Queen's Platinum Jubilee

[brihard]

Update: The AB, SK, MB, NB, NS, and PE provincial QPJM medals have been added to Canada’s order of precedence and approved for wear in uniforms today by order in council.

 

[Navy_Pete]

Oh goodie. More meaningless bling. Daft useless wankers.

 

[dimsum]

Oh goodie. More meaningless bling. Daft useless wankers.

I hate random bling as much as the next person, but I'll give this one a pass.

The various provincial govts awarded said bling, not the federal govt or CAF. This is just allowing CAF members to wear it.

 

[brihard]

Interesting tangent: the provinces that created a QPJM are those to keep in mind when contemplating a constitutional amendment to remove the monarchy that would require every province’s consent.

 

[dimsum]

Interesting tangent: the provinces that created a QPJM are those to keep in mind when contemplating a constitutional amendment to remove the monarchy that would require every province’s consent.

I'm pretty sure a place named Prince Edward Island might be a little reluctant to ditch the crown.

 

[daftandbarmy]

I'm pretty sure a place named Prince Edward Island might be a little reluctant to ditch the crown.

Or British Columbia...

 

[dimsum]

Or British Columbia...

True, but at least BC could say "well, we don't hate the Brits, we just don't want the monarchy"

 

[OldSolduer]

Or British Columbia...

It should be renamed to "Not so British" Columbia.

 

[Kilted]

They have been put at the very end of the order of precedence due to being provincial. That was what I suspected, although I suppose that it was possible that they would be put with the other commemorative medals. That leads to anyone who potentially jumped the gun and got them mounted already, needing to get them remounted in the correct order.

 

[Furniture]

Oh goodie. More meaningless bling. Daft useless wankers.

All bling is meaningless to someone.

Celebrating the Sovreign's 70 years on the throne is likely more worthy of recognitions than some random Cpl's 15 days in KAF drinking Tim's and hacking darts.

 

[dimsum]

Celebrating the Sovreign's 70 years on the throne is likely more worthy of recognitions than some random Cpl's 15 days in KAF drinking Tim's and hacking darts.

Personal view: I'm not a fan of medals/ribbons that say "you were there when..." as opposed to "I did my job there".

The US military has the National Defence Service Medal, basically saying that you served during a specific timeframe. The latest iteration is the GWOT, from 2001 until 31 Dec 2022. So everyone who has ever been in the US military during those times gets one.

Similarly, the [insert name] Jubilee Medals are essentially just "you were there when HM was on the throne for her XX year". Some units may have given them to more deserving individuals within that unit, but from what I recall from the Golden Jubilee medal, it was essentially a free-for-all. The UK just gave them to everyone at that time, which if we were going to award it, we might as well have done the same. But we didn't.

So yeah, maybe said Cpl in KAF wasn't doing a ton, but they were doing their job (if their job was underemployed, then is it really their fault?). KAF may not be the best example either since when we were there in force, there was a non-zero chance of being killed via Taliban Bingo from above. Also, at least once the insurgents actually openly attacked KAF in person.

The fact that none of us got hit from one of those rockets is a minor miracle.

 

[Staff Weenie]

Personal view: I'm not a fan of medals/ribbons that say "you were there when..." as opposed to "I did my job there".

The US military has the National Defence Service Medal, basically saying that you served during a specific timeframe. The latest iteration is the GWOT, from 2001 until 31 Dec 2022. So everyone who has ever been in the US military during those times gets one.

Similarly, the [insert name] Jubilee Medals are essentially just "you were there when HM was on the throne for her XX year". Some units may have given them to more deserving individuals within that unit, but from what I recall from the Golden Jubilee medal, it was essentially a free-for-all. The UK just gave them to everyone at that time, which if we were going to award it, we might as well have done the same. But we didn't.

So yeah, maybe said Cpl in KAF wasn't doing a ton, but they were doing their job (if their job was underemployed, then is it really their fault?). KAF may not be the best example either since when we were there in force, there was a non-zero chance of being killed via Taliban Bingo from above. Also, at least once the insurgents actually openly attacked KAF in person.

The fact that none of us got hit from one of those rockets is a minor miracle.

