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Why do you ask my opinion on almost every single post I make trying to bait me into what you’re assuming my stance will be? I agree with Lord Ratner’s take on it. I think a DFC with valor and a Purple Heart, but I don’t think it crosses over into MoH territory. To me it takes a type of gallantry such as saving life/lives of fellow service members while at being attacked. I do respect the fact it’s hard, if not impossible, to directly compare the combat events and actions of the recipients to each other. But in the end I’m not the POTUS, so it doesn’t really matter what I think.

Fair enough. So what’s your opinion on the event/him receiving the MoH?

I feel comfortable aggressively telling you to STFU. Especially about a -47 pilot being shot 4 times and still successfully operating a helicopter the size of a bus in combat. I'm doubting you've ever been shot at, much less shot at while actually in range, much less while piloting a helicopter, which I've heard equated to as balancing on a swissball while playing a guitar. Dear keyboard warrior: Stop talking Beyond that, it's the CONGRESSIONAL Medal of Honor. Every single one has politics behind it. The president puts it on, but a LOT of other people approve it first. No doubt political shenanigans were at play...but also no doubt this dude did something to deserve it.

Verbiage of contract is probably the issue at hand. I highly doubt the US govt would screw up the contract verbiage....

What I meant is called guided discussion, which is what I received since multiple people have commented with multiple opinions on the topic.

So what then did you mean by your original comment? I don’t think you were asking for clarification on the location/operation as your internet search skills are probably just as good as the rest of us.

I get your point, but Anthropic signed a $200 million DoD contract last summer. Did Amodei just suddenly grow a conscience? If so, then hand the $200M check back!

Per 10 U.S. Code § 7271 - Medal of Honor, the President may award, and present in the name of Congress, a medal of honor of appropriate design, with ribbons and appurtenances, to a person who while a member of the Army, distinguished himself conspicuously by gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty— (1) while engaged in an action against an enemy of the United States; (2) while engaged in military operations involving conflict with an opposing foreign force; or (3) while serving with friendly foreign forces engaged in an armed conflict against an opposing armed force in which the United States is not a belligerent party. That usually means the recipient must have performed an act of extraordinary heroism, showed bravery and fearlessness far above what duty requires; the heroism must involve an immediate, life‑threatening danger, and the service member must have willingly exposed themselves to that danger; and the action must have exceeded what is normally expected in combat, even for highly dangerous missions. This high threshold is what distinguishes the Medal of Honor from all other valor awards.

