Okay, you guys are totally wrong.

First off there are 2 bronze stars, with valor and without. PFC Lynch was awarded a bronze star without valor. Which basically amounts to a wartime meritorious service medal. The bronze star is given out for:

a. The Bronze Star Medal is awarded to any person who, while serving in any capacity in or with the military of the United States after 6 December 1941, distinguished himself or herself by heroic or meritorious achievement or service, not involving participation in aerial flight, while engaged in an action against an enemy of the United States; while engaged in military operations involving conflict with an opposing foreign force; or while serving with friendly foreign forces engaged in an armed conflict against an opposing armed force in which the United States is not a belligerent party.

b. Awards may be made for acts of heroism, performed under circumstances described above, which are of lesser degree than required for the award of the Silver Star.

c. Awards may be made to recognize single acts of merit or meritorious service. The required achievement or service while of lesser degree than that required for the award of the Legion of Merit must nevertheless have been meritorious and accomplished with distinction.

Seems to me, she fit the critera of C perfectly. Now if she had gotten the bronze star with valor she would have had to demonstrate some type of heroics. Which she didn't. She did however achieve a single act of merit/meritorious service (engaged in a firefight and fought hard).

Lets not take credit away from her. She did her duty, she did it well. It's a shame that some other guys who saw combat didn't get put up for a bronze star.

Now, I'm a military guy (currently serve on AD) and I have a good friend who was awarded a bronze star for serving in Afghanistan. He was the officer in charge of a 44 man team who saw combat. He never discharged his weapon, never killed an enemy, never got shot. However he did his job well in combat and none of his guys got killed (meritorious service). He was one the first U.S. troops on the ground and went in with Army Special Forces (he was AF Security Forces).