Isaanbarang wrote: ↑Sun Sep 08, 2019 9:49 am

The Seawolf wrote: ↑Sun Sep 08, 2019 9:19 am Think I might flounce from here.

There’s a very negative and bitter vibe on this forum.

Good luck everyone.

Well that makes me believe the part of your story about deserting from the FFL.

Cowshed Cowboy wrote: ↑Sun Sep 08, 2019 9:42 am

If I was sat at a bar and a guy I don't know sat down beside me and initially said, " Man you won't believe what happened to me with this psycho ", I would have listened and sympathised having had the odd minor dodgy experience myself in the dim and distant past. However as he continued further, mentioning he'd previously been a military deserter who'd killed in the line of duty, suffered a mental breakdown but fortunately become a bit coin millionaire from a $!,000 investment and now met the love of his life the daughter of a former Laotian president, I'd probably have hastily finished my beer and move
If it's all true, obviously except the bit you now admit you lied about, then hopefully it's behind you. I always thought Laos was a sleepy backwater where nothing much happened.

A good lie mixes truth and whimsy. I got a little carried away I must admit but I know what parts are true. I come on forums sporadically to have a bit of fun and create a persona that isn’t necessarily accurate in reality. Don’t know why. Boredom?


Still I learnt my lesson with the crazy woman and haven’t been out late since and don’t intend to ever again. It was a pertinent reminder that I have reached a plateau in life where I desire all the things that I scorned in the past. Those being:

A good job that I take seriously and as my priority, financial stability where I live well within my means, a steady girl who I treat with respect and affection and good humour, an end to my wanderlust and constant search for thrills and spills, a desire to actually settle down in the same place for the rest of my days and even have a family. Stability, routine, responsibility, culpability and a little bit of self respect too.

I guess it’s called behaving like a grown up and, thus far, it’s giving me far more satisfaction than any cheap buzz or transient thrill.

It’s good and I am grateful. Anyway I am going to back off now. I am off to church. Bye.

Thumbs up for the forum. It’s just banter innit.

The Seawolf wrote: ↑Sun Sep 08, 2019 10:08 am ..I assumed the AA part of your name is reference to the friends of Bill. Whatever floats your boat.

Good luck

No SW, for the record - not bill's AA
(some say it stands for Arrog.... Ar..ole)

The Seawolf wrote: ↑Sat Sep 07, 2019 8:52 pm

Kung-fu Hillbilly wrote: ↑Sat Sep 07, 2019 8:39 pm

He's a deserter as well.

That's true as well. I did 3 years and bailed. I was a shit soldier and I hated it. Pretty shameful I know. I lost the plot when I got home, I guess I had a nervous breakdown, and I spent a few months under section on a mental health ward. Hardly bragging is it? It's just the truth. That's all.

Professional interrogators will tell you that when you uncover one lie in a story, it's not long before the entire tale unravels and it is found to be completely false. For those who are wondering, 2eme REP is the ultra-elite airborne regiment of the French Foreign Legion (Deuxieme Regiment Etranger de Parachutistes).The selection course is literally 12 months of the ultimate physical and mental testing, and makes SAS selection seem like joining the cub scouts. So this guy completed it, passed selection, then deserted because " he was a shit soldier "? No way, not possible, that's a lie right there. Sorry mate, you are done like a dinner, and now the whole sorry tale is exposed as a fantasy, maybe of a schoolboy on his cum-stained laptop in his bedroom in Manchester or Chelmsford, who has never been further East than Southend on Sea. Hope you had your fun, now it's time to quietly slink off, and maybe just maybe one day you will actually come to where the grown ups live in places like Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam.

hdgh29 wrote: ↑Sun Sep 08, 2019 12:06 pm
Professional interrogators will tell you that when you uncover one lie in a story, it's not long before the entire tale unravels and it is found to be completely false. For those who are wondering, 2eme REP is the ultra-elite airborne regiment of the French Foreign Legion (Deuxieme Regiment Etranger de Parachutistes).The selection course is literally 12 months of the ultimate physical and mental testing, and makes SAS selection seem like joining the cub scouts. So this guy completed it, passed selection, then deserted because " he was a shit soldier "? No way, not possible, that's a lie right there.

You are completely wrong on the legion as I was actually in the 2eme Rep I will fill you in.

Initial selection is two weeks in Aubagne which about 1 in 8 pass so no more than any other military force. You then head off to Castlenaudry for 4 months of basic training in which you spend a month on ‘the farm’ which is pretty rough. You end the farm with the marche Kepi Blanc which is about 80km. At the end of this you get your Kepi and become known as ‘Legionnaire’ as opposed to ‘Engage Volunteer’.

