{"id":139826,"date":"2023-04-10T07:50:44","date_gmt":"2023-04-10T11:50:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/valorguardians.com\/blog\/?p=139826"},"modified":"2023-04-10T01:38:33","modified_gmt":"2023-04-10T05:38:33","slug":"morton-when-it-rains-it-pours","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/?p=139826","title":{"rendered":"Matthew Morton &#8211; Phony Wounded Combat Action Marine"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"rumble\" src=\"https:\/\/rumble.com\/embed\/v2epjqg\/?pub=xkiwf\" width=\"426\" height=\"240\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\r\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\r\n<p>The folks at <a href=\"https:\/\/militaryphony.com\/2023\/04\/09\/matthew-morton-us-marine-corps-staff-sergeant-three-purple-hearts-four-combat-action-ribbons-combat-disabled-blog-of-shame\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">MilitaryPhony<\/a> send us their work on this <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/matt.morton.8\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Matthew Michael Morton<\/a> fella. Morton comes to us from Florissant \/ Saint Louis, Missouri. At the time of this writing, April 2023, Morton is 48 years old. Morton wrote a book titled &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Adaptive-Bodybuilding-Matthew-Morton\/dp\/B09ZVFYCSY\/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&amp;qid=1681062822&amp;sr=8-1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Adaptive Bodybuilding<\/a>&#8221; in which he claims he &#8220;spent 5 years in the US Marine Corps, serving from 1992 to 1997, retiring with the rank of Staff Seargent. [sic]&#8221;<\/p>\r\n<figure id=\"attachment_139828\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-139828\" style=\"width: 320px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-book-cover.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-139828\" src=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-book-cover-227x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"320\" height=\"422\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-book-cover-227x300.jpg 227w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-book-cover-252x333.jpg 252w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-book-cover.jpg 379w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 320px) 100vw, 320px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-139828\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Cover of &#8220;Adaptive Bodybuilding&#8221; by Matthew Morton<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n<p>Morton&#8217;s book also claimed that he was awarded three (3) Purple Heart medals for being wounded in combat, along with four (4) Combat Action Ribbons for service in Somalia (1993), Rwanda (1994), Albania (1995) and Bosnia (1995). He also claimed that he &#8220;was part of a team that rescued downed U.S. Air Force Pilot, Captain Scott O&#8217;Grady from behind enemy lines.&#8221;<\/p>\r\n<figure id=\"attachment_139829\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-139829\" style=\"width: 450px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-book.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-139829\" src=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-book-210x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"450\" height=\"642\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-book-210x300.jpg 210w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-book-233x333.jpg 233w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-book-768x1095.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-book-1077x1536.jpg 1077w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-book.jpg 1304w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 450px) 100vw, 450px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-139829\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Excerpt from book &#8220;Adaptive Bodybuilding&#8221; by Matthew Morton<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n<p>In the Preface section of his book, Morton also claims that he had left the Marine Corps with PTSD and disabilities that he had amassed.<\/p>\r\n<figure id=\"attachment_139830\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-139830\" style=\"width: 450px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-book-preface.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-139830\" src=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-book-preface-211x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"450\" height=\"640\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-book-preface-211x300.jpg 211w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-book-preface-234x333.jpg 234w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-book-preface-768x1093.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-book-preface-1079x1536.jpg 1079w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-book-preface.jpg 1305w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 450px) 100vw, 450px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-139830\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Preface from book &#8220;Adaptive Bodybuilding&#8221; by Matthew Morton<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n<p>It&#8217;s probably not clear to many people whether or not Morton received combat injuries while in the Marines that lead to him being restricted to a wheelchair.<\/p>\r\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-youcanfind.com-claims.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-139831 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-youcanfind.com-claims-300x195.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"450\" height=\"292\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-youcanfind.com-claims-300x195.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-youcanfind.com-claims-500x324.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-youcanfind.com-claims.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 450px) 100vw, 450px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\r\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/yoocanfind.com\/Story\/1424\/being-differently-abled-fighting-the-battle#!