US military introduces cyber soldier medal, signifies change in future of soldiering

• By Graham Templeton on February 18, 2013 at 2:02 pm
• http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/148631-us-military-introduces-medal-for-cyber-soldiers-signifies-change-in-future-of-soldiering

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“Direct impacts” might not have quite the same ring as “conspicuous gallantry,” but in the age of remote warfare it’s the best we’re likely to do. The future of war requires that we give up romantic ideas of military service, a fact that the Pentagon openly embraced by announcing a new medal for drone pilots and “cyber warriors.” The Distinguished War Medal is the first new medal since the Bronze Star was introduced in 1944, and where that medal praised acts of heroism, this new one encourages pure material gains — because in the Moneyball military mentality that has come to dominate the modern American battlefield, material gains are all that matter.
That’s not necessarily a bad or immoral thing, mind, since the most airtight statistical game requires zero friendly casualties. It seems self-evident that we should celebrate any technology that keeps our soldiers safe, but the medal has nevertheless prompted harsh backlash from many corners. Critics from both ends of the political spectrum are upset, with the Left claiming it’s wrong to glorify such remote killing and the Right claiming it’s wrong to dilute the praise we give to “real” combat soldiers. The Veterans of Foreign Wars made sure to complain as loudly as possible, telling Fox News that the new medal is “going to affect morale and it’s sending troops in the field a horrible message.”

The Distinguished Warfare Medal

One major point of contention seems to be the medal’s rank, which is quite high in the hierarchy of American military awards. Technically ranked above the Bronze Star, the Purple Heart, and the Meritorious Service Medal, the Distinguished Warfare Medal has become one of the US military’s highest possible honors. This is seen by some as a further sign that the modern American government puts little emphasis on the service of front-line troops. The Pentagon’s defense spokesman Lt. Cmdr. Nate Christensen defended the decision, claiming that awards such as the Silver Star and Medal of Honor are still restricted to personnel who risk their lives in combat.
For equipment operators, the distinction between combat and simulation will continue to thin, as user interfaces on fighter jets further abstract the battlefield in war, and surveillance technologies bring drone pilots closer to their targets. The idea of physical danger is also becoming murky — outside of a few marquis air campaigns of the past century or so, there has never been a time when climbing into a cockpit carried the same risk as driving onto a battlefield in a Hum-Vee, especially now that most missions fly over countries with no advanced form of anti-aircraft fire. Still, nobody questions the right of aviators to military honorifics.
An article last year in Slate highlighted this contradiction, pointing out that virtually every great military advance has been labelled as “cowardly” by those not lucky enough to have the technology for themselves. There is also the idea of positive reinforcement, that with seemingly so few negative incentives for sloppy drone work, that we’d better be able to at least praise the good stuff. To cut drone work out of eligibility for military honor is to place such work outside the restrictions of military honor as well.
This move actually comes several months after the British Royal Air Force announced a similar medal for its cyber warriors. It seems, then, like only a matter of time before the full range of modern battlefield operators is eligible for distinction.