U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, left, awarded the Purple Heart to Korean War veteran Nyles Reed, right.
Steve Ueckert: Chronicle
Posted on 08/21/2007 8:27:09 AM PDT by Dubya
U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, left, awarded the Purple Heart to Korean War veteran Nyles Reed, right.
Steve Ueckert: Chronicle
No soldier should ever ever have to buy a deserved medal. I’m not real happy with the idea that any store can even sell them.
I hope they checked to make sure it's not a John Kerry (rumor has it that he was in Vietnam) throw-away.
Jon Cary has a bunch of PHs he never earned and doesn’t need for any future presidential campaigns.
I grew up on an Army post, and as a kid I used to while away the time my mom spent shopping by looking at the decorations the PX had for sale in the uniform shop. They even had the Congressional Medal of Honor on sale at the Fort Bragg PX!
What part of reapply in 90 days meant he had to buy it?
I don't understand why you think he is cheating?
Did you read the article.
Are you a combat vet.?
It wasn't as bad as the headlines would make you believe. A typical government logistical operation, no? No backorder capability but then again, who cares about customer service when you are the gubermint? But he was only "forced" to pay if after 55 years, he could not wait a little while longer.
And remember, folks, these are the guberment types who would run your healthcare system. Medals, bandaids, heart operation, what's the diff?
Now, if Hillary gets her way, delete medal and replace with the medical procedure of your choice.
No. I am not a vet. I guess 90 days is more like 90 years in government work. I’m glad a Congresscritter did their job and got it for him. I simply believe that it is misleading to say he had to buy it.
I imagine that with the injury rate in Iraq, there is a shortage and thus the 90 day wait.
Nyles Reed is deserving of a “Hand Salute. Ready. Two.”
Whay does our government take so long in awarding our brave people the medals they earned?
Last October, my best friend (a cobra gunship pilot) received his Silver Star earned in Viet Nam. He got to enjoy it for a whole two weeks before he died of cancer. Why does the bureaucracy need to churn for 35 or 40 years before the awards are given?
You missed the whole point of my post. I was facetiously hoping that he didn't get stuck with the Purple Heart that was tossed away by that lying, shameless, Paper Tiger and bedwetter who was almost elected President.
That's another kerry flip-flop. Back then, he said he did it. More recently he said it was only "ribbons".
Why should he have to go through the re-application process? Why didn't they say, "We don't have one now, but we will send one as soon as we can!" ??
He's 75 years old -- I don't know how his health is, but perhaps he wasn't sure how he'd be feeling 3 months from now.
In other articles I read about him, when he was originally injured, he was asked if he wanted a Purple Heart, and he said, "I don't have time for that -- I have to get back to the front lines."
While commendable bravery and valor, he wasn’t on the front lines for 55 years. We are in the middle of a war right now, there are bound to be shortages of medals. A little understanding on his part would go a long way, he didn’t have to run to the media and blow this all out of proportion by trying to imply he would have to buy his own, he had an option. The fact that he went to the media makes me inclined to believe he had an agenda for doing so.
I read some time ago that the planners if the invasion of Japan anticipated so many casualties that they made up a huge inventory of Purple Hearts to award to those wounded in it. That inventory was so large that they were used through the Korean War, Viet Nam and were finally used up in Panama.
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