European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - June 22, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Wednesday june 22, 1994 commentary the stars and stripes Page 15 attack by n. Koreans would be gory suicide forty four years ago this month on june 25, 1950, Republic of Korea Rok forces along the 38th parallel came under a heavy artillery barrage. While supporting attacks struck All along the Border the 3rd and 4th North korean divisions supported by soviet supplied t-34 tanks of the 105th army brigade launched the main attack Down the Dijon Gnu corridor leading directly to Seoul on june 28,1950, Seoul fell to the invaders. Although president Truman the Day before had authorized the . Far East come commanded by general of the army Douglas Macar thur in Tokyo to use . Naval and air forces to support the Rok they could not Stop the North korean Advance. That same Day the 24th inf dives 1st in 21st inf called task Force Smith after its commander it. Col. Charles b. Smith arrived in Korea. At 0700 hours on july 7, 1950, the task Force came under fire from elements of the North korean 4th div supported by tanks from the 105th army brigade. Lacking effective anti tank weaponry task Force Smith was unable to hold its position. Soon the remainder of the 24th inf div myself included was committed with orders to buy As much time As possible so that reinforcements could arrive from Japan and from the United states. It was a bloody affair and the division was devastated in the process losing its division commander maj Gen. William f. Dean who was captured by the enemy All of its Light tanks outmatched and outgunned by the North korean t-34s and most of its infantry. But As we retreated into the Harry g. Summers Paktong River line around the Southern port of Pusan we were joined by the 8th . Army a 1st cavalry div and 25th inf div from Japan the 5th regimental combat team from Hawaii and the 2nd inf div from fort Lewis Wash. Hard fighting ensued but the Paktong River line Nold. The Cost had been High. My own company commander. It. Leonard Gewin had been killed and Many of my comrades in arms were killed or wounded. By the time the North korean attack was lifted by the Inchon invasion on sept. 15, 1950, the 8th . Army had taken 19,165 casualties including 4,280 killed in action 401 captured and 2,207 missing in action. But a month and a half after the Inchon invasion and the breakout from the Paktong perimeter the 21st inf regt had Cap turd Chong go do 18 Miles from the manchurian Border. Only the intervention of the chinese armies later that month saved North Korea from extinction. On in no a news maker saturday the consensus of a panel of military and civilian experts was that a 1994 North korean attack would look much like the attack in 1950. The geography has not changed in the interim and the Best Avenue for the main attack is still the Dijon Gnu corridor. Scout is within 25 air Miles of the do militarized zone Between North and South Korea and As it was in june 1950 and in january 1951, is still vulnerable to being overrun. Unlike 1950, the Rok military today is a first class fighting Force and would offer stiff resistance to the advancing North koreans. But their soldiers arc outnumbered by almost 2-to-l. North Korea has twice As Many main Battle tanks on third More artillery pieces 16 times More multiple rocket launchers and five times As Many surface to surface missiles. This time there would be no hesitancy in the . Response since the . 2nd inf div is positioned Between Seoul and the Doz. As it did at Kunu i in november 1950, when it suffered 4,940 casualties almost one third of its strength while blocking the chinese Advance the Nof tvs kogcai�?T6 concept of tub rfcs org division would take heavy casualties in the first hours of the War. Like the 24th inf div before it would be forced into a fighting Retreat to buy time for . Reinforcements to arrive. But while the North korean army might arguably take Seoul in one leap it could not sustain the momentum of its attack to overrun the entire Peninsula. Thus the 1950 scenario would repeat itself. . Air and naval forces would Pound the advancing North korean columns while ground reinforcements would be rushed to the scene among them would be those Veteran units of the first korean War the 1st and 3rd in of the 21st inf now part of the 25th inf div Light in Hawaii. The end would be foreordained. The can panel agreed that within four months the North korean army would be a spent Force and that this time there would be no chinese army to Rescue them from oblivion. A looking at the catastrophe that would our to their country if they initiated a War Quot said defense Secretary William Perry in april a North Korea Cross Border invasion is unlikely. A c Ilos  Day coming for nation s Pagan left those who