Update:
I confronted this guy about his stories today. I had been invited to a traditional Native American sweat lodge with him, which I had been very excited about, until he told me his stories, after which I started to dread seeing him again. I resolved that, before the sweat lodge, I would talk to him about what he said.
I sat him down privately and said: look, I want you to know that, even if everything you told me the other day is made up, I still respect you. Because I think you’re a good guy, a good friend, a good father, etc. I think that when you told me those stories, you were spinning some tall tales. And that’s ok. I just want you to know that even if none of that stuff ever happened, I would respect you for the guy I know you to be.
He acted kind of hurt that I didn’t believe him, and insisted to me that he had been telling me the truth about his supposed military adventures during Operation Just Cause.
Then I simply repeated what I said before. And he told me that he had been abused as a kid and that he was told by his father that he’d never amount to anything. I said, “don’t let anyone ever tell you that, because it’s not true. You are a great guy.” And he got very emotional and started to sort of cry, after I told him that.
He told me how glad he was to be my brother and friend. But he never admitted that he made up the stories and apologized.
Later I noticed he had a “USMC” tattoo on his arm. Frankly I don’t know how he explains that tattoo to people, especially to his own son. Hasn’t his son asked his father about his supposed service? There’s no way that he, as a genuine Marine, would not think the story is totally unbelievable and absurd. Maybe he rationalizes the tattoo by saying he got it in honor of his son or his grandfather or something, but I don’t think that excuse would cut a lot of ice with actual servicemen.
The sweat lodge, by the way, was an unbelievable experience. It is something everyone should try once. I did it once before at summer camp as a teenager, but that was nothing compared to this session, which was put on by actual Native Americans (some of them were probably only a very small percentage Native, and I used to mock these type of people, but after tonight, I can say: if they really believe in the rituals, that’s enough.)