Winter Soldier fables: Anti-war “Marine” was lying mental patient; Updated
Scroll down for updates…
You remember Jessie MacBeth, don’t you? He was the fake “Army Ranger” thug who lied about serving in Iraq and was promoted by the Iraq Veterans Against the War until milbloggers exposed him as a total fraud.
Well, meet a guy who makes Jessie MacBeth look like a choir boy.
And add this story to the ever-growing file of bogus Winter Soldier Syndrome tales from MacBeth and Micah Wright to Josh Lansdale and Amorita Randall.
“Rick Duncan” of Colorado Springs was a prominent anti-war activist who claimed to have served in Iraq on three tours of duty AND survived the 9/11 attack on the Pentagon. He has now been unmasked as a lying mental patient (via Colorado Springs Gazette with a big hat tip to This Ain’t Hell):
The leader of a statewide veterans group who fought for homeless veterans in Colorado Springs was in the Denver County jail on Wednesday, unmasked as a former psychiatric patient who posed as a wounded Marine officer and 9/11 survivor.
Federal authorities are looking into whether Rick Duncan, whose real name is Richard Glen Strandlof, could have pilfered money he raised in the name of Colorado veterans, said Daniel Warvi of the Colorado Veterans Alliance (CVA), the group that Duncan founded.
“We were all taken aback,” Warvi said.
Strandlof, 31, who invented the name Duncan and claimed he was a former Marine captain and 1997 graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, never served in the military and falsely claimed that he was in the Pentagon during the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, the group said.
Two members of CVA said the group became suspicious of the man they knew as Duncan after discovering inconsistencies in his personal story…The group said it found that Strandlof had been a patient in a mental hospital in Washoe County, Nev., at the time of the roadside bombing in Fallujah, Iraq, that he claimed left him severely wounded. CVA members contacted the FBI field office in Denver, which opened an investigation in early May and arrested him Tuesday night in downtown Denver on a traffic warrant originating in El Paso County.
According to Warvi, when an FBI agent asked whether he was Strandlof or Duncan, he responded “both,” then requested an attorney.
Duncan was quoted extensively by Colorado newspapers and TV stations whose b.s. detectors were apparently in the repair shop:
Under his invented identity, Strandlof proved to be a popular spokesman on veterans’ issues. He is quoted in stories as recently as March, when he was interviewed by The Denver Post about a measure before the state General Assembly to cut tuition for veterans.
He often spoke vividly of being in the Pentagon on Sept. 11 when a hijacked airliner was crashed into the building.
“The duality of that day, the good and the bad that I saw that day, are forever etched in my mind and in my memory,” he told KOAA television in an interview last year marking the anniversary of the attacks.
The Gazette quoted Strandlof on issues concerning homeless veterans. The Colorado Springs Independent wrote about him in articles about veterans struggling to deal with their experiences in war and PTSD.
On YouTube, Strandlof appears in desert camouflage talking about his “wounds.”
“I was involved in an IED explosion that killed four Marines,” he said. “I have a plate roughly the size of a, like, cup and saucer on this portion of my skull.” In the video, Strandlof also claims to have had a hip replacement and to have “had a finger blown off.”
Here’s that video:
Get a load of some of Duncan’s other performances. Here he is using his Absolute Moral Authority to condemn torture in December 2008:
Here he is reading the 91st Psalm after recounting how he was “heavily injured” on his third tour in Iraq:
This Ain’t Hell follows the rest of the Internet and YouTube trails. This faker wrote a piece published at VoteVets.org, the same anti-war group promoted by Gen. Wesley Clark which fell for anti-war hoax “soldier” Josh Lansdale.
Duncan/Strandlof is going to need a lot more than prayers and poetry therapy in dealing with the feds.
***
Greyhawk at Mudville Gazette has some must-read updates on Duncan/Strandlof’s Nevada fundraising scam.
See what others have said
Note from Michelle: This section is for comments from michellemalkin.com's community of registered readers. Please don't assume that I agree with or endorse any particular comment just because I let it stand. A reminder: Anyone who fails to comply with my terms of use may lose his or her posting privilege.