We all know some MoHs are politically-driven even when the acts themselves are noble and worthy of recognition. U.S. Army Master Sgt. Roddie Edmonds, who famously refused Nazi demands to single out Jewish American soldiers while he was a prisoner of war in Stalag IX‑A during World War II, is being posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for this act of courage. By no means am I trying to undercut what Edmonds did! A German officer held a pistol to his head and demanded that he identify the Jews. Edmonds refused, warning the officer he would be prosecuted as a war criminal. The officer backed down, and Edmonds’ actions saved about 200 Jewish‑American POWs who otherwise could have been killed or sent to labor camps. This could be in response to David Rubitsky, a Jewish American WWII veteran who believed he had been denied the Medal of Honor because he was Jewish. On 1-2 Dec 1942 during the Battle of Buna, Rubitsky singlehandedly defended a bunker with a ".30-cal. machine gun, a .45-cal. pistol, a rifle and grenades." Allegedly, he beat off the Japanese after a 21-hour battle in which he killed 500 to 600 of the enemy, including wounded men he later shot or bayoneted. However, a 23‑month U.S. Army investigation concluded that there was “incontestable evidence” he had not performed the actions he claimed, thus the Medal of Honor was not awarded. I'll let you judge if CWO5 Slover was deserving... "During combat operations against a heavily fortified hostile objective in Caracas, Venezuela, Chief Warrant Officer Five Eric Slover distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as the flight lead pilot of a CH‑47 Chinook helicopter during the joint U.S. mission to capture Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. On 3 January 2026, Slover led the first assault aircraft of Operation Absolute Resolve as U.S. special operations forces executed a nighttime airborne infiltration into Maduro’s secure compound. The target facility was defended by thousands of hostile personnel and protected by Russian and Chinese integrated defensive systems, presenting an extremely high‑risk aviation environment. Despite these dangers, Chief Warrant Officer Five Slover pressed the assault to deliver the ground force that would seize the objective. As Slover descended toward the landing zone, his aircraft came under intense, concentrated machine‑gun fire from multiple directions. Within seconds, he was struck four times in the leg and hip, sustaining devastating wounds that shattered his leg into multiple pieces. Although gravely injured and in excruciating pain, Slover refused to relinquish control of the aircraft. Blood flowed down the inside of the cockpit as he steadied the aircraft under fire, demonstrating extraordinary composure and iron resolve. Fully aware that failure to insert the assault force would jeopardize the entire mission and risk the lives of every service member involved, Chief Warrant Officer Five Slover continued the descent and successfully delivered the U.S. special operations team into the target compound. His unwavering commitment, even while seriously wounded, enabled the ground force to fight its way into the stronghold and successfully capture President Nicolás Maduro, bringing to a close a high‑stakes international operation months in the making. After ensuring the commandos were safely inserted, Slover maneuvered the damaged aircraft away from the landing zone while continuing to bleed heavily and remain at risk of losing consciousness. His actions directly contributed to the safe extraction of U.S. forces and the overall success of the mission. For the duration of the flight, he placed mission accomplishment and the lives of his team above his own survival, demonstrating valor on par with the highest traditions of American military service. Chief Warrant Officer Five Eric Slover’s fearless leadership, selfless devotion to duty, and willingness to face certain death exemplify the very essence of heroism. His gallant actions under fire reflect great credit upon himself, the United States Army, and the United States of America." That said, how this was completed in less than two months whereas a Purple Heart was just recently awarded for a combat injury 13 years ago tells me that there was political objective behind this award!

@jonlbs That extremely over-simplified, distilled version of the event is all you’re going to get - it is what it is. I don’t see this one as unwarranted (though I understand the speed at which it was pushed through is almost certainly politically driven). Like all awards/medals, including the MOH, there will always be people who easily could have/should have received them and didn’t. That fact doesn’t immediately negate the validity of someone else’s award.

You sound like you read into comments trying to shape some preconceived narrative you’ve already formulated in your head.

https://simpleflying.com/american-airlines-conducting-full-inspection-boeing-737-max-8-hit-bullets-colombia/

In all seriousness, the threshold for getting an MoH as a living serviceman is incredibly high. And there's not one shred of doubt in my mind that this administration would happily violate the customary burdens for qualification so they could say that their operation had one more piece of flair on it. If the guy lives up to the standard set by previous recipients, then by all means. But getting shot and continuing the mission is not enough. And unfortunately for that pilot, everybody knows Trump is going to be pushing this as hard as he can, regardless of whether or not he deserves the medal.

Okay, I wouldn't have...but my brother would have

Wonder how many army pilots have taken bullets and continued flying? Did they all get MoH’s?

Sua’s minimum is 5, ideally 6 or more hits for a MOH, and preferably would’ve got at least one practice approach in upon RTB.

Lol. Sure you would have. You're just old and lame now. I don't know many rowdy young men who wouldn't want to say they chugged beers with the FBI boss.

The Struggle is real.

He was shot FOUR times including in the leg and hip, but flew on and conducted the air assault.

You sound like you disagree with him receiving it? Unless I’m misinterpreting the tone of your post?

The issue with Anthropic is a bit more nuanced than what is described above. Specifically, Anthropic's CEO (Dario Amodei), refused to let its Claude models be used to conduct US domestic surveillance or in fully autonomous weapons systems. Not saying he is right but I can see his moral argument.

Well deserved and earned.

Exactly. Many of the big tech names work in the black world, but publicly they’ll cry for world peace and shit on the DOW, an administration’s foreign policies/decisions, etc. They don’t actually give a shit about all of their professed “ideals,” they only care about money and power. They are more than happy to participate in things that result in death and destruction (and they’re fully aware of it).

Heard he was shot up pretty bad early on and continued on to finish. Heard, nothing concrete.

Medal of Honor for flying into Venezuela?