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<\/a><\/center><\/p>\nAnotherPat sends us a link to the story<\/a> of Joshua Linney<\/a>, a candidate for mayor of Holmes Beach, Florida. Linney claimed that he was a veteran of the 1st Gulf War – even though he was only 15 years old at the time the war was fought;<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m a Gulf War veteran whose worked to overcome war, trauma, alcoholism, chemical dependence and PTSD, while living with disabilities, and I conquered them all,\u201d Linney, 42, wrote in a biography submitted to the Manatee County supervisor of elections office and posted on the agency\u2019s website.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n According to the article, Linney joined the Army in 1993 and went to Kuwait, earning the Southwest Asia Service Medal, but well after hostilities.<\/p>\n Linney still claims to be a Gulf War veteran and that he has been diagnosed with Gulf War Syndrome, a multi-symptom medical condition that has affected many veterans of the war.<\/p>\n \u201cThe reason I say Iraq to people, I\u2019m not saying it to be misleading,\u201d Linney said. \u201cSaying I flew into Saudi Arabia doesn\u2019t explain what they are asking so it\u2019s easier to say Iraq. It\u2019s not a misrepresentation.\u201d<\/p>\n In his biography, Linney states that while he was in the Army, he turned down an appointment to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., to attend airborne and Army Ranger training. He also said he graduated from Advanced Infantry Training.<\/p>\n However, there is no such thing as Advance Infantry Training in the Army. Every soldier who goes through basic training regardless of job description undergoes Advanced Individual Training for their particular assignment. In Linney\u2019s case, he was a cook and not an infantryman.<\/p>\n \u201cI misspoke there,\u201d Linney said. \u201cI wasn\u2019t trying to misrepresent myself as infantry. I know what AIT is and I wrote it down wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n Linney did complete jump school, but there is no indication he attended the Ranger Indoctrination Program, or RIP, a three-week course that must be completed before being eligible to attend Ranger School. Linney claims he was attending RIP when he was injured on a jump and was reassigned.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Yeah, not much chance there was a Ranger School slot for a spoon.<\/p>\n Dude is a hot mess. He’s been arrested for DUI, and several drug charges. His Facebook page says that he’s Chief Technology Officer at Veterans For Cannabis.<\/p>\n In 2012, Linney was charged with petit theft and battery, but the charges were dropped. In 2013, he was charged with petit theft for shoplifting at the Cortez Road Walmart, and paid restitution and court costs. He was charged again in 2016 for misdemeanor theft for shoplifting at the Walmart in Palmetto for which he again paid restitution and court costs.<\/p>\n Linney had trouble remembering most of his run-ins with law enforcement, but he said most of the drug arrests were dropped, including one arrest for possession of methamphetamine with intent to sell and another arrest for possession of cocaine.<\/p>\n \u201cI never had any problems with coke,\u201d he said. \u201cIt doesn\u2019t work for me and it\u2019s something I never enjoyed..\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"