Hard done by? Heed Winston's words of wisdom

摘要

I have read with interest letters in recent editions of Soldier deliberating the growing trend towards "baubles and bling" and the perceived injustices of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal's qualifying criteria. These discussions are not new and over my 30 plus years of service I have frequently heard similar cries. For me, you can get no better perspective on this than that expressed by Winston Churchill on March 22,1944: "The object of giving medals, stars and ribbons is to give pride and pleasure to those who have deserved them. "At the same time a distinction is something which everybody does not possess. If all have it, it is of less value.