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2006-05-01 International-UN-NGOs
Marine Hero to Be Decorated for His Bravery -- 1st Sgt. Brad Kasal
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Posted by Sherry 2006-05-01 13:42|| || Front Page|| [2 views since 2007-05-07]  Top

#1 "He was hurt bad, but for the most part, he was more worried about his Marines than himself,"

Isn't that in the definition of a good Marine (or Soldier, Airman, or Sailor)?

I'm in no way minimizing his heroism, but the more I learn about our service members in combat, the more I think that the phrase "uncommon valor was a common virtue" still applies way beyond Iwo Jima.

Awe isn't a strong enough word for what I feel toward our heroes.
Posted by Xbalanke 2006-05-01 14:06||   2006-05-01 14:06|| Front Page Top

#2 What surprises me is that we haven't seen more high decorations coming out of Iraq. One Medal of Honor, IIRC.
Posted by Matt 2006-05-01 14:50||   2006-05-01 14:50|| Front Page Top

#3 And Afghanistan.
Posted by Matt 2006-05-01 14:50||   2006-05-01 14:50|| Front Page Top

#4 Article: Kasal, who is single, has been assigned to a recruiting station in Des Moines. He did three years as a recruiter in the 1990s in Minnesota, the only stretch in his 21 years in the Marine Corps in which he has not been assigned to an infantry company.

It's too bad he won't hang up his rifle. I think it's time he let the young 'uns take over.
Posted by Zhang Fei 2006-05-01 15:04|| http://timurileng.blogspot.com]">[http://timurileng.blogspot.com]  2006-05-01 15:04|| Front Page Top

#5 I suspect that the *** apparent *** low number of medals may have to do with the nature of the fights: mostly small skirmishes against inferior opponents.

Face it, despite MSM's best efforts to suggest otherwise, the casualty rate is pretty low, and most of that is against IEDs. Actual casualty rates in stand-up fights are minimal, indicative of an enemy that is pretty ineffective at such fights. There is little opportunity for "above and beyond" citations when you so outclass the enemy that you wipe them out at will just by following your training. (Not to denigrate the troops who are in those fights, of course)

I suppose that the correct comparison for medal counts would be with the banana republic fights in the 20th century --both the ones in the early part of the century *and* Grenada and Panama.
Posted by Carl in N.H.">Carl in N.H.  2006-05-01 15:12||   2006-05-01 15:12|| Front Page Top

#6 Carl may be right, but this is still very impressive. Kudos to Brad Kasal!
Posted by anonymous5089 2006-05-01 15:15||   2006-05-01 15:15|| Front Page Top

#7 I think it's time he let the young 'uns take over.

"Today, the 39-year-old Iowa native will be promoted to sergeant major"

Zhang, there are plenty of us who consider anyone 39 to be a young'un.
Posted by Steve">Steve  2006-05-01 15:23||   2006-05-01 15:23|| Front Page Top

#8 go to sftt.org
Posted by Spearong Glomogum2222 2006-05-01 15:42||   2006-05-01 15:42|| Front Page Top

#9 Seems like historically a disproportionate number of the big medals go to officers, and disproportionately to officers above Lt. as well. Given the small unit nature of these conflicts a lot of engagements will not include officers above Lt., so less medals will be issued.
That, plus maybe some embarassment in the services about the Kerry-style Bronze Star (v).
Posted by Glenmore">Glenmore  2006-05-01 16:22||   2006-05-01 16:22|| Front Page Top

#10 I'm suspect that the number of officers being awarded is a feature - not a bug.
Posted by 6 2006-05-01 16:47||   2006-05-01 16:47|| Front Page Top

#11 Matt: What surprises me is that we haven't seen more high decorations coming out of Iraq. One Medal of Honor, IIRC.

Fewer opportunities to get killed. During WWII, we had an army of 8 million fighting armies of millions. The other side did not have superior firepower, but they attacked with air strikes, massed artillery, tanks, throughout the war. Nothing like that in Iraq. Total Iraqi insurgent force is probably no more than tens of thousands, tops. I'm fine with less medals, because that also correlates with a lower friendly body count. A lot of medals were awarded during Vietnam, but we also lost about 60,000 dead.
Posted by Zhang Fei 2006-05-01 16:50|| http://timurileng.blogspot.com]">[http://timurileng.blogspot.com]  2006-05-01 16:50|| Front Page Top

#12 
link to amazon photo of rear book cover showing brad

Posted by 3dc 2006-05-01 17:31||   2006-05-01 17:31|| Front Page Top

#13 Oo Rah!
Posted by Parabellum 2006-05-01 17:49||   2006-05-01 17:49|| Front Page Top

#14 "Although severely wounded himself, he shouted encouragement to his fellow Marines," the Navy Cross citation states. By the time he was evacuated, Kasal had lost about 60% of his blood and was barely conscious.

All that remains is for us, as individuals and as a nation, to figure out how we can remain worthy of such valor on the part of our warriors. We are in dire risk of no longer deserving them. In the near future, our constitution will be more deserving of such courage than most people on the street.
Posted by Zenster 2006-05-01 20:05||   2006-05-01 20:05|| Front Page Top

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