VFW WANTS NEW MEDAL RANKING LOWERED
VFW believes Distinguished Warfare Medal should not outrank the Bronze Star, Purple Heart
February 14, 2013
America’s
largest combat veterans’ organization is in total disagreement with the
Pentagon’s decision to have its new Distinguished Warfare Medal outrank the
Bronze Star and Purple Heart.
“It
is very important to properly recognize all who faithfully serve and excel, but
this new medal — no matter how well intended — could quickly deteriorate into a
morale issue,” said John E. Hamilton, national commander of the 2
million-member Veterans of Foreign Wars of the U.S. and its Auxiliaries.
In
announcing the medal, the Pentagon said yesterday that modern technology
enables service members with special training and capabilities to more directly
and precisely impact military operations at times far from the battlefield. The
Distinguished Warfare Medal was created to recognize such extraordinary
achievement, regardless of the distance from the battlefield.
“The
VFW fully concurs that those far from the fight are having an immediate impact
on the battlefield in real-time,” said Hamilton, a combat-wounded Marine Corps
rifleman in Vietnam, “but medals that can only be earned in direct combat must
mean more than medals awarded in the rear. The VFW urges the Department of
Defense to reconsider the new medal’s placement in the military order of
precedence.”
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