What Is A War Hero?

This may seem like old news, but it it is as timely as anything that I can think of.

Some of you may have heard about this in the past week, but if you haven't please take a moment to read about this guy.  His name was Rafael Peralta and he died on November 15, 2004.

Rafael Peralta was a young Marine Corps Sergeant, and he lost his life during Operation Phantom Fury (also known as the second battle of Fallujah).

Sergeant Peralta was a naturalized American citizen who was born in Mexico City, Mexico raised in California, and enlisted in the United States Marine Corps to serve his adopted country.

During the battle, Peralta and other marines were clearing houses of insurgents and were in close-quarters combat.  While clearing the houses, his team entered a house and cleared the first two rooms.  While entering the next room, Peralta was hit by insurgent fire, and his men returned fire. Among his other wounds, Peralta was shot in the head (it was later determined to have been from a ricochet from and American rifle), and had gone down.  Insurgents were still firing and threw a hand grenade at the surviving members of Peralta's team.  Eyewitnesses to the event said that the wounded peralta hugged the grenade to his body and absorbed the blast, killing him instantly, but saving the lives of the men around him.

After the battle, the surviving members of the team reported the incident through their chain of command and Sergeant Rafael Peralta was nominated for the Medal of Honor.

This was in 2004.

In September of 2008, Peralta's family was notified that Secretary of Defense Gates had down-graded Peralta's nomination and that he would be awarded the Navy Cross, which is our nation's second highest award for valor.

It seems that a board of military medical bureaucrats have decided that Peralta's injuries should have made it unlikely that he could have grabbed that grenade... even though Navy pathologists who had previously examined Peralta's remains said the he COULD have.

Are you angry yet?  I am.

Could it be that Peralta is being denied this award because part of his injuries came from friendly fire?  Well,, I don't know about you, but from what the men who were with him said, Peralta, wounded by friendly fire or not, acted with conspicuous bravery in that fight.  He went beyond the call of duty in that NOWHERE in Marine Corps training, are you required, by instruction, to throw yourself on a grenade.

Here is the crux of my problem:  If Peralta was hit and killed by friendly fire, and his actions were questionable, why is he being awarded the Navy Cross at all?   If Secretary Gates and a panel of chairwarmers don't believe the eyewitness testimony, again, why award any medal?  Are they calling the witnesses liars?  Are they suggesting that the witnesses are exagerrating?

Somebody help me with this, because from where I sit, this just isn't right.

Since the beginning of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, three medals of honor have been bestowed on men who did what Peralta did:  Petty officer Second Class (U.S.Navy) Michael Monsoor, Corporal (USMC) Jason Dunham, and Private First Class (U.S. Army) Ross McGinnis.

These men gave their lives, in the face of CERTAIN death, to save their comrades.  They were heroes, and will live on as heroes.  So will Rafael Peralta.

He deserves the Medal of Honor.

I started writing this post when I first heard the stary, last week, since then, it seems that there has been enough outrage, including a strongly worded bi-partisan letter from the California House and Senatorial delegation, that The President has decided to review the case and make a detrermination of his own.

Mr Bush, I'm no supporter of yours, but you MUST do the right thing, here.  Gravely wounded or not, wounded by friendly fire or not.  Sergeant Peralta took a grenade blast for his fellow Marines... the v ery least you can do is honor that sacrifie with this medal.  It's only right.

 

Friends, if you agree with me on this, I encourage you to make a simple phone call to whomever represents you in Congress, and tell them that you thing that Peralta is being wronged.  It's the least you can do.