at the ones who would tell me Vietnam stories. I would ask their units and they would give me some unit that never left the States...like they didn't think I would know (and I wasn't even in Vietnam--that ended the month I graduated high school). Of course, as long as they bought they drinks, I would patiently nod and smile...
There is something wrong with these folks, something missing in their lives. When the Vietnam Wall was erected, you would have thought that everyone who served there was Ranger, SF, SEALS, Force Recon, etc. Where were the guys who drove trucks, cooked the chow, etc.? I recently heard someone say, "There were about 30,000 SEALS in Vietnam, and I have met all 300,000 of them."
Every job is important, as long as it is honest work. The infantryman can't do without the supply guy, the tanker can't do without the refueler, etc. Anyhow, they are pathetic and to be pitied.
Comments
I think part of this "wannabe' stuff has to do with the military being popular right now. When I first came home on leave from Marine Corps OCS and Basic School in '80 it seemed like everyone but the WWII vets thought I had leprosy. Now everyone wants to be "Rambo."
Just human nature I guess. I've heard the same kind of BS stories from guys who found out I was a volunteer firefighter after I retired, too. Everyone wants to be John Wayne but damn few are willing to pay the price.
Maybe a good way to shut them up is to ask what their VA disabilty rating is. I don't think I know anyone who served in combat arms for more than 10 years that isn't carrying around some level of disability from it.
You are correct that folks thought we were leppers back then. I was USMC from 1980 - 84 and it was a totally diffrent world back then. I never was Force Recon (or 2nd Recon in my case) but the guys who were were all my friends and they were the ones I would hang out with and hunt and fish with etc. Seemed like we had a little bit in common compared to all the others. Some of us stil keep in touch and STILL hunt and fish together after all these years and travel great distances to do it.
When I got out in '84 I was nearly deaf but I never checked in with the VA. I got on with my life and became a cop in metro Atlanta. It worked fine until I got so deaf I could hadly do my job so I went to the VA to see if I could get any kind of deal on a hearing aid. They had me listed in the "possibly deceased & unknown" file. According to them I was supposed to be getting a disability check since 1984 because of my hearing loss. I get that check now and NO they did not make it retroactive from 1984 either. I told them I would rather have a hearing aid and they said it wouldnt do me any good. I froze my retirement with the police department and let it go. Cops retire at 50 here so at least I have my pension I start getting next year.
I never really wanted any thing from the military or the police department. I always thought it was a privelidge to serve my country. Medals were the last thing on my mind while I was in there. I think thats the difference between us and them. They want a free ride and we were just happy to not be walking.
Our support teams did a lot of missions during my tours and they were certainly exposed to attacks but they didn't go out looking for fights daily. They got hit moving from point A to B, we sought out the enemy to destroy him. Because of that combat units see much more combat than a non combat soldier would and it is more intense combat. Don't get me wrong, an ambush is tense it's not the same kind of combat as kicking in doors, dismounted firefights that last hours or chasing the enemy up mountains.
That is why these fakers pick Rangers, Seals, SF, Recon and infantry. When people hear that's what you did, they know what you faced and risked daily. Also, those are the branches were the pretty specialty badges are common to see. A finance clerk with a Ranger tab stands out but it's common to see Ranger tabs all over every infantry unit.
Capt. Jack Sparrow.