Military Honors for a Changing Front - New Rules Reflect Dangers...

[bridgit]

'By Josh WhitThe wars in Iraq and Afghanistan not only have changed the methods U.S. troops use to fight an urban insurgency, they also have caused the U.S. military services to change the way they look at honoring troops who are fighting on the difficult battlefields.

The Marine Corps this year changed the rules that determine which Marines are eligible for the Combat Action Ribbon, an honor that previously required troops to both receive and return fire against an enemy. Recognizing that the deadliest and most effective enemy weapon in Iraq has been the roadside bomb, officials changed the criteria to include anyone who has been exposed to the detonation of such bombs, known within the military as improvised explosive devices.'

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/17/AR2006101701261_pf.html