A question for the British military...

[kristine]

I saw this article... news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20110602/wl_uk_afp/britainmilitaryafghanistannepalaward
Nepalese soldier kills 30 Taliban...by himself

Corporal Dipprasad Pun, A Nepalese soldier in the British army, 31, said he thought he was going to die and so had nothing to lose in taking on the attackers who overran his checkpoint. Surrounded, the enemy opened fired from all sides and for 15 minutes Pun remained under continuous attack, including from rocket-propelled grenades and AK47 shots. Pun fired more than 400 rounds, launched 17 grenades and detonated a mine to repel the Taliban assault on his checkpoint near Babaji in Helmand Province, southern Afghanistan, last September. At one point, unable to shoot, he used his machine gun tripod to knock down a militant who was climbing the walls of the compound.

"I had so many of them around me that I thought I was definitely going to die so I thought I'd kill as many of them as I could before they killed me.

He was awarded the Conspicuous Gallantry Cross (CGC), which is given in recognition of acts of conspicuous gallantry during active operations and is is second only to the Victoria Cross -- the highest honour for bravery in the face of the enemy.

...and my first thought was - this guy could compete with Seal Team 6 for his ability to open up a can of whoop-ass.

My 2nd thought was "what does a guy have to do to get the damn Victoria Cross if THIS doesn't qualify?"

okay then - if anyone knows - speak up please...

[Art Vandelay]

Don't fuck with Nepal, those guys are renowned within the commonwealth for their badass soldiers for a damn good reason.

As for the Victoria Cross, I can't find anything beyond a vague "extreme valour in the face of the enemy" and the like. I would imagine it's reserved for people who manage to noticeably change the course of the war (for Britain, obviously).

[jackmann]

It may be because the Victoria Cross technically requires three witnesses, though this has been waived in the past.

[sylvana]

Well Wikipedia says this:
". most conspicuous bravery, or some daring or pre-eminent act of valour or self-sacrifice, or extreme devotion to duty in the presence of the enemy"
I guess the difference would be is the guy rushed out to save one of his buddies and killed 30 Taliban in the process. One would say that this man was not brave just desperate. I commend him for managing to hold out.

[starseeker]

And this is why you don't mess with the Gurkhas.

[Mr. Nnamdi]

Wow, what a guy. I'd pat this guy on the back, if I weren't afraid he'd break my hand and slap me with it.

Also kinda makes me sad though. It was us Canadians that were the badass commonwealth troopers, storm troopers and all back in the day, and now...



Dammit Nepal!!!

(No offense to my country's army)

[kristine]

for those who are interested I got this reply on another site...

Without seeing the after action report I can't be positive but the problem may be that he was alone during the fight. The VC requires a recommendation and 3 witnesses for approval, in it's history it's only once been awarded to someone with out allied witnesses and that was to an airman who sank a German uboat. The recommendation? Came from the Captain of the Uboat.

[jackmann]

So I was right.

[shadowpanther]

Because he's a Gurkha. This sort of thing is considered a slow day for that regiment.

[canadian mojo]

We've got Tomcats?

[Meshakhad]

Jun 10, 2011 2:37:51 GMT -5 starseeker said:

And this is why you don't mess with the Gurkhas.

They are demons.

[ltfred]

What's the train of thought here? He found like thirty Taliban bodies, set them up around his post, set off a bunch of bombs and fired off a gun a lot and then fell asleep?

I mean, why would you need witnesses? Clearly he did it. That's not in question.

[lighthorseman]

Jun 10, 2011 21:27:12 GMT -5 Mr. Nnamdi said:

It was us Canadians that were the badass commonwealth troopers, storm troopers and all back in the day, and now...

HA HA HA HA! You're not serious are you? Considering the Australian Light Horse regiments won the first world war for the allies virtually single handed? Not to mention how Australia was left to defend the Pacific alone in War2?

(Yes, I acknowledge that there were a couple of Canadians present in the libertion of Europe in War2)

[Tiberius]

Jun 13, 2011 23:14:47 GMT -5 lighthorseman said:

Jun 10, 2011 21:27:12 GMT -5 Mr. Nnamdi said:

It was us Canadians that were the badass commonwealth troopers, storm troopers and all back in the day, and now...

HA HA HA HA! You're not serious are you? Considering the Australian Light Horse regiments won the first world war for the allies virtually single handed? Not to mention how Australia was left to defend the Pacific alone in War2?

(Yes, I acknowledge that there were a couple of Canadians present in the libertion of Europe in War2)

Oh shit. It's going to be that nonsense about tanks all over again. Gods help us all.

[jackmann]

Come now. We all know who really won WWII.

The Invaders, led by Captain America. C'mon now. Haven't you folks studied your history?