Foreign Wannabe's

[HmtPD2]

Just curious. We here in the U.S. tend to have a lot of people who claim to be SEALs, Rangers, Green Berets, Recon, or just the generic "I was in Special Forces." comment. I was not SF, just a hard workin' Infantry Sergeant.
Do you foreign guys have the same problems in your countries?

[DCH]

I haven't been back to the PI's in awhile, but I remember when I was younger and my Father used to tell me how EVERYONE and their brother used to be with the PMC. Of course, being MetroCom, the old man could tell who was Marine and who was talkin out their AO (anal orifice). San Miguels sure didn't help!

-DCH

[baboon]

Sure, we have plenty of guys here who say " I was a Recce (Reconnaissance Commando)" or ex 32 Battalion , and if every ex-Zimbabwean/Rhodesian/whatever who claims to be a Selous Scout was one, there must have been 10000 of those boys. In his book Scouts founding CO Lt Col Ron Reid-Daly has in fact given a list of those entitled to Selous Scout wings.

[Daredevil]

I had a friend in Britain tell me that at last count he estimates that there were about 10,000 SAS soldiers on the balcony at the Iranian Embassy.

[Slug]

Ex-French foreign legionnaires running all over most of the continents. Though not special ops, this seems to be a common claim because its not easy to check out. Had a guy a couple weeks ago claim my exact unit, that went over real well.

And HmtPD, tell Medina to call his buds in SD.

[HmtPD2]

Slug...

Medina is a good friend of mine. He is my beat partner also. I'll see him tonight.
I think I met you at his B-day party last year. I sat next to a guy at his party that was in the Foreign Legion. Was that you?

[Slug]

That was me...We then went to his wedding in Vegas, I left his wedding present at a friends hotel there who was supposed to deliver it to Medina the next day. I just found out he never did. No wonder he doesn't call us anymore...lol. We've put a couple calls in, but no reply yet. Our friend still has the wedding presents! Oh well they'll make nice christmas gifts...sigh

[HmtPD2]

Yup, that was me. I sat next to you at the table. I wanted to go to his wedding but I had to work. Oh well, he spends most of his time at my house anyway. I gave him your message!


P.S. So that's what happened! I thought the hotel pocketed my present. I keep waiting for you or Chris, or anyone else to come up for a ride. I talked to your boss the other day after 6 months. We'll get togther soon.

P43

[Linus]

We don't see much of that here in Sweden, at least I haven't. If anything people claim to have been in some special, complex and rather secret team or unit with very qualified tasks and oh-so-tough missions. Fact is, nowadays anyone actually selected for military training is quite likely to end up in some kind of ranger or special ops unit - we can't much afford to train anything else... ;)

And with so large a portion of the population having been through National Service chances are you will be discovered if trying to pose as a BTDT.

[jcollettusa]

I think you are go to see most wannabee's in countries that glamorize SpecOp units. In countries where military personnel are not looked upon as "patriots" or "heroes" than there are less chances for the younger generation to want to "wear this title," so to speak.

I am sure every country has citizens such as this; some are just going to have more. Wannabee's are a dime a dozen, if it is not the military than they are something else, such as, FBI or Secret Service, or whatever "Hollywood" is higlighting at the moment.

[Linus]

But the glamor of SpecOps is rather universal, don't you think?

Another interresting addition to this debate is this: Why is it that whenever a couple of guys (or girls for that matter) with military background get together and swap stories there's always someone who initially claimed to have served in a quite ordinary role or unit but soon tells amazing stories about how he saved the world by, throwing his broom aside, jumping into an attack chopper and shooting down no less than fourteen MiGs while simultaneously manning the side door mounted machine guns and firing torpedoes and cruise missiles from the submarine he commanded because, though lacking the formal rank, he was so very well suitable for the job. Oh: Did i mention that he was an Extreme Special Forces Secret Op's Long Range Airborne Arctic Recon Ranger Sniper too? He just can't seem to remember it with less than 6 beers inside him. You see, they brainwashed him, y'know... :rolleyes:

And if every refugee Serb in Sweden claiming to have been a member of some special secret military assassination hush-hush squad, judging friend from foe by feeling how they'd laced their boots before knifing them, actually had been just that, Europe and the lion part of the Asian continent would simply have been called Grand Serbia... :p

[farseer]

to solve this problem in Canada our Liberal government disbanded our airborne regiment ...

[FrankNyberg]

In Finland, all males have to go to armed service for 11months or less, depending on their training. For example, if you serve as a truckdriver, its around 7months. I spent all 11months, and had a blast.
So everyone claims that their training was the hardest, and everyone exaturates their expiriances in the army, navy, air force or whatever. But they are all wrong, mine was the best of all.

But there are some wannabees, who tell that they were in French Forreign Legion. And then they don´t even speak French. LOL!!

