The FReeper Foxhole Profiles The American Ex-Prisoner of War Organization

American Prisoners of War

Prisoners of war have traditionally been the unsung heroes of any conflict. In the ancient Mayan civilization prisoners of war were the primary objective of warfare. Once taken prisoner Mayan prisoners were then sacrificed by having their hearts cut-out in a public display. In ancient Rome POWs became slaves of the empire and the Roman Empire was built by slave labor. In modern warfare POWs are utilized in the same manner. When Nazi Germany went to total war measures, slave labor is what kept the war machine producing. Imperial Japan was a similar situation. With the resurgence of the code of Bushido (way of the warrior) from feudal times, when an Allied soldier surrendered he lost all status as a human being and if not killed out-right became a beast of burden.

Forgotten Heroes US Prisoners of War

The Revolutionary War produced thousands of POWs. American patriots were held aboard decommissioned British hulks in Wallabout Bay off the Brooklyn shore. Some historians estimate as many as 11,500 men died aboard these fetid death traps. Other British prisons, such as the Van Courtland Sugar House in New York, were almost as lethal. Americans generally treated British prisoners well. But many loyalists were abused in patriot jails.

During the Civil War, both Union and Confederate authorities had to deal with thousands of prisoners and find ways to care for them. Neither side expected a long conflict (as is the case in most wars) or the eventual need to care for large numbers of prisoners. In the South, Union prisoners were at first housed in old warehouses and barns. As the number of prisoners increased, special prison were built. Most were in the infamous Andersonville style, built of pine logs enclosing an open field. These camps were numerous and located in such places as Florence, South Carolina, and Millen and Andersonville, Georgia, to name just a few. Federal officials converted many of the Union camps of instruction into prisons. A stockade was placed around such camps as Butler, Illinois, Elmira, New York, and Chase, Ohio, to provide security. Some Confederate prisoners were kept at forts like McHenry at Baltimore, Maryland, and Warren in Boston Harbor, Massachusetts. There were more then 211,400 Union soldiers captured by Confederate forces, of these 30,208 (14%) died in prison camps. Union forces captured over 462,000 Confederates, including those belonging to the armies surrendered at the war's end. Of these, 25,976 died in prison camps. Most deaths occurred in the later part of the war. Between August 1862 and November 1863 captured men were either exchanged or paroled on their oath of honor not to reenter their armed forces. This allowed the captured men to return to camps of instruction as noncombatants, but more importantly the conquering army did not have to provide for the prisoners' needs. By October 1863, however, much disagreement over the exchange system had arisen and it soon ceased to function altogether. The most common problems confronting prisoners both North and South were overcrowding, poor sanitation, and the lack of proper diet. The confined soldiers suffered terribly. Mismanagement by prison officials, as well as by the prisoners themselves, brought on additional hardships. The end of the war saved hundreds of prisoners from an untimely death, but for many it was already too late.

The Spanish-American War is an exception. Spanish and America POWs were treated more like guests then prisoners. The primary reasons for this are: the conflict lasted only 3 months 22 days, not nearly long enough for the war to accumulate very many POWs and the conflict never became bitter as most wars that drag on and on. The Span-Am War was more of a chess match between a new world power and a declining world power. The US was expanding it's influence and had a leadership that was very clear where the nation was heading, whereas, Spain after 400 years of New World control was hanging on to it's American possessions as a matter of pride and had a questionable monarchy and a government that was more interested in controlling rather then leading Spain.

The United States resisted involvement in World War I until no other alternative was available. The US entered the bloodiest conflict then know to civilization in the final 18 months of the war. The American Army bolstered the spirit and effectiveness of the British and French armies who had literally been almost bled dry from four years of constant warfare. There were 4,120 US soldiers taken prisoner, of which 147 (3.5%) died while POWs. The First World War was the war to end all wars, but due to the short sighted terms of the peace settlement, World War 11 was a direct result of vengeful nations.

