Is this statement a joke or not?
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MEDALS?? We don't NEED no STEEEENKIN' badges !!! *split thread*
- Thread starter MAKE VAPES
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Is this statement a joke or not?
FlyingOnFumes
Nobel WAR Prize Aspirant
Is there a shore tour ribbon?
Harrier Dude
Living the dream
Not a joke (really).
The Sea Service Deployment ribbon is the only "personal" ribbon (not unit or gimme) that is indisputably earned.
It's not a big deal, but it's hard to debate whether you earned it or not.
I'm more impressed by a guy with a NAM and 5 SSDR's than a guy with 5 NCMs and 2 MSMs and zero or one SSDRs.
One guy has actually been somewhere. The other guy is possibly an asskisser or an admin pouge.
Make sense?
+1
Makes much sense, I worked hard for my Sea Service Deployment Ribbon with 2 stars, that's a lot of friggin time at sea away from family.
I guess the GWOTEM falls in that category now since that indicates you've been in the AOR at least, no matter what you were doing. Same thing for the SSDR.
Answer...
No it doesn't!
I have 5 NMCMs, 2 NMAMs and NO SSDRs (whatever that is, didn't have them back in the day!) Using your criteria, I am considered asskisser, admin pogue, never been anywhere etc., at first look? Ahem, one size (look} does not fit all! :blindfold
Another example: During Vietnam, the USAF authorized a combat "V" for DFCs awarded when mission was opposed (AAA/SAMs, etc), the USN did not authorize "V"s on DFCs or AMs. So just visually comparing ribbon racks without knowing the real slory...would indicate that the USAF DFCs/AMs were much more significant than the USN awards, NO? I rest my case, one look does not always tell the whole story! BTW, since Vietnam, the USN does now authorize the "V" for DFCs, but did not make it retroactive. Another screwing of 'nam "DownTown" Warriors! I'm not upset, just wanna set the record straight. As someone previously mentioned, awards can become a very contentious issue, and I (we) probably shouldn't spend too much time there? :icon_king
BzB:icon_tong
No it doesn't!
I have 5 NMCMs, 2 NMAMs and NO SSDRs (whatever that is, didn't have them back in the day!) Using your criteria, I am considered asskisser, admin pogue, never been anywhere etc., at first look? Ahem, one size (look} does not fit all! :blindfold
Another example: During Vietnam, the USAF authorized a combat "V" for DFCs awarded when mission was opposed (AAA/SAMs, etc), the USN did not authorize "V"s on DFCs or AMs. So just visually comparing ribbon racks without knowing the real slory...would indicate that the USAF DFCs/AMs were much more significant than the USN awards, NO? I rest my case, one look does not always tell the whole story! BTW, since Vietnam, the USN does now authorize the "V" for DFCs, but did not make it retroactive. Another screwing of 'nam "DownTown" Warriors! I'm not upset, just wanna set the record straight. As someone previously mentioned, awards can become a very contentious issue, and I (we) probably shouldn't spend too much time there? :icon_king
BzB:icon_tong
Harrier Dude
Living the dream
I'm not sure how long the Sea Service Deployment Ribbon has been around, but you would clearly rate at least one, and I suspect several.
You get one for every OCONUS deployment in excess of 90 days. If you don't have one (today's standard) then you've never been anywhere. Therefore whatever other medals you have couldn't really be that impressive.
This clearly does not apply to you personally. You've "been there, done that" and your awards speak for themselves.
Nowadays, if a guy has a MSM but has never deployed, he must have earned it via some kind of staff work. That's a noble endeavor, but hardly something worth free beer at the VFW.
People get awards for all kind of things these days. There is very little standardization. Seeing a guy with a BS, a DFC, or a V on his air medal doesn't mean crap unless you know the whole story.
Looking at how many times he deployed tells a little bit more of the story at a glance.
What is interesting is that the time in the FDNF counts toward that - whether you are at sea or not.
The all knowing wikipedia says this: "The Sea Service Deployment Ribbon is a decoration of the United States Navy which was established in May 1980 and retroactively authorized to August 1974."
