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What is Stolen Valor?

Or Public Law 109-437 Seeks to Protect Earned Valor

By Jeff “Mario” Smith, Guerilla Reporter

January 7^th in the year of our Lord 2007

The term  “Stolen Valor” is credited to military researcher and Vietnam Veteran (199^th Light Infantry Brigade) B. G. Burkett, who accidentally embarked upon authoring the book “Stolen Valor: How the Vietnam Generation was Robbed of its Heroes and its History” while seeking corporate donations to build the Texas Vietnam Veteran’s Memorial. It is now a household term among Veterans and military families. Credit must also be given to award-winning investigative reporter Glenna Whitely who co-wrote and co-researched the book with Mr. Burkett.

Stolen Valor “exposes more fraud than the Justice Department” according to Vietnam journalist Joe Galloway, author of the now famous book “We Were Soldiers Once and Young” which henceforth spawned the Hollywood blockbuster movie ”We Were Soldiers”. The fraud Galloway is referencing refers to a phenomenon in our country whereby sad people who see their lives as failures think it is alright to “steal the Valor” of those who earned it by claiming they were somewhere they were in fact not, and did something they in fact didn’t. These are the infamous “wannabes”. They want-to-be something they are not.

Much of the fraud and most of the myths about the Vietnam War and Vietnam Veterans were perpetrated upon an unsuspecting public by an anti-war liberal media. In a society where much of our population foolishly learn about current events and history through the Left Coast entertainment industry, the Rambo, Apocalypse Now, and Platoon myths live on as well. Many wannabes wear these false identities learned from the movies or from books they have read. To the initiated in-country Combat Veteran, they are usually easy to spot. “I throw them out of Veteran’s Posts near my home all the time” says MSG (Ret) Scott D. Smith of Lebanon, PA who served with the 3^rd / 503^rd AIRBORNE Infantry in the Central Highlands of Vietnam in 1967 and 68.

Among myths shattered by Burkett’s and Whitely’s book are the idea that there are legions of homeless Vietnam Veterans in America; many Vietnam Veterans are drugged out, depressed, mere portions of their former selves prone to suicide; the troops who served in Vietnam were the under-educated class; blacks served in higher percentages than whites; desertions in Vietnam were greater than in any other American war; civilians were often targeted by American troops; and the Vietnam Veterans, both male and female are victim-heroes of a war they didn’t want. These are just some of the myths that Burkett and Whitely destroyed with well documented facts ignored by the media while  mainstream columnists and television talking heads still seek the alleged “homeless Vietnam Veteran” for that evening news sob story.

What inspired B. G. Burkett to write his book? While soliciting donations from Texas corporations to build a state memorial to the fallen Texas Vietnam Veterans, Mr. Burkett kept hearing the same sad refusal over and over from corporate CEOs. He was told that they did not want to give money to support anything having to do with those drugged out Vietnam Veterans. Praise the Lord for men like B. G. Burkett who stand firm in the face of adversity to right a wrong. Burkett knew that was not the legacy of the Vietnam Veteran, and he did a remarkable job proving this perception unfounded. Of course, the mainstream media will never admit to their part in this deception and thus the myths and urban legends will live on, some even ingrained in textbooks.

Let me share an experience I had regarding the overplayed homeless Vietnam Veteran myth. I was fellowshipping with my Veteran brothers at VFW Post 680 in Lexington, KY one recent Veterans Day when a call came in from a local mainstream media television station for the Commander. I was sitting at his table and heard him say he didn’t want to talk with them. He looked at me and said, “Mario, you take it, you’re good at that sort of thing.” So I did as requested and picked up the phone.

The caller said he wanted to do a story on a homeless Vietnam Veteran and was hoping we could “hook him up” with one, probably thinking all we had to do was go under some overpass and arrange the meeting by a campfire with the proverbial shopping cart nearby. I promptly informed him about the myth of the homeless Vietnam Veteran, how that was perpetrated upon the American public, and how he would have a hard time finding a real Vietnam Veteran that was homeless, not that some probably don’t exist. The problem is that the media have given so much play to the homeless Vietnam Veteran that many think it is the norm rather than a very rare exception. I suggested that he read Burkett’s book.

Although the television reporter disagreed with me about why the media willingly perpetrated the myths, he thanked me for enlightening him and said he had changed his mind about doing the story. It is B. G. Burkett’s diligent work to write the book and go on the lecture circuit that allowed me to play a small role in this success story. The Veteran community and citizens who seek truth indeed owe a debt of gratitude to B. G. Burkett and Glenna Whitely.

B. G. Burkett and Glenna Whitley’s “Stolen Valor” rightly won the William E. Colby Award for “Outstanding Military Book." B.G. Burkett received the "Distinguished Civilian Service Award," the highest award the Army gives a civilian, and former President George Bush made the presentation at the Bush Library at Texas A&M. The Secretary of the Army, the 5th Army Commander, and the Under Secretary of the VA came in for the ceremony. B.G. Burkett was also inducted into the U.S. Army Ranger Hall of Fame at Fort Benning, Georgia. Hoo-ah!