Sidetrack - I can say with absolute certainty that there were casualties on KAF from the rockets, though only a few were Canadian (one was VSI). I carried the body of one who was killed, a civilian contractor, out of an ambulance. I saw a number of others who were wounded by rockets go though the trauma bays.

 

[rmc_wannabe]

Sidetrack - I can say with absolute certainty that there were casualties on KAF from the rockets, though only a few were Canadian (one was VSI). I carried the body of one who was killed, a civilian contractor, out of an ambulance. I saw a number of others who were wounded by rockets go though the trauma bays.

Same. Wasn't all smiles and sunshine, but those stories don’t make it into the narrative. It wasn't Mushan, Talukan, or Bazaar-e-Panjwaii, but it certainly wasn't Mirage or Kuwait.

 

[Furniture]

Personal view: I'm not a fan of medals/ribbons that say "you were there when..." as opposed to "I did my job there".

The US military has the National Defence Service Medal, basically saying that you served during a specific timeframe. The latest iteration is the GWOT, from 2001 until 31 Dec 2022. So everyone who has ever been in the US military during those times gets one.

Similarly, the [insert name] Jubilee Medals are essentially just "you were there when HM was on the throne for her XX year". Some units may have given them to more deserving individuals within that unit, but from what I recall from the Golden Jubilee medal, it was essentially a free-for-all. The UK just gave them to everyone at that time, which if we were going to award it, we might as well have done the same. But we didn't.

So yeah, maybe said Cpl in KAF wasn't doing a ton, but they were doing their job (if their job was underemployed, then is it really their fault?). KAF may not be the best example either since when we were there in force, there was a non-zero chance of being killed via Taliban Bingo from above. Also, at least once the insurgents actually openly attacked KAF in person.

The fact that none of us got hit from one of those rockets is a minor miracle.

My point wasn't to denegrate the service of those who went to KAF, my point was, If we can celebrate 15 days of service, or 12 years of service by randos, we can celebrate 70 years of service by HM The Queen...

 

[brihard]

My point wasn't to denegrate the service of those who went to KAF, my point was, If we can celebrate 15 days of service, or 12 years of service by randos, we can celebrate 70 years of service by HM The Queen...

Whether or not your intention was to denigrate KAF service, I feel that you inadvertently did a little bit. Everyone who went there was rolling the dice several times over.

 

[Furniture]

Whether or not your intention was to denigrate KAF service, I feel that you inadvertently did a little bit. Everyone who went there was rolling the dice several times over

I used KAF because it was easy to understand, if I'd said GOO, people would have asked questions

 

[dimsum]

My point wasn't to denegrate the service of those who went to KAF, my point was, If we can celebrate 15 days of service, or 12 years of service by randos, we can celebrate 70 years of service by HM The Queen...

Yes, but it's their service that counts for the GCS-SWA or CD. They're the only one wearing it - I'm not wearing a CD for Cpl Bloggins' 12 years of service. I'm wearing my CD for my years of service.

I do agree that we should celebrate HM's service. I'm just not sure that a medal is the way to do it.

 

[Rifleman62]

Coronation Medal next up.

e.g. The Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal is a commemorative medal instituted to celebrate the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II on 2 June 1953.

 

[Halifax Tar]

Sidetrack - I can say with absolute certainty that there were casualties on KAF from the rockets, though only a few were Canadian (one was VSI). I carried the body of one who was killed, a civilian contractor, out of an ambulance. I saw a number of others who were wounded by rockets go though the trauma bays.

We have a sailor MMT here in Halifax who caught some shrapnel on KAF.

Excellent person.

 

[daftandbarmy]

Similarly, the [insert name] Jubilee Medals are essentially just "you were there when HM was on the throne for her XX year". Some units may have given them to more deserving individuals within that unit, but from what I recall from the Golden Jubilee medal, it was essentially a free-for-all. The UK just gave them to everyone at that time, which if we were going to award it, we might as well have done the same. But we didn't.

The obscenely self-serving way in which the CAF (at my level anyways) handled the awarding of various "The Queen's not dead yet" medals was an appalling, and amazingly revealing, indictment of our leadership culture.

E.g., The unit only gets two medals to award? Easy decision: the RSM and CO will get them.