The best one was, when this one idiot tried to convince me that he was in ffl, the english-speaking-platoon and stationed in Paris.
I think we all know how eger the French are to speak english...

Ps. Sorry if my english is unreadable, My Finnish is much better.

SLlaiv/Auk42/kivl

[soup82]

A few years back I was at a party at a friends house. This guy introduces himself to me and then tells me he worked with the SAS in Ireland, all kinds of EOD hooah bullshit, and then to top it off, he tested freefall chutes from 300 feet.

My friend was in the SAS, and when I asked him WTF is this idiot, he replied, oh, that's Barry the Liar, ask him about the circus, he'll have a story.

Thing is, this guy KNEW that my bud and I were prior SF and could see through his BS.

The world is full of Walter Mitty's. I just laugh at em now.

Cheers,

Patrick

[HmtPD]

When I was in the Riverside Sheriff's Academy, we had a guy that claimed to work with the SEAL's, said he was a chute rigger, deployed with them and also worked close with Force Recon, you know the line. Funny thing was, a friend of mine who was also in the same class, spent 8 yrs with 1st Force and never recalled seeing this guy. The friend of mine was real calm, just chuckled occasionally. Last thing you want to do is make enemies in the Academy. Finally what set him off was when the "wannabe" said he graduated from "Parachute Jumping School" at Fort Bragg.
The sad thing is, even when he was found out, and was classmates with a guy who was really there, he still continued his story. He did NOT graduate by the way. Must be some sort of Psych disorder.

[enderr]

Well, I heard just recently from a friend, that there are JTF2 imposters running around now. I suppose it was bound to happen sooner, or later and all the attention in the media doesn't help either...I suppose you can allways ask:"What colour is the boat house at Dwyer Hill !!!"

[Jungle]

A good one I heard a lot: after the Airborne Regiment was disbanded, all these guys who had spent years in Infantry Battalions, all of a sudden were so disappointed because they had requested the transfer so often, but were never selected... now they could never serve!!! It was a lot worse than us, having to go through the disbandment process and associated media bullshit (That's according to them, of course)

[Slick Will]

Originally posted by soup82
...and then to top it off, he tested freefall chutes from 300 feet.

Hahaha.....ONCE! ;)


Hey Baboon, what are "Selous Scout Wings"?



We used to bust the "Airport Audies" all the time....Privates in uniform at the airport who try to fly home with more fuckin' medals and insignias than a 20 year war vet!!
LOL!

[Big K-Mac]

I know a guy who claims to be a KSK member, you know the german elite unit. The interesting thing is that he also studied history and is only 22 now. But that's not what made me think, he always wrote comments back in another little forum and everything he wrote sounded like a 10year old wrote it. Most interestingly is that his study of history led him to the solution that american soldiers in world war 2 were cowards. He also posted some of his great knowledge about the UN Special Team Six. Every time you asked where he had all this knowledge from he said he couldn't tell us, top secret. KSK is probably the only german unit that can be used to impress someone.

[Joe Lippke]

Just ask him what rank he had been in the german army. To be KSK you must be at least "Feldwebel" (NCO) or "Leutnant" (Lieutenant, CO).

And ask him how he had been able to finish his studies when he left school at an age of (normally and at least) 18 (most are 19 in germany when they leave "Gymnasium", our version of Highschool, I had been 21 ;) ) and still did his job as an KSK while sitting in university.
Looks like a fake.

Please let me know the answer of this dumbass....



JOE

[Big K-Mac]

Well, he claims to be a feldwebel, but he says that he got into school at age 5, that was supposed to be his explanation for being so young. I really don't believe and that comes mostly from his silly style of writing and explaining things. If I believe right he said that he belongs to the fernspähkräfte(recon forces).

Also ich glaubs ihm nicht.

[Joe Lippke]

Ich auch nicht. Frag ihn nach seiner Einheit oder seinem Standort.

Ausserdem sollte er eigentlich die Offizierslaufbahn eingeschlagen haben, wenn er Abi gemacht hat...



JOE



(Just consider this as a check for your german language abilities... :D )

[namor]

My favorite is the former "Rhodesian SAS" trooper who had to fight his way out of a cage that had a hungry baboon in it, armed with only a knife, to graduate from his selection course. This same 'operator' claimed to have laid in wait on an ambush patrol while being bitten so fiercely by red ants that the reaction started to close his throat. Fortunately, his mate rammed a rifle barrel down the swollen throat to maintain an open airway! I guess the front sight slid down gently!

Every country has these dolts. The shame of it is that the silly stories they make up to impress folk often tarnish the deeds of the true members of the unit. Of course, this guy explains why he's not in Reid Dalys book this way: he operated under another name while on duty. I guess all elite units allow people to enlist without using their real names!

[Naoscaire.ie]

As for ARW, the Wing is pretty small so any fakes are seen a mile away. It is also aided by the fact that the general population knows extremely little, yet, just about enough to FEAR p**sing any members off