Ken Aden interview; muddying the waters
Beretverde and Tim sent us links to the latest Ken Aden interview. I can’t tell who really conducted the interview so I’ll just provide links to both of them at The Progressive Cop and Addicting Info because I give credit where it’s due.
Aden continues to double down on teh stupid by trying to convince us that Special Forces training is like Ranger training in that after a soldier successfully completes the training they can go back to a regular unit and continue to carry the Military Occupational Specialty they earned at the school. However, a Ranger School graduate earns an identifier on their MOS; an 11B infantryman in the rank of Staff Sergeant who successfully completes Ranger School would have the MOS 11B3V. A graduate from Special Forces “Q” course would be a 11B3S, they wouldn’t carry the Duty MOS as 18B3P, because there are no slots for 18Bs in an infantry unit. But, that’s not how Aden tells it;
Some people in Arkansas media have suggested that even if you finished Special Forces training, that you weren’t Special Forces unless you were assigned to a Special Forces unit. Is it common for Special Forces soldiers or Rangers to be assigned elsewhere in the Army besides SF or Ranger units?
That is another valid question, and I will take the time to address it. It is not uncommon for someone Ranger qualified to be assigned to a non-Ranger unit. In fact, my former Platoon Sergeant who wrote a letter supporting me held the Ranger tab while serving in the 82nd. The fact is that you can continue to hold an SF designation, such as 18B, and serve in other units.
People seem to be more familiar with Rangers; do Rangers assigned to non-ranger units still wear the “Ranger” tab on their sleeve? Would these soldiers typically be referred to as “Rangers” even though they aren’t assigned to Ranger units?
Yes, if you earned the identifier, you earned the identifier. So technically if you earned the Ranger tab and were assigned to any other place besides a “Ranger Battalion” you’re still a Ranger.
Yeah, it’s completely different, Kenny. A Ranger in an infantry unit is still occupying an authorized 11B slot, while someone in the MOS of 18B wouldn’t.
And of course, Aden can’t be wrong…it’s the personnel people at the Special Warfare Center who are wrong;
The Democrat-Gazette has quoted Major Rebecca Lykins, public affairs chief at the U.S Army Special Warfare Center, as saying the “18B” entry, which signifies that you are Special Forces on your DD-214, was entered as a mistake. She says it shouldn’t have been recorded on the document because, she claims, you never finished the “Q” course which would qualify you as Special Forces and that you did not have a certificate of completion. Is Major Lykins telling us the truth?
It seems that the left hand does not know what the right hand is doing. I completed my training to obtain the MOS of 18B. That is why it is recorded on my DD-214. If it was entered by mistake, then I would not have been allowed to carry it forward and the installation management command would have not put it on the official discharge paperwork. They had the orders and the orders number and each of these numbers are tracked.
Of course, the interviewer blows off all of the criticism of Aden’s lies and his refusal to admit the truth telling us that it really doesn’t matter. Um, yeah, it does matter. It’s pretty clear that Aden lied and instead of admitting that he’s lying, he compounds his lies by blaming everyone else but himself and his staff. What’s to say that he won’t do the same thing if he ever gets into office? The voters can see for themselves how he handles himself when he’s caught lying – do Arkansans want that sort of representation in Congress?
Apparently, the women’s rights group, We Are Women-Arkansas have denounced Aden, and the rumor is that Aden’s campaign manager, Jake Burris, has resigned from the campaign – but I can’t find anything to verify that last bit.
Category: Phony soldiers, Shitbags
“Show me the money!”
How about showing me an SF tab, SFQC graduation certificate and a name or two of some fellow graduates?
He refuses to come clean and quibbles. This guy is sick. A pathological liar.
Looks like people are bailing on little Kenny and his lies… both education and his military quals. At least his campaign manager has the common sense to walk away from this mess.
When I asked Aden to agree to the interview, I did so as a means of giving him a platform in which to tell his side of the story. It was entirely up to him how he would answer the questions and they were published just as he answered them. I would be remiss if I didn’t admit that as a left leaning guy, I have been hurt by this controversy. I like the idea of all sides being heard in a civil manner and all evidence for an against Mr. Aden being readily available to the voters. I take exception to the idea that I blew off criticism of lies. I asked him to answer questions that I’m sure he didn’t want to answer. For instance, no politician wants to be asked to say if an Army Major in charge of records is lying. It is also not the interviewers job to be disrespectful. I ask the question giving an ultimatum of telling me if he is telling the truth or if the Major is and then I print his answer. The decision of whether to believe him is up to you. As a guy who primarily votes Democrat, I have to admit that I wish this issue had not happened. I stated clearly in my conclusion that I find stealing the respect due to any veteran to be a despicable and cowardly act. I do not want to be represented by nor do I wish to breath the same air as someone who steals valor. That said, I have seen little more than shouting from his detractors. Some have taken the time to explain inconsistencies in his DD214. In my opinion, this is the civilized manner in which to investigate the issue and I am all ears when they speak. Shouting blind accusations causes people to blindly take sides. Evidence from both sides allows people to make informed decisions and good grounded opinions. That is what I tried to do for Aden, allow him to present his side. Take it for what it is. I make no attempt… Read more »
Lol, I will tell you right now, what anyone who has served in an SF unit knows, that there is NO WAY IN HELL you could drag me kicking and screaming back to a regular army unit. Absolutely no way. There, thats my two cents.