The Second World War is unparalleled as far as death, destruction and suffering. There was 130,201 US military personnel taken prisoner@ Germany held 96.614 POWs, of which 1,121 (1.1%) died as prisoners, whereas, Japan held 33,587 POWs, of which 12,526 (37.3%) died as prisoners. Civilians held by the Axis powers fared no better. Germany held 4,749 civilians, of which 166 (3.5%) died as captives, whereas, Japan held 13,993 civilians, of which 1,539 (1 1 %) died as captives.

With the Cold War in full storm and with Communism seemingly taking control in all areas of the world, the Korean Conflict was an inevitable showdown. The war in Korea was a United Nations action, although the US took the brunt of the struggle. The battles during the war were practially equal to any of the Second World War, especially when the Chinese communists became involved. There were 7,140 Americans taken as POWs, of these 2,701 (37.8%) died in captivity. One interesting note. There were 21 American POWs who refused to be repatriated at the end of the conflict, wars are no longer about taking lives, now they take their souls.

The Vietnam Conflict was certainly the most controversial and long lasting of of any of the wars the United States has been involved. By the nature of the conflict most of the POWs were flyers. Very few ground soldiers were captured and when they were taken even fewer ever returned. Some of the flyers taken in the early stages of the war spent seven years in captivity. There were 771 Americans taken as POWs from August 4, 1964 to January 27, 1973, with 113 (14.6%) never returning alive and 1 still listed as a POW.

Considering the hard learned lessons of Vietnam the United States was determined to conduct the Persian Gulf War with precision. The conflict was primarily an air war and because of this most of the POWs were airmen, although there were a number of ground personnel captured when they strayed into Iraqi held territory during Desert Shield. The ground war lasted only a few days, so there were no American soldiers taken. There were 23 Americans taken as POWs, of which all were returned safely.

www.geocities.com/butch9805/pow.html

The Bet at Barth - A Christmas Story
Earl Wasson - 466th Bomb Group - ex-POW - Barth, Germany

In war-time, a place called Barth was Hell. It was a prisoner of war camp located only a few miles south of the Baltic Sea in Northern Germany. Downed aircrews were interned there after having been shot down and captured by the enemy. Ten thousand were held there as prisoners.

The camp was divided into four administrative compounds with 2,500 airmen in each unit. These “guests of the Germans” were elite quality men – leaders and brave American youths. They had been effective in their aerial combat activity against Nazi Germany.

But now, their role had dramatically changed. Internment brought suffering beyond belief; the unending frigid weather, the unpredictable behavior of the guards. Inadequate food, lice, sickness, boredom, death by starvation or by exposure, was their unchanging agenda. Yet there were times when the spirits of the Prisoners of War were lifted. It was always through their own methods of creativity and ingenious that this happened.

One on-going “high” occurred when each new contingent of “guests” arrived in the camp. Up-to-date uncensored information became immediately available. The reports brought in by these new POW’s gave fresh, unbiased running accounts of how the war was progressing on both the Eastern Front with the Russians and on the Western Front.

The increasing numbers of bombers and fighters appearing in the air overhead brought silent but exuberant joy and hope to Barth’s imprisoned. As optimism flourished small group conversation centered on the war’s end and their freedom. Liberation was on everyone’s lips. The war was indeed winding down! Talk of being home for Christmas became a Utopian Dream.

Although all embraced the Dream, not all were optimistic. This difference in opinion brought about the “Bet at Barth”. A wager was on. New life came to the camp. But what was there to wager!? There was no money, no freedom of 3-day passes to London, no material possessions for the loser to forfeit, no points or promotions to be gained or lost.

In a heated conversation two men got carried away in their claims. An optimistic airman bet a pessimistic one on the following terms. “If we aren’t home by Christmas, I will kiss your a** before the whole group formation right after head-count on Christmas morning.” They shook hands. The bet was on!

