Posted on 04/11/2003 11:36:58 PM PDT by flutters
Can't answer the question, but it does sound like grandstanding, on his part.
Did John McCain get the CMoH for being held captive?
I mean no disrespect to the good Private Lynch, she deserves a lot, but not a soldiers highest honor.
My guess is this will not go too far.
RUHL, DONALD JACK
Rank and Organization: Private First Class, U.S. Marine Corps Reserve. Born 2 July 1923, Columbus, Mont. Accredited To: Montana.
Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a rifleman in an assault platoon of Company E, 28th Marines, 5th Marine Division, in action against enemy Japanese forces on Iwo Jima, Volcano Islands, from 19 to 21 February 1945.
Quick to press the advantage after 8 Japanese had been driven from a blockhouse on D-day, Pfc. Ruhl single-handedly attacked the group, killing 1 of the enemy with his bayonet and another by rifle fire in his determined attempt to annihilate the escaping troops. Cool and undaunted as the fury of hostile resistance steadily increased throughout the night, he voluntarily left the shelter of his tank trap early in the morning of D-day plus 1 and moved out under a tremendous volume of mortar and machinegun fire to rescue a wounded marine lying in an exposed position approximately 40 yards forward of the line. Half pulling and half carrying the wounded man, he removed him to a defiladed position, called for an assistant and a stretcher and, again running the gauntlet of hostile fire, carried the casualty to an aid station some 300 yards distant on the beach. Returning to his platoon, he continued his valiant efforts, volunteering to investigate and apparently abandoned Japanese gun emplacement 75 yards forward of the right flank during consolidation of the front lines, and subsequently occupying the position through the night to prevent the enemy from repossessing the valuable weapon. Pushing forward in the assault against the vast network of fortifications surrounding Mt. Suribachi the following morning, he crawled with his platoon guide to the top of a Japanese bunker to bring fire to bear on enemy troops located on the far side of the bunker. Suddenly a hostile grenade landed between the 2 marines. Instantly Pfc. Ruhl called a warning to his fellow marine and dived on the deadly missile, absorbing the full impact of the shattering explosion in his own body and protecting all within range from the danger of flying fragments although he might easily have dropped from his position on the edge of the bunker to the ground below. An indomitable fighter, Pfc. Ruhl rendered heroic service toward the defeat of a ruthless enemy, and his valor, initiative and unfaltering spirit of self-sacrifice in the face of almost certain death sustain and enhance the highest traditions of the U.S. Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.
Mary Walker's Medal of Honor was revoked in 1917 and so were the Medals of Honor of 911 other individuals.
Great care must be taken when comparing Civil War era "Medals of Honor" with the current Medal of Honor.
Prior to the Civil War, the United States armed forces awarded no medals. During the Mexican-American War, a "certificate of merit" was established to honor those who distnguished themselves in action but no medal went with the award.
At the start of the Civil War a medal for individual valor was proposed to General-in-Chief of the Army Winfield Scott. However, Scott felt that medals smacked of European affectation and nixed the idea.
The Navy, however, established a medal of valor in December 1861. The Army followed suit with a medal of honor in July 1862 and the measure provided for awarding a medal of honor "to such noncommissioned officers and privates as shall most distinguish themselves by their gallantry in action, and other soldierlike qualities, during the present insurrection."
Therefore, during the Civil War, the "medal of honor" was the only medal that the U.S. Army handed out.
It was given out for "gallantry" with great risk to life.
It was given out for "soldierlike qualities" to individuals that never heard a shot fired in battle.
For example, in June, 1863, approximately 300 of the 864 members of the 27th Maine agree to remain to guard Washington, DC after their enlistment had expired. In return Secretary of War Edwin Stanton submitted the entire group of volunteers for Medals of Honor. Later, Medals of Honor were awarded to members of President Licoln's Funeral Guard. The Civil War era "Medal of Honor" was therefore America's first "Gedunk Medal" too.
In later years, more U.S. medals were created and a certain pecking order was established. The Medal of Honor was no longer given out like Halloween candy. It became reserved for the highest acts of bravery in the U.S. Armed Forces. For example, not a single American fighter ace in the entire European Theater was awarded the Medal of Honor. They were deemed worthy of only the Distinguished Service Cross which ranked below the Medal of Honor in the gallantry pecking order.
This change came about with America's entry into World War One when strict criteria were instituted.
During the "Medal of Honor Purge of 1917", a commission was formed to review the awards of all Civil War era Medals of Honor to determine if they met the new criteria. In all, 911 individuals had their "Medals of Honor" revoked.
The Medals of Honor handed out to the 27th Maine and Lincoln's Funeral Guard as "Gedunk Medals" were revoked.
Mary Walker's Medal of Honor was also revoked. (Feminists usually leave this part out.) However, Walker refused to turn the Medal of Honor back to the Army as requested.
So, yes, it is true that "Mary Walker, the first American woman to be a military doctor and a prisoner of war, received the medal in 1866 for her service during the Civil War". However, the Medal of Honor did not mean the same in 1866 as is does today.
Is Pfc. Lynch a hero? Yes.
