The Unfair Awards System during Iraq and Afghanistan
SGM Roslyn D. Mason
United States Sergeants Major Academy
Sergeants Major Course (SMC)
CL43B
SGM JOHN A. KOLODGY
October 10, 2016
Having been involved in both Iraq and Afghanistan wars the one consistent thing that I have noticed was a high distribution of awards to officers and senior enlisted whom did not deserve them. At first when reading the citations of extreme heroism, working above and beyond duties, and rank. One would come to the conclusion that not only the person receiving the award deserves it, but the writer also has first-hand knowledge eye witness testimony of the accomplishments that were listed. However, this was not always the case, in fact it, was neither …show more content…
It was decided what type and degree of award Soldiers would receive before they could start the mission, and show what they were capable of as Soldiers. That speech set the tone for low morale, produced officers and Soldiers that were lazy, complacent, and satisfied with doing absolutely nothing during combat operations. Nevertheless, most of Soldiers did their best knowing that no matter what they accomplished they would not receive anything higher than an …show more content…
SGM’s because some of the Soldiers under my charge deserved MSMs or higher because of their dedication to duty, commitment to excellence, engaging the enemy as well as hostile fire and in two instances saved lives. Instead Soldiers, were given impact awards for bravery and a secondary ARCOM for their end of duty tour. Although, the justifications were well written and eyewitness accounts were noted, it was minimized to the lowest award possible due the Soldiers rank. In my personal opinion, this further cheapened the actions of soldiers who put their lives on the line every day to keep others
SGM Roslyn D. Mason
United States Sergeants Major Academy
Sergeants Major Course (SMC)
CL43B
SGM JOHN A. KOLODGY
October 10, 2016
Having been involved in both Iraq and Afghanistan wars the one consistent thing that I have noticed was a high distribution of awards to officers and senior enlisted whom did not deserve them. At first when reading the citations of extreme heroism, working above and beyond duties, and rank. One would come to the conclusion that not only the person receiving the award deserves it, but the writer also has first-hand knowledge eye witness testimony of the accomplishments that were listed. However, this was not always the case, in fact it, was neither …show more content…
It was decided what type and degree of award Soldiers would receive before they could start the mission, and show what they were capable of as Soldiers. That speech set the tone for low morale, produced officers and Soldiers that were lazy, complacent, and satisfied with doing absolutely nothing during combat operations. Nevertheless, most of Soldiers did their best knowing that no matter what they accomplished they would not receive anything higher than an …show more content…
SGM’s because some of the Soldiers under my charge deserved MSMs or higher because of their dedication to duty, commitment to excellence, engaging the enemy as well as hostile fire and in two instances saved lives. Instead Soldiers, were given impact awards for bravery and a secondary ARCOM for their end of duty tour. Although, the justifications were well written and eyewitness accounts were noted, it was minimized to the lowest award possible due the Soldiers rank. In my personal opinion, this further cheapened the actions of soldiers who put their lives on the line every day to keep others