Well, the optimist hadn’t counted on the Battle of the Bulge in early December. Consequently, the war was prolonged and they were still in Barth on Christmas Day, 1944. Christmas morning was cold, there was snow on the ground and frigid air was blowing in off the Baltic Sea. The body count for the compound began, each man was counted off. ein…, zwei…,drei…, vier…,funf…,sechs…, sieben…,acht…

Under ordinary circumstances, when the counting was completed and the German guards were satisfied that everyone was accounted for, the group split up and everyone went to their barracks. But this time, everybody stayed in formation. The two betting “Kriegies” walked out of the formation and went into the barracks. No one else moved! The guards were puzzled They didn’t know what was going on.

Soon, the two men came back out of the barracks. One was carrying a bucket of water with a towel over the other arm. The second one marched to the front of the formation, turned his back toward the assembled troops and guards, pulled down his pants and stooped over. The other took the towel, dipped it in the soapy water and washed his posterior. The whole formation was standing there looking and laughing. The German guards and dignitaries of Barth stood gazing in amazement, they didn’t know what was going on. Then the optimist bent over and kissed his opponent on the rear! A mighty cheer went up from over 2,000 men. Then the puzzled guards joined in the fun.

Nothing changed on Christmas day – the same black bread and thin soup, sparse and flavorless. As evening fell, the weather worsened, the barracks were cold, the last of the daily allotted coal briquettes were reduced to nothing but white ash. Boredom was setting in and the prisoners anticipated another long miserable night. Suddenly, the door opened…a voice shouted, “The curfew has been lifted for tonight! We’re going to have a Christmas service over in the next compound.” The weather was bitterly cold, the new fallen snow crunched under the feet of the men as they quickly shuffled towards their congregating comrades in the distance.

The nightly curfew always kept men inside – this Christmas night’s reprieve allowed them to be outside after dark for the first time. Above, the stars were shining brightly and were high in the northern skies; the dim flicker of Aurora Borealis added a magical touch as the troops assembled. Gratitude was felt in their hearts… a lone singer led out with one of the world’s most familiar and loved carols. Others joined in and soon there was joyful worship ringing throughout the camp.

Silent night! Holy night!
All is calm, all is bright…

The German guards marching their assigned beats stopped in their tracks... they turned their heads toward the music. The words were unfamiliar but they recognized the tune…after all, Stille Nacht, Heilige Nacht was composed by a German. They loosened up, smiled, and joined in the celebration; the praise became bilingual.

Round yon virgin mother and Child
Cinsam wacht nurdas traute hoch heilige Paar

Holy Infant so tender and mild
Holder Knabe im lockigen Hoiar

Sleep in heavenly peace. Sleep in heavenly peace.
Schlaf in himmlischer ruh! Schlaf in himmlischer ruh.

The Bet at Barth had paid off. Everyone had won! As the words of the carol rang in their hearts, there was a literal fulfillment. Tonight they would sleep in peace. War and internment did not have the power to destroy the meaning and beauty of this special day.

It was Christmas. They were not at home. But they declared, “Next year we will be! All of us!” And they were!

The Betters:

Winner - 2nd Lt. Stanley M. Johnson of Port Allegany, PA

Loser - 2nd Lt. Richard D. Stark of Tampa, FL.

Location: North 2 Compound of Stalag Luft I

The Honorable Anthony J. Principi
Secretary of Veterans Affairs
American Ex-POWs
Rochester, Minnesota
September 28, 2002

Commander Klumpp, distinguished members of the American Ex-Prisoners of War, my fellow veterans, friends and guests:

Good morning, and thank you, John (Klumpp), for that very kind introduction.

It is a great honor for me to address the American Ex-Prisoner's of War. It is also humbling.

It is an honor because I know I am in the presence of veterans whose service to America rose above and beyond the call of duty; and it is humbling because your ordeals as prisoners of war far surpass anything I and the vast majority of your fellow citizens can imagine.

You and I and the Nation's 25 million living veterans all took the same oath to protect and defend the United States, and we were trained to prepare ourselves for what might be the worst we could face.

Many of us saw combat -- and as bad as it got, that was the worst we saw.