\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">https:\/\/yoocanfind.com\/Story\/1424\/being-differently-abled-fighting-the-battle#!<\/a><\/p>\r\n<figure id=\"attachment_139839\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-139839\" style=\"width: 450px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-twitter.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-139839\" src=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-twitter-300x223.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"450\" height=\"334\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-twitter-300x223.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-twitter-448x333.jpg 448w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-twitter-768x571.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-twitter.jpg 931w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 450px) 100vw, 450px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-139839\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Twitter &#8211; Matt Morton<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n<p>But the following video posted to Morton&#8217;s Instagram profile clearly shows him using his legs without the aid of a wheelchair&#8230;<\/p>\r\n<p>[videopress iCyk8unB]<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">SOURCE: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.secure.instagram.com\/adaptfit_mattmorton\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">https:\/\/www.secure.instagram.com\/adaptfit_mattmorton\/<\/a><\/p>\r\n<p>Morton claimed in his book that he was part of the rescue team that retrieved US Air Force pilot Captain Scott O&#8217;Grady&#8230;<\/p>\r\n<figure id=\"attachment_139843\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-139843\" style=\"width: 450px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-ogrady_rescue.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-139843\" src=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-ogrady_rescue-300x58.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"450\" height=\"87\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-ogrady_rescue-300x58.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-ogrady_rescue-500x97.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-ogrady_rescue-768x149.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-ogrady_rescue.jpg 873w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 450px) 100vw, 450px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-139843\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Excerpt from book &#8220;Adaptive Bodybuilding&#8221; by Matthew Morton<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n<p>Morton also had this photo posted on his Facebook profile, claiming he was one of the Marines in the photo of the rescue team&#8230;<\/p>\r\n<figure id=\"attachment_139844\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-139844\" style=\"width: 500px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-rescue-team.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-139844 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-rescue-team-500x261.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"261\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-rescue-team-500x261.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-rescue-team-300x157.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-rescue-team-768x401.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-rescue-team-1536x803.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-rescue-team.jpg 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-139844\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Facebook photo<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n<p>But alas, Jonn Lilyea posted about Morton back in 2016 and debunked the claims of him participating in the actual rescue operation.\u00a0 It seems that did not deter Morton from embellishing his military career even further.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n<figure id=\"attachment_139845\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-139845\" style=\"width: 256px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/?p=67811\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-139845 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/thisainthell-morton.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"256\" height=\"256\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/thisainthell-morton.jpg 256w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/thisainthell-morton-150x150.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 256px) 100vw, 256px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-139845\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/?p=67811\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/?p=67811<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n<p>In Jonn&#8217;s blog about Morton, there are military records and a newspaper article from the Southeast Missourian, which spoke about Morton&#8217;s account of the rescue mission. There was no mention of his injuries, but instead, the article focused on the 1995 O&#8217;Grady rescue mission.<\/p>\r\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-article-semissourian-3-30-1999.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-139848\" src=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-article-semissourian-3-30-1999-300x216.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"485\" height=\"348\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-article-semissourian-3-30-1999-300x216.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-article-semissourian-3-30-1999-464x333.jpg 464w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-article-semissourian-3-30-1999-768x552.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-article-semissourian-3-30-1999-1536x1103.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-article-semissourian-3-30-1999.jpg 1566w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 485px) 100vw, 485px\" \/><\/a><br \/>Although Morton had been initially called out on his martial arts claims, there was no mention of his disabilities or Marine Corps combat-related injuries as he has claimed. This was 2016.