Should the military award system be standardized at the Department of Defense level rather that at the individual service branch level?

I would say no. Distinct branch awards are a good way to recognize cross-branch missions and events. When I was in Afghanistan, I was awarded an Army Commendation medal because I was attached to an Army unit and was awarded a Combat Action Badge which the Navy then converted to a Combat Action Ribbon. When I was at Sugar Grove I got a JSAM because it was a joint Command. Somebody once told me that ribbon racks tell a story. So, you could see through my rack that I was at one point assigned to an Army unit.

Also, one issue with the Navy's awarding of medals is that some of them count as points towards promotion. I was grateful for the Combat Action Ribbon conversion because it gave me an additional 2 award points, but some people got awards simply to better their chances of promotion (not a too common practice, but still).

GySgt John O'Donnell while this thread appears to be outside my fruit salad rack of recognition, when I took command of my units no one was getting any recognition. I learned the format and requirements for awards and rotated my sections for Attaboys. My point was to let my unit know that what they were doing was noticed. I composed and typed and hand carried 3 First Seargeant of the Year, USAF recognition packages that were selected as the top; 3 different men, different reasons, different responsibilities. Everything they did had to fit on one page and be boiled down to three main points and standard verbiage. My units were filled with people who were innovative and resourceful, knowledgeable about every aspect of every aircraft across the services and internationally. How many crashes did they avert because they created a fix that didn't exist? How do you count the lives that were saved because mistakes did not happen on their watch? When in theater, how happy were you when fighters arrived to strike critical targets after flying around the world, gassed in air without mishap? How about when medivac picked your broken bodies up in the middle of intense fire? Who gets the achievement medal? The aviator? The medic? The platoon leader? The guy that quietly packed the parachutes correctly? We had a period where the top talent was gathered in one place. Then someone had the bright idea that percentages would be good for proper promotion ratios. At base A, there are 5 people up for promotion. You can pick 4. All 5 far exceed the capabilities and accomplishments than anyone at base B. Many of their achievements were classified. Base B can select 4. Who have you lost? And what have you gained? How do you say these are our best, our brightest, our leaders? At a glance, you look at the dress uniform/ official photo. You have 100 packets and 2 hours to make your selection. How do you decide without knowing anyone personally? Haircut? Smile/no Smile? Your glance slides to the rack. Do you base your decision by sheer number of awards, ribbons and devices or do you look for the highest level, top right? Have you considered what an award might count for towards a promotion? And for moral? In a paycheck? Are there too many gratuitous medals? Which of yours didn't you deserve? Officers didn't get awards except in combat operations or something equally deserving. Enlisted got one for showing up. And a device because.. well only one article 15 this year; that counts as good conduct when retention is a problem.

I believe in awards and recognition. I believe the diverse missions of the different branches don't always translate well across the board. My "I love me Wall?" Don't have one. I just found a plack that I was given. It means more than a ribbon. I did my job. It was presented by those who knew me and meant something to them as well. Going forward. Was the action heroic? Was the performance worthy of the words "Singularly distinctive" which reflected great credit on the person, the unit and The United States?

You may have the floor.

My opinion.
The ones that should be the same, already are for the most part. The ones that aren't, would result in an epic inter-service battle if change was ordered.

I would most certainly say individual services, only cause them old farts in Dept. level don't understand the standards from the field and leadership

Yes

Simple answer would be No. There are to many service related awards that should remain within the service. There is already a basic DoD award system that covers all services but I feel each branch needs to have the option for service designated awards. There could always be a review of all awards to make sure that awards are necessary.

Okay,
My answer, keep it "AS IS". There is some centralization of decorations, hence campaign and various service medals. However, I'm sure each branch had created decorations based on its individual criteria. There are various levels of achievement, valor, merit, and commendation is obviously different within each branch and within the Guard (more so) and Reserve. It can be easily argued that multiple awards are indirectly influenced by the federal system (a de-centralization of powers within the government and de-centralization between the federal government and the states- The Constitution).

Interesting topic and responses. Perhaps the biggest inconsistency I see is service approval of other-service awards (ie a Sailor given an award by an Army command, but NAVPERS disapproves it and downgrades). Not a fan of this. If you're working for someone with award authority under their service and they have administrative authority in the form of personnel evaluations, etc they should also have absolute award authority.

What would the standard be? Marines are slow to give, the Air Force gives them out like candy, and the Army/Navy is hit or miss depending on the commander.

A solid question Gunny. I have thought about this a couple times. I feel that the branch specific awards help give individual identity. Each service member, regardless of their branch of service, have the ability to earn the awards of the other branches with the exception of the basic training graduation awards. Although it would simplify the award process I think it would be more trouble than its worth at this point.