Richard M. Hollingsworth; the Infantry helicopter mechanic
Someone sent us their work on this Richard Hollingsworth fellow. He’s the Post Commander at the Pocatello, Idaho VFW Post 735. He’s a legitimate Vietnam Veteran, he has 25 Air Medals, according to the National Personnel Records Center. He was assigned as an aircraft maintenance crewman in transportation units and assault helicopter units from October 1968 – October 1969. He was discharged as a Specialist 5 (E-5);
I’ll forgive him wearing the Sergeant stripes. It’s probably pretty tough in this day and age to find sew-on Spec 5 rank, maybe not, I don’t know. But what I can’t forgive is the Combat Infantry Badge, the Blue Infantry Cord an Army Commendation Medal that aren’t in his records. There’s also the Army Achievement Medal, Overseas Ribbon and the Army Service Ribbon none of which existed until about ten years after he left servicePurple Heart Medal. Folks also say that he sometimes claims to be a Warrant officer and a pilot.
Here’s the name plate under that painting;
The Idaho VFW Department has been informed of his malfeasance. I can hear those buttons screaming from here.
UPDATED: Someone sent us a larger version of the picture above and I was mistaken – Hollingsworth isn’t wearing a Purple Heart medal. It looks like it’s an Air Medal. So, I apologize for these old eyes mistaking the medal. But now I notice that he’s wearing infantry brass on his lapels and Transportation Corps Regimental Crest. Nice touch.
Category: Phony soldiers, Valor Vultures
The Buttons. The first thing I was going to comment on until I read the last sentence.
That is all.
I bet each one has the ECR of a grenade.
That jacket is screaming… God help the person that is in the line of fire when one of those buttons lets loose.
Shitbird for embellishing… served honorably and has got to make himself out to be Rice Paddy Daddy.
The buttons. That’s why I no longer wear my Class A’s. You’d have to cut me in half (lengthwise) to get me into that uniform anymore.
It’s in a suit bag, and is still as dress-right-dress as the last day I wore it at retirement. And NO SV embellishments.
oops meant to reply not report sorry Chip
Perfectly honorable service shat on…self inflicted wound.
At least it’s only 1 CIB. The other poser bait is the ladder under the expert marksmanship badge. They can’t resist hanging every weapon in the inventory under the expert badge.
The “new math” must have kicked his ass… FOIA says Air Medal x25, his little placard on the artwork says 36.
Must have done 11 “sekrit skwirrl” missions for Agent “Orange” in one of those “black helos” that we’ve heard about…
The Aux has a FB page. I wonder what they’d think about the commander wearing fake awards??
https://www.facebook.com/avfw735?fref=nf
How hard it this? How many Post Commanders do we have to expose before VSO’s require their service to be verified.
How hard? Here sign this,
https://www.archives.gov/research/order/standard-form-180.pdf
Thats how hard it is.
The VFW and other VSO’s will continue to erode what respect they have until they clean up their own house.
The biggest shame here is we need those organizations to be the voice of veterans. Shame of VFW Post 735 and the VFW as a whole.
25 LEGIT Air Medals?
I don’t have 25 of anything!
I don’t know anymore!
I believe I had about 25 “Irish Pennants” at inspection ages ago. Or the CC would have you believe that.
I had 25 bottles of soju once…does that count for anything?
A Purple Heart for your liver!!
Nah… a military funeral (with HONORS) for the liver….
Aigu Adashi, was it Number Hana Jinro Soju? My liver still quivers like it’s in a paint shaker at the mere mention of the stuff.
Way to shit on a respectable service record…why do you do it boys? Why?
Some drunk told him, “If you ain’t infantry, you ain’t shit.” And he failed the moral test and took it to heart.
(I am so glad I don’t see that kind of attitude, and in fact see the exact opposite, around TAH.)
A LEGIT record to be proud of and he had to play that shit? I dunno WHAT to think or say, that shit baffles me to NO end…
Is one of those medals he’s actually wearing a Good Conduct Medal? Really???
Yeah.
Much like the yellow Leadership Insignia he is rocking.
I guess yellow is the new green.
So he had 25 legit Air Medals and he had to embellish up to 36? Hell I would have assumed he was FOS with just 25.
Personally I wonder if that wasn’t a phuck up somewhere else along the line. How do you earn 25 Air Medals with just a year in country?
