WA~μ, ~~-

-, .-4rtJCr ·S"O 

Korea Exposes One

1

. 

Of Worst Blunders · . 

Jn American History .· 

· Those Responsible 

For Milita.ry Weakness 

Should Be Relieved 

By Dwitl Lawr11nc11 

Whatever the fmmedfate mrntflcance of the ltorean war. a J>l'Ofound effect on the lODS'-r&Dl'e 

milit&l'J' PollCJ' of the United 

States .bu been produced. 

Never again can America de-1 

pend on that narrow concept of 

a me-weapon 1tratea, the failure, 

of which has brought the nation I 

t.o lt8 senses suddenly' to learn' that American interests can be as ll"BVelJ" injured by a series of 

local attacks in different parts of I 

the &'lobe as by a blltz a.t a. given 

l)oint by the large-scale forces of 

an eneDJ1'. 

l"or one of the 'W0!'8t blunders 

in all American h18tory has been 

committed. It 18 a blunder inexcusable because lt de:l'led the plain. 

lessons of histmT taught fn eveey I' 

naval or mllltarJ war college in,! 

every nation of the world for cen- 1 i 

to.mes past. I' 

The truth 18 that a. nation with I. 

global responslbmtfea, disregard- · tnr the simple fact that tbreequartera of tbe earth's BUrface ls 

covered with water, ignored the 

qe-old doctrine wbich called for 

the stat1onlng of naval and mlll-, tary forces at strategic loca.tions 

outside c:ontfnente:l 'D'Dited States. 

America's densive strength bas. 

always been her best defense. I 

Toda7 Soviet Russia has ac-1 

quired a. vast coastline on the 

maiDland of China and ls reach-I 

lng down with her land armies to 

Korea and 18 pla1DJ7 threaten.Ing•! Japan, Okinawa. and the PhJllp- · pines. Against this the United · Sbl.tes bas an IDSlrD11lcant :fleet fn . 

the Pac11lc Ocean. It.a alrpower · from .Boat.tq buea fa relatlvelJ' : amall. Its :6repower from battleshjpa and heaVJ' crufaer8 for 8hore 

bombardment fa vl.rtUall7 non- . nlltent. Its "hunter killer" de- · fense by planes from small carrierll alJBfmt aubma.rfnea fa traa- . icall7 absent from 1mportant sea · areas ID our llDe of communtcat.l'lns, thou&'h the planes and the 

8h1pa have been availa~le for 1lve/ 

JfBl'8. . ':matory showa that 1eapower is 

basic t.o the transportation at men I 

and 111pplies and for the effective I 

use of· land power and air power I 

at the point of trouble. 

REF ID:A43058 

Na_'ri' ~ Ita. Statm. I 

Whoever, therefore, scuttled the 

American NaVJ' fa responsible for 

tadu'• debacle, having deprived, 

the NaVJ ot ltll status aa a '"fleet 

m beJnl'" recogzrlzed for centuries. as a fUnd.amental prlnc1p1e of na- . &1cma1 atratea. Those responsible: far thfa m1sli!Lke In: jucflment · mould be relieved of omce-civulan or mlllt&l'J'. 

Whoever ti>ot • i:wri tram the 

United states .Army its own airplane un1t.a capable of operating 

alW&JB with ground troops-compelllns the Arms to rely instead 

OD the 1nterm1ttent help of bom.be1·s or Inadequate tactical un1t8 

turnfshed bJ' a U. s .. .Air ~rce 

prlma.rllJ' and rightly concerned 

wlth loD8'-ra.DP strategic bomb-

!Dg--Bhould be relieved of o1!lce, 

whether clv.lllan or milit&l'J'. For 

to send a ll'OUDd &rm7 into act1on. 

without its own air artllle?J" is· 

like sending infantr1 into action 

Without ground artmery. , 

Whoever fostered" the idea tbat 1 ·land armies of the United States: 

could ftg!lt nowadays wltbout1: 

armored divisions of tanks in suf-; 

:l'l::ient numbers should be relieved 

of ofiice-civWan or military. 

"'1?oever sold Congress the idea 

tha: America would not need aver- se~ bases-floating or fixed-with 

adequate forces maintained con- scantlY in areas of potential trouble distant from our shores should 

be exposed to view now. 

Politeness, peramial friendabtpe: 

or sensttlvlty, part'ssnsbip are: 

criminal excues if tbe1 stand fn I 

the way of pun1sbment of the: 

blunderers. No other course wmi 

aatiafJ' the mothers of the men: who a.re dying ID !Corea nor tbe · 

mothers of the ma.D7 more J'OUD.g: men about t.o die as a consequence 

ol these miltates. 

Whltewuh In4ica.te4. . 

The Congress shows signs of 

preparing a whitewash. A 111b- '. 

committee of the Senate Armed. 

