Warbird Information Exchange

I don't think it's at all inappropriate to have reenactors that might be a bit too old or overweight to participate. If they are willing to participate and contribute then more power to them. If you look real closely at some of the recent war flicks like "Windtalkers" you'll notice more than one portly "extra" wearing a Marine uniform while assaulting a Japanse position. Heck...if I was to start participating in reenacting I would probably stand out a bit with my beer gut.

On another note I want to make it very clear that in no way do I classify any reenactors as frauds or phonies. These people are reenacting a period in time and are no different than living history reenactors you'd see at Colonial Williamsburg or other historic tourist attractions. If they want to wear the ribbons and badges then so be it...just as long as they are worn properly.

This thread was about exposing the real frauds and phonies out there that claim heroic deeds or wear bogus medals which they were never awarded. Most of these guys do it to either pick up chicks or to garner respect from people to compensate for their pathetic and under-achieving lives. These clowns have no shame and need to be exposed whenever possible.

John

Thanks John. I find this very interesting. Any more views out there?

August

Most anybody that really wants to "earn their stripes" has a chance now to do it,, the recruting offices are looking for people and you don't have to be a kid I wonder what the max age is that they accept.

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Bill Greenwood
Spitfire N308WK

Bill,

The max enlistment age for the Army is 42 years old. For a long time it used to be 35 but they have steadily raised it over the years...no doubt due to the manpower shortage. Not sure if they'll raise it any further though. I can't imagine going through basic training at age 42 but then again...basic training has been watered down so much over the years that just about anybody could make it through these days.

John

A local kid I use to ski race with did go to Seal training. He did his basic in San Diego, I think Marines, then applied to Seal. He was fit, a tough outdoor type kid. I think he may have had an illness, but I know he did not finish.

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Bill Greenwood
Spitfire N308WK

I'm not surprised...the dropout rate for SEAL training is extremely high...I've heard as high as 75%. Other elite military training schools also have high dropout rates such as Army Ranger school and Special Forces school.

I remember attending "Rappel Master School" at Fort Hood, TX which is designed to train soldiers for rappeling operations out of helicopters, etc. The course was only 2 weeks long but extremely challanging. We started the class with 23 students and ended up graduating with only 3 ...myself included.

John

John, when I went through basic training at Lackland AFB, Feb.1969; it wasn't that hard,except not being able to get enough sleep. The psychological harrasment got old, but was sort of silly. I knew I wasn't spending my life there. Averaging 4 or 5 hours sleep was very wearing on you. I'd hate to do serious flying like that. The exercise part was nothing compared to Spring football practice in Texas, but I am glad I was not in San Antonio in the summer.

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Bill Greenwood
Spitfire N308WK

Yeah...I went through Army basic in the summer of 1988. The physical part wasn't that hard and the psychological harrassement was just all part of the experience. I actually enjoyed the Drill Instructors cussing and swearing and found it quite funny on numerous occasions. I'll agree with you...the toughest part was the lack of sleep.

These days the drill instructors can't even cuss or swear at the recruits anymore for fear of hurting their feelings. What's really surprising is listening to some of the drill instructors that have recently come off of drill duty and hearing about the quality of recruits these days. The discharge rate for "failure to adapt" is higher than ever...which puzzles me given how easy basic training has become. I guess some of it probably comes from the lowering of standards over the last couple years.

John

Here's an interesting story involving a 34 year old woman posing as an Air Force Captain complete with numerous fake awards. She conned a private college in North Carolina to waive the $42,000 in tuition fees because she claimed she was a vet.

The campus police chief, a real Vietnam vet and chopper pilot, tipped off federal investigators. Apparently one of the things that made him suspicious was the fact that this gal was wearing a campaign ribbon from WWII on her uniform.

John

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/04/ ... 9701.shtml

I have been itching to wear a chocolate uniform I have been putting together, but my wife freaks out everytime I bring up shaving to do it. And I won't wear it otherwise.

As for the do it right or don't do it at all comments... you have to start somewhere. Personally I don't have the thousands of dollars that some of my buddys have spent aquiring the proper gear. I try to do the best I can, and borrow what I don't have. There are certain things that can be fudged and there are certain things that can't. Like dress shoes. The last time I went in 2005, I remember the guys I was with all were bent out of shape cause this dude showed up wearing some insanely obviously new sunglasses.

I do wear glasses, but am fortunate enough that I can get by without them when I do the reenacting.

As for the initial topic, I find it disgusting, but not all that shocking.

It's not that way in the Marine Corps today! When I attended Marine Corps Officer Candidate School, your last name could not be mentioned without a "verb" preceding it. I guess that's why they call the USMC the "Men's department of the armed services." There is no regard to feelings whatsoever (which is probably a good thing).

I'm not going to pretend to be a Marine officer. I ended up getting pneumonia halfway through and was sent home. Quantico, VA in the winter is a b****!

Glad to see at least one branch of the armed forces hasn't bowed down to the P.C. monster yet.

John

Not to hijack the thread....but if any are worried about military training going soft, rent the documentary "Ears, Open, Eyeballs, Click."

Here's a taste of what you'll see. Make sure your volume is low...Marines are loud.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=UwkWLikWozE

The drill instuctors at Lackland, were of course rude and insulting, but mostly we just let it pass us by. I had a finance degree from a good university, a great girl friend, and I knew I was only going to be at Lackland a month or 6 weeks. Most of the guys, like me, were in their 20's and had some education. Some redneck telling us how stupid we were was not very convincing. There was one guy who actually had been to Vietnam twice, the rest seem to be, as they say in Texas, all hat and no cattle. We marched around a lot, which got boring quickly, but wasn't hard. I had done square dancing as a kid, it was similar, and something to pass the time. It seemed pretty silly, I don't think VC were doing much marching. The big event was the obstacle course. It was several miles, maybe 5, but the secret was to pace youself. If you had a sprint, then a wall climb you had to slow up and catch your breath before you got to the wall. I was in good shape, just figured out the tricks and had a fast time. The record was by George Webster, a linebacker for the Oilers. We also went through a tear gas chamber, which freaked out a few guys. I had been on a swim team, I just took a deep breath and held it as I went through. I can't recall the specifics, but because I had a degree they talked to me about OCS. While one guy is telling me I'm a bum, another is saying I be should be an officer. They didn't have any Mustangs or Spits to entice me, so I never checked it out. My tech school for mechanics was in Illinois, gloomy then. A college classmate went into the army, and they sent him to 6 months of IBM computer school so he got real value out of that.

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Bill Greenwood
Spitfire N308WK

What? F-4 Phantoms and F-105 Thunderchief's were not good enough?