<\/p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px;\">*** While we cannot verify whether Morton&#8217;s disabilities were documented in his Marine Corps medical records, we find it interesting that he was able to gain entry into the 1140th Combat Engineer Battalion of the Missouri National Guard after leaving the Marine Corps in 1997. Seems like his medical condition would be an issue unless he got a medical waiver. But being wheelchair-bound would certainly be an issue so we suspect that wasn&#8217;t the case. ***<\/p>\r\n<p>Again, we found it most interesting that Morton did not seem to exhibit the combat-related disabilities that are at the center of his bodybuilding principles that limit him to a wheelchair.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n<p>He very well may have some form of degenerative disease that has caused a disability.<\/p>\r\n<p>But wait, there&#8217;s more&#8230;<br \/><br \/>Now, there is a new book by Morton that was recently announced on his Facebook page&#8230;<br \/><br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-taekwondo.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-139846\" src=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-taekwondo-300x245.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"400\" height=\"326\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-taekwondo-300x245.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-taekwondo-408x333.jpg 408w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-taekwondo-768x626.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-taekwondo.jpg 1229w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\r\n<p class=\"has-text-color has-text-align-center has-luminous-vivid-amber-color\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #d8c5a7;\"><strong>. . . . .<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n<blockquote>\r\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>FOIA RESULTS<\/strong><\/h2>\r\n<p><strong>NATIONAL PERSONNEL RECORDS CENTER<\/strong> (NPRC)<\/p>\r\n<figure id=\"attachment_139833\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-139833\" style=\"width: 450px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-foia-summary-sheet.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-139833\" src=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-foia-summary-sheet-232x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"450\" height=\"582\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-foia-summary-sheet-232x300.jpg 232w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-foia-summary-sheet-257x333.jpg 257w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-foia-summary-sheet-768x994.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-foia-summary-sheet-1187x1536.jpg 1187w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-foia-summary-sheet-1583x2048.jpg 1583w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-foia-summary-sheet.jpg 1700w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 450px) 100vw, 450px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-139833\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">FOIA Results &#8211; NPRC &#8211; Summary Sheet -Matthew Morton<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n<figure id=\"attachment_139834\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-139834\" style=\"width: 450px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-foia-assignments.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-139834\" src=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-foia-assignments-232x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"450\" height=\"582\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-foia-assignments-232x300.jpg 232w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-foia-assignments-257x333.jpg 257w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-foia-assignments-768x994.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-foia-assignments-1187x1536.jpg 1187w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-foia-assignments-1583x2048.jpg 1583w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-foia-assignments.jpg 1700w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 450px) 100vw, 450px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-139834\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">FOIA Results &#8211; NPRC &#8211; Assignments -Matthew Morton<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #d8c5a7;\"><strong>. . . . .<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\r\n<p><strong>OTHER RECORDS<\/strong> (THIS AIN&#8217;T HELL)<br \/>Although third-party, meaning we don&#8217;t know if they were supplied to This Ain&#8217;t Hell or they obtained the records themselves, we supply them here. They appear to accurately reflect the results that we obtained from the NPRC. The combat history page is particularly illustrative of Morton&#8217;s deployment experiences.<\/p>\r\n<figure id=\"attachment_35920\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-35920\" style=\"width: 100px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/foia-morton_tah.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-35920\" src=\"https:\/\/militaryphony.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/pdf_icon.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-35920\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">FOIA Results &#8211; TAH<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><span style=\"color: #d8c5a7;\">. . . . .<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\r\n<h2><strong>DISCUSSION and SUMMARY<\/strong><\/h2>\r\n<p><strong>LENGTH OF SERVICE<\/strong><\/p>\r\n<p>The length of service is consistent across all FOIA results &#8211; 1993-1997 &#8211; representing a four year enlistment. We find it odd that he claimed that he served for five (5) years in his book, but perhaps he was counting delayed entry time.<\/p>\r\n<figure id=\"attachment_139837\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-139837\" style=\"width: 450px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-rank.