I suspect the discrepancy regarding Kyle's awards is really only of interest to two groups of people: the ones who served with him, and the ones who dislike him

I suspect the discrepancy regarding Kyle's awards is really only of interest to two groups of people: the ones who served with him, and the ones who dislike him (or the military in general) and relish the notion of his reputation being tarnished. I'm a veteran, and I have a problem with people who claim military decorations they didn't earn. I think the term "stolen valor" is needlessly dramatic, but the act itself is contemptible. I temper this with the knowledge, however, that there is sometimes a discrepancy between the branches of service and even within units in a single service when it comes to giving out awards...especially those that only tangentially involve combat. Many who deserved to be decorated have not; many more who did little have much to show for it. I don't know where Chris Kyle stands with me, exactly. If he had simply served as a SEAL in combat, that would still be impressive. Being awarded the Silver Star is noteworthy by itself. Being awarded three Bronze Stars for valor isn't shabby by any stretch. If he intentionally deceived people about the other decorations, that certainly is a blemish on his character but still strikes me as silly as thinking less about Michael Collins because he "only" circled the moon in Apollo 11 rather than landed on it with Armstrong and Aldrin. This is much ado about (almost) nothing. Especially as the man himself is dead, and will neither benefit from or be punished for any possible misdeed at this point.