During Vietnam, an Air Medal was awarded for 24 “hours” flying time. Any combat mission, regardless of duration, was counted as a minimum of one “hour” – even if it was only of a few min duration.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_Medal#Air_Medal_.5BArmy.5D_.281968-2006.29
Under those rules, 25 AMs works out to 600 “hours” of flying time. That was easily “do-able” on a 1-year tour – e.g., 2 missions daily, Mon-Sat.
Regarding the OSR – I believe I’ve read on HRC’s Awards Branch site FAQ that that has been made retroactive to Vietnam, provided “short tour” in-country requirements were met. He may rate that. The ASR he doesn’t rate since he wasn’t serving when that was created in 1981. Ditto the AAM – that was created after he got out.
ACTUALLY THAT IS INCORRECT.
Air Medals were awarded based on hours true enough but hours were computed based on three mission criteria; Combat Assault (where the aircraft was involved in actual combat) Combat Support (where the aircraft was involved in supporting a combat mission like resupply, personnel movement, etc) and Combat Service Support which was everything else (test flights, trios between base camps for liaison, etc) CA Air Medals were calculated at 25 hours, CS at 50 hours and CSS at 100 hours.
I flew between between Jan 1966 and Sept 1968. All that time was as a crew chief in an assault company and primarily as a crew chief on a UH-1C gunship. Crew Chiefs flew with the aircraft and fired one of the door guns. During that period, I earned 41 Air Medals, BUT my DD Form 214 in 19689 only listed 37. But I returned to active duty in June 1987 at age 40. When I was medically retired in 1999, my new DD 214 showed 41 Air Medals as many had been awarded after i left my unit and never caught up to me. The NPRC forwarded my records at ARPERCOM for my discharge and the additional AMs were included in my retirement 214. BTW, at the time of that separation I was an 11B4 and had numerous other awards added ‘after the fact’ of my original AD time. Just saying, there may be another 214 out there
Thanks for the update and correction. I wasn’t there; you were.
That’s what I get for trying to give a short summary of a complex issue – compounded by writing that summary both quickly and imprecisely.
My explanation above was the “short version” to explain how 25+ AMs could be awarded during a single 1-year tour. It was not intended to be a complete overview of how the AM was awarded in Vietnam.
The “combat mission” I was referencing was combat assaults/extractions – what you termed “Combat Assault” missions. I should have made that point clear above. After the 1968 theater-wide standardization, those were deemed 1 hour “flight time” credit each.
As the source I cited also indicates, after the 1968 theater-wide standardization other mission categories were weighted less – 30 min “flight time” credit per mission for resupply/visual recon flights (what you termed “Combat Support”), and 15 min “flight time” credit for admin/liaison flights (what you called “Combat Service Support” flights).
Consistent with what you noted above, combat assaults and insertions thus “counted” 4 times as much as routine admin flights, and twice as much as the intermediate category (resupply/visual recon). Your description is much more complete and precise than my initial “short version” summary was.
If one does the math, both turn out to yield essentially the same results for number of missions required per AM. The only difference I see is that the source I used says the required numbers of missions for a single AM were 24/48/96 for the 3 mission categories; your explanation says 25/50/100 missions per AM for the three categories of missions.
However, the source I cited was Wikipedia – which is on occasion incorrect. And in this case, I’m not familiar with the primary source Wikipedia cites. I thus can’t assess whether it is accurate or “out to lunch”.
Perhaps you can help update their article if it is incorrect?
I flew my first six months as a slick crew chief befoe extending my tour to get in the gun platoon. The flight time was recorded in the operations room via the -10 the aircraft commander filled out every day. It was actually timed in six minute increments so 1.1 hour would be one hour and six minutes. The missions were logged “CA” “CS” or “OCS” (other combat support. Gunships rarely logged anything other than CA time. They didn’t carry passengers or supplies at all and every tie we launched it was to go shoot or blow up something.
Air Medals for a single incident of Valor were of course awarded to commemorate that event. Three of my AMs were with “V” device and I wouldn’t have a clue how to display them along with the other 38 on a ribbon bar. While I was still AD the second time, I stopped wearing the numerals “37” because someone always wanted to take me to task for it and I get sick of having to prove I actually was awarded 38 Air Medals (1 plus 37 OLC).
Not debating any of that, and thanks for the pre-1968 background. Wikipedia doesn’t address how the AM was awarded in Vietnam prior to 1968’s supposed standardization, and it’s good to hear the details from someone who was there at the time.
