07-26-2009, 19:54
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#16
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Guerrilla Chief
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Harrisburg PA
Posts: 864
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Quote:
Originally Posted by greenberetTFS
I sure would love to read how he earned his MOH.....Does anyone have the details yet? It always amazes me when you read their heroic account.....The static line has a posting every month regarding this........
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They have a thread about SFC Monti on lightfighter and someone posted what he did:
"On 21 June 2006, SFC Monti, then a staff sergeant, was the assistant patrol leader for a 16-man patrol tasked to conduct surveillance in the Gowardesh region. The patrol was to provide up-to-date intelligence, interdict enemy movement and ensure early warning for the squadron's main effort as it inserted into the province.
As nightfall approached, the patrol was attacked by a well organized enemy force of at least 60 personnel. Outnumbered four-to-one, SFC Monti's patrol was in serious danger of being overrun.
The enemy fighters had established two support-by-fire positions directly above the patrol in a densely wooded ridgeline. SFC Monti immediately returned fire and ordered the patrol to seek cover and return fire. He then reached for his radio headset and calmly initiated calls for indirect fire and close air support (CAS), both danger-close to the patrol's position. He did this while simultaneously directing the patrol's fires.
When SFC Monti realized that a member of the patrol, Private First Class (PFC) Brian J. Bradbury, was critically wounded and exposed 10 meters from cover, without regard for his personal safety, he advanced through enemy fire to within three feet of PFC Bradbury's position. But he was forced back by intense RPG fire. He tried again to secure PFC Bradbury, but he was forced to stay in place again as the enemy intensified its fires.
The remaining patrol members coordinated covering fires for SFC Monti, and he advanced a third time toward the wounded Soldier. But he only took a few steps this time before he was mortally wounded by an RPG. About the same time, the indirect fires and CAS he called for began raining down on the enemy's position. The firepower broke the enemy attack, killing 22 enemy fighters. SFC Monti's actions prevented the patrol's position from being overrun, saved his team's lives and inspired his men to fight on against overwhelming odds."
Awe inspiring. RIP, SFC Monti.
__________________
So let me fill my children's hearts
With heroes tales and hope it starts
A fire in them so deeds are done
With no vain sighs for moments gone
Last edited by Monsoon65; 07-26-2009 at 19:56.
Reason: fat-fingered the "post" button.
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Monsoon65 is offline
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07-27-2009, 09:25
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#17
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Quiet Professional
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Colorado Springs
Posts: 4,510
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The son of a guy here at work was SFC Monti's FSO during their previous AFG tour. He said that upon returning to Ft Drum, Monti transferred to the other BCT there to go back to AFG. While not in the unofficial write-up, there's talk that Monti was hit on his first attempt to save Bradbury.
Rest easy, warrior.
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Razor is offline
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07-29-2009, 12:03
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#18
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Quiet Professional
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Fayetteville, NC
Posts: 5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by The Reaper
One thing is for sure.
If we keep making dying while earning it a pre-requisite, we are denying our children opprtunities to meet the role models we should be emulating.
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Damn good point! I am surprised that has not surfaced in many articles in regards to the recent recipients...
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rubend1 is offline
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08-01-2009, 13:26
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#19
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Quiet Professional (RIP)
Join Date: May 2007
Location: Carriere,Ms.
Posts: 6,922
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Recently I read about a Marine that just received the MOH,but I'm unable to get the specifics........Anyone see that same story and can enlighten us on the details?
Big Teddy
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I believe that SF is a 'calling' - not too different from the calling missionaries I know received. I knew instantly that it was for me, and that I would do all I could to achieve it. Most others I know in SF experienced something similar. If, as you say, you HAVE searched and read, and you do not KNOW if this is the path for you --- it is not....
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SF is a calling and it requires commitment and dedication that the uninitiated will never understand......
Jack Moroney
SFA M-2527, Chapter XXXVII
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greenberetTFS is offline
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08-01-2009, 17:08
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#20
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Quiet Professional
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: The Woodlands, Texas
Posts: 931
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FEAR is the reason why these MoHs are not being awarded. Fear inside the hearts of men (leaders, mind you) who are afraid that a live Soldier will not be able to "live" up to what the MoH stands for. In other words, the MoH has apparently acquired unwritten standards whereas flawed live humans are likely undeserving of something that, it seems, is supposed to also convey the sheer "purity" of the consummate Soldier. If my assumption is correct, then it is interesting that anyone who has actually seen combat (been shot at and shot other live people with the intent of killing them - not sitting in a firebase where a rocket falls nearby) would even think to look for saints in a battlefield. Honorable heroics occur when a regular mortal human being does the unthinkable for the men and the mission without regard for his own life - and it has happened way too often already for it to not be recognized. It does not matter, though; the heroics I've seen performed by SF while deployed are way too high in merit for any medal to properly account for.
