Lynch Recieves Bronze Star - why?

Solid Snake · Post by **Solid Snake** » 2003-07-23 12:45am

Durandal wrote:
Illuminatus Primus wrote:Does that really make that big of a deal?
When your sex life revolves around masturbating to military history and pictures of old guys and ammo, yes.

...That was stupid. Since you seem to be the expert on MKSheppard's sex life, you must know other kinks of other members of this board! Got any dirty secrets??? My kink is laughing at people when they say they know everything about other people's sex lives. I mean, shit! Are you there all the time when people decide to have happy hour?

Post by **Darth Wong** » 2003-07-23 03:15am

SolidSnake wrote:
Durandal wrote:
Illuminatus Primus wrote:Does that really make that big of a deal?
When your sex life revolves around masturbating to military history and pictures of old guys and ammo, yes.
...That was stupid. Since you seem to be the expert on MKSheppard's sex life, you must know other kinks of other members of this board!

Did you even read what was posted? Durandal posted "Viet Cong" instead of "North Vietnamese", Shep went berserk over the nitpick, IP asked what the big deal was, and Durandal pointed out that it was obviously Shep's warped personality that makes him go looney over a completely irrelevant point of detail.

Dargos · Post by **Dargos** » 2003-07-23 03:23am

OK.. lets get some things straight. The bronze star without the "V" device isn't diddly squat. Its handed out like candy to many people. After the 1st Gulf FTX(what has been called the 1st Gulf War) In my old Battalion Everyone from PLT SGT on up to Company Commander was awarded the BS. Squad Leaders were awarded ARCOMs and everyone else got the AAM. Its completely PR guys. Everyone knows that the public would have gone ape shit if the appointed "National Hero" didn't get some kind of gong to go on her uniform.

Its a well known FACT that the Army and Airforce hand out awards like candy. Navy I dont know about. Marines you really REALLY have to earn it before you get shit.(and in my opinion that is the way it SHOULD be)

Post by **Vympel** » 2003-07-23 04:53am

I've heard about the medals system being consistently 'devalued' as well, and not just from the perspective of within the US armed forces- non-US KFOR troops (Brits, Russkies etc) apparently made much fun out of the large amount of medals US soldiers would be seen walking around with when they actually hadn't really done much of anything.

Post by **Coyote** » 2003-07-23 05:06am

It seems she met the criteria, and Stravo, I should remind you that at no point did Jessica herself say that she had endured all these shootings and stabbings-- other sources created that shit.

She deserved the Purple Heart and she deserved the POW medal. I'd have givn her something else although I don't know if the Bronze Star would have been it. I dislike medal inflation although it is well-past to late to try to put the horses back in the barn.

Mike, Durandal, whle Shep may have blown his lid a bit quickly, I think there was a major difference between the Viet Cong (mostly warlord gangs and drug cartels turned guerrilla) and the actual Hanpi Government of North Vietnam, with actual international recognition by other powers (albeit Communist).

Had McCain been taken captive by the VC, I'd wager his treatment would have actually been worse so that he could serve as an 'example'. Regardless of your feelings about a Republican or MK Sheppard, Durandal's crack about "masturbating to pictures of old men in military magazines" was a bit of an ad hominem considering the parameters of the argument.

phongn · Post by **phongn** » 2003-07-23 10:04am

Illuminatus Primus wrote:Does that really make that big of a deal?

In terms of treatment, yes. The VC/VM were much nastier than the NVA.

Post by **Sea Skimmer** » 2003-07-23 10:44am

Darth Wong wrote: Did you even read what was posted? Durandal posted "Viet Cong" instead of "North Vietnamese", Shep went berserk over the nitpick, IP asked what the big deal was, and Durandal pointed out that it was obviously Shep's warped personality that makes him go looney over a completely irrelevant point of detail.

Actually it is relevant, the VC tended to treat prisoners considerably worse then NVA regulars and where very slow in passing them up the chain. The NVA and VC where most certainly not the same.

Tsyroc · Post by **Tsyroc** » 2003-07-23 12:18pm

Gil Hamilton wrote:
LadyTevar wrote:Didn't you hear? CBS cancelled it.
Damn it! I was looking forward to her doing wire-fu against Agent Al-Somith and Johnny Depp as her commanding-officer-and-lover.

Damn, that one made me laugh out loud until I choaked.

Tsyroc · Post by **Tsyroc** » 2003-07-23 12:29pm

Dargos wrote: Its a well known FACT that the Army and Airforce hand out awards like candy. Navy I dont know about. Marines you really REALLY have to earn it before you get shit.(and in my opinion that is the way it SHOULD be)

I don't remember the Navy giving away anything good. I think they've lightened up a bit on the lower tier medals (I got a Navy Achievement Medal during my last cruise) but the real stuff, as far as I know, you have to earn.

They're pretty free with the letters of commendation from the Captain but those only look good for your evals. You want the ones from an Admiral because they give you points that get factored into your multiple when you are trying to get promoted. The Navy Achievement Medal does the same (and not much more).