Okay, we're on the same page now. I made 7 deployments (six 8-10 mos. & one 90-day "'round the Horn" w/ CONNIE). Have no idea what SSDR looks like! The RTH was fine...('62 - peacetime), brand new Carrier, (day flying only, consisting of Air Shows in each Port of Call, Nofxxk, VA to Trinidad, then Pollywog to Shellback Ceremony, Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, Valparaiso, Chile, Lima, Peru, Panama City, Panama, Acapulco, Mexico before drug cartels, then San Dog)! What a trip! Gives me a hangover just recalling it, lol
arty_125BTW, a Unit award (ribbon) of elevated status is the Presidential Unit Citation (PUC) awarded to us (USS MIDWAY/CVW-5, including catmando) for cruise '72 (Op LineBacker II), which ended the air war, bringing our POWs home)!
irate_12BzB :sleep_125
Pretty bold statement for someone still pretty fresh in their career.
Everyone I know who has gotten a Bronze Star, Air Medal or a Commendation medal with a V has earned it the hard way. Same with those I know personally with the DFC though I know 'of' some that may have gotten them easier than others. For non-combat actions the two I know personally who earned the Navy and Marine Corps Medal and both were more than deserved, giant brass balls on both.
Long story short you shouldn't dismiss chest candy as 'chaff' until you know the story behind it. Sure, it is pretty easy to dismiss a rack full of Navy Coms and NAMs and even a few Bronze Stars without a V on an Army guy but just be careful about blanket statements like that.
For officers checking out of their sea tour (since the desert mission ended) the "TACAMO stack" is a NAM, Battle E, Nat'l Defense, GWOTS, and the marksmanship awards. We don't ride on boats, but at last count I was gone close to 8 months of the last year. I'd like that think that I'm not an "asskisser, or an admin pouge."
I thought about that after I posted it. Consider this my mea culpa.
My problem with the awards system is the "everyone should get an award" mentality. The kiss on the way out the door NAMs, NCMs, and MSMs seem especially ludicrous. Congrats...you were a JO in a squadron: here's you NAM..wooooOOooo!
I get that tt goes into making rate for the E's, which is why an above average AD2 has 4 NAMs. Yea, the guy is good, but changing a valve housing and swapping props is part of a Mech's job. Shouldn't his professional achievements and BZ's go into his Eval, not necessarily a rack full of ribbons?
Another anecdotal experience: an acquaintance who "flies" UAVs for our blue brothers has earned stack of ribbons, some of which deal with flying. Not sure how that makes me feel, and I definitely don't know how a Lance Coolie coming back from Afghanistan would feel if he met him and saw the stack of ribbon he got for hanging out in an air conditioned shack.
I'm a top 3 kind of guy, which means I wear my pistol, rifle, and National Defense...mainly because I'm too lazy/apathetic about what I've "earned" in my 1 whole year in the fleet (watch out for the sodium) to buy/get anything else mounted.
Nothing I've done has been especially valorous, brave, or worthy of commendation. I get a paycheck for doing my job. All those Air Medal Points remind me of XP I've earned while playing call of duty. That and 7 bucks will get you a cup of coffee at a starbucks.
The point of my previous post is not to be taken literally: If I see a bronze star (or anything with a V,) I'm definitely going to shake the guys hand and thank him for his service, but the fact that any joker can earn a bronze star for counting enough MREs in the right country cheapens the achievements of the guys who truly earn their medals. That's the angle I was taking...Confused yet?
Harrier Dude
Living the dream
I don't know crap about the TACAMO deployment scenarios, and even less about you personally.
My advice to you, and anybody else who cares about medals, is this:
You know who you are and what you have done. So do the people you directly serve with. Nobody else's opinion matters. If medals make you happy, great. If you don't get any, the people who matter to you know what you did anyway, so it doesn't matter.
From what I know about various medals and their relative "awesomeness" without knowing the full story in each case, I'd say this:
99.99% of Medals of Honor are legit.
95% of Navy Crosses are legit.
90% of Silver Stars are legit.
50% of Bronze Stars are legit.
30% of Combat Action Ribbons are legit.
20% of all "V"s and single mission air medals are legit.
10% of all End of Tour admin awards are legit.
100% of Sea Service Deployment Ribbons are legit.
What do I mean by "legit"? When you hear the whole story from other people who were there, you say "Wow. That's no shit."
All data above was collected from the Harrier Dude Institute of Estimation. All rights reserved.