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Basenshukai is offline
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08-01-2009, 18:46
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#21
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Quiet Professional
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: NoVA, playing golf
Posts: 155
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MOH
I have observed a disturbing trend among the mid-level O-5/6 "leaders" who don't believe in giving awards as they don't have on themselves.
Just look at the current push from CG USASOC for all 18 series O-5's to either deploy or take retirement.
Shame that we aren't giving our guys the awards they deserve.
And I did hear from SMA that they are either finishing or have finished the investigation for a USMC infantry Gunny on the west coast who will be the first living MOH winner.
v/r
Angry
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Angry Mike is offline
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08-01-2009, 21:01
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#22
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Quiet Professional
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: The Woodlands, Texas
Posts: 931
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Angry Mike
I have observed a disturbing trend among the mid-level O-5/6 "leaders" who don't believe in giving awards as they don't have on themselves.
Just look at the current push from CG USASOC for all 18 series O-5's to either deploy or take retirement.
Shame that we aren't giving our guys the awards they deserve.
And I did hear from SMA that they are either finishing or have finished the investigation for a USMC infantry Gunny on the west coast who will be the first living MOH winner.
v/r
Angry
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I don't think is that these leaders are somehow jealous of Soldiers who might be getting awards those leaders don't have. Rather, I think that there is an experiential gap whereas those leaders do not have the combat experience/perspective to know adequately what constitutes the requisite qualities for the highest military award the United States can ever award. There seems to be an inability to conceptualize what a living MoH recipient is all about. Once one appears, there will surely be others and there will be upgrades to existing awards as well. But, only about two, I would say.
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Basenshukai is offline
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08-01-2009, 21:41
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#23
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Quiet Professional
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: Arizona
Posts: 5,222
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Basenshukai
I don't think is that these leaders are somehow jealous of Soldiers who might be getting awards those leaders don't have. Rather, I think that there is an experiential gap whereas those leaders do not have the combat experience/perspective to know adequately what constitutes the requisite qualities for the highest military award the United States can ever award. There seems to be an inability to conceptualize what a living MoH recipient is all about. Once one appears, there will surely be others and there will be upgrades to existing awards as well. But, only about two, I would say.
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I agree with the above comment...many senior personnel are operating off of limited combat experience and really have more 3rd hand knowledge from lore/books/history etc and a false platform on which to judge.
They've created an almost mythical level of achievement based upon that lack of experience.
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PRB is offline
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09-04-2009, 08:41
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#24
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Quiet Professional
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Colorado Springs
Posts: 32
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The award system is all messed up to begin with. Period. People get CIB's for nothing. I got mine issued when I went to Afghanistan. I earned it in Iraq. How can you issue a badge which requirements state "must engage and be engaged with small arms fire" for someone who simply showed up? Bronze Stars are handed out to anyone above the rank of E-6 simply for going on a deployment. With abuses such as these how can anyone justify a Medal of Honor these days without, tragically, the loss of life and someone going far far above and beyond any call of duty within their given MOS?
Just my $0.02. Like I said, the award system as a whole needs to be fixed to begin with.
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whocares175 is offline
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09-05-2009, 05:35
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#25
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Quiet Professional
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Philadelphia,Pa.
Posts: 1,475
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MOH Recipients:
I have met 5 of the 95 living MOH Recipients and know 3 of them well enough to correspond and or talk to them. The most recent contact was with Dave Dolby at the 82nd Airborne Association meeting on September 3, 2009. Col.(Ret) Roger Donlon I spoke to at the SFA Convention in Las Vegas in June 2009 and Sgt.Maj. (Ret) Jon Cavaiani was the Grand Marshal of the Memorial Day parade in The Port Richmond section of Phila. PA. 2 or 3 times. All of the times I have been in the company of these men they have never discussed the reasons for the award of the MOH, and I have never thought it appropriate to discuss the subject unless they initiated that topic of conversation, which they never have done. Regard's, Tom Kelly
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tom kelly is offline
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09-05-2009, 19:13
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#26
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Quiet Professional
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: Colorado
Posts: 407
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It is sad that we have so few living MOH winners. I was a brand new PFC Intelligence Analyst in 10th Grp MI co and had the pleasure of working with Jon Caviani on what was called the CASMAP program. also worked with him on exercises trying to get the teams ready to deploy. The man worked around the clock and typically only took a short nap on a table. he was totally committed to making sure the teams that were deploying on an exercise or live had everything he in his power could get for them. He probably would not remember me at all as i was just a young punk but I learned a lot from that man in the very short time i had the opportunity to work with him. However, i dont think it would have mattered whether he had an MOH or not i would have still looked up to him and he was the first one to downplay that he had it. I am sure that we have people that are just as dedicated today teaching the young guys regardless of what awards they are wearing. But with all that said i also question why so few have been given.
