Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: Restoring Valor

Subtitle: One Couples Mission to Expose Fraudulent War Heroes and to Protect Americas Military Awards System

Author: Doug Michael Sterner, Pam Sterner, Michael Mink

Narrator: Joe Geoffrey

Format: Unabridged

Length: 9 hrs and 43 mins

Language: English

Release date: 02-14-14

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 3 of 5 out of 1 votes

Genres: History, Military

Publisher's Summary:

Stolen valor occurs when a person lies about receiving military decorations that he or she has in fact never earned. It has become a major societal problem that has been discussed numerous times in the news and, most recently, by the US Supreme Court. According to The New York Times, the Department of Veterans Affairs paid disability benefits to more than six hundred people falsely claiming to have been POWs in the Vietnam and Persian Gulf wars. The number of stolen valor cases reported to the FBI has tripled in the last decade. In fact, more imposters lie about earning high military declarations for battlefield bravery than the actual number of real-life hero recipients. These imposters trade on tales and the trappings of military valor to secure privileges such as career advancements and even unearned veterans benefits.

Because officially recognized valor is a calling card of trust and courage, many of these imposters steal it to invade the lives of people and institutions, for personal gain and often with criminal results. In Restoring Valor, Doug Sterner provides riveting case studies of the stolen valor imposters hes investigated and exposed, and the serious crimes including murder theyve committed. He chronicles the evolution of stolen valor from the inception of the republic to today. Sterner demonstrates why the federal law he and his wife Pam helped to enact, called the Stolen Valor Act, is necessary.

Members Reviews:

Real People Who Made a Difference

Doug and Pam Sterner are "regular folks". They are not rich or particularly politically connected. But there is nothing "regular" about their dedication to our American heroes. They are humble, amazingly loyal patriots. But they do more than talk the talk. They walk the walk.

A Bronze Star recipient for his service during the Vietnam war, Doug watched incredulously as fakes and phonies claimed military successes they never earned. It was too much. He decided to debunk these pretenders. Using public records, he began the enormous project of setting up a detailed database of those who had received our nation's highest awards for meritorious military service. His database verified the individuals name, branch of the service, rank, award received and listed the full description of the actions prompting that award. Gradually, he was able to contest those who dishonestly claimed to be heroes. Politicians, governmental officials, and private citizens began turning to him with questions -- and he was able to debunk or confirm that an individual was in fact a true hero or was, unfortunately, gaming the system for his own aggrandizement. Pam, a student during part of the time Doug was generating the database, began writing a paper on the topic of those who claimed awards they had never really earned. Her work was so significant that the paper became the starting point for what ultimately became the Stolen Valor Act.

Pam and Doug urged politicians and governmental officials to author and/or support the Act. They met with Congressional representatives and appeared before Congressional committees. They debunked case after case of fraudulent claims of heroism.