Thank you for your service-Free Fox Nation Year → Free Fox Nation Year →

If Don Shipley’s name is a wake-up call for you, it’s probably for one of two reasons: Either you like to watch him yell, go bankrupt, and humiliate brave scammers who stole it; or you are one of those scammers. one.

Don Shipley is a retired senior chief of staff of the United States Navy, who wore uniform from 1978 to 2003. Sr. Shipley began his career in the Fleet Navy, where he eventually met his wife Diane; an active sailor. Chief Shipley and his wife met in the simplest way on that ship. Shipley was training on the boat, and his wife and her friends were talking in the back. An angry Shipley told Diane and her friends, "Shut up, otherwise you can teach this class yourself." After the training, Diane approached Tang and said, "Are you asking me to go out or what?" For both of them, this is the beginning of a crazy journey, which has been 37 years.

I interviewed Sr. Shipley over the phone to learn about his background story and learn more about how he fought the fake SEALs. One of the things he told me to meet with his wife was that once he and Diane were married, the rules of the navy required one of them to leave the ship. Shipley knows almost nothing about the Navy SEALs. He only watched their training in Coronado, California. He thought that work seemed much more interesting to him than life on the ship, so he made a late action. And received the BUDS order (basic underwater blasting seal) training.

Captain Shipley successfully completed the BUDS and was assigned to the first team of the SEALs in Coronado in 1985. For those who are unfamiliar, all the odd-numbered SEALs are located in Coronado, and all the even-numbered SEALs are located in Virginia Creek (the SEAL Team 6 is located across the street from these even numbers-numbered Virginia) ).

After performing several missions on the west coast, Sr. Chief Shipley was transferred to the east coast team and became a member of the second SEAL team. According to Sr. Chief Shipley’s website, “When he is not in the SEAL platoon or deployed overseas, his time is spent on the air combat, land combat and blasting training of the SEALs.” It continued, “As A SEAL, he prefers the challenges of mountain and Arctic warfare, but started his career in the same hostile desert environment, spending most of his time in the hottest and coldest climate in the world pass."

According to his website, Shipley served in eight SEALs, served as platoon leader in five platoons, and was awarded the Navy and Marine Corps Heroes in a search and rescue mission. As a SEAL, he operated in Bosnia and Liberia and became the first non-military SEAL to graduate from nursing school.

In addition to being a Navy SEAL veteran, Sr. Chief Shipley's family is also immersed in military service. As I mentioned earlier, Shipley’s wife is a Navy veteran, his brother is a Marine and Army veteran, and his son DJ Shipley is a former DEVGRU operator and was injured in the battle. And received the Purple Heart Medal. In addition, Chief Shipley's son-in-law is also a member of the Navy SEALs. It can be said that glorious service in dangerous environments and places flows in the blood vessels of the Shipley family.

Considering this information, there is no doubt why Sr. Shipley is so strong on people who (at best) pretend to have served in military service or (at worst) use their fake military service—usually the so-called Navy SEALs— -As a way to get attention, money or preferential treatment.

Chief Shipley said that the most inspiring (if not all) people who pretend to be SEALs are one of three things: the desire to build trust with someone; the desire to be respected by others; and the desire to intimidate someone.

If you are not familiar with Sr. Chief Shipley, this is where the real fun begins. First, over the years, Shipley and some of his old naval partners ran a project he called the Extreme Seal Experience (ESE), in which people could pay to come to Shipley’s property and receive a course. Let them experience what a SEAL team is, or what a SEAL training is like. Shipley originally created the course to help recruit naval special operations personnel, but the training eventually transitioned to a place where ordinary people can participate in physical and mental challenges.

The reasons why people take courses are as different as the people who take courses. Some of the participants in the course were ex-soldiers who had just missed the action that pushed their bodies to the limit. Others are industry professionals, they want to do some difficult things, so that they have a different perspective and mentality. Nonetheless, others are potential SEALs, and they hope to get any information they can get from experienced veterans in leadership courses before they participate in BUDS training.

