MoH to be awarded to SOCM Slabinski

[Gunz]

BITD, all along the corridor of 6th Marine Regimental Headquarters were framed MOH citations, one after another. You could spend an afternoon just drifting down the hall reading them all. I'd say at least 70% were posthumous. A good portion were enlisted men and junior NCOs who'd thrown themselves on grenades, or NCO's & O's who'd been wounded four or five times defending or assaulting a position or saving the lives of their brother Marines. This tells something of the criteria.

 

[Devildoc]

@Teufel , I believe elsewhere there's been discussion about how the Marines in general are loathe to hand out awards like candy (my words), and many of us have seen deserving Marines and Sailors 'deserve' much better than they got. Double standards among the service? Hell yeah. "NSW hands out awards like the Boy Scouts hands out merit badges". Definitely, and it can be deflating and morale-busting.

 

[256]

This is the problem. Medals for valor are supposed to be the same across the Department of Defense but each of the services have different criteria for awarding them. Special Operations Forces tend to have an easier time getting awards because they have greater advocacy, visibility, and don’t have to submit awards through a conventional forces awards chain. NSW hands out awards like the Boy Scouts hands out merit badges. Everyone is frustrated because the DOD declined to upgrade guys like SgtMaj Kasal, Brian Chontosh, Brady Gustafson, and several Marines who literally jumped on grenades to save their brothers, and instead decided to push for this controversial upgrade. That’s the problem. Rafael Peralta died clutching a grenade to his chest. Where is his Medal of Honor?

Everyone is afraid of NSW or they want to be able to be part of a real Navy SEAL conversation so they can tell all their friends. I think because Marines are held in such high regard or to such a high standard when remarkable Marines make remarkable sacrifices the people involved say, “yep, that’s what Marines are suppose to do.” You might think it’s f-ed up, but feel it’s a HUGE testament to the men, leadership and tradition of the Marine Corps.

Personally I can’t stand what the Navy SEAL community has become. But I try to remind myself that there are great men in that community as well.

 

[Devildoc]

Everyone is afraid of NSW or they want to be able to be part of a real Navy SEAL conversation so they can tell all their friends. I think because Marines are held in such high regard or to such a high standard when remarkable Marines make remarkable sacrifices the people involved say, “yep, that’s what Marines are suppose to do.” You might think it’s f-ed up, but feel it’s a HUGE testament to the men, leadership and tradition of the Marine Corps.

Personally I can’t stand what the Navy SEAL community has become. But I try to remind myself that there are great men in that community as well.

@256 , there have been discussions for decades about how the Marine leadership have been traditionally stingy awarding medals for valor, believing it's just Marines doing what Marines are supposed to do. It is very (and often unfortunately) common to downgrade awards.

RE: the SEAL community, I agree. I don't like to paint with a broad brush, the community of thousands of excellent Sailors has been sullied by the mouths and actions of a relative few.

 

[Deleted member 2517]

The NX seems appropriate for what he did, there wasn’t a need for the upgrade. Especially in light of the information that’s come up since. They need to hurry up and give TSgt. Chapman his rightful due. Even if it’s 16 years too late.

 

[Diamondback 2/2]

I remember reading an article a few years ago about Tsgt Chapman's autopsy and recovered equipment. If I remember correctly he had expended all of his ammunition and had multiple gunshot and fragmentation wounds, and bruises consistant with hand to hand combat.

Saving face or not, NSW is pretty chicken shit for not owning up to this.

 

[Teufel]

@256 , there have been discussions for decades about how the Marine leadership have been traditionally stingy awarding medals for valor, believing it's just Marines doing what Marines are supposed to do. It is very (and often unfortunately) common to downgrade awards.

RE: the SEAL community, I agree. I don't like to paint with a broad brush, the community of thousands of excellent Sailors has been sullied by the mouths and actions of a relative few.

The only award the Marine Corps gives out freely is the Purple Heart. Even that can be spotty thanks to bad admin. I’m still missing one or two that I rate.

 

[Teufel]

@Teufel , I believe elsewhere there's been discussion about how the Marines in general are loathe to hand out awards like candy (my words), and many of us have seen deserving Marines and Sailors 'deserve' much better than they got. Double standards among the service? Hell yeah. "NSW hands out awards like the Boy Scouts hands out merit badges". Definitely, and it can be deflating and morale-busting.