Trackbacks
- Rick Duncan “anti war protestor” exposed as mental case and a fraud | Fire Andrea Mitchell!
- Another fake anti-war iraq vet - The Underground Conservative
- Winter Soldier Syndrome « Welcome to GayConservative.org
- Thursday, May 14, 2009: Daily Handpicked Headlines :: Daily Uprising :: Join the Conservative Counter-Revolution!
- Jules Crittenden » Obama = Clinton?
- An Open Invitation to a Poseur « Curtis Lowe
- Let’s see – if Obama is Spock, then Bush is Captain Kirk « Jim Blazsik
- The Baughers » This guy makes me sick.
- Ed Driscoll » Layers And Layers Of Editors And Fact Checkers
- 5-14-2009 | Drive Time Happy Hour
- Dog bites man | Cold Fury
- Moonbattery
- The Jawa Report
- Wizbang
- Mount Virtus
- Michelle Malkin » More on the fake Marine anti-war poster boy
- Michelle Malkin » You can say that again, Mr. President
- Tell it to Napolitano, Move on, Winter Soldiers Fakers, Penn State & Columbia « The Lioness
- Dancing with terrorists — Winds Of Jihad By SheikYerMami
- Will The REAL Anti-War Vets Stand Up « Needs of the Many
- The Hill’s Blog Briefing Room » Michelle Malkin
- AntiObamaBlog.com » You can say that again, Mr. President
Comments
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Categories: Jessie Macbeth, Veterans, War
Legal Insurrection
» Thanks, Global Warming
Stop The ACLU
» Oops! Now New Zealand NIWA Accused Of Faking DataRiehl World View
» BBC, KGB, Oh My: More On Climate Change FraudJustOneMinute
» The Prescient Joe BidenAmSpecBlog
» A Good Time Not to be a DemocratRiehl World View
» More Climate Change Fraud: Et Tu New Zealand?Ed Driscoll
» Charges Filed In Kenneth Gladney Case
The problem is the MSM has a template that they want to populate. When ANYONE comes along that fits the template, they plop them right in, no questions asked. Facts? Who cares? it is the agenda that needs to be addressed, not the facts.
The MSM is not interested in reporting. The MSM is interested in promoting their agenda, which in this case is the agenda of The Left.
If the war became politically advantageous for The Left and the template changed, they would unquestioningly accept the stories from supposed veterans who saw their buddies throw themselves on IED’s to save Muslim schoolchildren and ran into burning buildings to save the Korans inside.
The whole process of vetting a source and reporting the facts good or bad is dead!
Ground-based Midcourse Defense?
Can I safely pretend to be a tanker now, sonofdy, or is there anything eles I might need to know?
Maybe so but I cant think of anyone lately being treated for mental illness thats was pretending to be a Code Pinker. Then again they are all ill and dont need to pretend.
Well then, it’s too bad he got as far as he did with his lie.
Pretending to be a Code Pinker doesn’t get the blonde in the bar to go back to your place after last call.
The people he’s hanging out with wouldn’t know a real man from a fake either.
Just ensure you have enough cans of squelch for your radio. Oh and stock up on grid squarees. You can never have enough for you maps. If you don’t have enough, ask your platoon sergeant, His unoffical title is prickE7. Tell him b-cat sent you!!!
You’re right, too, Chap.
Ahhhh….that’s a lot to remember. I’ll just claim to be ex special ops, but I can’t talk about it because its still classified and then stare into my beer like a man that has seen too much…
I once had a new private checking the bradley for soft spots will a ballpen hammer for hours…
Good times…
Of course, you could always send him down to the SKs for fifteen fathoms of waterline, or a box of zero-beats for the R-390s, but the best was sending him up to the bridge to paint the navigator’s balls.
Sonofdy – I had one of my old soldiers call me Sunday morning to wish me “Happy Mother’s Day”. I am sure you understand. I had a few choice words to say to him and than we both had a good laugh. Yes, those were “good times”.
Jumping up and down on the bradley to check the shocks was another good one.
The worse parts to get are those prickE9’s.
Yes CSM I am already in the front leaning rest….