The Navy might be slightly more free with the hardware for the flyboys but I can't say for certain. Considering they are more likely to be in harms way than the rest of the fleet these days it kind of makes sense.

MKSheppard · Post by **MKSheppard** » 2003-07-23 03:04pm

Who the hell is fucking up the formatting on this thread?

Post by **The Yosemite Bear** » 2003-07-23 03:16pm

Thinking about my stepdad's bronze star/Silver Star incident

after being injured by a mortar attack, (unable to use his left arm) and just witnessing the door gunner getting KIA by sniper attack my stepdad & another soldier took over operation of the door gun.

That was it.

No one knows if they hit anything

Post by **The Yosemite Bear** » 2003-07-23 03:31pm

Sea Skimmer wrote:
Darth Wong wrote: Did you even read what was posted? Durandal posted "Viet Cong" instead of "North Vietnamese", Shep went berserk over the nitpick, IP asked what the big deal was, and Durandal pointed out that it was obviously Shep's warped personality that makes him go looney over a completely irrelevant point of detail.
Actually it is relevant, the VC tended to treat prisoners considerably worse then NVA regulars and where very slow in passing them up the chain. The NVA and VC where most certainly not the same.

VC were a TERRORIST GROUP

the NVA were a well diciplined military group.

PS. and Mc Cain is cool.

Durandal · Post by **Durandal** » 2003-07-23 03:38pm

SolidSnake wrote:...That was stupid. Since you seem to be the expert on MKSheppard's sex life, you must know other kinks of other members of this board! Got any dirty secrets??? My kink is laughing at people when they say they know everything about other people's sex lives. I mean, shit! Are you there all the time when people decide to have happy hour?

Oh piss off, hatfucker. Shep flew off the handle because I confused North Vietnam with the South. A pretty big error to be sure, but nothing that warranted his typical over-reaction to even the smallest of discrepancies having to do with military history. Hence my masturbating comment. Grow a fucking brain and then learn how to decipher sarcasm.

Looks like poor Shep has been victimized by nasty old Durandal again. God I'm so horrible, insulting people who call me a "blithering fool." Strip me of my mod privileges! I'm no longer fit for duty! Give me a fucking break.

Coyote wrote:Had McCain been taken captive by the VC, I'd wager his treatment would have actually been worse so that he could serve as an 'example'. Regardless of your feelings about a Republican or MK Sheppard, Durandal's crack about "masturbating to pictures of old men in military magazines" was a bit of an ad hominem considering the parameters of the argument.

No, it was an insult. I wasn't making any arguments with it. Excuse me for insulting someone who calls me a "blithering fool" and obviously takes it personally every time someone fucks up a historical fact. Boo-hoo, I'm such a horrible, evil person.

Post by **RogueIce** » 2003-07-23 03:43pm

The way I get it for the medals, the AF is worst, Army second (Rainbow Ribbon anyone) Navy next and Marines are a bitch. I know a Navy retired Command Master Chief who served for a good 30 years, he has 11 medals/ribbons on his uniform. A retired Commander in 21 years has 14, two of them the marksmanship ones and another because he did some thing with the Coast Guard and it was a Joint kind of medal. I've seen Army Staff Sergeants and SFCs and an Air Force Tech Sergeant with more than them (though they served back in the Cold War so it was probably a bit different). *shakes head*

Wicked Pilot · Post by **Wicked Pilot** » 2003-07-23 08:19pm

MKSheppard wrote:Who the hell is fucking up the formatting on this thread?

I think it's Tsyroc. He seems to be the common demonitator of all the fucked up formatting.

The Dark · Post by **The Dark** » 2003-07-26 02:28am

I don't feel Lynch deserves a Bronze Star. She didn't fire a single shot (though admittedly it was because the oh-so-delicate M16 jammed), but even if she had, that would merely be doing her duty. The one who deserves awards is Sgt. Donald Walters. He was shot twice in the back, had a dislocated shoulder, shot in the right leg, and stabbed twice in the abdomen. The best evidence (from the list of people known to have been on the vehicles) suggests the convoy abandoned him when attacked, and he attempted to shoot his way south. The reports about a "blond woman soldier" who emptied their entire load of ammo appear to have been mistranslated from the Arabic, and were actually Sgt. Walters.

Of course, Pvt. Lynch's "rescue" was anything but. The Iraqi doctors tried to turn her over to the Americans, but their ambulance was fired on. And despite what "official" sources may say, a Marine tanker friend of mine from 1st Div. told me the only resistance was from doctors who didn't want to be taken away from their patients.

Also, Lynch will almost certainly have to leave the military now. While they'll try to mark it off as a medical discharge, the truth is she's illegally accepted gifts from private corporations based upon her "status" as a military "hero." As such, she has violated Federal law, and the military will have to do a quick-step to avoid having that brought to light by a muckraker.