On page 138 Halberstam explains that the initial American units "…thrown into battle were poorly armed, in terrible shape physically, and, more often than not, poorly led" (Halberstam, 2007, 138). The U.S. was trying to get by "…on the cheap," Halberstam explains, and it Korea "it showed immediately"; Truman wanted to keep taxes low, he wanted to try and pay off the debt from the enormous expenditures in WWII, and as was referenced earlier, Truman really wanted to keep military expenditures down.
But what that austerity program meant was that the first troops that were being trained at Fort Lewis (prior to their orders to fight in Korea) were asked to "…use only two sheets of toilet paper each time they visited the latrine" (Halberstam, 138). Moreover, the lackluster performance by the initial troops sent into harm's way in Korea was reported back in the states and caused serious concerns. "…Almost daily, there were stories of American units being driven back, of constant North Korean advances," Halberstam continues (138). Apparently the military leaders (including General Douglas MacArthur) believed America could go into Korea with a limited number of troops and keep the North Koreans from coming across the 38th parallel.
What was the genesis for this attitude? Halberstam asserts that the belief in the "…superiority of Caucasians over Asians on the battlefield" was based on racism (139). But how does that attitude stand up against the fact that the Japanese experienced numerous victories in the beginning of World War II? The author said Americans dismissed Japanese victories; the Japanese won those early battles not because "…they were Asians, but because they were fanatics" (140).
As to why the Koreans seemed to be stronger than the first American troops in Korea, Halberstam quotes Major General Bill Dean who said, "Let's fact it, the enemy has something that our men don't have, and that's the willingness to die" (140). Dean, who was later captured by the Koreans, had made that statement to Chicago Daily News reporter Keyes Beech, himself a Marine Corps veteran of WWII. Beech later wrote that the initial American troops to be sent were "…spiritually, mentally, morally, and physically unprepared for war" (Halberstam, 140). Indeed, North Korean units were better armed and in the face of their attacks, the Americans retreated again and again, and by July, 1950, the war was a "disaster" for America, the author asserts (140).
On page 146, Halberstam reports that the disastrous beginning to the American side of the war was "…a textbook example of what happens when a nation, filled with the arrogance of power, meets a new reality." Certainly history shows that things got a lot better for the Americans and in fact as the military geared up fully and send the proper amount of equipment and sent men more fully trained, the tide turned and the war ended albeit at a stalemate. Halberstam describes a battle that was symbolic of the violence and yet the futility of the Korean War.
The battle for Pork Chop Hill -- a microcosm of the war's bloody wastefulness
Pork Chop Hill was a garrison that the Americans held in the spring of 1953. It turns out to be an example of the unfortunate American investment that was made in Korea: a lot of lives lost in a very small victory. Pork Chop Hill was at the extreme outpost of the southern border of the 38th parallel. Halberstam writes that it had "…no great strategic benefit, and it was only of value because it had been deemed of value and because whichever side held it, the other side wanted it" (629). In March, 1953, the Chinese troops attacked Pork Chop Hill and were driven away by the Americans. However, the Chinese then retreated to a higher hill nearby, "Old Baldy," which exposed Pork Chop Hill, Halberstam explained (629). A month later, the Chinese attacked Pork Chop Hill again, with a force of some 2,300 men; a "furious [artillery] battle" took place and on the first day of this battle the "…nine artillery battalions of the Second and Seventh [U.S.] Divisions launched 37,655 rounds" at the Chinese (Halberstam, 629).
On the second day of the battle for Pork Chop Hill, the American artillery units launched 77,349 rounds at the Chinese. Despite a lot of losses, the Americans held the hill. In July, once again the Chinese attacked the hill and the battle went on for two days, with "…both sides in a virtual stalemate on the crest of the hill," Halberstam continues (630). Lieutenant Joe Clemons' unit, "King Company," took the most losses; in fact Clemons had brought 135 men up the hill to defend it, and when he came back down -- after the U.S. Army brass told the troops...
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