Many of us were wounded -- and as bad as the wounds were, that was the worst that happened to us;

Many of us lost friends on the battlefield -- and as deep as those losses were, that was the worst, and our most heart-wrenching, loss.

In every instance -- the worst we faced was tempered by our return to the familiar and comforting sight of an American flag. It might have been flying over a firebase…maybe it was waving above a rear-area hospital…perhaps it was painted on the side of an evacuation aircraft…or it was hoisted aloft on a troop ship bound for America…In any event, it was snapping in the wind in the hometowns that greeted us when our tours were over.

Thank God, for most of us, preparing for the worst was as close as we got.

But you -- and the fewer than 50,000 other Ex-POW's still living and the 100,000 more who have gone on -- know what that "worst" can be;

You know the worst of deprivation;

You know the worst of isolation;

You know the worst of frustration;

And you know the worst of man.

But your captors soon learned that no deprivation, no isolation, no frustration, no iron bond or shackle of hatred forged by a tyrant can restrain the spirit of an American POW, and it was that spirit that brought forth the best of humanity in you and your fellow prisoners -- and I am humbled to know such men.

Dwight Eisenhower once said, "Americans, indeed all free men, remember that in the final choice, a soldier's pack is not so heavy a burden as a prisoner's chains."

You have borne both the pack and the chains…and you bore them with unquenchable faith, unrelenting resolve, and unquestionable courage.

You never gave up on America. You didn't give in to the hate and the torment that washed over you on a daily…even hourly basis. You stood firm in the face of your jailers. And you stood up for each other.

From Stalags in Germany to slave labor camps in the Philippines and in North Korea, to the infamous Hanoi Hilton and the Zoo in Vietnam…you suffered the blows and endured the pain as individuals and as a band of patriots. You proved time and time again -- From World War I to Somalia -- that the spirit of the American warrior cannot be broken.

Many of you know the story of Frank Bigglow -- captured at Corregidor, subjected to the Death March, forced into labor in a mine that collapsed on his legs. His buddies had to amputate one of Joe's legs to get him out of the mine, and the enemy offered no anesthesia.

I tell this story often…and every time, I have to ask myself, "What kind of man can go through that ordeal and, like Frank Bigglow, survive to come home one day and make a new life?"

The answer is right here in this room. The answer is right here in front of me. The answer is you. You and every man and woman who has known the cruel barbed wire of a prison camp, the sunless days and moonless nights spent in a cold and wet cell, and the pitiless isolation of solitary confinement.

Your special brand of heroism is your ability to endure the unendurable one moment at a time…and then one moment more.

Your special brand of patriotism is your ability to raise the Stars and Stripes up high in the hearts of your fellow captives even as your captors sought to tear you down in body and mind.

It is because you have given so much for America by never giving up on America, that all Americans know for certain that the righteousness of our destiny is written in the indelible mixture of blood and tears of America's ex-prisoners of war.

As your captors were vanquished and their prison gates were opened, a grateful Nation welcomed you home.

For most of you, five decades or more have passed since you took that cleansing breath of freedom and returned to the waiting arms of loved ones and a chance to get back to the basics of life in America.

For many POWs, the transition from imprisonment to repatriation to life-as-you-knew-it, was a matter of fact…it was accomplished with little fanfare and, as is typical for POWs, with great humility. You asked only what any soldier asks, and that is to be made whole so that you could enjoy fully the benefits of the liberty you served to protect.

POWs who suffered physically and mentally at the hands of the enemy needed all the care and consideration our Nation could muster on their behalf…and laws were passed, and programs put in place to meet our obligation to you whose liberties were suspended for days, weeks, months, and years.

Did we do enough? Did we meet our obligation to you with all the honor and dignity your sacrifice deserved?

I don't believe we did, and I am committed to press harder for just and timely benefits improvement for America's ex-POWS. I pledge to you today that I will not let up in my efforts to support compensation and DIC reform for ex-POWs, and I will pursue every avenue to meet your health care needs.