Wikipedia cites a source saying that the rules changed sometime in 1968, and that mission “flight hours” credit were standardized thereafter. They don’t say precisely when in 1968 this happened, nor do they address pre-1968 AM practices – except to say that recording of numerous short mission times was cumbersome and led to the decision to standardize mission “flight hour” credits as I described above.
Again, thanks for the background. Always good to learn.
Regarding the wear, the current Army award reg says wear a single V plus the appropriate numerals – in your case, “V 38”. Pretty sure the V goes to the viewer’s left on the ribbon bar. That denotes that at least 1 of the awards was with V device.
Thanks for sharing all the good info. You sound like many others I’ve known over the years – the ones who earned the most were the most humble about it.
Thank you.
Not in the Navy and Marine Corps. Twenty-five missions per Air Medal. If you flew 10 hours resuppling one Battilion that was only 1 mission. Joe
Oh, for Pete’s sake! Can these chowderheads ever grow UP?
There you go again, Ex-PH2, talking about food (chowder). Which one: clam, potato or corn? Time for a recipe! 😉
Potato chowder. Make the usual chowder cream sauce, add diced cooked potatoes, diced bacon, onion and garlic (use powder if you don’t have fresh), and shredded cheese. Simmer very slowly, then serve with shredded cheese on top, thick crusty toast (add your flavors), salad with a lemon/garlic vinaegrette, and chow down.
Always season to your taste. A little salt and pepper go a long way.
Finally, a poser from my old unit, the 129th AHC! Actually, though, one Air Medal per 25 hours of combat time is pretty easy: 625 hours. Some/most of our slick Aircraft Commanders logged close to 1,000 hours in their one year tour. I’ll go check the chatter on our 129th web page. You all are welcome to add your comments there, too. regards, Alemaster
so can a specialist 5 have flown helicopters in Vietnam at that rank
Are you asking if there were enlisted pilots in ‘nam?
oops i meant to hit reply instead of report comment, yes that is what i was asking
As an Aircrew Member Hang Ten, not as a rated Aviator (pilot). regards, Alemaster
Yeah…I don’t think there were any enlisted pilots past the 1950s.
There were thousands at one time.
There were 55 enlisted pilots remaining in the Army in 1946 at the end of World War Two but only two left in 1947 when the Army Air Force became the USAF. The last enlisted pilot, Master Sergeant George H. Holmes, retired in 1957.
The Army started to use Warrant Officers to fly helicopters in the late 1940s. They haven’t used NCOs since 1942.
http://www.af.mil/News/ArticleDisplay/tabid/223/Article/485566/enlisted-pilots-honored-during-ceremony.aspx
Alemaster where is your page located at
Not my page Ten. My old unit, the 129th AHC has a web site at http://www.129th.net. regards, Alemaster
damn!! 25 air medals?!? I have 15 air medals and most people think I’m FOS. Mostly because I’m not an airdale of any sort. Regardless, this asshat didnt need to embellish anything. I wouldve paid for his meal if he was looking for a free ticket.
Actually it would be 26 Air Medals. The first award is the medal itself, then subsequent awards are denoted by the numerals.
This jackass is here in my AO, 50 miles down the road south of here. I have seen him on many news broadcasts from Pocatello pertaining to veteran’s events and always was a little suspicious of his rack that had an ASR, OSR, and other stuff that just seemed to be too new and too much for a man his age.
As you can see, he is only authorized a total of five ribbons, but his rack contains 11 ribbons. Just too much embellishment for a Buck Sergeant (in reality a Spec5).
But, Hey, a set of Spec5 stripes are only $4.95 on E-Bay with free shipping. I think I still have a set of full size Spec5 stripes in my haversack from back when I was a Spec5 for five years in the late 70’s.
Anyway, beat up on him. He deserves it.
BMC Red Forman says Double Dumbass on ya.
Im not sure that is correct. When dealing with OLCs yes. But the numeral system generally denotes the total number of awards when affixed.
Smitty, Nope, not for the Air Medal. It’s kinda in a special category all to itself.
I have a few Army Air Medals of my own awarded for Vietnam flight time on Hueys, so I am kind of read up on how the numeral/subsequent awards system works.
Might want to check the current AR 600-8-22, Claw (para 3-16.g). Looks like it now says numerals are used for 2nd and subsequent awards of the Air Medal, starting with 2 for the 2nd award. Bare ribbon is used for 1st award only.
Might have changed recently. Criteria for award reportedly did change in 2006.
Could be. I don’t keep up with current regs since I never wear any ribbons on clothing and the ribbons in my little homemade love me box are configured to the way things were when I retired 24 years ago.