There is no doubt that Mr. Sr. Shipley has no preconceived idea that the ESE course will push him under the spotlight of the public, but the course and the upcoming YouTube video will eventually work.

Read the next post: YouTube bans SEALs who expose heroic stolen cases

Now, Sr. Chief Shipley is best known in the United States for his "Fake Navy Seal of the Week" video that he posted on YouTube and his website in the past few years. First of all, if you have never watched Shipley’s videos, take a quick break from this article, and then head to his Youtube channel to watch some videos. I promise you will not be disappointed. Shipley and his wife Diane are usually at the helm of the video. They are a comedy duo that is rarely seen in the media. They are primitive, lively, real, serious, and even emotional—sometimes in a video.

In these videos, the Shipleys show us part of their false SEAL tagging behind the scenes, part of it is a glimpse of their relationship, and a large part of it to those who improperly use the "Seals". The person with the title puts on underwear to show some ill-gotten gains.

I think most people have been restricted by the news media or urban folklore, that is, people like the SEALs are serious people without a sense of humor. In fact, as I have discovered over the years, the situation is almost completely opposite. Because their initial training is very difficult and their daily work is very dangerous, so most of the SEALs I have met over the years (and others, such as the Marines, Army Rangers, etc.) have a distinctive humor. feel.

I personally associate with it in this way: As a police officer, I encounter or be sent to various weird, serious or other destructive situations. Whether it's a DOA, an overdose, or someone killed. Those who I have to do cardiopulmonary resuscitation for them, those who have experienced strange car accidents, and even those who just want to know whether certain objects fit certain gaps in their bodies.

To make a long story short, if you absorb all the things you encounter as an officer without a (somewhat pathological) sense of humor, then you will either be upset, a bastard, or have substance abuse problems yourself (or maybe all three). Let me say this, no, I am not saying that being a policeman and a SEAL or Army Ranger are the same thing. they are not. What I’m going to say is that each of these jobs requires a dark and/or exaggerated sense of humor to enable people to see terrible things and protect their minds from extra wear and tear, and extend their career in the field Life.

For example, one way I deal with the fact that I give people CPR but fails is to say (when the topic comes up) "I am zero to 10". What do they mean by "10 is divided into zero"? Then I told them that I had performed CPR on 10 people and I saved zero. This is a bit exaggerated to me, but it turned out not. I have never performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation on someone to bring them back to life. Maybe I am not good at performing CPR, or maybe some of them have gone too far before I arrive. Either way, the way my brain decides to deal with it is black humor. This is the protective mechanism of my brain. I can be sad or "fun". I choose to be funny every time.

The video of Chief Shipley is the same as mine. Seeing how many fake SEALs march around the world and give the SEALs a terrible name, his choice is always to be angry and grumpy, or to deal with it with a little comedic relief, it is really overwhelming. Now, don't get me wrong, when Shipley betrayed the fake SEALs, there was almost no sense of humor. However, in all the other points and clips of the video, he is an absolute comedian. If you are still not sure how he achieved this goal, then I once again say to stop reading this article and go to his website or YouTube and witness it in person.

If Shipley just called the fake SEALs and confronted him over the phone, then for most viewers, this video would be difficult to watch because it was just a serious discussion. In turn, Shipley will be frustrated by being constantly asked to deal with these fakes that have no real emotional release. Then, his ratings may drop. When we talked, Shipley said that he actually didn't like to face these scammers, he had to make himself work harder and force himself to do it... The only exception was when the scammer's cunning was obviously a crime.

He also pointed out that people should not like to face people they think pretending to be not them. He said one thing that bothers him is that people don’t “stay in their driveway”. He gave an example. Just last month, a female customer slapped an active sailor in the face of a pizzeria in Connecticut because she thought he was a liar. She rebuked the sailor who was identified as Little Sean Nolte, cursed him, and even told other customers and restaurant staff that Nolte was "fake". Then she picked up his navy cover and threw it at him yelling: "This is not a uniform, you fucking shit!" Throughout the interaction, Nolte was polite and professional, but because the lady stayed away from her In her circle, not only did she mistakenly mark someone as having stolen courage, but she also attacked him. Shipley believes that mislabeling people is inexcusable.

