Military Braggarts

[Colin]

Every run across Military Braggarts? You know... the ones who lie about their "service" and what they have done, gained, earned? You the ones who somehow are in ever battle, saved everyone and killed everything in site? Wounded but have no scars, advanced skills that are never used? The pissant grunts who somehow turn into officers but have no stripes?


I am wondering what you think of the people who do this?

The worst type of military braggarts are those like this prick ....

Calls himself Major General Sir Kenan Winn formerly of the Grenadier Guards. The thing is he is neither a 'Sir' nor a Major General.In fact he never had any rank. The medals he sports are a sure giveaway on that. Two of the ribbons pinned to his chest are for the liberation of Kuwait. As any member of our armed forces will know, recipients are told that they should never be worn on a British uniform. He also wears a Distinguished Service Order although the Grenadier Guards – which he claims to have left in 1984 – have only been awarded one, and that was in January 2011. Other awards include a South Atlantic medal with rosette, a United Nations Medal for Cyprus, a General Service Medal with a ‘Mention in 'Despatches’ emblem and a Gulf Medal with clasp. Oh, and an American Bronze Star medal which could only have been awarded for the Gulf War but no one named Winn was among the handful of recipients in 1993. The combination of medals from so many conflicts is laughable.

Posing as an ex-serviceman is bad enough, but stolen valour is the most disgusting thing these posers can do. Quite often they give themselves away because they don't know the correct order in which medals should be mounted.

 

[Mad Scientist]

"Kenan Winn"? How long did this guy carry on and why did that name not make anyone suspicious?

 

[Colin]

"Kenan Winn"? How long did this guy carry on and why did that name not make anyone suspicious?

He confined his sham activities to his local community using it to con women out of money. The lies came to light when he was outed by an insurance company through which he was making a claim. His real name was Ken Winn.

 

[whitehall]

Every run across Military Braggarts? You know... the ones who lie about their "service" and what they have done, gained, earned? You the ones who somehow are in ever battle, saved everyone and killed everything in site? Wounded but have no scars, advanced skills that are never used? The pissant grunts who somehow turn into officers but have no stripes?


I am wondering what you think of the people who do this?

The worst type of military braggarts are those like this prick ....

Calls himself Major General Sir Kenan Winn formerly of the Grenadier Guards. The thing is he is neither a 'Sir' nor a Major General.In fact he never had any rank. The medals he sports are a sure giveaway on that. Two of the ribbons pinned to his chest are for the liberation of Kuwait. As any member of our armed forces will know, recipients are told that they should never be worn on a British uniform. He also wears a Distinguished Service Order although the Grenadier Guards – which he claims to have left in 1984 – have only been awarded one, and that was in January 2011. Other awards include a South Atlantic medal with rosette, a United Nations Medal for Cyprus, a General Service Medal with a ‘Mention in 'Despatches’ emblem and a Gulf Medal with clasp. Oh, and an American Bronze Star medal which could only have been awarded for the Gulf War but no one named Winn was among the handful of recipients in 1993. The combination of medals from so many conflicts is laughable.

Posing as an ex-serviceman is bad enough, but stolen valour is the most disgusting thing these posers can do. Quite often they give themselves away because they don't know the correct order in which medals should be mounted.

Now we come to the point where civilians tend to confuse criminal impostors with legitimate Military Veteran braggarts. That's why non Veterans should excuse themselves from the discussion.

 

[The Gadfly]

It's a time honored tradition to embellish a war story. I hate to say it but posters who were never in the Military should excuse themselves from participating in this discussion.

True enough, Whitehall; much like hunting and fishing stories, every war story gets a little better with age, the number of retellings, and the amount of alcohol being consumed at the time. The action gets bigger and badder, the enemy becomes more numerous, the situation becomes tougher, and we become a lot braver, until, in the glow of the moment, we were ten feet tall and bulletproof...it's our compensation for all those other moments, when we remember we really were just the lucky ones among a bunch of miserable, scared young guys, trying to do a nasty job and keep ourselves and each other alive a long way from home. Here's to the memories of our long-lost youth, which will always be brighter, more romantic and more adventurous than it ever really was.

Amen gadfly. There is no stigma about never having seen combat and if marijuana abuse seems romantic to posters like moonglow then go for it. Marines have a special bond though. The movie FMJ only slightly exaggerated Boot Camp in the 60's. As I recall the movie set looked exactly like the 3rd Battalion MCRD Parris Island. For Marines Parris Island stories are almost exciting as war stories. The Drill Instructor gets meaner the longer the story is told.

