Personally I don't give a flip what Kerry did with his medals or ribbons or whatever. What puzzles me about him is this: he served his country, then was against the war, and now is using his "war hero" status as part of his credentials for President. That seems inconsistent to me, but your mileage may vary. I don't favor Kerry OR Bush, anyhow.

McGrath, a medal and a ribbon are not necessarily the same thing. My dad's Purple Heart set has the large ribbon with the medal on it, a small bar pin made from purple & white ribbon, and a purple & white tie-tack thingy. It's my understanding that the ribbon-with-medal is what's commonly referred to as the "medal," and the little pin is the "ribbon." If I'm wrong about that, somebody please tell me.