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DanArmak comments on When None Dare Urge Restraint, pt. 2 - Less Wrong
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I see a hero as one who volunteers to take a personal risk on behalf of his or her group/tribe/country. Whether or not the risk results in death or injury does not have a bearing on whether or not the actions taken were heroic. If one is conscripted against one's will and dies in battle one is not a hero, but more like an unlucky slave. Also, the label is bestowed by the group that stands to benefit from the hero's actions - your hero in warfare is my evil opponent.
In Israel - to simplify somewhat* - everyone is conscripted against their will, for 2.5 years (and no pay). They are then given a choice. They can volunteer for combat service, risk dying more, and be lauded as heroes. Or they can opt for non-combat service, like auto mechanics, clerks, etc., and be generally shamed by society.
Would you call those who volunteer heroes, or slaves? Or both?
*This is quite simplified. Men are conscripted for 3 years, women for 2. Ultra-Orthodox Jews, and Arabs, and non-able-bodied persons, are not conscripted at all. Large segments of society which oppose govt. military policies also tend to assign the same moral blame to volunteer combat soldiers, and consider them villains not heroes. Actual posts differ widely in desirability, and family connections are a major factor in assignments. Other caveats apply.