Lying about medals now A-OK

There was recently a decision by a San Francisco court which determined that the Stolen Valor Act, a law that prohibits an individual from lying about receiving medals for military service, is unconstitutional. The defendant, one Xavier Alvarez, introduced himself at a public meeting in 2007 by claiming to be a Marine who had been awarded the Medal of Honor. Judge Milan Smith said in the majority opinion:

The right to speak and write whatever one chooses - including, to some degree, worthless, offensive and demonstrable untruths - without cowering in fear of a powerful government is, in our view, an essential component of the protection afforded by the First Amendment,"

Firstly, if you’re going to lie about a medal, pick something less conspicuous. The Medal of Honor? Really? Only eight men have been awarded this medal in the last twenty years, and every single one of them was awarded it posthumously. The story is quite easy to verify. Check out this website if you want to be choked up by reading of the acts of courage and sacrifice that ordinary joes like me can only imagine. Why not try something like a Distinguished Service Cross, or a Silver Star? Then again, I guess if you’re going for douche bag only the best will do.

The story continues:

"Alvarez was the first person ever prosecuted under a 2006 federal law that prohibits falsely claiming to have won a military decoration. It is punishable by up to six months in prison, or a year for elite awards such as the Medal of Honor.

He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to probation, fined $5,000 and ordered to perform 416 hours of community service. His lawyer said he completed the community service but, in an unrelated case, was convicted last year of misappropriating public funds and was sentenced to five years in state prison.”

Very appropriately, the community service he was ordered to serve was at a Veteran’s hospital. I hope he learned some sort of lesson there.

Anyone who has known me for any length of time knows how I feel about the Constitution and the rights it affords. Those rights may allow things we consider deplorable and despicable. The question here is this: Does the lying about medals, particularly one as prestigious as the Medal of Honor, do “damages” to another citizen?

The answer to this is not simple…On the one hand, having a cowardly and worthless sack of meat like Mr. Alvarez falsely and maliciously make the claim to have served courageously clearly damages the honor and reputation of those who truly did make those sacrifices. But what are these damages? How much are they worth? Is it appreciable enough to be legislated? Are lies like this akin to slander and libel, which are forms of speech that we correctly outlaw? Or are they simply one of the uncomfortable facets of the 1st Amendment that we must protect, along with distasteful things as pro-Nazi rallies?

Though it does not happen often, I am undecided...Were I forced to make a choice, I would have to err on the side of liberty and agree with the court’s decision. But I still don’t know.

I do know one thing however. It may be that they can choose to exercise their freedom of speech in this way. Should I happen upon someone who falsely claims the title of hero, I will be forced to exercise my freedoms to give them a little wall-to-wall counseling, preferably with dimensional lumber. The memory of those who gave their all demands no less.

The Medal of Honor

The Distinguished Service Cross

The Silver Star

The Purple Heart