This is old ploy by the lunatic left…same thing happened in my day. The Winter Soldier Campaign in Detroit; by the way funded by J Fonda and a couple others….dozens of “soldiers” testified of the terrible things they saw and did in Vietnam. And our very own John F**in Kerry used their same words to testifiy before a congressional committee…I saw it shortly after I came home (I am a real veteran). I immediatly knew much of what Kerry was saying was an outright lie or at the very least, embellished. Now history has shown that many of the “vets” who testified in Detriot were, either never in the service; were in the service, but not in combat MOSs…or were nutbags like this character Michelle has written about.
Over the years, I have run across several of these guys…usually you can tell them by their ages now. Virtually impossible for anyone under the age of 57 (and that is the very bottom) to have served in Vietnam. Another really good sign is the stories of “secret missions”….not that there weren’t those missions, but they were very rare and most of us were just grunts busting the bush…not a friggin’ thing secret about it.
Both myself and hubby are retired Air Force (him a Vietname incountry vet). We always get a big laugh out of fakes who claim military “action” at social gatherings. They are almost always liberals spouting their anti-war crap. Still, it’s funny to watch them make fools of themselves because the lingo doesn’t work.
WOW…. you could spend the rest of your career policing up parachutes in the impact area.
If I was ever on a “secret mission” you can bet I would never talk about it. I take my oath seriously.
***
It’s hard to find someone lower than a liar who claims to have served in the U.S. Military and hasn’t. Or has “embellished” (aka LIED) about his service if he was “in”.
***
I have known and worked with many vets of WW2, the Korean War, Vietnam, Desert Storm, the current Iraq and Afghanistan Wars, President Jimmuh Carter’s aborted rescue raid into Iran, etc.
***
Almost all of these people are completely normal. They served our country well at considerable personal risk and economic loss to themselves. They tell you their real stories modestly–and they put together good lives after their duty was completed.
***
I served in the U.S. Army as a draftee in a non combat role. I was always impressed by the good professional military people I met. I always tell the truth about my service. THANK YOU VETS FOR YOUR SERVICE DEFENDING OUR COUNTRY!
***
John Bibb
***
When Kerry testified he was still officially an officer in the Naval Reserve. It disgusted me that he was never brought up on charges for lying to Congress.
That’s why threads like this are so useful to us.
But you weren’t THERE man…you don’t understand…the things I saw when I was 1st Cav Div, based out of An Khe right around the end of 1966…Of course, that was after my stint as 05B2P with Airborne.
Rocketman – I too was a US originally. It did not take me long to figure out if I ever got out of the Army I would have to go back to work for a living so I became an RA. Than we went to SSN and lost all designation in front of it. Since I have been retired for 18 years I don’t know what they are using now. Thank you for your service.
A paratrooper would say the Airborne. You need a unit, though. And a working knowledge of jump school.
Sorry. Can’t talk about that stuff. Still classified.
Chapoutier – still would have got you named as a fake because in 1966 there was not an MOS 05B2P.
There were, but we were classified.
I got fooled by some bogus form once long ago. I can’t remember exactly which it was.
Later in my career my Ops NCO and I had a junior soldier basically walk all over post looking for a box of grid squares.
Good times.
Who can forget sending Privates to shake a tree so you can see where you are on the map.
Chap- my advice is go back to the blonde at the bar and get the h**l away from the Sergeant Major.
b-cat, these days the blonde at the bar MIGHT be the CSM.
ooopppsss..
Zeroangel – you just thought I was out looking for grid squares. Actually I spent the afternoon at the snack bar.
Well, I certainly am learning a lot.
So…after I enlist and get told by my E4 (is that right?) to go find some firing line, exactly how long do I have to go back to my bunk to sleep before I should run back “exasperated” and “apologetic” that I couldn’t find any?
Oh, Mr. Chapotier, you are soooo funny. And, you sound just like the folks I was talking about….just enough info and language to sound legit!
The MSM medial loves liars, especially those who attempt to smear the military. Anything to diminish people with integrity. That is the only way they imagine themselves on the same level with their betters.
Wrong service, Chap. You have to go Navy all the way – we never went anywhere without our bunks
Anyone laying odds as to when Barney Frank, Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, Chuck Schumer, John Murtha, etc., etc., etc., will be revealed as lying mental patients, instead of members of the US House and Senate?