I know you are concerned about dental care for POWs incarcerated for less than 90 days…and I'm aware of the bills pending on Capitol Hill addressing a variety of conditions afflicting POWs and, particularly, elderly veterans.

President Bush and I are no less committed to making sure your health care is protected and championed by my leadership team at VA.

I am also committed to clearing the disability claims road of the backlogs that were slowing down our ability to process your claims in a timely and responsible manner.

At the beginning of my tenure as Secretary, I declared war against the size of our claims backlog. Today, I am pleased to report to you we are coming closer than ever to achieving our objective.

Last year, I initiated Tiger Teams to speed the process of resolving the long-standing claims of our oldest veterans. They are making remarkable progress in this effort, resolving more than 1,300 claims a month.

For America's ex-POWs, the claims numbers are showing even more progress. In February of this year, we had 1,666 total pending claims from ex-POWs, and more than 900 of those were 6 months old or older. As of September 20, the total pending claims from ex-POWs was down to just over 1,100, and we've cut the 6-months claims down to 380 -- a nearly two-thirds reduction!

I am heartened by our efforts on your behalf.

I've received many letters from World War II veterans whose claims for disability compensation had been languishing for years.

One wrote "God and the government have been so good to us. I thank everyone who has helped."

Another wrote: "I am very pleased and happy for all that you've done for me." And a third wrote: "Now I won't have to be a burden for my family."

I am deeply touched by those letters, and pleased we have been able to do so much for you and your comrades who honorably served our nation.

We have to do more.

I commit to you we shall stay the course with strong leadership, focus, discipline and accountability.

Along the health care front, we are facing a challenge of demands for care from veterans who are coming to VA in record numbers. Numbers like we've never seen before.

Open enrollment…the increase of the eligible population of veterans with access to comprehensive care from VA…combined with 850 outpatient clinics across the United States…adds to the demand for VA medical care.

We cannot look on this trend without also being extremely concerned about its effect on the quality of our care and on our ability to succeed in our core mission…to care for veterans who are service-connected, poor, or who need our specialized services.

Service-connected disabled veterans and former prisoners of war are the very reason VA exists. Our every action must focus first on your needs.

Ex-POWs should not have to wait in line for VA care -- you waited in Germany; you waited in Japan; you waited in Korea and Southeast Asia…on my watch, I don't want you to wait in a VA line, either for health care or benefits. That is one reason why I directed VA to suspend active marketing VA healthcare to veterans not now enrolled. We are not serving well our core veterans, including former POWs, when we invite new veterans into the system at a time when we have already exceeded our capacity to provide care.

I also don't want you to wait any longer for results from health-care studies that might provide additional presumptive relief for former POWs. I am thinking specifically of epidemiological studies of stroke and other cardio-vascular disabilities. I am frustrated, as I am sure you are, that these studies go on and on without resolution. You want answers and I want you to have them, and I will continue to push for definitive, and timely, results.

I encourage all our POW coordinators in our Regional Offices and our Medical Centers to reach out to ex-POWs -- to work with you and your colleagues to maximize your benefits and your health care services.

Some of our coordinators, like Tom Toczek (Toe-zek) in Chicago, who has been on the job for 18 years, are striving every day to make sure you and your families receive all you are due.

Like so many of his VA colleagues, Tom logs in more time on behalf of our veterans than his check reflects…but he does so because he, like the 220,000 men and women across VA, believes that we can never fully repay our debt to you.

I know one of your frustrations is that some of our coordinators seem to rotate into and out of their posts before you can even get to know their names; I will work with VA's POW Advisory Board, VHA, and VBA, to shore up our coordinator services so you will not be lacking for a familiar, friendly, and dedicated advocate.

I also encourage you to call me in Washington to tell me what more I can do for you. I want to know what VA needs to do to best serve your needs…what we can do better, or what we should do that we are not doing…to meet our obligation to the Nation's 40,000 former POWs.

VA's challenges are not limited to health care and benefits; our National Cemetery Administration faces its own set of challenges as well.

