Purple heart?

if anyone has ever been in the war in the past and has won the purple heart then what is it like and how did you feel when you won the award?

Purple heart?
I have never won the Purple Heart, but I can say that since my dad had in WWII, he was pretty proud of it, but it didnt seem to change him any. He was just more dedicated in what he expected his kids to learn and respect.
Reply:First off, you don’t win a Purple Heart, it is an entitlement. Second, in reference to abouch66 – OIF hasn’t cheapened the medal, there are many cases since its re-inception were the award has been given to service members for so called paper-cuts and stub toes. There are cases in WWII, Korea, Vietnam, Desert Storm, OEF-OIF, and every little conflict in between. Third, if you read the regulation on what it takes to be entitled a Purple Heart, you would be surprised at how vague and yet specific it is; vague in the severity of the injury and specific on the conditions in which the injury was obtained.





First, the commander of the unit to decides if the injuries sustained qualifies. Second, the medic, either the field medic or the ones at the aid station, initiate the paperwork. And third a physician, usually the Battalion Surgeon, signs off on it and forwards it to the S1 (Administration Officer) of the Battalion. If the Soldier is taken straight to the aid station, a lot of the times the commander is never involved. But if the Soldier is seen by the field medic and RTD (Returned To Duty), then the commander can have his say.





I have seen commanders bless off on one award that was totally bogus and then turn around and deny a perfectly legitimate one. I have also seen S1’s refuse to process awards because the unit had already had too many awards; no matter how deserving. Either way it tells you the qualities and character of the person when they pull stunts like that. Morale really goes in the toilet after witnessing that stuff. And it’s the Soldiers who suffer.
Reply:I definatly feel its been cheapend in oif. Some soldiers definatly deserve the medal and I applaud them for their sacrifices. But I know there are alot of pu**y soldiers out there who stub their toe while running from indirect fire that is miles away and they get the medal. I know alot of deserving men that should have got it that never did, just cause they kept fighting, or the right people weren't around to witness it. There's just too much politics involved in the whole medal ordeal, its just a medal anyways. The only people who are really gonna know if you were worthy of it are the men who were there fighting next to you.
Reply:Thew purple heart was a highly respected decoration, Or at least it was until John Kerry cheapened it.