![\"Matthis](\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/06\/Iraq-Vet-Chiroux.jpg\")
\nA few people have come on this blog and told us what Matthis was like during his service in the Army and after. Now, for the first time, we read about his pre-Army days – and the back story is not really that surprising. Matthis has changed his bio to to include this little fairy tale;<\/p>\n
Matthis was impressed into the U.S. Army at age 18 during a period of homelessness in Alabama.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Well it turns that it’s not exactly true. He made a series of bad choices in his young life that left the Army as his own option according to his father who sent me the following email;<\/p>\n
Matthis was called to the Lee County Justice Center (Alabama) by his juvenile probation officer after his father reported he had discovered his son was selling mushrooms (the drug kind) in a playground next to the local elementary school. The father met with and invited the local army recruiter, located his son, who was staying in a tent in an older lady’s backyard, and transported him to the Lee County Justice Center for a meeting with his probation officer, his father and the army recruiter. Due to Matthis’ not insignificant juvenile history involving repeated drug and theft incidents Matthis’ father made it clear that Matthis had a choice of joining the army or his father would file a complaint with the Opelika Police Department and testify against him. Matthis probation officer made it clear that being found guilty of selling a controlled substance in such close proximity to an elementary school, combined with his juvenile history would likely result in a minimum 5-year sentence in the State Penitentairy as an adult convict. In the presence of his Juvenile Probation Officer Matthis then turned to the army recruiter and said, “It looks like I am joining the team”, to which the army recruiter asked, “So what do you like to do, besides drugs?” <\/p><\/blockquote>\n
So, anyway off Matthis went to the Army and he actually fared pretty well – Sergeant in five years, made it through 5-jump-chump school, assignments to Japan and Germany, honorable discharge. And then the Army called him back for a few months of his IRR obligation and he decided that he didn’t want to cut his hair again and declared his intention to ignore the order and he made a big scene. His father visited him on Fathers’ Day 2008 when Matthis was “hiding out” in the DC IVAW treehouse. While they were down on the National Mall touring DC, Matthis threatened his father;<\/p>\n
…he threatened to reveal the details of how I pushed him into the army. The discussion ended abruptly when my response was “the truth was fine with me, go right ahead.” He looked perplexed…<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Oh, and that whole anti-war thing? For Matthis, it’s situational and subject to revision;<\/p>\n
I asked him earlier that day why he was doing this and he told me he felt the war in Iraq was illegal. I asked him what if the army would be willing to commit to send you to Afghanistan instead. He told me he would not hesitate to go, that war was sanctioned by the U.N. and was legal. He was very clear about that.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n