RobM – I vote for Murtha!
My Nobel prize has the SSN right after the name.
I can vouch for chappy. I served with him at the Chosin Reservoir. That was before our time at NASA.
Didn’t you know, Congress is the mental hospitals version of work release program.
Nice to see the Denver Post, Vote for Vets.org and all the other suckers on this leverage the same vetting (no pun intended) process that the AP and Reuters use on stories and that Mr. Obama uses on his administration’s personnel matters.
Soooo….why would an airborne spec 4 radio operator be classified? That makes very little sense especially after 4 decades……
Hey – ask any Winter Soldier – some things remain classified forever!
I wish I could go into it…YOU WEREN”T THERE MAN! YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT IT WAS LIKE!!!
I was undercover as a blonde in the back of a bar, and I can also vouch for chapoutier–
It’s like it was yesterday…deep in the dark reaches of Dim Sum, coming off a hard stint in Ah Choo.
sergeantmajorbill:
LOL. Give us some credit please! We had him check up with various folks around post that were in on it. They called us from thier offices, “Smith is here and he is looking for those grid squares, I gave them to SGT Snuffy at the aid station, let me put Smith on.”
It was awesome.
On the contrary, I was there and I do know what it was like. Only my MOS was 11B..also known as infantry…aka grunt….and I was with the 1st Cav Division..I was on a lot of missions, one or two were secret at the time; none are secret any longer and with the Freedom of Information Act…something 40 years old being still secret just doesn’t wash……..
Actualy this reminds me of a story I heard at BNCOC about an undercover female CID agent. Not sure if its true but if it is she went WAAAAYYY beyond the call of duty.
Chap:
Actually I think the best advice is just to pretend you are fooled even if you aren’t. No one likes a killjoy anyway.
It’s kind of a rite of passage thing.
Hey, Chap. While you’re out would you pick me up a bucket of prop wash?
Thanks.
BTW,
I thank all the vets here for their service and I hope nothing I have typed here is taken the wrong way. I certainly mean only to mock the poseurs out there, not any actual military folks.
I am sure, though, I can and will offend you all on some other thread some other time.
Chap, you should never have said that. Now, how are we ever going to know if you are serious, or just mocking the libtards?
Oh and chap, a hint, the 2P identifier means you would have been an E5, airborne qualified, at least today, but do continue.
SGT Chap. How many VC did you take down with you bare teeth again??
We know, and we know you have a sense of humor. So do we.
I am sure we will disagree many times in the future. No offense.
They were NVA, and it was with an entrenching too.
But was he lying for the CORRECT (right is too harsh) reasons? That is the question we must all ask.
Oh well – another lefty-liar, nothing to see here, move along.
Actually, none of this matters now that the one dear leader is in charge of the wars. The MSM will pay little attention to anti-war protesters because then they would be stadning up against the one dear leader.
b-cat, but teeth are so much more dramatic. An E-tool?? ppfffhhheefftt
At least include some blood splatter to make it more dramatic.
sonody, I don’t know. I think Chap paints a very dramatic picture, with NVA bodies lying about in bushels, with the Red Horde advancing relentlessly, while an e-tool cuts vicious circles in the air.
Yes, that is how it was. It is seared, seared into my brain.
Yeah thats it, now if we can just work in chap saving a battalion of blonde nurses all with DD size bras and greatfull attitudes….
He forgot to mention his Spetznaz training – that’s where he learned to use the e-tool, obviously.
YES. That is what he was defending. He, a lone sentry, defending with all his might American virtue and womanhood. And never was there fairer womanhood and virtue than was there that day, I can tell you.
Seriously though folks, I can’t be the only one that can’t stand war stories can I?
There was not a single thing I enjoyed about Iraq, except perhaps mail call and my playstation in my room.
That aside, not only was there a constant fear of the possibility of dying; many of my subordinates and superiors drove me crazy. Of the precious few peers I had, I only got along well with a handful. Finally, I missed my family horribly.
It sucked, plain and simple. I can’t imagine why anyone would want to reminisce about anything having to do with war except to say, “thank goodness I am not there anymore.” Those folks that tell war stories I can’t help but wonder what kind of fragile ego they have.