There is some effect, however, in that people who once supported him are not doing so now.
The Progressive Cop,
I read your interview and I thought it was done in a respectful and honest manner. I won’t speak for others that post here, it is not my place to do so.
All of the military services preach three core values – as a retired Navy enlisted man, the values of the Navy and the Marine Corps are Honor, Courage and Commitment. It’s something that is preached to us from the day we enter basic training until we leave the service. Many carry those three words with them for the rest of their lives as a foundation on how we do business with others.
When I hear that an individual who is an elected representative has “embellished” his or her personal accomplishments, it is a disappointment to me, and makes me suspicious of their future behavior. When it is a former service member who is doing this, I look at it as a violation of the core values that we had instilled into us – it’s breaking the bonds of fellowship that those that have served in uniform have with each other.
I served my country for 26 years, and never deployed to a conflict. I would never state that I was a combat veteran, because it would dishonor the service of those that have. I respect those that have gone into combat… especially those that have paid the price for doing it. I gain nothing by lying about my service, except to hurt those that are close to me.
This is a sensitive subject for many of us, and there are some that are extremely passionate about it. If, as many believe, Mr. Aden is lying about his accomplishments in the service or his academic record, then the honorable thing for him to do is to drop out from the race, to save himself, his family, friends and the local Democratic party from the embarrassment of his actions.
I have posted the following update that you may be interested in reading. http://www.theprogressivecop.com/2012/07/update-from-aden-interview-from-june.html
TPC
IMO, he keeps pushing because even he knows as soon as he confesses, he’s fucked on multiple levels.
While the DD214 is the base document for all things, SNAFUs do occur and sometimes mistakes are made. Usually it’s something deserved that failed to make it there. It is the soldier’s responsibility to ensure it is correct when he signs it.
True story. During my retirement processing I reviewed my DD214 and gave the clerk a set of orders for an MSM that was missing. I came back the next day to sign it. A young SGT approached me and offered his hand. I shook it wondering.
He said, “Sir, I could have walked out of here today with the shit hottest DD214 a buck SGT ever had.”
Somewhere during the edits someone had put his name on my DD214. While I was no Audi Murphy, not to many E5s attended resident Command and General Staff College!
A mistake was obviously made and lacking a spoonful of integrity Mr. Aden decided to run with it.
I’ve a list of people who, I’m certain, would enjoy enlightening Mr. Aden on the accuracy of this statement:
“Yes, if you earned the identifier, you earned the identifier. So technically if you earned the Ranger tab and were assigned to any other place besides a “Ranger Battalion” you’re still a Ranger.”
COB6: An uncorrected mistake is one possibility. Another plausible explanation is that Aden handed a copy of his “18B orders” to the individual preparing his DD214 during outprocessing.
Aden may have requested his “complete military record” from NPRC, but he obviously has a copy of his “18B orders” readily available. My guess is he also had a copy of those same orders readily available during outprocessing, too.
There are assignments for 18 series outside of SF; I myself served in a JTF before my retirement. When I was in there were slots at JRTC a few slots for ROTC and a sprinkling of slots at various commands. Outside of that, nope.
I pulled my orders, where I was awarded MOS 18E20 and I have a couple of observations:
1. The letterhead was from HQ, 18th ABN Corps and Fort Bragg
2. My MOS was listed as 18E20, not 18E2P, my withdrawn MOS was listed as 31C2P. airborne qualification and assignment is an inherent requirement for 18 series, so they did not add a “P” identifier.
Now all of these things may have changed since I finished the course in 1986, those who went though the course in the same time frame or are still in could answer that better than I. But right next to those orders in my file is a set from USAJFKSWCS that awarded myself and a bunch of my fellow classmates the Special Forces Tab. Ken doesn’t have those orders
no one from the regiment has come forward to verify his SF status and many have stated he failed–three times–the Q course.