In fact, Shipley insisted on "getting it right." He said that he never mistakenly labelled someone as a fake SEAL, nor did he mistakenly label someone as having stolen courage, because he invested a lot of research and effort to get it right. Shipley often reminds viewers of his videos to make sure that the label they put on someone is correct, especially before releasing the information to the public. Labeling real veterans as counterfeit is as slippery as counterfeiting false claims. In addition, if you happen to put a fake label on a real veteran, then you may find that you are still a few teeth away from a full set of equipment. And well deserved...

Over the years, Shipley has exposed people from almost all walks of life posing as SEALs. He expelled "religious" people and priests, successful professionals, ex-soldiers with glorious but not "unique" service stories, restaurant waiters (he is usually from Applebees), and tactical training under the guise of "retired SEALs" People Six" or "Former SEALs".

Chief Shipley has exposed fake SEALs (such as AJ Dickens), who had defrauded investors of $40 million before being caught; threatened by fake SEALs (played by Jerry Branion), He claims to have ties to the Gambino criminal family in New York; and because of his work, he has been threatened with personal attacks and legal consequences dozens of times. Shipley did this job not because he needed it, but because he was keen to uphold the public's respect for the term "seals" and to pay tribute to those who served and fell with the trident. Shipley told me that many of the men he used as liars were either habitual sexual predators, tax evaders, never served in uniforms, or usually just have terrible criminal backgrounds. For these reasons, these crooks tried to change the results of their miserable lives. For me, this is totally a mental disorder.

Shipley said that among the worst and most blatant liars he has ever dealt with, there has never been a person in a military uniform for a day. He said that many of these people told vivid stories in bars about having to murder large numbers of children or other disgusting behaviors they had to do as SEALs. In addition, these people are not satisfied with the war story of the high stool: they often have to mark themselves as winners of the Purple Heart or the Congressional Medal of Honor. A liar revealed by Shipley used the name recognition of Marcus Luttrell (known for being a lone survivor) to gain respect. He told people that Luttrell was actually a bad swimmer, and that he (the fake guy) did not meet his requirements in some aspects of training. When Shipley and Marcus Luttrell were exposed on the live phone call, he insisted on his story and continued to insist that he was not a liar. he is.

For many of these crooks, it is not enough to pretend to be a SEAL or even a veteran who has experienced combat. Rather, these people must become heroes to those who interact with them. They often visit munitions stores and buy uniforms, medals, and ribbons that they have not even begun to evaluate. Many of these people even created such a backstory that their best friends and even their spouse repeatedly believed that they were the war heroes of the Navy SEALs. Sadly, without Shipley's participation, many of them would get away with luck.

Chief Shipley used a secret database to verify these crooks. Perhaps the word "secret" is inappropriate because it is well known at this point, but "well-controlled" is definitely the time to describe it. Shipley is one of the very few people who can access the Navy SEAL database, which lists all those who have participated in SEAL training and graduated, along with their class number, class list, and class graduation date. Shipley used this list perfectly. He used the information contained in the database to ask the counterfeiters about BUDS training and asked questions such as "What is your BUDS class number" or "Name three people from your BUDS class".

Anyone in any branch of the military can answer these questions without hesitation. For example, if I left the military 17 years ago, I can name my associates in the boot camp (Mitch) or my associates in the Marine Corps training (Eric). I can name my training instructor, and can list dozens of people who have served with me, my boot camp platoon number, and graduation date. Not to mention, I have photos of me when I was working in the Marine Corps. It's easy because it happened. For the liar, this is entirely an act, and the key element of their story is that they can remember their lies.

Once Shipley confirms that the impersonator in question is definitely not a SEAL, he will often send requests to obtain the person's actual military records, which can be a lengthy process. He said that when he received their DD-214 (discharge documents for veterans), he often found that the counterfeiters had negative service experiences (best case) or criminal behavior (worst case), and in a certain Kind of trying to renew their reputation and gain now claiming to be a member of the SEALs.

