The medal was the first medal awarded by the United States
and almost half of them were awarded during the Civil War, including the only
one awarded to a woman. There have been
almost 3500 awarded since its inception, almost 2/3rds awarded posthumously. This is likely because two of the required
conditions for nomination are conflict with an enemy of the United States and
acts performed under conditions of grave personal bodily danger.

At least that is true of those nominations coming up the
Chain of Command, which may explain why Captain William Swenson had to wait to get his nomination. As it was he was the first Officer to receive
the medal since Viet Nam, with the caveat that President Clinton awarded in
2001posthumous medals to several Black and Asian soldiers for action during WW
II.

Congress also has the authority to nominate candidates for
the medal. Not surprisingly they have
done so almost 200 times. Most notably
on the list were Richard E. Byrd for arctic exploration and Charles Lindbergh
for his trans-oceanic flight. Since Byrd
was Navy and Lindbergh Army Reserve they received different versions of the
same medal.
In some ways it seems unusual that the United States was
such a late comer to the bestowing of medals.
Medals have long been a recognized means to honor past exploits and
provide a means to form a cadre of elitism.
From my 26 years of service I collected a fair sampling of “fruit salad”
ribbons and a couple for distinguishing myself in other areas than combat. Each of the ships I was attached to had their
ribbons also and for many of the crew they were a personal badge of honor.
But, if you follow the links for Sergeant Giunta and Captain
(soon to be Major if allowed to rejoin the Army) Swenson, you will note what is
almost the universal feeling of the recipients: modesty that they do not
deserve what should have been bestowed on so many others in the action.
For the past several years, the Bay Area Navy League has
hosted a formal Dining-in for survivors of the Battle of Midway. This year I believe there were still nine,
although one invitee was unable to travel.
I try to attend the ceremony, held at the Marine’s Memorial in San
Francisco. In conversation with one of
these guests I heard exactly that. With
a wistful look in his eyes, he said, “I remember most of the days and I remember
some of the events, but I will never forget any of my shipmates.”
Football seems to be hot news lately. In my next post I’ll share some of my
observations. I hope you’ll join me.
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