Maintaining our National Cemeteries as National Shrines -- improving our properties, opening up new cemeteries and preparing plans for the future of the system as more and more of our aging veterans pass on -- are challenges we must surmount to provide final resting places for the men and women who have so nobly earned the right to a honorable tribute to their lives.

Your service to America did not end when you walked or were carried out of your prisons…you continue to this day to teach the lesson of freedom, in how you live your lives and through your dedication to the lives of the next generation.

America's Ex-Prisoners of War have a well-earned reputation for inspiring and stimulating America's youth to become worthy citizens of our country. I cannot think of a mission more important than helping foster and perpetuate Americanism by offering yourselves as living examples of the best America can be.

You who have given so much merit the highest praise from a Nation exalted by your service and humbled by your sacrifices.

It is my great privilege to lead VA for you and the 25 million men and women who earned the right to be honored and respected by VA's doctors, nurses, and researchers, and our VA benefits professionals, our National Cemetery team, and VA's leadership in Washington.

VA is going to properly redeem America's debt to you and your comrades, and we will not fail in our responsibility to face full-on the challenges of providing the best care and services.

I am always inspired by the gathering of the American Ex-Prisoners of War. Though your numbers are diminishing at a disheartening rate…15 of your colleagues pass on every day…the brilliance of the light you cast across our Nation never dims, nor will it ever be extinguished.

Just when America seems to be reeling from the blows of war or the winds of terror…just when it seems that fear of the next assailant is about to engulf us, and every shadow portends disaster…you come forward to assure America that heroes live among us…that through all our generations, the seeds of greatness are sown among our young …and that courage and sacrifice endure in the heart of a righteous Nation.

This is not a time of fear. This is a time of hope and vision -- a vision of America as the Founders intended. You protected that vision…you stood up to the full force of tyrants; you offered your bodies to fend off their brutal blows against your country. And through all your trials, your vision never failed.

In his book, Profiles in Courage, John Kennedy wrote, "Without belittling the courage with which men have died, we should not forget those acts of courage with which men...have lived. The courage of life is often a less dramatic spectacle than the courage of a final moment; but it is no less a magnificent mixture of triumph and tragedy."

The courage with which you lived -- your triumph of faith over the tragedy of captivity -- was, indeed, magnificent. Your devotion to America...your dedication to your fellow prisoners...your commitment as liberty's warriors to resist at all costs...upheld the highest standards of citizenship in our great country.

What was magnificent then, is magnificent today, and your legacy of selfless service will be forever written in the highest halls of honor as a triumph for human dignity and freedom.

Through your courage, and your steadfast belief in the great goodness of our Democracy, you tore down the walls of your prisons and emerged into the bright light of a peaceful world that we will forever dedicate to your sacrifices.

Thank you, and may God bless you and the United States of America.

'Ex-POWs should not have to wait in line for VA care -- you waited in Germany; you waited in Japan; you waited in Korea and Southeast Asia…on my watch, I don't want you to wait in a VA line, either for health care or benefits.'

-- Anthony J. Principi
Secretary of Veterans Affairs

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The Veterans History Project is a unique opportunity for Americans of all ages and backgrounds to play an important role in the preservation of our national collective memory and to learn important lessons from the rich historical resource we have in our military veterans and civilians who served in support of the war effort.

During my Air Force service I had the distinct honor of serving with and caring for many Vietnam-era POWs including Col George E. "Bud" Day.

GEORGE DAY
Colonel - United States Air Force
Shot Down: August 26, 1967
Released: March 14, 1973

Bud Day was born on February 24, 1925. He dropped out of high school in 1942 to join the Marine Corps where he spent thirty months overseas in the
Pacific Theatre, leaving active service in 1945. He joined the Army Reserve,
acquired a Juris Doctor from the University of South Dakota in 1949, and a
BS and Doctor of Humane Letters from Morningside College, Sioux City, Iowa.

The "smartest move of my life", says Bud was his marrying Doris Marlene
Sorensen in 1949. Bud was recalled by the USAF as a Second Lieutenant in
1951 and he attended jet pilot training followed by two tours in Korea and
four years flying fighters in England (He made Air Force history with the
first no-chute bailout from an F-84-F in 1957!)

