# Trump gifted a Purple Heart real one or a copy? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 3, 2016, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-gifted-a-purple-heart-real-one-or-a-copy/761610 "2016-08-03T04:23:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![newme](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e0b2c6/32.png) [@newme](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/newme)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2016, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-gifted-a-purple-heart-real-one-or-a-copy/761610/21 "2016-08-03T20:59:12Z")
[New Purple Hearts](https://www.gracoind.com/Government/search.aspx?searchterms=purple+heart) are currently manufactured[just north of Houston:](http://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/Tomball-plant-honored-to-make-Purple-Hearts-1829907.php) > [@](#): > > A small manufacturing plant in Tomball owes much of its success to a product nobody wants. > The 60 or so employees at Graco Awards make Purple Hearts, among other medals, primarily for the U.S. government. > Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have increased demand for the medals, which are presented to troops wounded in combat and to the survivors of those killed on the battlefield. But [Tom Tucker](http://www.chron.com/search/?action=search&channel=news%2Fhouston-texas&inlineLink=1&searchindex=gsa&query=%22Tom+Tucker%22), who bought Graco Awards three years ago, says the medals are always big sellers — either to veterans of previous wars seeking replacements or wholesalers who service military bases. ---
**Author:** ![Bear\_Nenno](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bear_nenno/32/3358_2.png) [@Bear\_Nenno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bear_Nenno)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2016, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-gifted-a-purple-heart-real-one-or-a-copy/761610/22 "2016-08-03T21:05:48Z")
> [@RivkahChaya](#): > > I’ve seen costume purple hearts made of plastic that looked real from a distance, but if you were within about 4 feet, it was pretty obvious they were toys. They’re made because some kids want to have a uniform like their parents, and want to have medals and ribbons, but you don’t want to buy a little kid actual decorations, or maybe someone needs one for a school play. > > However, if it looks real close up, it probably did come from an award or clothing and sales, either directly, or by way of eBay. > > There are plenty of them floating around. For example, when I graduated basic, one of my classmates was given he grandfather’s purple heart by her family. She was the first person to enter the military since her grandfather fought in Korea, and so the family decided she deserved to be the keeper of the medal (her grandfather was deceased). > > My husband was awarded a good conduct medal when he was discharged from active duty in Iraq. He gave the ceremonial medal to his father, then went and bought another at clothing and sales in case he ever needed one for his uniform. > > “Real” could mean did the veteran who gave it to Trump get wounded himself, or did he come by the medal some other way? Someone who was never wounded himself, but had a relative’s medal, say, might be described as not having a “real” one. Or someone who bought it on eBay, even if he bought it from someone who came by it honestly, might be described as not having a “real” medal. Clothing Sales! Not, Clothing and Sales. Sorry, pet peeve. I’m fighting a losing battle on that front. It’s short for Military Clothing Sales Store, or MCSS. Army people will either be surprised to learn this, or will understand my frustration. Others will have no idea what I’m on about. Carry on. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2016, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-gifted-a-purple-heart-real-one-or-a-copy/761610/23 "2016-08-03T21:10:15Z")
> [@Bear\_Nenno](#): > > Clothing Sales! Not, Clothing and Sales. Sorry, pet peeve. I’m fighting a losing battle on that front. It’s short for Military Clothing Sales Store, or MCSS. Army people will either be surprised to learn this, or will understand my frustration. Others will have no idea what I’m on about. > Carry on. Sorry. Everyone calls it that. I know you are right, but I also know that if I don’t say “Clothing and sales,” people won’t know what I’m talking about. They’re often next to a PX (because they share a truck entrance), and I think people call them that as though the PX is the sales, and the MCSS is the clothing. ---
**Author:** ![griffin1977](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/977dab/32.png) [@griffin1977](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/griffin1977)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2016, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-gifted-a-purple-heart-real-one-or-a-copy/761610/24 "2016-08-03T21:13:45Z")
> [@Bear\_Nenno](#): > > “Copy” just isn’t the right word, and it suggests that a particular medal was made or engraved specifically for this soldier. If that soldier has more than one set of dress uniforms, complete with medals, they will each have identical purple heart medals on them. There will be no way to distinguish any of those medals from the actual medal pinned on him at a ceremony. He might keep that particular medal on his desk or shelf at home or something for sentimentality. But there is nothing beyond that sentimental value that distinguishes it from any other. The fact that none of the media outlets who reported this story pointed this out (at least as far as I heard/read) is a sign of how goddamn lazy the news media is nowadays. And (off topic, I know!) that is one of the main reasons we have a walking dumpster fire running for president. ---
**Author:** ![Bear\_Nenno](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bear_nenno/32/3358_2.png) [@Bear\_Nenno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bear_Nenno)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2016, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-gifted-a-purple-heart-real-one-or-a-copy/761610/25 "2016-08-03T21:15:33Z")
> [@kunilou](#): > > Is this the explanation for John Kerry’s confusing remark that[he kept his medals and threw away his ribbons?](http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/story?id=123495&page=1) It’s all BS anyway. You can’t “give back” a medal. The medal itself counts for nothing. It’s the orders awarding you the medal that matters. Unless he has somehow gone through a process of rescending those orders, he hasn’t given anything back. He could take ribbons or medals off of his uniform during some ralley and throw them away, or whatever he did, as a sign of protest or some symbolic action. But he hasn’t given back or given up anything. He still has the medal because it is listed on his permanent records. Get those rescended, or declined before it is approved, and you’ve actually done something. Otherwise, its all just for show. Its not like when an olympic athlete mails his/her medal back to the Olympic Committee in protest. In that case, that person just gave away an unreplaceable, valuable, unique thing. In the case of Kerry, he either threw away a ribbon rack (about 30 bucks total) or a couple actual medals (150 bucks maybe). But he didnt get rid of anything or give anything back. ---
**Author:** ![Bear\_Nenno](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bear_nenno/32/3358_2.png) [@Bear\_Nenno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bear_Nenno)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2016, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-gifted-a-purple-heart-real-one-or-a-copy/761610/26 "2016-08-03T21:22:16Z")
> [@RivkahChaya](#): > > Sorry. Everyone calls it that. I know you are right, but I also know that if I don’t say “Clothing and sales,” people won’t know what I’m talking about. > > They’re often next to a PX (because they share a truck entrance), and I think people call them that as though the PX is the sales, and the MCSS is the clothing. No worries. I know everyone says it. It just kills me every time. lol. I like your hypothesis about the sales part being the px and the clothing being the MCSS in some peoples’ mind. Ive always just chalked it up to the “ing” sound in clothing making it difficult to differentiate whether the person is saying clothing and sales or clothing sales. It kind of sounds like there is an “and” in there. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-gifted-a-purple-heart-real-one-or-a-copy/761610.md?page=1)