All in all, the evidence that Ken Aden provided to support his claims amounts to bullshit. Since he cannot be prosecuted for embellishing his miltary career in order to seek advantage in his political career, he should be publically ridiculed at every opportunity until he recants.
when the PD I worked for was going to hire a new cop, I’d do the background. I had one retard try to tell me he went through “Green Beret” school. I didn’t tell him I’d been in the Army and Nat Guard…so I just listened to his bullshit story. He claimed that he had the same name as another soldier who was supposed to go to “green beret” school and they sent him by mistake. When he got there (as his bullshit story goes) he told them he wasn’t supposed to be there, but they “forced him to stay.”
He said he passed the school and then they sent him to be a dental assistant.
When the got through telling this bullshit…I didn’t say a thing and called up a LTC I knew on active duty who delt with admin crap. He told me the story was total crap and looked at the guys DD 214 and laughed.
We didn’t hire the assclown to be a cop.
As for thit Arkansan (and I’m proud of it), I would not EVER vote for him. But it’s kind of a moot point for me, because as a conservative, I have never voted for a liberal. And further more, I have noticed that when Dems get into office in Arkansas, we get the short end of the stick.
I’m sorry you feel that way TacTrunkMonk. Most of us don’t want to give you the short end of the stick but instead want to cut on the fraud, waste, and abuse, that is a result of overzealous military contractors who leach off of the taxpayer. Did you realize the US accounts for 42% of global military spending compared to the next biggest spender, China, at 7%?
We have an outstanding fighting force but bought and paid for politicians beholden to the defense industry constantly push new technologies such as aircraft that the military repeatedly says they don’t want. In the mean time, in order to pay for this crap, the average soldier, sailor, airman, and marine get shorted on benefits. Once they are separated from the armed services and enter the VA system, they find their benefits becoming even more scarce.
Most of us liberals think that whole operation is backwards. Don’t force new aircraft and missile systems on the military when those systems aren’t wanted or needed. Instead of making contractors rich, take care of the rank and file and keep your promises to them. They, we, kept our promises to Uncle Sam.
TPC
SWEET, then you will tell me that Dems will NOT put into law anything that makes me pay for their health care, their abortions, or pay taxes because some LARD ASS can’t get up off their couch and go for a walk?
Come on…don’t feed me chicken shit and tell me it’s chicken salad.
Fellas, forgive for being a broken record but this LIAR is showing the typical MO of a poser. “It didn’t go away by ignoring it, I kept lying about, everyone is a liar but me” so all I’m waiting for is “I’m going to sue you.” Anyone, with at least tree working brain cels, can see the evidence that proves this LIAR is a 100% poser.
I’m a little confused by what I’m reading here, and to make the situation even more confusing, my memories are kind of scrambled. From July 1970 until December 1971, I was at Camp Eagle (near Hue and Phu Bai) with the 501st Signal Battalion of the 101st Airborne Division. We had at least a couple of Special Forces guys in our unit. The staff sergeant organized and led us on perimeter patrol. The PFC (yes, he’d been busted) gave me advice about what to expect back in “the World”, for I’d been in Viet Nam for a couple of years, having extended twice. He told me about how guys in the States were impersonating Viet Nam veterans, and he said it was easy to spot the fakes, because they never could identify a specific unit or location, but would vaguely refer to an “outpost”. I saw him many years later in Salt Lake City, Utah when we marched in a Veterans Day parade. He looked VERY gaunt, wearing a North Vietnamese POW uniform, and with horrible, gaping scars on his fingers, where bamboo spikes had been driven in, and when he spoke, it was difficult to understand him, probably because all of his teeth were gone, and I suspect his mind was, too. My wife was utterly terrified of him, but he was my buddy, so I tried to calm her down. When the 101st Airborne left Viet Nam, the staff sergeant who led the perimeter patrols was sent to San Francisco as a recruiter.
I’m guessing he probably was some sort of signal liaison with our unit and the Special Forces units. But, I don’t really know, because I was just a lowly enlisted man, allegedly trained to fix radios (and unable to do anything with the equipment used by our unit), but mostly doing odd jobs.
@ ProgressiveCop: Thank you for taking a reasonable approach and explaining your rationale with respect to the interview. I hope you stick around.
#19 Me too…even though I will debate with him, I like the ability to speak to a liberal, and actually have an intelligent conversation.
TTM,
I was just thinking the same thing. I too like talking to and even debating conservatives. It’s just so hard to find anyone on either side of the isle that doesn’t want to get bent out of shape and be childishly disrespectful when hiding behind a computer screen.
You guys are very respectful and I’ve enjoyed my interaction with you. For the first time in a long time, I get the feeling I’m talking to real and reasonable adults. Thank you all for that.
TPC