Honestly I believe the Marine Corps was too stringent on valor awards, particularly for the junior enlisted Marines who deserved them most. My service was also not immune from handing out too many meritorious Bronze Stars to senior SNCOs and officers. It seems that every battalion commander and Sgt Maj out there have Bronze Stars. Very few of them have valor devices on them.

 

[256]

Honestly I believe the Marine Corps was too stringent on valor awards, particularly for the junior enlisted Marines who deserved them most. My service was also not immune from handing out too many meritorious Bronze Stars to senior SNCOs and officers. It seems that every battalion commander and Sgt Maj out there have Bronze Stars. Very few of them have valor devices on them.

Battalion S1 NCOIC gets a bronze star for their deployment, JrNCOs in rifle companies, here’s your ARCOM. Not saying his job isn’t important but he went to sleep on time, went to chow on time and watched One Tree Hill on time every night. How does that compute?

 

[Teufel]

Battalion S1 NCOIC gets a bronze star for their deployment, JrNCOs in rifle companies, here’s your ARCOM. Not saying his job isn’t important but he went to sleep on time, went to chow on time and watched One Tree Hill on time every night. How does that compute?

We were never that bad! More like battalion CO, XO, and SgtMaj. Occasionally company comanders and first sergeants. I received an achievement medal for one of my combat deployments as a platoon commander and received a commendation for my combat deployment as a company commander.

 

[Devildoc]

The only award the Marine Corps gives out freely is the Purple Heart. Even that can be spotty thanks to bad admin. I’m still missing one or two that I rate.

My father, a retired Marine, was written up for a silver star in Vietnam, ended up with a Navy Commendation with a "V." I was written up for a Navy comm, downgraded to a NAM. Now those, I have a bunch of those. They are worth about the paper they're written on.

Honestly the only two things that I ever cared about was the FMF ribbon I earned, and the subsequent FMF Warfare device I earned.

The award system has turned into a joke, and I think most everyone knows that.

 

[BloodStripe]

Because of how NAM's are awaded to Marine grunts, I will say it's worth more than the weight of paper they are written on, especially when awarded to a NCO and non-rate.

 

[DA SWO]

My father, a retired Marine, was written up for a silver star in Vietnam, ended up with a Navy Commendation with a "V." I was written up for a Navy comm, downgraded to a NAM. Now those, I have a bunch of those. They are worth about the paper they're written on.

Honestly the only two things that I ever cared about was the FMF ribbon I earned, and the subsequent FMF Warfare device I earned.

The award system has turned into a joke, and I think most everyone knows that.

I have a friend who was attached to a MARSOC unit, his SS downgraded to an ARCOM.

 

[Kraut783]

Dang...not even an ARCOM with V? crazy....

 

[Teufel]

I have a friend who was attached to a MARSOC unit, his SS downgraded to an ARCOM.

He would probably get an MOH with a star on it if he was NSW.

 

[Devildoc]

Because of how NAM's are awaded to Marine grunts, I will say it's worth more than the weight of paper they are written on, especially when awarded to a NCO and non-rate.

I was in when they changed the approval level to the local unit. Beforehand, few people got them. After the change, everyone got them. My last reserve unit as a corpsman, I bet 25-30% of the unit had a NAM.

 

[BloodStripe]

I was in when they changed the approval level to the local unit. Beforehand, few people got them. After the change, everyone got them. My last reserve unit as a corpsman, I bet 25-30% of the unit had a NAM.

Are we talking 03's or support? Support? Yes, everyone and their mom has one. Grunt? I don't think that they do.

 

[Ooh-Rah]

I got very sick in Iraq (91’) and after getting out of the hospital (a tip
Of the cap to the docs at Incirlik Air Base) it was found that I could type. I was put in front of a typewriter (yes a type writer) and given a STACK of awards to type up; to include my own NAM (which I wrote by the way). Yes, I wrote my own NAM.

 

[Devildoc]

Are we talking 03's or support? Support? Yes, everyone and their mom has one. Grunt? I don't think that they do.

My last unit was FSSG, but the one before that was a grunt unit and it was the same way. I think it all came down to when the change was pushed to the local level.

 

[256]

We were never that bad! More like battalion CO, XO, and SgtMaj. Occasionally company comanders and first sergeants. I received an achievement medal for one of my combat deployments as a platoon commander and received a commendation for my combat deployment as a company commander.

In my experience, every Army Infantry platoon leader got a bronze star for a combat deployment.