<p>The OPs story has more holes than swiss-cheese, but to entertain the plausibility of it all:</p>
<p>The OP could have finished his Harvard studies in Fall '07, but was classified as an '08 grad. If that was the case, he would have been in the very first Navy OCS course in January '08, and then immediately started BUDs training after his commission! Upon completing BUDs, he went straight to SEAL training. </p>
<p>Not to hard to believe… until he stated he had been a SEAL for 5 years; which implies he received his Trident before Dec 31, 2008. Assuming Navy OCS is 3 months, he could have been with BUDS271, but to claim he finished SEAL training and was awarded the “Budweiser” pin by the end of '08 is preposterous. The only time I’ve ever heard of seen anything remotely close to this was in “GI Jane”!</p>
<p>As I mentioned above, after passing the selection course, prospective Army SF soldiers have at least another 2 years of training before they receive their SF tab (comparable to the “Budweiser” pin SEALs wear); only then can they wear the Green Beret.</p>
<p>Heck, Air Force Para-rescuemen and Combat Controllers (with over 90% attrition rate during the selection process) require 36 months of training before they’re awarded their respective berets and badges!</p>
<p>As a veteran, it’s unfortunate to hear what happened to the Stolen Valor Act.</p>