Lynch Receives Bronze Star Before Homecoming (What for?!!)

KFOXTV.com ^ | 07/22/03 | KFOXTV.com

[Destro]

Lynch Receives Bronze Star Before Homecoming

Pfc. Jessica Lynch is returning home Tuesday, newly decorated for heroism in Iraq.

A member of Ft. Bliss' 507th Maintenance Company, Lynch was captured during the attack on a portion of the unit in Nasiriyah, Iraq on March 23rd. She was rescued from captivity on April 1st.

On Monday, Pfc. Lynch received the Bronze Star for heroism, Purple Heart for being wounded in combat, and P.O.W. Medal at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, where she has been treated for more than three months. KFOX will have a full report on Private Lynch's homecoming Tuesday night on KFOX News at Nine.

[MEG33]

Thank you for your knowledgable report..factual and accurate.Should we take them away from rest to the unit 's recipients?

[wimpycat]

No, I wasn't aware of it. Thanks for letting me know.

[Drew68]

I do think that the boys who went in there and got her deserve equal billing.........

Not to diminish the heroism of the boys who served, but Americans are used to seeing boys returning home wounded from battle. Americans are not yet accustomed to seeing our teenaged girls returning home maimed from war with the proverbial "1000-yard stare" in their eyes.

For this reason, Jessica will receive more attention than the boys (men, rather) who participated in combat and were killed or wounded. This is just the way it is.

[TheGunny]

Hello daft one. Meritorious service has nothing to do with bravery! Need I break it down further?

[MEG33]

I just think it's good for perspective to know that others recieved medals in her unit.

[verity]

And how medals have you earned?

[wtc911]

I've been trying to get validation but haven't been successful. The article that mentioned this years ago was focused on the attempts by the Reagan administration to rebuild the military, including morale. Maybe you know exactly how many Bronze Stars were awarded in relation to Granada.

[journey7873]

For this reason, Jessica will receive more attention than the boys (men, rather) who participated in combat and were killed or wounded. This is just the way it is.

Especially if you are as cute as a button. If only that black female POW had lost some weight...the media would have covered her more.

[Uncle Meat]

Has there been a "lowering of the bar" in awarding medals in the military?

Want examples?I have a million of them and I've been out since 1992. I couldn't tell you how many of the biggest duds I've ever seen,got ARCOMS and AAM's while the hardest working troops got zilch.It was like they just drew names out of a hat sometimes.

[Drew68]

The after action reports realsed by the DoD, & the Congressional hearings. That who......

You mean the ones haven't been released yet?

If you have a link to the official, final reports, please provide them and I will offer you my mea culpas.

[Ford Fairlane]

Has there been a "lowering of the bar" in awarding medals in the military?

I saw the official account that was posted the other day & my personal opinion is that noone in the unit should be awarded stars of any kind and the unit's CO & top NCO should be court martialed for dereliction of duty.

(For getting lost and more importantly, most of the weapons not operable due to improper maintenance, not to mention one of the trucks running out of gas)

But then I expect people to do their jobs properly, and thats not PC these days

[discostu]

Welcome to the vagueries of our dipstick news media. These kind of questions can be asked about almost every news story. Why the wall-to-wall coverage of the Peterson case, plenty of women get killed every day in this country? Why does one child kidnapping obsess the press for weeks on end and none of the dozens of other that happen during that time get a single mention outside local news? According to the NTSB a train derails every 18 hours in this country yet only one or two a year get any national coverage. Shark attacks in Florida, hanta viruses in New Mexico, there's always something getting more attention than it probably deserves.

In the end the reason Lynch got such an inordinate level of attention is that SOMEBODY was going to, she just happened to be the lottery pick.

[Destro]

It seems I also qualify for the Bronze Star. I can sit in a Humvee with the best of them.

[Carolina]

That's just it. A lot of us didn't know that because the media didn't cover it as much as they have covered Jessica.

As a matter of fact, Shoshanna Johnson (to which your fondly refer as "the chubby, black female POW") was honored during the Country Music Awards.

Along with Ronald Young and Patrick Miller, the three were given a standing ovation. I'm sorry that you did not see that on TV.

And yes, there was also TV coverage of their homecoming. If you search FR archives, you might even find some of the stills from the homecoming.

[journey7873]

Well said.

[Destro]

Mom says killed son mistaken for Lynch in Iraq (Sgt. Walters was the true hero)

[ohioWfan]

You wanna trade places with her and get beaten and raped so you can get a Bronze Star too?

Your emotional protests sound a lot like petty jealousy.

btw, IMO the media coverage was way over the top, but the medals were earned. Live with it.

[discostu]

Wow two of those in one thread. I better logoff or I'll get a big head.

[Destro]

One person should get that medal! See my link at #76

[Destro]

They said she was stabbed and shot and she wasn't--who said she was raped?