Medal of Honor for Bravery in Afghanistan Is First for Living Soldier

[pastfinder]

The New York Times
By THOM SHANKER
Published: September 10, 2010

WASHINGTON — In the most dangerous valley of the most rugged corner of eastern Afghanistan, a small rifle team of airborne soldiers fell into a vicious insurgent ambush, a coordinated attack from three sides.

A young Army specialist, Salvatore A. Giunta, took a bullet to the chest, but was saved by the heavy plates of his body armor. Shaking off the punch from the insurgent round, he jumped up and pulled two wounded soldiers to safety before grabbing hand grenades and running up the trail to where his squad mates had been on foot patrol.

There, he saw a chilling image: Two insurgents hauling one of his American comrades into the forest. Specialist Giunta hurled his grenades and emptied the clip in his automatic rifle, forcing the insurgents to drop the wounded soldier. Still taking fire, he provided cover and comfort to his badly wounded teammate until help arrived.

True stories of combat defy retelling, and he leaves the recounting of the details of that mission on Oct. 25, 2007, to others. “It was one of the worst days of my life, and when I revisit it, it kind of guts me a little bit more every time,” he said on Friday.

But the White House wants to honor his heroism, and announced that for his valor during that mission, Salvatore Giunta of Hiawatha, Iowa, who is now 25 and a staff sergeant, will become the first living service member to receive the Medal of Honor, the military’s most prestigious award, for action during the wars since September 11, 2001.

President Obama spoke with Sergeant Giunta on Thursday, to discuss the “acts of gallantry at the risk of his life that went above and beyond the call of duty,” according to a White House statement. The date of the medal ceremony has not been set.

“President Obama said ‘thank you’ for what I did,” Sergeant Giunta said in an interview from his current post in Vicenza, Italy. “My heart was pounding out of my chest, so much that my ears almost stopped hearing. I had my wife by my side. She was holding my hand. When she heard me say, ‘Mr. President,’ she gave me a squeeze.”

The soldiers of Company B, 2d Battalion (Airborne), 503d Infantry Regiment, were part of Operation Rock Avalanche, a classic hearts-and-minds campaign to provide food, winter clothing and medical care to remote Afghan villagers — and to assure them that the American and Afghan troops were a stronger force for security than the insurgents.

The mission was described by Elizabeth Rubin, who wrote of the military’s travails in the Korangal Valley for The New York Times Sunday Magazine on Feb. 24, 2008. It is also the subject of a section of a recently published book, “War,” by Sebastian Junger. After months of patrols that cost the American military dearly, the outposts in the Korangal were eventually disbanded, and the forces in them relocated to provide security to larger population centers.

Sergeant Giunta does not discuss strategy or policy when he reflects on that night, when two paratroopers died and most of the patrol received serious injuries.

“I entered the Army when I was 18, and I’m 25 now — I became a man in the Army,” he said. “That night I learned a lot, and after that night I learned even more. This respect that people are giving to me? This was one moment. In my battalion, I am mediocre at best. This shows how great the rest of them are.”

The official White House statement differs with Sergeant Giunta’s modesty. “His courage and leadership while under extreme enemy fire were integral to his platoon’s ability to defeat an enemy ambush and recover a fellow American paratrooper from enemy hands,” the statement said.

Sergeant Giunta has also received the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart. He has served two tours of duty in Afghanistan.

Six other service members have received the Medal of Honor for operations since 9/11, according to Pentagon statistics; all of the others were awarded posthumously.

In contrast, 464 Medals of Honor were awarded during World War II, 133 during the Korean conflict and 246 during the war in Vietnam, according to Pentagon records. An analysis by the Army Times last year said that there were, on average, two or three Medal of Honor recipients for every 100,000 service personnel in previous wars — but only one in one million for the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.

That discrepancy has troubled some in the military and in Congress, who have asked whether there was reluctance to honor soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines — especially living ones — because of instances in which well-publicized stories of combat bravery were proven incorrect.

[Agresto]

This man definitely deserves the Medal of Honor. His actions show everything that this medal is awarded for.

I do not think there is a reluctance to honor soldiers. Quite the opposite actually. My father served as an ET in the Navy and didn't get nearly as many awards as my brother who is also an ET in the Navy. They haven't made many more medals since the 80's which makes me to believe that they are (generally) getting easier to obtain.

That being said, this medal should not lower it's standards. It's very specific in what it asks for and as a testament that is why only one in a million have obtained this award. It could also be due to the fact that it's a totally different conflict then previous wars which also adds a whole new problem.

Sorry for my rambling.