The second is that the sergeant's US lapel brass is that of an officer. Compare the US lapel brass to that of the General. They are the same. If this guy is truly a Staff Sergeant, then the US should be enclosed by a circle.
I hope that no one is offended by these observations, but unless things have changed drastically since I was in the military, then there is something wrong here.
Nope. That changed several years ago. The circle is gone. Note the polished silver name tags on the coat, instead of the old blue. Always trying to keep up with the changes!
Of course, they are looking to completely change the blues again, going back to some WWI or WWII ideas including a belt on the coat and a mandarin collar
If you had bothered to look a lot closer at the pic, you would have seen that it is an Army Commendation Medal. The Army has its own rules for granting their Commendation Medal...and a Commendation Medal in the AF can be awarded for heroism. There is no hard rule on what medal goes for what action.
The second is that the sergeant's US lapel brass is that of an officer. Compare the US lapel brass to that of the General. They are the same. If this guy is truly a Staff Sergeant, then the US should be enclosed by a circle.
You must have missed the time when the Air Force changed its uniforms, to include the US lapel pins. It's been at least 10 years since that particular change was put into effect.
...unless things have changed drastically since I was in the military, then there is something wrong here.
Yes, things have changed a lot since...when were you in, again? The only thing wrong here is that you haven't paid attention to the changes in the Air Force since 1992, when this "business" version of the service dress uniform was introduced. Thankfully, the "Navy-style" officer rank insignia was never adopted, but otherwise SSgt DelToro and General "Buzz" Moseley are in full compliance with Air Force Instruction 36-2903.