would never publicly attack any of the protected classes have unsheathed the Long knives and gone after the so called a religious rights with the Zeal of Jack the Ripper. In newspaper commentary and on television and radio pundits and politicians characterized those who worship an authority higher than the state As fundamentalist Snake handling Bible thumping know nothing bigots intent on taking Over the country and ramming their biblical literalism Down everyone a throats. The ostensible target was Virginia Senate Republican nominee Oliver North but he was the excuse for the unloading not the reason. Frank Rich of the new York times said the a Radical rights is dangerous even when it loses. Just believing in god makes one dangerous to those who done to is that it a in the new Republic John Judis betrayed class snobbery by referring to christians As a Wal Mart  estr1cii, who managed Michael Dukakis 1988 democratic presidential Campaign accused a religious extremists of a coming out of the closet and beating the  that used to be called democracy before what ought to be called the Pagan left decided that Only people who think As it does arc entitled to hold office. These vicious scare tactics aside most people have awakened to the fact that something has gone dreadfully wrong in America. We won the cold War but we have lost the culture War. More people fear guns and drugs in the schools and on the streets than they do someone who might say a prayer Over the Public address system. A warning to the Pagan left comes from a can Usa today Gallup Survey which reports that most americans prefer a president with Strong morals to one with compatible political views. The Pagan left smears conservative christians by conjuring up images of Snake handlers and the like because it knows it has lost on the issues. It raises the Specter of imposed morality but can to defend its imposed immorality which has produced according to the census Bureau the highest divorce rate in the world the highest teen pregnancy rate the most abortions the highest percentage of Chil Drin raised in single Parent Homes the highest percentage of violent deaths among the Young and a male homicide rate that is five times greater than any other developed country a except Mexico. Is the Pagan left suggesting that the imposition of some of the Christian rights morality would be worse than this is the Pagan left promising 30 More years like the past 30? men and women of Strong religious and moral beliefs have often strengthened our nation. Even John Dewey As irreligious a figure As any modern educator acknowledged that a the churchgoing classes those who have come under the influence of evangelical christianity. Form the Backbone of philanthropic and social interest of social Reform through political action. Of popular education. They embody and express the spirit of kindly Good will towards those in economic  christians i Lave made positive contributions in fighting moral rot and decay in politics. The Rev. Charles it. Parkhurst stood against the corruption of tammany Hall. Told to a confine his activities to preaching the gospel and keep out of politics a Park Cal Thomas Hurst produced 284 affidavits first citing them from the pulpit. He persuaded a grand jury to vote a presentment against the police department the beginning of the end of tammany Halls reign. Two thirds of the delegates to the new England anti slavery society meeting in 1835 were ministers and about two thirds of them were methodists. The civil rights movement in this Century was preacher driven. The practice of dueling was outlawed in the 19lh Century largely because of the influence of churches. A key voice was Timothy Dwight the influential clergy Man president of Yale who preached on a the Folly guilt and mischief of dueling a a message that led other preachers to follow suit preachers urged their congregations not to vote for any dualist. It worked and dueling was outlawed. In the last Century christians and jews formed the largest Charity army in history and helped the needy before government was Ever involved and did it better than government docs now. Religion and religious people have always called the state to he subject to a higher authority. T he signs of moral and spiritual revival arc building. Virtue a subject dismissed As irrelevant As recently As the 1992 Campaign now shows up As a Newsweek cover Story. Americans want the moral underpinnings of the nation repaired and while government and politicians can t do All the rebuilding they can be kept from further eroding the foundation. That a what this Falls elections Are about and that will be the Central Issue in the Campaign for the White House in two years. The bigots Are not Only in need of a rude Awakening they May be swept aside in a coming great Awakening. T los Anyo ios Timos