You know, Whitehall, the best stories seem to come out of peacetime duty, (Boot Camp at Parris Island specifically included), or the drinking and whoring that was common on wartime R&R (these kids today, fighting a war without beer or whores, have my extreme sympathy for that). Even the occasionally painful/embarrassing consequences of that,are a lot more fun to remember and recount than actual combat.

 

[Colin]

Every run across Military Braggarts? You know... the ones who lie about their "service" and what they have done, gained, earned? You the ones who somehow are in ever battle, saved everyone and killed everything in site? Wounded but have no scars, advanced skills that are never used? The pissant grunts who somehow turn into officers but have no stripes?


I am wondering what you think of the people who do this?

The worst type of military braggarts are those like this prick ....

Calls himself Major General Sir Kenan Winn formerly of the Grenadier Guards. The thing is he is neither a 'Sir' nor a Major General.In fact he never had any rank. The medals he sports are a sure giveaway on that. Two of the ribbons pinned to his chest are for the liberation of Kuwait. As any member of our armed forces will know, recipients are told that they should never be worn on a British uniform. He also wears a Distinguished Service Order although the Grenadier Guards – which he claims to have left in 1984 – have only been awarded one, and that was in January 2011. Other awards include a South Atlantic medal with rosette, a United Nations Medal for Cyprus, a General Service Medal with a ‘Mention in 'Despatches’ emblem and a Gulf Medal with clasp. Oh, and an American Bronze Star medal which could only have been awarded for the Gulf War but no one named Winn was among the handful of recipients in 1993. The combination of medals from so many conflicts is laughable.

Posing as an ex-serviceman is bad enough, but stolen valour is the most disgusting thing these posers can do. Quite often they give themselves away because they don't know the correct order in which medals should be mounted.

Now we come to the point where civilians tend to confuse criminal impostors with legitimate Military Veteran braggarts. That's why non Veterans should excuse themselves from the discussion.

Referring to me pal? Perhaps you should check your facts before flapping your gob about people you know nothing about.

 

[syrenn]

Now we come to the point where civilians tend to confuse criminal impostors with legitimate Military Veteran braggarts. That's why non Veterans should excuse themselves from the discussion.

Considering this is my thread....and my discussion. That is a rather rude comment don't you think?

 

[editec]

Back in the 70's VNVs were mostly ignored by our contemporaries, and often piut down by the Korean and WWII vets as "losers".

Post 9-11 suddenly everybody is thanking us "for our service"

It's was a steaming load of sunshine patriot crap in both cases.

I run into VNV fakes every once in a while.

They're pathetic people who, unless they truly become obnoxious, I just let ramble on as though I believed them.

 

[syrenn]

Back in the 70's VNVs were mostly ignored by our contemporaries, and often piut down by the Korean and WWII vets as "losers".

Post 9-11 suddenly everybody is thanking us "for our service"

It's was a steaming load of sunshine patriot crap in both cases.

I run into VNV fakes every once in a while.

They're pathetic people who, unless they truly become obnoxious, I just let ramble on as though I believed them.

That sadly as far as i could see from an non military pov..... becasue of the hippie moment. Anything "the man" or government ie military.... was the root of all evil.

What REALLY pisses me off is the bums out on the streets with signs looking for handouts calling themselves Vietnam vets and playing THAT sympathy card. Its not likely a 30 year old is a Vietnam vet.

 

[The Gadfly]

Every run across Military Braggarts? You know... the ones who lie about their "service" and what they have done, gained, earned? You the ones who somehow are in ever battle, saved everyone and killed everything in site? Wounded but have no scars, advanced skills that are never used? The pissant grunts who somehow turn into officers but have no stripes?


I am wondering what you think of the people who do this?

The worst type of military braggarts are those like this prick ....

Calls himself Major General Sir Kenan Winn formerly of the Grenadier Guards. The thing is he is neither a 'Sir' nor a Major General.In fact he never had any rank. The medals he sports are a sure giveaway on that. Two of the ribbons pinned to his chest are for the liberation of Kuwait. As any member of our armed forces will know, recipients are told that they should never be worn on a British uniform. He also wears a Distinguished Service Order although the Grenadier Guards – which he claims to have left in 1984 – have only been awarded one, and that was in January 2011. Other awards include a South Atlantic medal with rosette, a United Nations Medal for Cyprus, a General Service Medal with a ‘Mention in 'Despatches’ emblem and a Gulf Medal with clasp. Oh, and an American Bronze Star medal which could only have been awarded for the Gulf War but no one named Winn was among the handful of recipients in 1993. The combination of medals from so many conflicts is laughable.

