Consideration for the Victoria Cross - Afghanistan

[Towards_the_gap]

In 1991 I was nominated for an MSM.  Yes, I know the process is supposed to be confidential. I found out about it from a Bde HQ staff officer who told me (at a mixed mess function) said he'd stopped my nomination at the Bde level because "we don't reward people for doing their jobs".  It's good to see that things have changed (#sarcasm).

Admission - My troop commander, at the end of tour, gave me his write up nominating me for the MSM. 7 pages. He gave it to me because he knew it wasn't going to go anywhere because, to quote an unnamed person 'He has already been recognised'.

The recognition? CEFCOM Sergeant Major's Coin. Alongside a guy who ran the KAF ball hockey league, and someone else who did a lot of PT.

So forgive me if I'm a bit jaded.

 

[PPCLI Guy]

The "don't give someone an award for doing their job" line is BS, and we need to move away from that point of view.  There is nothing wrong with recognizing a job well done and we need not be overly stoic about recognition.

Using this line of reasoning, we could say that Smokey Smith was just doing his job when he took out German AFVs at the Savio River Bridgehead.

Absolutely.