Thanks, Perdogg. I hadn’t heard that. But, yes, to the extent that the decision is political, it will be along political lines.
I LIKE the Stolen Valor Act, but too many have pointed out a free speech problem with it. As a retired military member, I take a very dim view of anyone who wears medals they did not earn, and especially the medals for courage in combat that I would prefer to be very strictly defined even by the military with one standard across all services.
I believe false representation should be prosecuted under business fraud laws if any misrepresentation by a valor stealer separates a person from their money. An organization should also be able to use some kind of fraud defense if they get taken in by a valor stealer.
The act, as I’m told, infringes on free speech, and I can see that if a person wants to go around saying they are a Martian they should be able to do so, that we should have a “buyer beware” attitude and take care of ourselves regarding all con men.
But to claim to be a medal of honor winner is repugnant to me, and I’d just as soon have a firing squad at dawn. /hyper
I totally agree with you about the First Amendment problems in the "Stolen Valor Act" per se; but since the MOH comes with a stipend and other government benefits, I think you could construct a law, similar to laws against impersonating an active duty soldier, or Federal Official, that would pass Constitutional muster.