a note on medals ...

[Pepperbelly]

My son John is graduating from Navy Boot Camp tomorrow and today, we received his graduation pics. He looks good. Baby fat is gone and he has become a strong, lean young man. But the interesting thing that I noted in his pic ... other than just being damned glad to see him ... was that he has been awarded what appears to me to be the National Defense Medal. When I was in, we called it the Geeduck medal (any Viet Nam era Navy vets will no doubt identify.) However, they stopped awarding those at the close of the war ... like April, 1975. Coming into the service in October, I didn't get one.

But John has one.

deja vu all over again.

Have they started giving those out again because of Afghanistan and Iraq?

What a shame.

[ranosgol]

1. They issued it in gulf war one 1991

It was issued in 1991-to October 1995.

I was in the Navy we called it the geeduck medal, the me too medal and the McDonald's Medal, cause it looked like McDonald's colors.

[sweetheart]

2. cheaper than money

Medals are cheaper than cash, and if people believe the hoopla,
maybe they're worth it... geesh, given the state of the treasury,
its too bad other parts of the economy won't accept medals as well.

Do you get a purple heart if you are raped?

[arbusto_baboso]

3. The NDSM: Most issued medal in US history.

It was issued for the "emergency" of the Korean War, then for Vietnam-era service, and then for anyone serving active duty during Desert Storm. It was reinstated for the "current emergency".

I think the imagery of the commie-red ribbon is a bit hackneyed and inappropriate now, though.