This guerilla reporter was a victim of an alleged “homeless” Vietnam Veteran impersonating an Army Ranger from the Garry Owen Task Force. His name is Gregory Wayne “Gregg” Williams. I naively believed what he told me, and being an expert in how to con people, he had me open up my house, my company, and part of my checkbook to him. I was lucky to get out of this no more scathed than I was. He, unfortunately, is most likely conning some other kind-hearted unsuspecting victim as I write this.

In another incident, while a good friend of mine was serving in Iraq, a two war Veteran NCO, he got wind of a female soldier from his unit coming stateside on leave and being honored as a hero who served under fire. He was so upset about it that he contacted me from the war zone asking for help. The problem was that SPC Chastity Turner of the 206^th Engineer Battalion never saw combat and also, according to her company commander, never even left Kuwait. This is the new generation of fakers and wannabes who actually served. What a shame. See more on Turner here.  

Veteran Ed Moore, who ran for County Clerk of Boone County, KY, also claimed valor he did not earn by falsely claiming Vietnam Veteran status and using it in his bid for elected office. Ed served in Germany and stateside. He even posted an altered DD-214 on his website. The DD-214 is the final record of service received by all Veterans upon departure from the military. Falsifying the DD-214 is a felony. There is no word yet if the FBI will actually pursue this wannabe and prosecute his fraud.  

The three examples cited here are only some of my own personal run-ins with wannabes. There are several more. If one person has been involved with this many, it is quite apparent that the phenomenon of Stolen Valor is of epidemic proportion and something needed to be done.

So what does this all have to do with Public Law 109-437 you say? B. G. Burkett and Congressman Salazar, (D-Co) introduced the Stolen Valor Act of 2005 on Capitol Hill. It is now a law that is also named the “Stolen Valor Act”. As its name implies, this law makes certain military impersonations and the wearing of medals not earned a crime. According to Danny “Greasy” Belcher, State Director of Task Force Omega of KY, “Senate bill S-1998 was signed into law by President Bush on December 20th, 2006. It is now Public Law 109-437. Thank you to everyone that worked to make this bill become law.” More information on the Stolen Valor Act can be found at The POW Network.

This new law is seen by some as “the most sweeping legislation effecting military awards since the Medal of Honor review of 1917 during which criteria for awarding our Nation's highest military award was strengthened.” On August 7^th in the year of our Lord 1782, our first Commander in Chief George Washington said, regarding the first ever military medal, "Should any who are not entitled to these honors have the insolence to assume the badges of them, they shall be severely punished." It seems Congress and the White House have finally decided to document exactly what constitutes “assuming the badges of them who are entitled” and how “they shall be severely punished”.

Part of the Stolen Valor Act states, “Whoever falsely represents himself or herself, verbally or in writing, to have been awarded any decoration or medal authorized by Congress for the Armed Forces of the United States, any of the service medals or badges awarded to the members of such forces, the ribbon, button, or rosette of any such badge, decoration, or medal, or any colorable imitation of such item shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than six months, or both. As it should be!

Slowly but surely, groups like the POW Network, VeriSEAL, Wannabe Slayers, The Special Forces Association, and so many others are educating the public about the travesty of stealing the valor of those who really earned it, as well as exposing all the wannabes they come across. We cannot think of many things that are more despicable than falsely claiming military service, wearing medals not earned, or worse, a real Veteran embellishing his record to make it appear he did more than he really did. This last example is probably the saddest, as here, you have the case of someone who may have served in a combat zone in harms way, but for some twisted reason wants it to sound to others that he did all these heroic things he did not do.

Regarding the new law, Mary Schantag of the POW Network stated, “I hope a billion people get the hint it’s a crime, morally, legally, and ethically. I just wish people could understand the true scope of the problem - 365 days a year we receive MORE than a few reports a DAY.  The posted phony POWs now outnumber the real returnees 3-1. That's JUST counting reported, investigated, phony POWs. One day before Christmas, I filed SIXTEEN FOIA'S in one evening.” This reporter already knows of another wannabe POW being investigated in Kentucky.

All who served, whether in combat, in support of combat, or in time of relative calm or peace need to be proud of their service to God and Country. No embellishment should ever be thought necessary. According to the VFW, less than 1% of our population actually serves in the armed forces. According to Sean Hannity no more than 3% of Americans have an emotional attachment to the War, in other words, to someone that is serving. That makes all Veterans a rare breed and all should be proud of their service.

Let the truth shine and never let a lie live. If you feel that someone you know may be lying about their service, contact the POW Network (info@pownetwork.org) and ask for the FOIA report on the military service of that individual. It is public record. It won’t show all the minute details but will indeed show where and when someone served and the citations and awards they received.

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