Posing as an ex-serviceman is bad enough, but stolen valour is the most disgusting thing these posers can do. Quite often they give themselves away because they don't know the correct order in which medals should be mounted.

Now we come to the point where civilians tend to confuse criminal impostors with legitimate Military Veteran braggarts. That's why non Veterans should excuse themselves from the discussion.

Um, Whitehall, Colin isn't an American vet, but he IS a a British army vet, formerly of the Parachute Regiment, and a fellow prop (or jet) blasted jumper I'd be honored to have a drink with, anytime, anywhere.

 

[The Gadfly]

Back in the 70's VNVs were mostly ignored by our contemporaries, and often piut down by the Korean and WWII vets as "losers".

Post 9-11 suddenly everybody is thanking us "for our service"

It's was a steaming load of sunshine patriot crap in both cases.

I run into VNV fakes every once in a while.

They're pathetic people who, unless they truly become obnoxious, I just let ramble on as though I believed them.

That sadly as far as i could see from an non military pov..... becasue of the hippie moment. Anything "the man" or government ie military.... was the root of all evil.

What REALLY pisses me off is the bums out on the streets with signs looking for handouts calling themselves Vietnam vets and playing THAT sympathy card. Its not likely a 30 year old is a Vietnam vet.

I don't know that editec's take on this is totally accurate-I'm sure some people are sincere and mean well. Still, it is hard not to wonder how genuine some of the "thank you" attitude is, and some of it just feels over the top. Somewhere there's a middle ground between rejection and indifference on the one hand, and too much hero worship on the other; maybe someday we as a society will find that again.

As for the last part of your post, the youngest Vietnam vets I know are around sixty now, and most of us well beyond that. In spite of all the stereotypes, the truth is that as a group, we re-assimilated into civilian life better than any group of vets before us. Yes, some of our brothers never made it, and some are homeless on the streets, mostly as a result of substance abuse or mental illness. That's sad, but it happens after any war. After forty years or more, better than half of us who were there have joined the fallen on the other side of the river; most of us who are left do not want or need your sympathy or your pity. We want the same things any other veteran of any war wants-your acceptance, your understanding, and a modicum of respect. That is all.

 

[ginscpy]

The moron ginscpy does that all the time, he has a hard on for WW2 and talks about it all the time while shitting on the Veterans of other conflicts, even though the pussy himself has never served a damn day.

I like slam-dunk wins like in WW2.

416,800 of our military died in WWII.

Calling it a slam-dunk cheapens their sacrifice. Perhaps you should just STFU.

I was talking about the results of WW2 - slam-dunk surrender by the bad guys. Not the cost and effort it took to achieve that result.

As opposed to the results of Korea (the North is stil saber-rattling) and Nam.

 

[High_Gravity]

I like slam-dunk wins like in WW2.

416,800 of our military died in WWII.

Calling it a slam-dunk cheapens their sacrifice. Perhaps you should just STFU.

I was talking about the results of WW2 - slam-dunk surrender by the bad guys. Not the cost and effort it took to achieve that result.

As opposed to the results of Korea (the North is stil saber-rattling) and Nam.

You are a fucking moron, nothing about WW2 was a slam dunk. You really should be banned from posting on Military issues.

 

[geauxtohell]

Part of the issue is the bizarre turn this country has taken towards troop worship in the post 9/11 world.

It's almost like we as a nation are overcompensating for how poorly the Vietnam vets were treated.

That's an interesting observation, Geaux, and I think there's some validity to that last sentence, particularly in the last 5-6 years. Honestly, I'm not sure how I feel about that, and more to the point, I'm not sure how the vets from the current conflicts feel about it, either. I've had a few tell me privately that all the attention makes them a little uncomfortable (especially when well-meaning civilians ask them things like, "So how many terrorists did you kill?"). I guess the same goes for all the attention to us Vietnam vets lately; don't get me wrong, it's better than being cussed at, or being ignored and forgotten, but sometimes it's a bit much. It's kind of hard to go from feeling almost socially unacceptable in some quarters, to being treated like more than you think you are, without wondering why the people who want to put you on some pedestal now didn't offer so much as a kind word back then. I don't want to sound ungrateful, or too cynical, but it's just hard to think of yourself as anything special, when you've seen so many good men go to their graves without so much as a word of thanks; somehow, it just doesn't feel right.

It definitely makes me uncomfortable, though, I am virtually out of the window where people still thank me. It's better than the alternative though.

I also think part of it is that so few people serve anymore, that people have no perspective. They don't know what to say to veterans because they have no clue what being a veteran means.

 

[High_Gravity]

Part of the issue is the bizarre turn this country has taken towards troop worship in the post 9/11 world.