Services Committee bas been hastilr appointed ~th hand-picked· 

partisans, and al.'"BadJ' lt has been· 

announced ln effect that past: 

mistakes will be ignored. What a 

travesty on Congressional govern-. 

ment! Will the American people· 

have to punish the Democratic 

Party at the polls next autumn,' 

deprive 1t at Its majority status I 

and accept Republican leadership: 

which has also been indifferent: 

1f onl:v now to register a protest 

and get the President to clean. 

house? He mla'llt do tt by trans-; 

fers and camUflaged changes fn 

functlon, but the end result should: 

be to get some new mlllt&l'J' and' 

cbillan planners of stratea ati 

the top. I 

America today needa to .fix on a new lODl'-range policy commensurate with her respoDBibillties Jni 

the United Nations. America' 

needs at least 3 mlll1on troapsf 

'With plent:v of tactical a.vlatlon1 

of their own, a naval fleet close: 

'to what 1t had in 1945, an .Air 

Force of 70 groups for atrategtc 

bombing, and a. mobile force ol 

U. s. Marines of at least 250,000 men t.o be stationed .In various. 

parts at the world where it can! 

be supported by the sea power! 

and air power. j 

These are tbe real costs of sur-; 

vival. These are the elements of· a national stra.tea baaed on the; lessons ol hJatorJr and ezperience. r 

The price of peace is never inex-1 

pensive and the price of survival: 

always ls economic discomfort and' 

sacr11lce. The tragedies of an-! 

cient Greece and Rome, the trace-I 

dies of Italy and P'rance and Ger-j 

many and Japan fn modern times 

1 attest too plainly from a. military 

and naval vieWJ>Qfnt to the dfs· 

regard by their top commande?1 

or civflfan rulva at tbe siJDifl· 

cant lessons of stra.tea in world 

bi1tor7. . . . • ca.r.s1111uaa l'llrbts -.rntD. 
REF ID:A43058 , 

Blal1Je For Korea 

Now that thfl Nation Ingala 

Involved ln a crJals, the typical 

Amerlean :Ublt Of aeeldq a . 

scapegoat reappearL The blame 

for our present International 

lltuatlon bas been placed on 

Congress, the Prelldent, the Admlnlltration's leaden a1 a whole, and even the umed 

forces. Thl1 li an outrlgb.t ease of ducking the blame OD the 

part of the American people. 

Republican m~mben lD Consreu have been pointing an aCCUllDg finger at their Democratic . opponent&. The latter 

have been toulng the charge 

right back. Then there have 

been far too many newspapers, 

columnllts, reporters, etc., who 

have been laying the blame at · the feet of CongreH as a whole. 

But one cllDDOt rightfully blame 

this body, for lt la an elected 

body and ODl1' reJlectl the. 

wishes and dellre1 of the 

people. 

Tbua, when Congre11, faced 

with the mandate from tbe people they repreaented to Jl.nd an e&IJ' and cheap wa1 to provide 

for the national defense, bought 

the Alr Foree theO!'J' Of defense 

through strategic bombing with 

atomic weapoDL Thia aolution 

Would coat BlOD1!7, but :Jll'Obab]J 

not a1 much u malntidnlng a draft or 1ome form of univenal . mWtarJ tralnlng. And It would 

permit the )'OUth of America to 

Ue faiJ.ow and untrained. 

A 1mall part of the blame 

may be· placed on th01e ofBclala 

of our Government. wbo haviDI 

had reliable lDformatlon on the 

world situation, lneludlng Korea, 

failed to act aecOrdiugJ., and 

acquaint the people with the 

facts and the 1teps that needed 

to be taken. 

The attack ln ltorea ·came u 

DO aurprlse to many Army OfB.• 

een. In the early days of our 

occupation there plana for its 

defenae were baaed on the fact 

that attack, even then, wu lm-

.m.lneilt. A congrellloual committee visited General Hodge to 

be briefed on the sltuatiou. ·But one member Of that committee Wiii "ao concerned that he 

Blipped BWl7 from the brleflDg 

to take 1eeuic photographs. Yes, 

we can blame this lndlvldual, 

but who elected him? 

Intelligence on ltotea was re- peatecDJ trBDllDftted th"ro"ugb. 

the armed foreea to responslble 

eivWan o~clala.. But, as Time 

magazine recently pointed out, 

the President "alalhed the defense budget ln order to pay Off campaign, prom.lies. It WU 

a time that called for a John 

Adami, who 1aerlfleed his own 

penonal political ambitlo1111 and 

thole of his partJ' for tbe welfare of the Nation. Instead we elected a clever politician who 

choae to give the people the!J' ~'bread and elrCU181." I thlDk 

that it ii time that the Ameri- can people, regardleu of political afB.llation, recognize that 

the blame rests squarely Qll 

their own shoulders, and thlDk 

Of the future and not the put. 

LOUIS V. NAISAWALD. 

Alexandria.