From the Soldier side: I copied the below from the news I get from the IAVA (Iraq Afghanistan Veterans of America). Army SFC (Sergeant First Class- E7) was awarded the MOH. (You don't "win" any medals, you are supposed to be awarded them.) I worked with some very brave soldiers in Iraq...one who I think should have been awarded the Silver Star...but she got nothing. My feeling is- The officers and some NCOs in charge of others are only looking out for themselves...what awards and medals they can get. Let me know what you think.
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THE DAILY NEWS BRIEF
1) Obama awards posthumous Medal of Honor to Afghanistan Veteran President Barack Obama awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously Thursday to Army Sgt. 1st Class Jared C. Monti at a private White House ceremony. The ceremony marked the President's first award of the nation's highest military honor, and the sixth Medal of Honor awarded to an Iraq or Afghanistan veteran since September 11, 2001. Monti's parents Paul and Janet accepted the honor on his behalf. Click here to watch highlights of the ceremony and learn more about Sgt. Monti's valor in combat attempting to save a fellow soldier during a Taliban ambush in June 2006.
2) Why No Living MOH Recipients?
Amid the Medal of Honor presentation to Army Sgt. 1st Class Jared C. Monti, some veterans and lawmakers are pushing the Pentagon on why no living service member has been awarded the valor distinction during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Queried by reporters in a press briefing Thursday, Defense Secretary Robert Gates acknowledged it has been a "source of real concern" and that "there are some [award recommendations] in process. To date, four MOHs have been awarded posthumously for acts of heroism in Iraq; Monti's award brings the Afghanistan total to two. By contrast, the 16-year conflict in Vietnam produced 246 living and posthumous awards of the distinction. Currently, Rep. Duncan Hunter Jr.(R-CA), a Marine veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan, is pushing an amendment through the House Armed Services Committee that would direct Secretary of Defense Robert Gates to review the process for Medal of Honor awards.
5 comments:
Dude, you make a good point here. Awards are handed out according to who saw what and reported it and who pushed the paperwork through the jungle of red-tape...too much valor goes unrecognized because either the appropriate paperwork was never filed or someone did not push hard enough to award that heroism. Please note that I do not mean to take anything away from the MOH awarded to SFC Monti with these comments
1. Glad someone else from your war had their efforts recognized.
2. Sounded off before on the topic of awards. The admin types guard them like gold and jewels -scared to death they'll hand one out to the undeserving -or worse yet, to someone whose citation and summary of action is improperly filled out.
3. The disparity between Vietnam and OEF/AEF MOH awards is telling.
4. Everything is more intense, more stratified, more rigid these days.
5. Stuff that got me an ass-chewing, back in the day merits an Article 15 or worse.
6. Same same civilian side. Kids today don't get second chances. I got thirds, fourths, fifths -and needed 'em.
7. One of my cousins was a helo bn cdr in VN. Told him after Grenada that the USMC gave 14 awards and the army gave 8000.
8. He said, "That's what those awards are for. Give the kid something to put on his chest, Make him feel proud of himself."
9. Think I might have brought that up before. Sorry.
10. Agree with my cousin (RIP): hand the things out.
11. Be selective about the top couple, but a three year investigative process? God save me!
12. Right now, each of the services has six decorations they can award for valor in the face of the enemy.
13. How in the world do you distinguish between the requirements for (Army) AAM,ACM, BSM, SS, DSC. MOH?
14. The citation for any one might include. "conspicuous valor in the face of," "placing himself in extreme...." and "in accordance with the highest traditions..."
15. An admin file's fondest dream.
16. Just remember the Sukhomlinov effect: the military opponent with the fancier uniform loses.
V/R JWest
JWest...as usual, good comments. The National Guard gives out some pretty silly shit.
Red, yep.
We had Nat Guard clerks who never went to earthquakes or whatever the disaster of the week was...they stayed in the armory and pushed paper...looking through the award books to see how many awards they could put THEMSELVES in for.
We had one such puke who somehow put himself in for awards that you were only supposed to get for going overseas after 9-11. He never left CALIF!!! The asshole actually had the gall to these awards up in his office. We all challanged the POS about these awards...and he left the unit and went to another.
What an ass clown.
Damn, Dude! I didn’t spit coffee or puke on my keyboard but a tear or two did hit it. That was a moving speech for a well deserved young man.
Not having served in combat situations, I really don’t have the right to say anything about those who have served, but I feel the process of awarding medals, in many cases, is political to a point and jealously at other points. I have heard over and over about kids doing an excellent and brave job and not being awarded anything. Like someone said, Common men performing with uncommon valor.
Thanks for posting this.
Of course, the O's and SNCO's look out for themselves and, unfortunately, take credit for work of NCOs and junior (in my case) Marines.
They after all are staying green and have careers to manage, whereas the non-rates are going to EAS and won't need to walk about in full regalia, resplendent in their Dress Blues...
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