It's almost like we as a nation are overcompensating for how poorly the Vietnam vets were treated.

That's an interesting observation, Geaux, and I think there's some validity to that last sentence, particularly in the last 5-6 years. Honestly, I'm not sure how I feel about that, and more to the point, I'm not sure how the vets from the current conflicts feel about it, either. I've had a few tell me privately that all the attention makes them a little uncomfortable (especially when well-meaning civilians ask them things like, "So how many terrorists did you kill?"). I guess the same goes for all the attention to us Vietnam vets lately; don't get me wrong, it's better than being cussed at, or being ignored and forgotten, but sometimes it's a bit much. It's kind of hard to go from feeling almost socially unacceptable in some quarters, to being treated like more than you think you are, without wondering why the people who want to put you on some pedestal now didn't offer so much as a kind word back then. I don't want to sound ungrateful, or too cynical, but it's just hard to think of yourself as anything special, when you've seen so many good men go to their graves without so much as a word of thanks; somehow, it just doesn't feel right.

It definitely makes me uncomfortable, though, I am virtually out of the window where people still thank me. It's better than the alternative though.

I also think part of it is that so few people serve anymore, that people have no perspective. They don't know what to say to veterans because they have no clue what being a veteran means.

BINGO, you nailed it.

 

[SayMyName]

I like slam-dunk wins like in WW2.

416,800 of our military died in WWII.

Calling it a slam-dunk cheapens their sacrifice. Perhaps you should just STFU.

I was talking about the results of WW2 - slam-dunk surrender by the bad guys. Not the cost and effort it took to achieve that result.

As opposed to the results of Korea (the North is stil saber-rattling) and Nam.

Well, we need not see Vietnam as a defeat just because we left. We killed over a million Vietnamese, and left their country in the Stone Age. Not that this is anything to be proud of.

 

[daveman]

I like slam-dunk wins like in WW2.

416,800 of our military died in WWII.

Calling it a slam-dunk cheapens their sacrifice. Perhaps you should just STFU.

I was talking about the results of WW2 - slam-dunk surrender by the bad guys. Not the cost and effort it took to achieve that result.

As opposed to the results of Korea (the North is stil saber-rattling) and Nam.

Log off and don't come back until you sober up. Idiot.

 

[MikeK]

416,800 of our military died in WWII.

Calling it a slam-dunk cheapens their sacrifice. Perhaps you should just STFU.

I was talking about the results of WW2 - slam-dunk surrender by the bad guys. Not the cost and effort it took to achieve that result.

As opposed to the results of Korea (the North is stil saber-rattling) and Nam.

Well, we need not see Vietnam as a defeat just because we left. We killed over a million Vietnamese, and left their country in the Stone Age.


Not that this is anything to be proud of.

And therein lies the tale!

"Winning" needs to be defined. Invading a nation that never made an aggressive move against us, that had no air defenses or navy, and killing millions of its indigenous people, including women, children, aged and infirm, with absolutely no justifiable reason, is "winning" only in the most perverse sense of the word.

Our military resources were egregiously misused in Vietnam. 58,000 of our sons and brothers killed and tens of thousands physically and mentally wounded is not winning -- regardless of the score.

 

[9thIDdoc]

I was talking about the results of WW2 - slam-dunk surrender by the bad guys. Not the cost and effort it took to achieve that result.

As opposed to the results of Korea (the North is stil saber-rattling) and Nam.

Well, we need not see Vietnam as a defeat just because we left. We killed over a million Vietnamese, and left their country in the Stone Age.


Not that this is anything to be proud of.

And therein lies the tale!

"Winning" needs to be defined. Invading a nation that never made an aggressive move against us, that had no air defenses or navy, and killing millions of its indigenous people, including women, children, aged and infirm, with absolutely no justifiable reason, is "winning" only in the most perverse sense of the word.

Our military resources were egregiously misused in Vietnam. 58,000 of our sons and brothers killed and tens of thousands physically and mentally wounded is not winning -- regardless of the score.

That's true only in the vivid imagination of communist propagandists. The N. Vietnamese attacked, captured, and occupied parts of Thialand, Cambodia, and South Vietnam. They tortured and murdered thousands of civilian women and children along with helpless captured American troops routinely as a matter of policy. Yet somehow we become the aggressor because we tried to help an ally defend itself from invasion? No way. You grossly disrespect those same "sons and brothers" you claim to be whining about.

Careful you don't spout this propaganga the the wrong time and place. I'm pretty sure a judge would rule it as "suicide".

 

[SayMyName]

Should we even address in this thread those of us who served, who saw medals given out for anything that was not valorous?