Then it’s back to Castel for more basic training. This ends with the raid marches which I found much harder than the kepi blanc marche. At the end of this you find yourself in an order based on exam results and tests which determines your choice of regiment. I came 23 out of 46; pretty crap considering I already had intermediate French and was physically the 3rd best in my company.

Choice of regiment depends on places available. I wanted to join the 3eme REI based in Guayane but those 3 spots went quick. So I chose the REP.

Then it’s back to Aubagbe to sign your full blown contract and get officially assigned your regiment. I then caught shipped off to Corsica with 8 other guys from my company.

You then start at the bottom again. Before being assigned a company within the REP you spend a month doing tests which culminates in 8 parachute jumps. You then get your brevet and get put in a company. I went to 4eme Company ‘Destructeurs eat Snipers’.

The 2eme REP is a standard parachute regiment like the paras in the UK. It is not elite. There is a special forces unit within the REP called The GCP (Groupe Commando Parachutistes) formerly known as The C.R.A.P.S and changed for obvious reasons.

The GCP consists of about 25 men and you have to be at least a Caporal to even think about applying.

Other than that the REP is a standard military regiment.

Once in the company you work at becoming Legionnaire Premier Classe (which I achieved) and then going on to do your Stage Caporal back in Castelnaudry.

Unlike many armed forces the legion employs no civilians at all so they actively seek men to do things like ‘Stage Cuisine’ (which I did) where you become a regimental cook and spend a lot of time pot washing in the kitchen. You don’t get much of a choice what specialisation you get given as it depends on various test results. If you are any good at soldiering you will do ‘Stage Sniper’ ‘Stage Medic’ etc. The dossers and slivers and generally not much crack as a soldier end up doing domestic shit - like me.

Saying that all legionnaires are combat ready after passing a test called Combat 00. A test I failed twice but passed 3rd time. So while mostly in the kitchen sloping off to smoke 30 cigarettes a day I also went on various training exercises - none of which were abroad as I failed my Combat 00 twice. About 25 percent failed by the way and some legionnaires never passed in their whole 5 year contract done remained a Legionnaire Premier Class.

I started to have a recurring foot injury in my right foot which meant I was constantly getting injured. I. Fact during initial selection a doctor who examined me noticed my very narrow feet and said “Les poems peut etre une problems.” He was right.

About 3 years into my contract, the majority of which had been spent in the kitchen I went home on leave and I couldn’t bring myself to going back. This wasn’t an easy decision and I ended up with mental health problems due to the intensity of regimental life.

Although there is more espirit de corps in the 2emem Rep and although the legion talks about camaraderie and frere d’armes there wasn’t much camaraderie at all in the regiments. Nationalities stuck together so I tended to hang out with other English speakers.

Many joined for the french passport which could be applied for at the end of the 5 year contract.

Overall it was an interesting experience and one I am glad I did. I struggled for a long time with shame over my desertion even though it is very common in the legion. I still regret leaving and would have been proud to complete my 5 year contract and become a genuine ‘ancienne’. But it was beyond me. Physically I did very well - until my injury. But I was poor on many aspects of soldiering, particularly the mechanical stuff. I even failed my legion driving test. I wasn’t a good shot either.

The relentless discipline also wore me down. I was also far more brain washed than I realised and found the transition back to the ‘vie civile’ very hard. Chatting in French to family members, getting up at 4am to go for a 2 hour run, constantly angry and on edge. I had been brainwashed.

The best parts were the long marches, the time in the countryside, Corsica is rugged and beautiful and the songs. My favourites being Le Boudin, La Legion Marche, Adieu Vielle Europe and Connaisez Vous Cesse Holmes.

So, tell me, am I bullshitting?

The Seawolf wrote: ↑Sun Sep 08, 2019 12:53 pm So, tell me, am I bullshitting?

Either that, or you're delusional.

Well my experience in investigations would tell me that too much detail is a sure sign of a good liar. Everything you say is reasonably correct, with a couple of errors which I cant be bothered mentioning, and it's all available on Google, and the parachute regiment selection itself is outlined in detail in Gareth Carins book , Diary of a legionnaire .
To quote Captain Willard, the bullshit piles up so high you need wings to fly over it.

Also, how did you manage to kill anyone if you were working as a cook? Salmonella?

Think what you want then. Do you really think in the time you posted and my post I would research all that to spin a yarn to a stranger on the internet?

I still know my number ffs.



Seeing as you are the expert on the military and interrogation I assume you served? When, who with and where?