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SkiBumCFO is offline
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09-08-2009, 08:39
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#27
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Quiet Professional
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Germany
Posts: 400
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SkiBum,
Were you there when the wall locker fell on Caviani and broke his leg? I'm just trying to figure out when you were there. Might know each other.
Craig
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ODA 226 is offline
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09-09-2009, 06:42
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#28
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Quiet Professional
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: N.E.WA
Posts: 1,137
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Most of the posts in this thread seem to address the real problems that are down at the ground level as far as awards go, I would like to address one other scenario that I believe is adding to this.
Thanks to the advances in technology Commanders have a tremendous advantage that they have never had before. In all theaters of conflict, we now have overhead ISR platforms showing what is happening on the ground in real time. Forget the fact that there is no running dialogue or soundtrack unless the FOB has those piped in to the endless number of feeds that they may be looking at. So what happens in the absence of sound? We make up our own soundtrack, we critique, and we judge what is happening as we are watching, without knowing specifically what the hell is actually happening.
Think not? I've been witness to this phenomena played out in a few different FOB's AOB's and the like. How many times have you seen it? Some one walks in the room, looks up at the screen, "whats going on there?" "Yeah I dont know, but its fucked up!" "Yeah why the hell are they doing that?" "Yeah I don't know, but its fucked up. They were supposed to go over there." "Look at that guy running!" "Wow, they aren't even chasing him!!!" "Yeah I Know"
Had it happen....AOB doesn't read the CONOP and all of a sudden they are taking over on the radio and you end up chasing your shadow around, cause someone up there thinks that every dude running away Has To Be Bad?!!!!!! WTF??
I'm thinking that if they wanted a hero, that they think, they would have seen one on TV by now, but thats just my $.02.
Until then we will continue to follow their award guidance, remembering to submit it at least 6 months out from redeployment, which means about 2 weeks in country we should be starting to put guys in for stuff so that they can get them downgraded to Certificates of Appreciation with V.
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"Most of us here can attest that we never took the easy way. Easy just is............easy. Life is a work in progress, and most of the time its a struggle." ~ Me
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LongWire is offline
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09-09-2009, 07:10
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#29
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Quiet Professional
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Fayetteville
Posts: 13,080
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A question?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Brush Okie
Others have the same qusetion.....
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'........They question how so few Medals of Honor -- all awarded posthumously -- could be bestowed for wars of such magnitude and duration......."
From the D Day Museum site on just the battle of Normandy.
'......Over 425,000 Allied and German troops were killed, wounded or went missing during the Battle of Normandy. This figure includes over 209,000 Allied casualties, with nearly 37,000 dead amongst the ground forces and a further 16,714 deaths amongst the Allied air forces. Of the Allied casualties, 83,045 were from 21st Army Group (British, Canadian and Polish ground forces), 125,847 from the US ground forces. The losses of the German forces during the Battle of Normandy can only be estimated. Roughly 200,000 German troops were killed or wounded. The Allies also captured 200,000 prisoners of war (not included in the 425,000 total, above). During the fighting around the Falaise Pocket (August 1944) alone, the Germans suffered losses of around 90,000, including prisoners.
Today, twenty-seven war cemeteries hold the remains of over 110,000 dead from both sides: 77,866 German, 9386 American, 17,769 British, 5002 Canadian and 650 Poles.
Between 15,000 and 20,000 French civilians were killed, mainly as a result of Allied bombing. Thousands more fled their homes to escape the fighting...."
In all the fighting during WW II only 464 MoH were awarded. 266 posthumously.
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Pete is offline
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09-11-2009, 21:37
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#30
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Quiet Professional
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: Colorado
Posts: 407
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Quote:
SkiBum,
Were you there when the wall locker fell on Caviani and broke his leg? I'm just trying to figure out when you were there. Might know each other.
Craig
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226 - i do not remember the actual incident but my memory seems to be fading. I did have to pull SFC (at the time) Caviani out of Shirley lake into a RB after his water jump so may have been because of the leg. I hope he is enjoying life. I will shoot you a PM
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