Lots of changes on almost every award since then. So if I’m incorrect, just chalk it up to being an old fart still living in the stone ages./ smile
De nada. I have an interest (personal curiosity/interest regarding the history of US mil decorations), so I keep a current softcopy on hand.
Unfortunately, the oldest softcopy I can find was from 1995 or so – except for a partial Vietnam-era copy. So I’m missing about 30 years worth of that history. Maybe one day . . . and maybe I’ll win the big Powerball jackpot, too. (smile)
I think the reg in effect for awards and decorations at the time of my retirement was AR 672-5-1, (does that sound right?) so I know absolutely nothing of AR 600-8-22.
BTW, since I know you’re holding out on those winning Powerball numbers, are you sure you can’t share just a little bit of them with us? Pretty Please? / big smile
If you do share the Powerball numbers, I’ll give you the super-sekrit Federal Stock Numbers for Jeep Spark Plugs and Deuce and a Half Oil Filters that are still rolling around in the brain of this old motor pool repair parts clerk.
Deal?
Yeah, 672-5-1 is correct for the prior Awards reg. 600-8-22 replaced it in 1995.
Good luck on finding past editions of AR 672-5-1 in softcopy. If you do, please post a link. As I noted earlier, I haven’t been able to find much other than a partial, scanned Vietnam-era copy.
Powerball numbers? Yeah, right. “In my dreams” is the only way that’s ever going to happen for me. (smile)
ADDENDUM: checked again and I do seem to have the 1984 version of AR 672-5-1 w/1990 changes in scanned softcopy. It’s readable, but not searchable. What I’m missing is any and all versions prior to that other than a partial scan of a Vietnam-era edition – and I’m not completely sure precisely what changes that copy does and does not have incorporated.
Question to someone out their. I was a Spec. 5 after being drafted in 69. When I return home my orders has as Rank Sergeant?
Probably just a typo by the overworked movement orders clerk.
What rank/grade is posted on your final DD214? MOS? That’s what you go with.
Hell, if the DEROS orders got you home what rank they had on them for that one time should be of no consequence.
c’mon being a grunt just isn’t special. It doesn’t get the ladies panties all wet but being a no shit real life bad ass Vietnam helicopter dude just might.
At least he got the collar brass identifier right.
Dude looks a lot like Hannibal Smith.
Just another clown who wants to claim Infantry but does not want to do that whole “Infantry” thing first.
And for God sakes, PUT AWAY THE UNIFORM!! ITS OVER!! MOVE ON!!
Retired? How the heck does he think he’s retired?
Because he is so fat that he cannot button the Class A Dress Shirt behind the unauthorized tie knot.
Not to mention the “Bus Driver” hat.
That’s Retired!
Where have you been?!?!?
well…alrighty then
New here, but been lurking awhile reading.
Low speed, high drag grunt with 2/35th (Cacti Blue) 4th ID 69-70 RVN. Only airborne guy in my leg platoon.
Yeah I saw the 26 Air Medals on the his 214, and then noticed him rockin’ the number 35 on his ribbon. Really?? Musta ran out of “2’s” at the PX??
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_Medal
What caught my eye is he’s wearing the Air Medal medal with “V” device on his pocket, but no mention of it on his 214
The Navy-Marines award 2 types of Aircrew wings. The Combat Aircrew wings have a scroll between the top of the wings. There are 3 stars on the scroll. Joe
It looks like he’s got the Desert Storm service medal right after the Vietnam Service medal on the new picture. Asshat.
Sadly, I am a member of this particular VFW. Haven’t been to a meeting in a long time. After seeing this, I am not sure whether to confront him about this or hang my head and turn in my VFW cover……or both.
Word.
Hang in there.
If it is any consolation, you guys are not alone in the NW.
Check out Missoula.
I could use that ladder of qual badges to get on my roof
Some of these old guys where every weapon the ever qualified expert with.
*wear.
If you knew your ladder of Qual badges would go sideways hitting another award, you wouldn’t wear a whole ladder. I know some guys have earned it all, but this guy is not one. The whole appearance of that uniform is a red flag based on that sideways ladder alone.
My bet is there is some national guard time missing from his record.
Not willing to jump into the he is FOS category yet. And I could care less if a combat Veteran wears the ASR. Regardless of when or wear he served.
If he had transferred to infantry or vise versa wearing the trans corp regimental crest would be authorized. A lot of guys wear the regimental crest of the branch/regiment that most characterizes their service time.