Some scammers are more successful than others in realizing their lies and making lists of names and service locations, while others have not considered the first question of "tell me your BUDS class number and class graduation year" . As I said, Shipley perfectly used his access to the Navy SEAL database, so almost immediately most scammers’ stories began to collapse. Once their backstory collapses, scammers usually have one of the following reactions: either redouble their efforts and start threatening, or tell Shipley to call the SEALs who fill in the blanks to confirm their identity, they say the call is going down or they Begin to explain that their SEALs claimed that they were actually just "supporting" the SEALs or they were dressed up as Halloween SEALs and so on.

I asked Shipley what he thought of those who claimed that they only supported the SEALs by wearing SEAL memorabilia or putting tridents on motorcycles or cars in public. He replied: "This is the deal. These people who wear SEAL souvenirs will say "no" when asked if they are SEAL the first 10 times, but in the end they will say "yes". They will like them and say'yes' The reaction from time to time, and then a fake was born."

In fact, Shipley said that most real SEALs are reluctant to provide details of their service in the SEALs because of the response they received. It seems that a person who would be happy to tell you that they serve on SEAL Team Six may be just someone you need to watch out for as a liar. This doesn't mean they are, but it does make it more credible. "The truth is," Shipley said, "The SEALs don't need real support. This is so interesting, most of us can do it without a salary."

Today, Shipley and his wife run the non-profit organization Extreme SEAL Adventures. According to its website, “Our mission is to provide support for boys and girls suffering from cancer and other diseases who will never serve in the military through hunting and fishing, and for war-wounded veterans. Extreme SEAL Adventures is our successful operation of Extreme SEAL The way to give back after experiencing training courses and our video website."

Shipley and his wife Diane also work with people at Walter Reed Hospital to help injured veterans who are unlucky enough to get the treatment they need to reintegrate into society after being traumatized. Chief Shipley brought these people to his home in Cambridge, Maryland, to get plenty of open space and fresh air to help them move forward. There, they can hunt, chat with people who have experienced similar trauma, and eat home-cooked meals. When their trip was over, Shipley sent everyone home a box of freshly slaughtered meat.

Like Sr. Shipley's severe crackdown on fake SEALs and other frauds, he also cares about and gives to those who have made great sacrifices for this country. For them, he is generous, gentle and considerate. He is a classic example of what we expect our soldiers and veterans to become.

As long as Don Shipley decides to continue selling fake SEALs, there will be no shortage of fakes to face. After bin Laden's raid, the rescue of Jessica Lynch and the rescue of Captain Phillips, the SEAL team was exposed, which would only make the SEAL career more profitable for those who wish to abuse the reputation of the SEAL team. Now, if you pretend to be a SEAL, but you really are a fake standby. The Hammer of Justice hits you; its head says: "Hey brother, Don Shipley is here. Retired SEALs." Once you hear these words, it's too late. You're out. support.

If you like this article, please consider supporting our senior editorial by becoming a SOFREP subscriber. Click here to get 3 months of completely ad-free access for only $1 and $29.97.

There is on this article.

You must be a subscriber or log in to view or post comments on this article.

Masturbation puppet show, 300 winning magazine rifles and staples in my mind: Welcome to the Navy SEAL Sniper School

"The Forgotten Battle" is a gritty Netflix original work

The Navy SEAL's guide to getting rid of the boss

The claim that the U.S. Marine Corps surrendered to the Royal Marines has a new fact.

Your subscription supports our experienced staff

© 2021 SOFREP Media Group. all rights reserved.

We understand that advertising may not be the reason you are here, but our advertising revenue is one of the ways we keep our work and senior writers paid. This is how we continue to produce high-quality reports on wars and global issues for your appreciation.

We would be very grateful if you can whitelist us in your ad blocker. If you want an ad-free experience, please consider becoming a SOFREP member and enjoy a range of other benefits in addition to the ad-free part.