Requiring “conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of life above and beyond the call of duty,” the MOH is the highest U.S. decoration. A grunt needs a commander’s recommendation; two eyewitnesses to swear he went all Rambo in battle, killing enemies or saving lives; and the OK from a board of snoozing generals. The original Navy/Marine Corps one, created in 1862, features the Roman goddess Minerva kickin’ ass.
