The ‘go to’ experts on Stolen Valor, This Ain’t Hell (TAH).
Via Snopes:
In May 2017, after the Department of Homeland Security reportedly tapped Wisconsin sheriff David Clarke for a job, stories appeared about the medals he typically wears to adorn his lapels, with many pointing out that Clarke has never served in the military.
These articles mainly dealt with the sensitive topic of what military veterans know as “stolen valor”, which is the act of misleading the public by wearing unearned military medals or dressing in military uniform without having served.
Clarke, who already cuts a controversial figure as the sheriff of Milwaukee County, received a round of scrutiny after he announced in mid-May 2017 that he would accept an assistant secretary position with the Department of Homeland Security (although DHS has not yet confirmed such a position has been offered). Among the topics of scrutiny were the many pins he wears on his dress uniform.
For example, Salon.com posted a story on 19 May 2017 with the headline, “Looks like Sheriff David Clarke’s ‘army’ medals might be B.S.” They reported.[…]
But criticism of Clarke’s uniform is purely subjective. John Lilyea, a retired Army sergeant who runs the blog “This Ain’t Hell” which often deals with stolen valor cases, said he saw nothing wrong with Clarke’s pins, and thought the kerfuffle was much ado about nothing. In an e-mail, he told us:
I don’t see anything wrong with what Sheriff Clarke is wearing. None of it is military-related… The people in the Salon article were just having an emotional reaction to the sight of the Sheriff in his uniform rather than anything substantial.
Lilyea directed us to a blog post he had written on the topic (categorized under “Dumbass Bullshit”) in which he characterized the controversy as nothing more than partisanship:
The whole thing is childish and it’s a political attack. We’ve busted phonies here on both sides of the political aisle, irrespective of their politics because that’s the nature of stolen valor. I can’t find any articles on Salon that take [Democratic Connecticut Senator] Dick Blumenthal to task on his fake claims that Blumenthal was a Vietnam veteran.
Anthony Anderson, a staff sergeant who runs the web site “Guardian of Valor” and has taken on the task of busting military impostors, agreed with Lilyea. He told us by e-mail:
From what we can see there are no official military badges or insignia on this man’s uniform.
We see a bunch of pro-American and Law Enforcement pins. Not sure why anyone would approach this man and accuse him of Stolen Valor. Unless there is a background that we don’t know of, there’s nothing offensive or wrong with what he is wearing.
Opinions on whether or not Clarke’s pins and uniform are inappropriate seem to be influenced by viewers’ opinions on the man himself. Clarke is a lightning rod of a political figure. He began his law enforcement career with the Milwaukee Police Department in 1978, working his way up to the rank of captain, and only left the department in 2002 to take the position of Milwaukee County Sheriff.
HT: TAH