DANGER: MAD FROG AHEAD
Matt, over at Froggy Ruminations is pissed. Apparently there is another fake Navy SEAL in the news. Another dirtbag who claimed to be a SEAL is wanted for a violent crime. This on the heels of the story about Sheryl Crow's alleged stalker who was purportedly a Navy SEAL. As it turned out, he wasn't one either.

Phony veterans are nothing new. People have been claiming credit for things they haven't really done for years. SEALs are a particularly attractive target for fakes due to the impressive reputation the teams have gained in recent years.

What has Matt really peeved is how the news media swallows the claims hook, line, and sinker without making even a token effort to fact check. Unfortunately, this is not a new story either. Media malpractice in reporting on veterans goes back to at least the Vietnam War. Thanks to our lazy-assed (or is it just plain old biased?) media, the image of the Vietnam veteran has been forever tarnished. The media repeated the lie that Vietnam vets were pathetic, PTSD-afflicted, drug addled, chronically unemployed, homeless losers so often that this myth has become conventional wisdom. I've met a lot of losers in my travels, and I've met a lot of Vietnam vets; I have yet to meet someone who was both. I'm sure there are a few out there, but they are a small minority.

Our only recourse is to hold the MSM's feet to the fire. Rather-gate was just the beginning. We may not be able to correct all of the wrongs done to the Vietnam generation by these jackals, but we can prevent them from doing it to the next generation.