Our View

Our View

Not forgotten

50th anniversary commemoration

begins Sunday in Washington, D. C.

James Michener’s novella, The Bridges at Toko-ri

is considered by many to be the best fictional

account written about the Korean War (1950-53).

The story climaxes with the death of the protagonist, Lt. Harry Brubaker, a Naval Reserve pilot, at the hands of communist troops after his plane crash lands in enemy territory.

The book closes with Brubaker’s CO, Adm. Tarrant — who thought of Brubaker as a son — watching the other pilots on his aircraft carrier preparing to launch for yet another series of missions over the disputed land that few people back home knew or cared about.

In a moment of reflection, the admiral weighs the courage of the men under his command as they returned to combat, with the indifference many people at home felt about the war in Korea. He simply asks the question, “Where do we get such men?”

The 50th anniversary commemoration of the Korean War begins this Sunday with a ceremony at the Korean War Memorial in Washington, D.C.

It is appropriate for us at this time to remember those who served in what has wrongly been called “the Forgotten War,” where:

• Over 5,720,000 men and women served in America’s armed forces;

• There were over 33,600 U. S. battle deaths, and another 3,262 service-related deaths;

• 103,284 were wounded;

• Nearly 10,000 American servicemen were captured by the North Korean and Communist Chinese forces, the vast majority of whom suffered terribly while in enemy hands. Over 3,400 would not survive the prison camps; and

• Over 8,100 American servicemen are still carried as missing in action.

We have many people now living quietly in Rappahannock County who served in the Korean War, and for them and their families, the Korean War has not been “forgotten.” And it never will be.

We wish to express our appreciation for those who went to war in Korea to”Defend a country they never knew, and a people they never met.”