That said, I am automatically suspect of any clown like this that gets up and starts talking about this stuff. Who’s with me?
Well, I was in National guard “78-84″ as a truck driver 64c & I killed a lot of 5 tons on the tank trails in ft drum ny….. At the time that was “classified”……….
Zero, I agree – I have no problem talking one-on-one with a fellow veteran about my real experiences, but i don’t have much stomach for a phony.
Having said that, I really enjoy a good sea-story. They’re not the same.
I have good stories and bad from both my deployments, niether to the middle east BTW (god knows how I haven’t been sent but thats other story)
Mostly its boring as hell, with a few nightmare inducing moments. One funny one was the guy who kept his sheep on his garage roof so they wouldn’t wonder into the mine fields.
As time passes that may change. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think you’re ever going to look back at Iraq the way you would at, say, Spring Break in Ft. Lauderdale. But I got out of the Navy 20 years ago, and with each passing year I find I remember the good things more and the bad things less. Also the passage of time can make some things seem funny, no matter how badly it sucked at the time.
Hey Zero – I think a lot of the vets on this thread understand what you’re saying. I appreciate your being there for us anyway. The way GIs talk to each other and the way they talk to others is very different.
Hey Chap, sometimes I have offended and other times, someone has offended me. Nothing personal. You are an asset to this site and many of us appreciate your astute comments. Just don’t get too full of yourself – HA! HA! Same goes for sonofdy/AZ/b-cat, etc.
James Felix is right, Everyone I have talked to about being “In country” says the beer was warm & leave it at that………..
Okay–war story: I was stationed at NORAD Cheyenne Mountain (complex built to withstand a nuclear detonation). First Sgt tells me during my initial alert exercise that the reason I was assigned there was so that we (the womenfolk) could perpetuate the species. I believed every word of it, until I realized the joke was on me.
Agreed – we have all had our “come to Jesus” moments and have nightmares for years afterward. Eventually, you will, as I have, be able to laugh and even tell stories about yourself in those moments.
ALCON:
Thanks guys. I appreciate it. I am sure you are right, after awhile I guess some of the stuff won’t bother me so much anymore (I am not saying I slugged it out in countless firefights, I didn’t, but still).
One of these days I’ll be able to watch movies about Iraq without getting infuriated and changing the channel. I think.
Zero – you’ll make it. We’ve got your back.
All joking aside, my advise would be to focus on the fun times. How ever few thier were. Every deployment is different for everyone. I literaly had a fellow soldier desert from a un peacekeeping mission so different people have different experiences. Stay possitive and stay focused is the best advise I could give. Yes there are times it will suck. That is part of being a soldier. If you choose to share that, it is a personal choice. Zero, your time in Iraq is something you have to be proud of no matter what happened there. People will ask you stupid questions that will make you cringe. Been there. You are never alone.
There is nothing new about this story – 40% of IVAW members are frauds, or never finished basic training.
zero, i had a platoon seargent I would still like to shoot in Bosnia. That is no joke either. I had a bullet picked out just for him. So I know how a bad chain of command can affect a deployment.
Whether I am suspect of the motive or the validity of the statements, I concur.
It just isn’t something you go around bragging about. I’ve also noticed that the people who brag the most are usually, upon further investigation, most likely to have been the furthest from any real action.
suspect=suspiciousHey Chap…As long as you know the difference between a fairy-tale and, a sea-story…You’ll be able to fool most liberals you meet.
If Chap’s bothering you, send him back to the motor pool in the M151A2 to get a box of reticles for the M105D Ballistic Telescope and for God’s sake not to drop them!
M60A1
M60A1/AOS
M60A1 RISE/PASSIVE
M48A5
M60A3
M60A3/TTS
M1
M1A1
M1A2
Hope is not a plan; not all change is good. RESIST!!!!
ECS
It was only after Sept. 11th that I was able to drag my father’s WW2 experiences from him.
Similar to friends who were in the service during Vietnam. One was on a submarine and I’d love to get him to open up….he’s nonchalant…shrugs it all off. Another however drove a jeep(?) around and had to put our fallen into body bags.