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-139837\" src=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-rank-500x59.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"450\" height=\"53\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-rank-500x59.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-rank-300x35.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-rank-768x91.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-rank.jpg 1034w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 450px) 100vw, 450px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-139837\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Excerpt from book &#8220;Adaptive Bodybuilding&#8221; by Matthew Morton<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n<p>The claim of &#8220;retiring&#8221; from the Marine Corps is a bit odd, but leads one to believe it was a medical retirement since Morton only completed four (4) years. However, the dates of his enlistment are from June 14, 1993 to June 13, 1997 &#8211; exactly four (4) years. That would cast some doubt on a medical retirement but it is possible that the dates coincided. As state previously, a medical retirement or medical issue in general would have to be overcome to enter the Missouri National Guard &#8211; no small hurdle.<br \/><br \/><strong>RANK<br \/><\/strong>All documents &#8211; the NPRC summary sheet and the DD-214 &#8211; state that Morton was a Lance Corporal (E-3) vs. the Staff Sergeant (E-6) that he claimed. Morton left the service as an E-3 Lance Corporal.\u00a0 Although it is possible that Morton achieved a higher rank with the Missouri National Guard, he made a specific claim in his book that he retired as a &#8220;Staff Seargent&#8221; [sic] in the Marines.<\/p>\r\n<figure id=\"attachment_139837\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-139837\" style=\"width: 450px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-rank.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-139837\" src=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-rank-300x35.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"450\" height=\"53\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-rank-300x35.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-rank-500x59.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-rank-768x91.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/morton-rank.jpg 1034w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 450px) 100vw, 450px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-139837\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Excerpt from book &#8220;Adaptive Bodybuilding&#8221; by Matthew Morton<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n<p>Morton&#8217;s official military records do not support his claim of retiring as a Staff Sergeant in the Marine Corps. <br \/><br \/><strong>ASSIGNMENTS<br \/><\/strong>Morton was assigned to the overall MEU that was involved in the Captain Scott O&#8217;Grady rescue effort in 1999. The pilot that helped with the original blog stated that Morton was not on the roster of 61 individuals that were part of the rescue. We will leave this claim to those knowledgeable about the event.<br \/><br \/><strong>PURPLE HEARTS &amp; COMBAT ACTION RIBBONS<br \/><\/strong>Morton&#8217;s records do not support the claims that he has a Purple Heart, let alone the claim of three in his book. Also, there are no Combat Action Ribbons (CARs) listed. The claim of both of these medals are covered in the Stolen Valor Act of 2013.<br \/><br \/>Morton joined the Marine Corps in mid-June 1993 so it would have been a challenge to complete boot camp, attend advanced infantry training (SCOLOFIN = School of Infantry) and make it to Somalia. In fact, his records show that he went to Fort Sill Oklahoma for artillery school in Nov-Dec of 1993, then on to Camp Lejeune in early 1994.<br \/><br \/>On October 7, 1993 then President Clinton called for a withdrawal of US Forces in Somalia no later than March 31, 1994. Morton was assigned to BLT 2\/8, 24 MEU in September 1994.<br \/><br \/><strong>SUMMARY<br \/><\/strong>Matthew Morton does not have any Purple Heart Medals, He does not have any Combat Action Ribbons, He was never a Staff Sergeant, and he did not directly participate in the rescue of anyone from behind enemy lines.\u00a0 If Matthew Morton has used any of these claims to gain anything of value, he could violate the Stolen Valor Act.<\/p>\r\n<\/blockquote>\r\n<p>View the video on our <a href=\"http:\/\/www,rumble.com\/Valorguardians\">Rumble Channel<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp; The folks at MilitaryPhony send us their work on this Matthew Michael Morton fella. Morton &hellip; <a title=\"Matthew Morton &#8211; Phony Wounded Combat Action Marine\" class=\"hm-read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/?p=139826\"><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Matthew Morton &#8211; Phony Wounded Combat Action Marine<\/span>Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":654,"featured_media":139827,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[586,396,424,461,408,391],"tags":[441],"class_list":["post-139826","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-combat-wounded","category-marinecorpsposer","category-ptsd","category-purple-heart","category-stolen-valor","category-valorvultures","tag-combat-action-ribbon"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/139826","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/654"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=139826"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/139826\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":139847,"href":"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/139826\/revisions\/139847"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/139827"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=139826"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=139826"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=139826"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}