We've got our fair share of wannabes at my work...they're all legends in their own minds...and jokes in everyone else's. It's funny, cause for every REAL vet...there's a faker.
1.) We have a little guy who was a Marine in Vietnam during a certain seige that has an interesting story about the worst week of his life. The only story he talks about....He's the real deal.
2.) We have his doppleganger (spell?) who also claims to be a Vietnam vet and talks all the time about his agent orange complications. Turns out he was on a Marine Corp bowling team that toured around....the most action he saw was in a seedy motel after a game.
3.) We have a guy that I work with closely who was in the 1st Cav. right after the whole Battle zone Albany fiasco....he has 2 purple hearts and a big ass scar on his thigh thanks to a punji pit that almost killed him.
4.) His evil twin is a guy who claims to have been a Navy Seal (usually an indicator of a faker) who said he is out due to an underwater demolition that went wrong. Turns out he was a boat mechanic that lifted somthing too heavy.
5.) Then we have a guy who claims to be a weapons expert in all small arms, says he has lethal hands and is a master martial artist then said he got out of the Army cause he got tired of killing people in Iraq. He also claims to have been "nicked" 5 times by AK fire...but no actual wounds. There was an IA investigation on this clown for a negligent discharge of his firearm while charging it before shift...then, he got outshot by a female officer that is one of our notoriously worst shots....I almost peed myself laughing.
6.) I have another guy who I used to partner with who went to Iraq for 18 months and did a lot of house raids, etc. He doesn't talk about it...but Iraq cost him a marriage and a house...and probably more. He hasn't been the same since he got back.
7.) Lastly we have a guy who says he used to be a Marine Recon sniper...probelm is this guy is 5'11 and 300 pounds...I guess he camoed himself as a hill. Anyhow, he told several people that he was hit in the chest in Desert Storm by a .50 cal but his flak vest stopped it.
Yeah...the fakes are pretty easy to spot....and whenever I call their BS they start yelling crap like..."where did you serve, huh?" Rest assure, if I had served clowns like this would have been serving my powdered eggs.