Forgotten

It’s been called the Forgotten War, so it comes as no surprise that most of the media forgot to mention the 60^th anniversary of the signing of the Armistice Agreement.  Yet, there are many Americans that can’t forget the Korean War.

At the end of World War II, the United States and the Soviet Union, divided Korea along the 38^th parallel.  Communist, supported by the Soviet Union and Communist China, governed the northern half of the Korean peninsula while the government in the south was decidedly anti-Communist and supported by the US.  Both governments claimed sovereign rule over the peninsula.  On June 25, 1950, North Korea invaded an ill-equipped and outmanned South Korea.

President Truman believed that repelling the North Korean invasion was essential to America’s policy of containing the spread of communism and ordered US forces to South Korea.  After US and South Korean forces were nearly pushed off the peninsula by North Korean forces, General MacArthur planned an amphibious assault at Inchon that forced North Korean forces back to the Yalu River, the border between China and North Korea.  Chinese forces entered the war in October 1950 and compelled US and South Korean forces to retreat.  In response, President Truman declared a National Emergency that mobilized US National Guard and Reserve units for service in Korea.  From January 1951 to July 1953, most of the fighting was stalemated around the 38^th parallel.  Only July 27^th, 1953, the belligerents signed the Armistice Agreement, bringing the war to a close.

Ask a Korean War veteran about what he remembers and you’re likely to hear about the bitter cold winters, the mud during monsoon season, or the squalid conditions in which the Korean people lived.  He may talk about places like Heartbreak Ridge, Old Baldy, Porkchop Hill, or Chosin Resevoir.  He may remember funny stories about their time in Korea.  Although it may not be mentioned, many veterans carry scars from wounds received in combat that remind them of their service.  I doubt any will be able to forget the friends left in Korea; 54,246 Americans were killed in action and 8,177 are missing in action.

The men and women who served in Korea, the ones still living, are in their 80’s or older.  They won’t be around much longer.  Take the time to thank a Korean War veteran, one of the “sons and daughters who answered the call to defend a country they never knew and a people they never met."  The Korean War Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. is engraved with the saying “Freedom is not Free.”  Show your appreciation for those who paid for Freedom.