Lars.
Read the 214.
It’s all small words, just take them at face value and don’t read into it.
I swear you could fuck up a wet dream
All I am saying is absence of evidence is not necessarily sufficient evidence of absence.
Many people have several DD-214s for different periods of service. We no not know if this is his complete service record. Only what was reveled from the FOI request. National guard service, or a period of subsequent service could be missing.
This guy served in Vietnam, honorably, and many of those guys also then served in national guard units.
Since what he is wearing is modest with respect to the kinds of stuff most stolen valor guys try to pull off I suspect it is possible he is not “faking it” and there is a term of service missing.
I have nearly a dozen DD-214s from my periods of service and a few have mistakes on them.
The plaque is damning but I can’t put it into context because I do not know where it is from or if it is his. What is the source of the photo and the blowup of the nameplate?
I just tend to give these old vets the benefit of the doubt on their service unless they are making ridiculous or highly unlikely claims.
Mobilized ARNG time is Federal service vice state service. Because it’s Federal service, a copy of records (at a minimum, the separation DD214) relating to that period of Federal service should be on file in his records at NPRC for archival purposes. That period of service should also be listed on his FOIA reply above as active duty time.
I’m pretty sure the same is true for his purported attendance at Flight School (necessary to be a WO pilot). While he might go to Flight School as a Guardsman, I’m reasonably sure that would also be Federal service in a training capacity for a period longer than 120 days. That would in-turn require a DD214 for Federal service – which should also be in his records at NPRC. That’s apparently not there either – because that service also isn’t listed as active-duty time on his FOIA reply above.
We’ve seen FOIA responses from NPRC relating to guardsmen who’d been mobilized. Info for their time mobilized was on file at NPRC and their mob service was indeed listed on their FOIA reply. But we may have seen a few where that didn’t happen, too.
No, the system isn’t perfect; theoretically he could have been mobilized and the records of same never made it to NPRC. But for this guy to be telling the truth, it would have had to happen to him twice (mob for DS/DS and attendance at Flight School are both missing). Don’t think so.
The only ARNG Infantry unit in Vietnam was D Co. 151 IN (LRP). It wasn’t an Idaho unit, and there is no record that he ever served in it. He shows no Infantry training or assignments on his 2-1, which covers enlistment to discharge. Despite your tending to give the old guys the benefit of the doubt, your theory doesn’t fly.
I believe he was talking about a later period of service, Bobo – one perhaps including the DS/DS period.
Possible? Theoretically. But I wouldn’t bet on it. Too many errors would have to line up all exactly the correct way for that to be the case and this guy to be telling the truth about being a WO and (possibly) also having Gulf War service.
But remember, we’re dealing with Taylor the Infallible. So we obviously must be wrong – evidence and experience be damned!
It looks like he’s wearing the SW Asia Service Medal, but he isn’t wearing the medals from Kuwait or KSA. Also, if I recall, there were no ARNG infantry units who went to DS. I was assigned to an ARNG infantry unit at the time. The only ARNG BDES mobilized were three round-out BDEs, the 48th, the 155th, and the 256th. None of them left CONUS.
Yeah, I noticed that too. That means he’s claiming a late deployment – e.g., one after the Saudi and Kuwaiti medals were no longer authorized – if his claims are to be believed.
Kinda hard to see how he’d qualify for either a CIB or a bunch of additional air medals under those conditions. And as you note, ARNG service doesn’t seem to explain a CIB in any case.
“All I am saying is absence of evidence is not necessarily sufficient evidence of absence.”
At some point the absence of evidence does become evidence of absence.
He also wears a jacket with Chopper Pilot on it.
He goes around telling people he was a helicopter pilot. He even has a license plate frame on his car that says he was a combat helicopter pilot. I have seen that jacket too.
The plaque is his. I don’t know who took the photo, but I have seen the plaque before. A veteran friend of his had it made and gave it to him. His friend was probably relying on information that Mr. H provided him.
Commissar…yeh, the one who wrote on this very web site, “People who are afraid of Communism are foolish”. Go ahead and run your empty mouth some more since this discussion is in regards to a war in which we fought Communism.
As usual, your last statement above says a lot more than you understand. Your SPECIALTY is making ridiculous or highly unlikely claims. YOU are the KING of that genre. NOBODY gives a shit as to your opinion on old vets or old turds, even if the latter is you. Please do us a favor and stay the f__k out of here. Once in, you drag everything down with the usual know-it-all mindset.
Their Surgeon has a col name, though.
