The Gun Of Bavaria Posted June 12, 2009 Share Posted June 12, 2009 No need for any further nomination or consideration. Fake military veteran hid under 'ocean of lies' (CNN) -- Richard Strandlof said he survived the 9/11 attacks on the Pentagon. He said he survived again when a roadside bomb went off in Iraq killing four fellow Marines. He'd point to his head and tell people he had a metal plate, collateral damage from the explosion. Crowds ate up his story. He canvassed Colorado appearing at the sides of politicians. Inspiring and seemingly authentic, he spoke on behalf of veterans at the state Capitol. It turns out the whole thing was a lie. He wasn't at the Pentagon. He was never a Marine. He never served his country. He never graduated from the Naval Academy. He claimed his name was Rick Duncan. He formed a group called the Colorado Veterans Alliance, and the FBI is now investigating whether he embezzled money as a result. Where was he on 9/11, the day he said he witnessed heroism firsthand?"I was in San Jose, California, watching it in horror on TV with a few other people," Strandlof told CNN's Anderson Cooper. He was at a homeless shelter at the time. Strandlof denies being a pathological liar. He says he suffered from "some severely underdiagnosed mental illness" and that he got caught up in the moment around "people who are passionate and loved what they did." He told CNN he had put on a "production, which I'm sorry for." "Hopefully the people that I hurt can in some way gain closure from that, and I myself don't know what I can do short of leaving them alone and not being in their lives, to make that happen," Strandlof said. He said he's not sure exactly how he's hurt people. "It's not for me to say, and time will tell," he said. Hal Bidlack, a former Air Force lieutenant colonel, is one of those people. He ran for Congress as a Democrat and had Strandlof appear with him. Bidlack isn't too happy."Once one lie fell apart, the whole series of things ... just cascaded into an ocean of lies," he said. Bidlack was at the Pentagon when it came under attack on September 11, 2001. He now realizes that Strandlof stole portions of his own story. "Now that we know he's a lying fraud," Bidlack said, "I think he was just parroting my own story back to me." "There are an awful lot of things that he kept straight to try to fool an awful lot of people for an awful long time." Doug Sterner has cataloged hundreds of people claiming to be military veterans who never served in the military. He says it's typical for those perpetuating the hoaxes to claim mental illness. "I don't buy that," Sterner said. "What he was doing was looking for a cause to promote himself. I see this repeatedly. I've had a hundred cases just this year like Rick Strandlof's. ... What they're doing is building a kingdom of self and feeding their own ego." Sterner has pushed for a federal database listing the names and citations of all decorated military veterans to help put an end to such cases. He said Strandlof has robbed true veterans of their veracity. "Doing good does not take away from the bad that he did," he said. "Because of Rick Strandlof, the next global war on terrorism veteran that speaks in a school or talks to the media or gets involved in politics is going to be questioned." Strandlof's story began to unravel about a month ago when he was arrested in Colorado Springs on a minor traffic charge. According to the Denver Post, Strandlof came to authorities' attention first in 1997, when he was sentenced to five years on forgery and bad-check charges. With the FBI now investigating him for fraud, he told CNN he's innocent. "We did not take money to use on non-veterans projects. I did not enrich myself on this. I did not gain any money from this," he said. That's not the point, said Sterner. "The one thing he robbed from every veteran that comes out now is credibility." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeC36 Posted June 12, 2009 Share Posted June 12, 2009 I was gonna nominate myself so i could finally win something. But **** this ****sucker. Thats ****ing dispicable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arsis Posted June 12, 2009 Share Posted June 12, 2009 Try him for Treason and hang him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PatriotReign37 Posted June 12, 2009 Share Posted June 12, 2009 This guy should be renamed Pinocchio. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeC36 Posted June 12, 2009 Share Posted June 12, 2009 send the ****er to Iraq and see how well he does. Thats one less REAL soldier i have to worry about getting killed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Gun Of Bavaria Posted June 12, 2009 Author Share Posted June 12, 2009 Stuff like this makes me sick. It's a disservice to every single man or woman who has worn a uniform for this country. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SMC Posted June 12, 2009 Share Posted June 12, 2009 That's crazy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thor99 Posted June 12, 2009 Share Posted June 12, 2009 Blanket Party!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PETROCK Posted June 12, 2009 Share Posted June 12, 2009 WOW!! Now he's a scumbag!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Posted June 12, 2009 Share Posted June 12, 2009 It's ****ty, but I'm going to save Thug Turd of the Year for somebody who murders people or abuses children. This guy isn't even a finalist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sirlancemehlot Posted June 12, 2009 Share Posted June 12, 2009 It's ****ty, but I'm going to save Thug Turd of the Year for somebody who murders people or abuses children. This guy isn't even a finalist. I'm with you. Jackoph of the year fits better. But the only one truly suffering from his idiocy is him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JerryK Posted June 12, 2009 Share Posted June 12, 2009 He's nuts, and did it because he was excited to gain renown, not to harm people. The press needs to check credentials a bit more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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