Is the awarding of the Meritorious Service Medal being watered down due to lack of standardization across the services?

The first half of my career in the signals intelligence field, one of the E-4s in my section put together his own analysis of what our mission had collected over time. He presented it like a master's thesis. His primary job was listening, not analyzing. He did a great job & the study he did went quite far. Because of the intelligence impact that had on our mission, he ended up getting an MSM. I know explaining MI stuff to folks is difficult for folks to understand but the award was well deserved.

True story. The only Marines I've seen get that award in their units were a SgtMaj, MGySgt, or a retiring E-8. I haven't been around enough soldiers, sailors, or airmen to witness anyone of lesser grade with it on, so I haven't a clue if it's a common thing in the other branches. I will say that NAMs (Navy/Marine Corps Achievement Medal, for the other branches in here) seem to be handed out like candy, depending on your MOS though.

Are you sure it wasn't a good conduct medal?

I didn't receive one until I was retiring.

myself and 3 other Seabees received the Navy Commendation and two received Purple Hearts for surviving the bombing of the bombing of the American Embassy in Beirut in 1984. After recovering from the blast we helped in recovering the wounded then recovered the decease.

I spent 20 years in the Navy and along the way earned a Navy Commendation Medal as an E-6. My Master Chief had to fight to get it for me because a number of seniors had a belief that "only khakis deserved the NCM or higher." Of course, the award criteria mention nothing of the sort. In my opinion, if the servicemembers service meets the criteria of the award as written in the manual, they deserve the award, regardless of rank or years of service.

To require a rank devalues the award. It is an award and should be based on merit. I am a retired Army E6 who decided to retire despite being #3 on the list for E7. I had previously received 3 MSM’s, but was only awarded an ARCOM for my retirement because I was an “E6”. Awards are supposed to be based on merit and achievement not rank. I was told that my retirement award was an ARCOM because a retiring SGM was only getting an MSM and not Legion of Merit.

Since when did time in service dictate how deserving you are of an award? Maybe I have a different definition of merit, but if you earn it then you earn it. Based on merit.

It is presumptuous to assume that an E5 in the Air Force could not have risen up to the task and actually deserved MSM. I'm sure given the difference in culture and mission that it is understandable that a Marine would have to be at least an E7 to be taken seriously enough by his superiors to be put in for one. But than again, look at the number of CMOH's given out by Congress to Marines as opposed to AF enlisted since 1947. If you want to complain about making a medal lose its luster, calculate the number of Bronze Stars handed out for meritorious service in the last 20 years.

I have two MSMs and three DMSMs. Of the five, three were the result of completing a tour of duty and going PCS. One was awarded upon closing of a unified command and transfer to a joint agency. In each case I was a field grade officer. One is for specific job performance--it is the most meaningful. In the Air Force the MSM was the standard "glad you're gone" award for field grade officers. Company Grade officers usually got the Air Force Commendation Medal. Each service has their award criteria and it's interpreted different ways by different commands. I wrote a bunch of MSMs and DMSMs for field grade officers who worked for me. They were generally well deserved.