Surgeon: Keith Cutler
Pocatello, Idaho VFW Post 735.
“Don’t worry, Face. I have a plan”.
No stogie so not Hannibal, maybe Murdock.
Jesus he looks like he placed everything on that jacket using a catapult…
is that a southwest asia service ribbon next to his vietnam service ribbon?
To the person who says the VFW confirmed he has the right to wear all his medals and has more coming, where exactly are you getting your information from? The VFW has said no such thing nor have they confirmed the things he is wearing that are not listed in his records. Twice you defend this person do you have any proof where the VFW confirmed it? He had honorable service and than felt the need to add to it. How do you explain the Infantry Cord, the CIB, the SGT stripes, the 6 extra ribbons on his uniform that clearly not on his records. It’s a slap in the face to all Veterans when someone lies about being the military but even worse than that is someone that has been in the military and they lie about what they did instead of being proud of what they accomplished. He had honorable service, I guess that wasn’t enough. The records are there and I for one don’t see any Infantry training nor the other things he is wearing on his uniform to match his records. Don’t claim the VFW has confirmed his awards when that is not the case. I know for a fact because i have talked to individuals that have seen the actual reports from the VFW
09B00 is not an 11B MOS
BCT – Basic Combat Training is entry level training that all new soldiers are required to attend, it is branch immaterial and teaches the trainees the basic skills required of all soldiers. This training results in assigning a temporary Military Occupiational Series (MOS) of 09B00 which is a Basic Rifleman. Normally most soldiers are assigned Basic Combat Training (BCT) at the same location as they will receive their AIT as part of One Station Unit Training (OSUT) so the guys you go to basic training with are the same guys you go to AIT with….
yes where’s the proof? where’s the infantry training at? Even according to the new Stolen Valor Act, you cannot wear a C.I.B. unless, you earned it. Why couldn’t you just be proud of the service you did. Here is a video of him on youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?list=UUPLAYER_VFWPost735&v=7ExdtPAXFVo
What are the yellow cords on some of the Military Dress Uniforms?
The yellow cords designates the members of the Military Funeral Rites Honor Guard.
I see, didn’t know that. I thought they wore black cords for funerals. I have seen various Veterans groups wear the black cord at funerals, but maybe they vary by State
Guess who was back at it again today at the Pocatello Independence Day parade, wearing all of the things that he promised the VFW he wouldn’t wear again. Pictures to follow.
I bet Robert Dawson was there with him… supporting his butt buddy during the entire parade.
Here’s hoping that Amber Dawn Brower was there marching with him and had her picture taken.
I’d like to see how the blown out eye socket is mending. Or did she get all of her skin care products back with the tin cup payout money and then dolled herself all up for the parade and hid the blowout with a ton of base cover and mascara?
The older we get the more we recognize those who crave public attention flaunt everything known to any war daily in search of recognition..be it earned or not. Those are the ones who go out of their way to become known as leaders of vet organizations. Automobiles, clothing worn daily (including ball caps), front door to their homes….hell, even their riding lawn mowers.
More often than not, ALL the above, just so no one will miss it. These so-called leaders maneuver their way to make themselves be known as heroes, but along the way their need for personal recognition has a tendency to minimize the importance of membership when the leader is seen as little more than an attention whore.
If a person served in ANY capacity and earned an Honorable Discharge, a grateful thanks to all. If one HAS to remind the public every damned day of how great their personal sacrifice was, as compared to others, stay the hell out of the way of those who served and have grown up and moved on. IMHO, Attention Whore should be the first word in any dictionary.
I was at a BJ’s earlier today, and as I was leaving, I saw big ass pickup truck with a magnetic sign on the door. I immediately noticed the Marine Corps emblem, with some verbiage about home improvement work AND self-defense lessons. The guy gets out of the truck wearing more Marine Corps bling that in the MCRD San Diego PX. And, he parked in a handicapped space. Not sure how he can do home renovations or teach self-defense if he has a handicap that warrants a disabled parking placard.
Another piece of shit who is likely full of it.
To normal folks, we’d be embarrassed and ashamed to be seen getting out of a vehicle sporting a handicapped tag (or not) and taking the steps showing no indication of a disability. The real pisser is most cops will not take the time or interest to put a stop to this nonsense. Either way, there are just some posers who are not the least bothered by the truth even when it differs 180 degrees from what is shown.
You know something? It might be interesting to have pictures of license plates of the cars or trucks perfectly healthy people get out of and walk toward their destination.