NATO commanders are weighing a new way to reduce civilian casualties in Afghanistan: recognizing soldiers for "courageous restraint" if they avoid using force that could endanger innocent lives.
Don't get me wrong, I'm all on board with firepower restraint to avoid losing the war by not alienating civilians with unnecessary deaths. But this proposal is ridiculous.
Given the difficulty of determining whether you did not call for fire support despite the danger to yourself in order to avoid killing innocent civilians, I'm pretty sure that the award will be awarded posthumously, for the most part.
Otherwise, it could be given for doing nothing if you can write up a good enough report that claims you were really in grave danger with the Taliban fighting from a puppy farm and orphanage, yet managed to drive off the enemy without dropping JDAMs on the enemy force.
Heck, just give a unit citation for "courageous restraint" in the use of force to the entire German contingent in Afghanistan. That ought to get the ball rolling! Not to pick on the Germans, since there are other NATO allies that are more like war tourists than combatants.
UPDATE: Steyn has the same worry:
I see, as part of the new culturally sensitive warmongering, that the NATO commander in Afghanistan is considering giving out awards to soldiers for "courageous restraint." Maybe we could hand them out at home, too. Hopefully not posthumously.
What's next? Courts martial for unauthorized bravery?
