It's a fake.

          I was three weeks from leaving the service and I had not touched an M-16 since bootcamp. For some odd reason, I was scheduled for weapon retraining. Had the office done the proper paperwork, they would have known that I was not the most in need for this recertification. But I had an idea, so I just kept quiet.
          I kept quiet until training day. I kept quiet during the lessons on safety and assembly. I kept quiet on the range. At the end of the day, nervously cleaning my weapon in a room full of people who were about to head overseas, I finally worked up enough courage. I walked up to the instructor and whispered my idea.
          "I want a photo." I thought they were going to laugh at me, tell me to sit back down. Instead, I left my gun to be cleaned by someone who actually needed the practice, then headed back to the range. They gave me this beefy machine, with rapid fire and a fancy scope. I shot for a few minutes and then took this ridiculous photo.
           In recollection, this picture seems to be an oversimplified and accurate depiction of my entire military career: it's just a fake.