I don't have a problem with you but I do suggest that around any veteran you keep your experiences to yourself. In a room full of teens who play Call of Duty it may carry some sway but in the company of combat veterans it will get you the cold shoulder every time. Not a criticism just friendly advice.

I take a hard line against any attempt at Stolen Valor and virtual/pretend warriors are a problem. Here, I think Kooj mainly went wrong in the wording. Military background connotes real experience, and it shouldn’t be used as a ruse to exaggerate knowledge and insight. As long as people aren’t lying/exaggerating and recognize the difference between pretending and reality, I’m ok with the attempt at camaraderie. I’ve actually been impressed with the technical knowledge of the DCS crowd, but that doesn’t lead me to believe their computer time means they’ve “been there.” He seems to stop short of claiming anything like that, so maybe he could find a better way of pointing his re-enactments rather than referring to a military background.

you won’t know until you try. They may be getting 92 hour lines now, but that isn’t always the case. I remember years where 72 was good. If you didn’t bid the conflicts, you didn’t eat. A guaranteed 100 and cherry picking the 20 hrs you’d like isn’t a bad gig.

as a pretty senior FO, you’re in a good position to ask the senior CA’s you’re already flying and familiar with.
There’s also the occasional FO who lives near DFW and never plans to leave Envoy. Too old to flow and start over. They’d be a good grab too.

Explain to me “blank tracers...” :confused:

Blanks with tracers? Yep he’s delusional.

he’s got them patent pending apparently.

Doubling down on the costumed role play, eh?

Look, there's an unspoken, and perfectly justifiable, divide between dudes with a combat patch and those without one in the service. However, even dudes who somehow never deployed since 2001 still went down to MEPS one day and put their hand in the air to volunteer during wartime. Like the others have said, it's probably best not to play up your civilian OPFOR role play because that isn't remotely in the same league.

He clearly had a roman candle fight in his backyard with his uncle Donny and cousin Rico. His PTSD is tied to that.

That’s some no-joke warfare! I had a roman candle blow up in my hand one time as a kid! I got some serious PTSD from that. There’s a reason the directions say to stick it in the ground lol. (I sincerely hope the sarcasm is evident here and yet I will not hold a Roman candle ever again!)