LCDR Mark D. Divine
is a Navy SEAL currently serving a one year
recall in support of Operation Noble Eagle
and the War on Terror. Divine was Honor graduate
of SEAL training class 170, and has served
for 14 years with the SEALs - 7 & 1/2 of which
were on active duty at SEAL Team THREE, SEAL
Delivery Vehicle Team ONE and Naval Special
Warfare Group ONE. Most recently he was Executive
Officer at Reserve SEAL Team ONE. After leaving
Active Duty Mark started NavySEALs.com, which
has become a leader on the web for Special
Operations news and intelligence.
You
Want Me to Do What? - Ever wondered
what it would REALLY be like to go through
Special Forces training? Get a comprehensive,
humorous look at the process through the eyes
of Jeff Kraus, the only man to succeed at
all three elite U.S. Military Special Operations
qualifications schools.
February 4, 2004
By Mark Divine
When is it dishonorable to be a Navy SEAL? When you never were
one in the first place. Mark Divine ponders a response to a curious
daughter.
I often think to myself, Boy, if I had a dime for every email I
answered about the SEALs, I'd have retired a long time ago.
Since launching NavySEALs.com
in 1996, I have served unofficially as an Internet recruiter for the
Navy - and helped hundreds of kids gain insight, information and inroads
through the often labyrinthine process to get orders to BUD/s training.
(Basic Underwater Demolition / SEAL Training is the 6 month school
that prospective SEALs must graduate from, but only 1 in 5 do.) Other
inquiries are for information to assist with school research projects,
sometimes just to settle a bet. The bet usually goes like this: "My
buddy and I were having an argument over who were the toughest Special
Operations forces. I said SEALs. He says that Delta is...which is
it?" Hmmm - let me think ... delete!
But this email from a young lady named Christine was different. I
had a sinking feeling as I pondered the contents. It was not the first
time I have had this innocuous question asked - but it does not get
any easier. It read like this: "Hi Mr. Divine. My name is Christine
and my father was a Navy SEAL in Vietnam. He does not say much about
his SEAL days, except that he did a lot of top secret missions that
he can't talk about. I am very proud of my Dad, and would like to
find out some information about what he did with the SEALs. Can you
help me?"
Sounds simple enough, right? Dad is a Hero to most young girls (and
boys). And a Dad who was a SEAL is downright legendary to those who
learn about the origins of the once-secret Navy Commando force and
their tremendous record of success in Vietnam and beyond.
Let me explain the sinking feeling. You see, there was a problem that
Christine is unaware of, but I am sure of after some research. It
is the impact that this problem will have on Christine's view of the
world which was causing me to pause and search my heart before responding.
See - Christine's Dad was never a SEAL. He is a fraud. A Fake. A Phony.
And a loser for doing this to his precious daughter.
To be sure that I was not making a huge mistake, I sent her father's
name to a group called AuthentiSEAL
that tracks Phony SEAL sightings. Retired SEAL Steve Robinson, who
wrote the book on Phonies (literally - it is titled "No
Guts, No Glory" and details many of the close to 10,000 fake SEALs
that the group has outed) confirmed my initial suspicion. The list
is definitive and includes every man who has graduated from BUD/s
since the beginning of time - back when they were not called SEALs
but Naval Combat Demolition Units and Underwater Demolition Teams.
Christine's Dad was not on the list. No mistake had been made by the
team, and he was not part of some super-secret SEAL group working
so deeply undercover that the Navy destroyed the records to protect
his identity. Pure and simple, he was a fraud.
The impact to Christine when she finds out the truth will certainly
be denial. Then anger, then acceptance, and hopefully forgiveness.
That is, if he comes clean. If he perpetuates the myth he will do
even more damage to his family and drive a wedge of mistrust a mile
wide between them all.
Why did Christine's Dad lie to her about something so basic as what
you did for a previous career? Particularly something so unique as
claiming to be an elite Navy Commando. Why do so many others create
false lives - medal of honor winners, Green Berets, Rangers, Recon
Marines, PHD's... and perpetuate them for years, then defend them
even when called to the carpet? I do not have the answer - it causes
angst amongst veterans who paid the real price of admission. It is
particularly brutal when one considers the consequences to relationships
where trust is imperative - as with Christine and the other children,
wives, friends and employers of Phonies.
I pondered both whether to, and how to respond to Christine for several
days. Part of me wanted to tell her the truth. After all, I owed that
to my REAL teammates. But a more humane part of me held back ... why
ruin Christine's perfect image of her father - who was trying to impress
her by being something he was not, possibly because he did not think
what he "was" was enough for his little girl. So I sat on it.
About a week later I was leaving the SEAL training area when I ran
into an old swim buddy from SEAL Team THREE. His sister in-law was
planning to get married to a "SEAL" but her Mom thought something
seemed fishy about the SEAL's story. My swim buddy checked the "wall
of shame" via NavySEALs.com
(the wall of shame is where the AuthentiSEAL team posts the verifiably
fake SEALs). He was not on it...but a check of the databases confirmed
the mother's hunch. He, too, was a fake. The wedding is now off. Number
10,001. Another relationship trashed.
Perhaps in this media sound-bite, feel-good world people think that
if they say something, it makes it true. If a politician says he did
not support the Iraq War, we are supposed to accept that as truth
... without having to check his record and find out that months ago
he was a vigorous supporter of the war. Truth no longer seems relevant
in our society. What is more important is perception - and perception
is accepted as reality. They said they were SEALs, so they must be
SEALs. Why would they lie? Any attempt to discredit the liar is perceived
as a vendetta.
The phony is not doing any harm - who cares anyhow right? Wrong!
I bet Christine cares. I bet my swim buddy's sister-in-law cares.
Veterans care. I care. Do you care?
Back to the email from Christine. Respond or Delete? What is more
important - the truth - or Christine? Darn him!
