Kick him between the legs. If he goes down, he’s not a marine.
Ping
Simple, just ask him to recite The Rifleman’s Creed.
My own Brother was a viet Nam hero even though he got his General discharch in 1961. They are everywhere.
Do like Deniro in Ronin and ask him aggressively “what color is the boat house at Hereford?” and when he doesn’t answer go “AH-HA!! Fake!” ;)
I don’t think Stolen Valor will help with Marines, I thought they were SEAL advocates only, but their site may give you someplace to start.
That said, in my mind, this is a lose-lose situation. If he’s lying, and even if you can prove it, military service means less to some people than others. If you expose him, and he’s well-liked, you may find your peers view you as a busybody.
If you know without a doubt he’s faking, but he’s not wearing the uniform or using it to get benefits, your best bet may be to just file it away and relegate him to scum status in your dealings with him. If there’s even a shred of doubt, I’d advise you to be very cautious...Anything you say or do can backfire on you in a big way.
Thought this was a very interesting topic and I did a little Yahoo search.
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20090830065233AASgslW
I didn’t read it in it’s entirety, but the best answer was to write to the National Archives and make a Freedom of Information Act Request for his military record. God throws us different places in life. There is no reason to pretend something like that.
Don’t even sweat it... Eventually, bullshit artists try to bullshit the wrong guy and get their ass handed to them.
Just a friendly piece of advice, since you are obviously not a Marine... Tread lightly just in case he is.
Semper Fi,
NYleatherneck
Ask to see his DD214.
Unless you can prove he used such a claim to commit fraud, like obtaining employment or benefits, there’s really nothing you can do. The Supreme Court found the Stolen Valor act a violation of free speech.
“I am working with a guy”
Besides the official information sources, if we knew more about just what “I am working with” means, we might be able to offer more meaningful examples of how to deal with him.
Ask him to move your desk. I’ve seen the fake ones are generally so fake, they couldn’t even pass a first day physical.
Ask him if his parents were married. If they were then he’s not a marine.
Ask him where the “Rock” is. Where is 29 Palms? And ask him what Chesty said when surrounded by the enemy? Ask him what a “Butter Bar” is? Who is nicknamed “Top”? When is the Marine Corps birthday? Ask him what you have to do to qualify to be a Former Marine versus and Ex Marine (Only answer is to NOT have an airport named after you in PA, but what the heck)?
Unless he’s using it to some material advantage, it’s probably better left alone. Even then... it’s important to be really, really sure. If he really is a former Marine it would be awful to accuse him of otherwise.
Actually I was thinking... did he put on his employment application that he was a Marine? If so, then he falsified a document in order to obtain employment. That may be an interesting angle on this for you.
I got it...Ask him what a “Big Chicken Dinner” is...never mind...he may know that one, which lead him to claim he was a Marine.
The best way to approach this is to talk to the Marine Corps.
The United States Marine Corps Division of Public Affairs.
http://www.marines.mil/usmc/Pages/Contact.aspx
“You get help from your nearest public affairs shop - listed below in the public affairs directory.”
The answer, incidentally, is "however slight". You hadda be there.