July 17, 2023 By Dave Sargent, Allerton House
After three years of a bloody and frustrating war, the korean war ended in 1953 when China, North Korea, and South Korea agreed to an armistice. Today proves there has been no “end” to that war and no victory. U.S. troops are stationed there today and there are occasional acts of hostilities between the two countries. Over time there have been hostilities that escalated to a dangerous level. However, when do we hear of and recognize the bloody military engagements of that war, as in “the bridges of toko-ri”, the “chosin reservoir” and “pork chop hill”. Other war time significant engagements, such as WWII’s “the battle of the bulge”, d-day, and Vietnam’s Khe Sahn and the tet offensive have been so memorialized. Where did the Korean war go? If you have the opportunity to visit the Korean war monument in Washington, DC, you will sense that the sculptured ghostly-looking soldiers are walking away quietly from the cold, despair, and hopelessness wanting to forget where they’ve been. 36,574 U.S. soldiers did not walk away from the same despair having given their all. Have they been forgotten?
The Korean war has shamefully become “the forgotten war.” We owe it to our Korean war veterans to let them know that we have not forgotten them nor the sacrifices made in their war. Many of these veterans, after 70 years, are still affected by their experience in the war. We read about PTSD as it pertains to the Vietnam war, the war in Iraq, and the interminable war in Afghanistan but our Korean war veterans battle the same demons. They don’t forget. July 27th marks the day when we do not forget and salute the service and sacrifices of our Korean war veterans and their families. Thank you, soldiers, marines, sailors, airmen, coastguardsmen, and your sister comrades. Your war may have been forgotten….you have not…. “Lest we forget. For those who have fought. Freedom has a taste the protected will never know.”