Would Pfc. Lynch meet the criteria for a Civil War era Medal of Honor? Yes. Three hundred members of the 27th Maine got a Civil War era Medal of Honor simply for re-enlisting to stay in Washington, DC. Pfc. Lynch certainly did much more than that.
Does Pfc. Lynch meet the criteria for a current Medal of Honor? No.
How about a Bronze Star or maybe even a Silver Star. That is a more realistic ballpark assuming that the stories of her fighting back during the ambush are true and not media hype.
....in World War II.
Two actually.
No, I think that was James Stockdale.
'Zactly. First she was shot, then she wasn't now, she's shot again. First the convoy ran into an ambush, then it was an ambush with tanks. If the circumstances we're being told are true, it would be a great story of courage under fire. Until then, I think it's just, well, a great story.
As far as the MoH goes, I wouldn't be surprised if she got it. After all, those three dumba** scouts who got lost in Macedonia back in 1999, then were captured without firing a shot by Kosovar villagers, were awarded the Bronze Star for their valor in surrender. In Gulf War 1, a lot of senior NCOs and company/field grade officers who never heard a shot fired in anger, were given the Silver and Bronze Star(s). Military awards have become a sick, PC joke.
Scouts Out! Cavalry Ho!
BENAVIDEZ, ROY P.
Rank and Organization: Master Sergeant, Detachment B-56, 5th Special Forces Group, Republic of Vietnam. Place and Date: West of Loc Ninh on 2 May 1968. Entered Service at: Houston, Texas June 1955. Date and Place of Birth: 5 August 1935, DeWitt County, Cuero, Texas.
Master Sergeant (then Staff Sergeant) Roy P. Benavidez United States Army, who distinguished himself by a series of daring and extremely valorous actions on 2 May 1968 while assigned to Detachment B56, 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne), 1st Special Forces, Republic of Vietnam. On the morning of 2 May 1968, a 12-man Special Forces Reconnaissance Team was inserted by helicopters in a dense jungle area west of Loc Ninh, Vietnam to gather intelligence information about confirmed large-scale enemy activity. This area was controlled and routinely patrolled by the North Vietnamese Army. After a short period of time on the ground, the team met heavy enemy resistance, and requested emergency extraction. Three helicopters attempted extraction, but were unable to land due to intense enemy small arms and anti-aircraft fire. Sergeant Benavidez was at the Forward Operating Base in Loc Ninh monitoring the operation by radio when these helicopters returned to off-load wounded crewmembers and to assess aircraft damage. Sergeant Benavidez voluntarily boarded a returning aircraft to assist in another extraction attempt. Realizing that all the team members were either dead or wounded and unable to move to the pickup zone, he directed the aircraft to a nearby clearing where he jumped from the hovering helicopter, and ran approximately 75 meters under withering small arms fire to the crippled team. Prior to reaching the team's position he was wounded in his right leg, face, and head. Despite these painful injuries, he took charge, repositioning the team members and directing their fire to facilitate the landing of an extraction aircraft, and the loading of wounded and dead team members. He then threw smoke canisters to direct the aircraft to the team's position. Despite his severe wounds and under intense enemy fire, he carried and dragged half of the wounded team members to the awaiting aircraft. He then provided protective fire by running alongside the aircraft as it moved to pick up the remaining team members. As the enemy's fire intensified, he hurried to recover the body and classified documents on the dead team leader. When he reached the leader's body, Sergeant Benavidez was severely wounded by small arms fire in the abdomen and grenade fragments in his back. At nearly the same moment, the aircraft pilot was mortally wounded, and his helicopter crashed. Although in extremely critical condition due to his multiple wounds, Sergeant Benavidez secured the classified documents and made his way back to the wreckage, where he aided the wounded out of the overturned aircraft, and gathered the stunned survivors into a defensive perimeter. Under increasing enemy automatic weapons and grenade fire, he moved around the perimeter distributing water and ammunition to his weary men, reinstilling in them a will to live and fight. Facing a buildup of enemy opposition with a beleaguered team, Sergeant Benavidez mustered his strength, began calling in tactical air strikes and directed the fire from supporting gunships to suppress the enemy's fire and so permit another extraction attempt. He was wounded again in his thigh by small arms fire while administering first aid to a wounded team member just before another extraction helicopter was able to land. His indomitable spirit kept him going as he began to ferry his comrades to the craft. On his second trip with the wounded, he was clubbed from additional wounds to his head and arms before killing his adversary. He then continued under devastating fire to carry the wounded to the helicopter. Upon reaching the aircraft, he spotted and killed two enemy soldiers who were rushing the craft from an angle that prevented the aircraft door gunner from firing upon them. With little strength remaining, he made one last trip to the perimeter to ensure that all classified material had been collected or destroyed, and to bring in the remaining wounded. Only then, in extremely serious condition from numerous wounds and loss of blood, did he allow himself to be pulled into the extraction aircraft. Sergeant Benavidez' gallant choice to join voluntarily his comrades who were in critical straits, to expose himself constantly to withering enemy fire, and his refusal to be stopped despite numerous severe wounds, saved the lives of at least eight men. His fearless personal leadership, tenacious devotion to duty, and extremely valorous actions in the face of overwhelming odds were in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service, and reflect the utmost credit on him and the United States Army.
And that is who is awarded the CMOH
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