So to all you military, I have deep regard for what a soldier is called to do and admire your strength, patriotism and thank you always for your service.
During Tet, he took out three NVA with a spork from KFC. Before breakfast.
I hope he filled out a cannon report.
After the spork broke, he whipped out his trusty John Wayne and hacked and slashed another dozen into bloody piles.
The very possibility that people like this sad excuse for a human being exist is depressing. While there are very brave and selfless human beings putting their lives on the line overseas, this moron is running around stealing their accomplishments.
I don’t understand why what this guy did was tolerated for so long and the media just let him go. It’s almost as if vets who “speak out” against war are the only ones that the media will listen to these days. It’s sickening that there was absolutely no oversight until this guy’s story stopped adding up and red flags appeared.
As a military spouse, this is another example of the ever-increasing divide between the military and easily duped American public. Many Americans (even those in military towns) are very ignorant about the military or look down on military service. Idiots like this guy just confirm for many Americans why they don’t like the military and think military service is for desperate, poor people (according to John Kerry anyway).
This man was allowed to lie for so long that the myth his life was became truth. It’s really hard to feel like I, and other spouses and military members, are supported when so many people just eat what this guy dishes out without question.
Just another signal of the dumbing down of America. It really is sad….
Do you live in Hampton Roads?
Yes, I do (for the next 3 months). My husband and I are PCS’ing back to Colorado Springs. For all the hoopla and claims of what a military friendly place Hampton Roads is (perhaps Virginia Beach is moreso but I don’t live there), I found quite the opposite.
I’ve found in many military towns I’ve lived in that the reverse is true: people aren’t as receptive to military folks as I’ve seen in non-military communities. Military members and their families are valued more for their economic activity.
I remember when I was living in Colorado Springs a couple of years ago and a couple thousand members of the Army at Fort Carson were being redeployed to another base and there were so many people/businesses who protested and bemoaned it. Even though the Army needs to do what’s best for its members and what’s in its best interest, the local community took it as a black mark against them.
My husband and I listened to this on the news and I asked him:
Gee, I wonder why it is they’re so upset?
My husband: Why do you think?
Silly that was a job for Lieutenants.
*eyebrow raise*…*smile*
“The most dangerous thing on the earth is an Army Second Lieutenant with a map.”
Reminds me of my all-time favorite Sgt. Mike cartoon caption: “Nothing’s more dangerous than a second lieutenant with a map.”
Yeah, the only thing I ever did as special ops in ‘Nam was swim alongside Kerry’s boat and rescue CIA officers falling off…
Nah, not a Vet but thanks to all of you who served in whatever capacity!
Though as a kid I was on a Marine Base once, and watching the DI yell at a recruit in the Mess Hall was interesting.
At least for me, him – not so much.
My favorite military joke:
What are the 5 most dangerous things in the army?
1. A Private saying, “I learned this in Basic!”
2. A Sergeant saying, “Don’t worry sir, I got it, *wink*.”
3. A Chief saying, “Watch this sh|t, sir.”
4. A Lieutenant saying, “In my experience…”
5. A Captain saying, “Well… what the F do we do now?”
Heh.
Wouldn’t this fit Obama too?
All the levity aside – as enjoyable it is to read – we should all take note that This coming Saturday, May 16, is Armed Forces Day.
So to all who serve or have served – I extend my profound thanks.
And by the way, I see the faker has removed all three of the videos Michelle posted. Isn’t that a surprise?
Then kindly leave this thread immediately. No offense, but this one is just for those of us that know what a forward leaning rest position is without having to google it and/or have defended our country with a spork.
zeroangel
If you think Iraq sucked you ought to be in Korea when it thaws out. Lovely aroma. A lot of the same things you put up with in Iraq soldiers have to put up with in other places the big exception being on most days nobody is actively shooting at you.
The best way to deal with it is to stay busy and the time passes. You got to remember the good times, let the bad ones fade and remember to only talk smack with those who know.
I have just about gave up on trying to explain things to civilians and I have been out for almost 10 years now. I spend more time explaining things then it worth, and they don’t quite get the sense of humor you develop after going through such rough times.
Anyway welcome home and thanks for your service.