The Days adopted their first son, Steven, and were soon reassigned as
Commandant of Cadets, St. Louis University, Missouri. Bud acquired a Master
of Arts in political science. They adopted a second son, George E. Jr., in
1963 and the family spent three years in Niagara Falls, N.Y., where Colonel
Day flew fighters. The family was increased by twin adopted girls, Sandra
M., and Sonja M., just before Bud was assigned to fly a F-100 fighter bomber
in South Vietnam. After seventy-two missions, he was reassigned as Commander of MISTY, the first jet FAC unit flying in North Vietnam. He was shot down on the sixty-seventh mission while striking a missile site. During ejection he had three breaks in his right arm, and a dislocated left knee.

Colonel Day was the Commander of several Vietnamese prisons, the Zoo,
Heartbreak Hotel, Skidrow, and Misty and Eagle Squadrons. He was
incarcerated for sixty-seven months, and executed the only successful escape
from North Vietnam into the South. He was recaptured near Quang Tri City,
South Vietnam, after about two weeks of freedom. He was shot in the left leg
and hand, and had shrapel wounds in his right leg. For this he was heavily
tortured, since he was labeled as having a "bad attitude." He was "hung",
his arms were broken and paralyzed.

As Commander of the Barn in the Zoo, he was the last of the "Old Heads"
tortured - a four month stretch in irons, solo, and massive beatings with
the fan belt and "rope". Of six, he was one of three who survived from
Heartbreak Hotel in 1970.

Asked many times what sustained Americans in this environment, Colonel Day
answers: "I am, and have been all my life, a loyal American. I have faith in
my country, and am secure in the knowledge that my country is a good nation,
responsible to the people of the United States and responsible to the world
community of nations. I believed in my wife and children and rested secure
in the knowledge that they backed both me and my country. I believe in God
and that he will guide me and my country in paths of honorable conduct. I
believe in the Code of Conduct of the U.S. fighting man. I believe the most
important thing in my life was to return from North Vietnam with honor, not
just to return. If I could not return with my honor, I did not care to
return at all. I believe that in being loyal to my country that my country
will be loyal to me. My support of our noble objectives will make the world
a better place in which to live."

Note: Colonel Day has written a book telling of his experiences in
more detail. It is entitled, "Return with Honor."

Colonel Day's decorations include our nation's highest - the Medal of Honor,
Silver Star, Legion of Merit, Distinguished Flying Cross, Bronze Star, Air
Medal, Purple Heart, POW Medal and other Vietnam service awards and medals.
He has numerous awards and medals from his service prior to Vietnam.
His family resides in Glendale, Arizona. His wife was intensely active in
POW/MIA affairs and was chosen TAC wife of the year as well as receiving
other honors for service to the POW-MIA cause. They expect to continue
residence in Phoenix and enter law and politics after retirement from the
service.

Citation:

On 26 August 1967, Col. Day was forced to eject from his aircraft over North
Vietnam when it was hit by ground fire. His right arm was broken in 3
places, and his left knee was badly sprained. He was immediately captured by
hostile forces and taken to a prison camp where he was interrogated and
severely tortured. After causing the guards to relax their vigilance, Col.
Day escaped into the jungle and began the trek toward South Vietnam. Despite
injuries inflicted by fragments of a bomb or rocket, he continued southward
surviving only on a few berries and uncooked frogs. He successfully evaded
enemy patrols and reached the Ben Hai River, where he encountered U.S.
artillery barrages. With the aid of a bamboo log float, Col. Day swam across
the river and entered the demilitarized zone. Due to delirium, he lost his
sense of direction and wandered aimlessly for several days. After several
unsuccessful attempts to signal U.S. aircraft, he was ambushed and
recaptured by the Viet Cong, sustaining gunshot wounds to his left hand and
thigh. He was returned to the prison from which he had escaped and later was
moved to Hanoi after giving his captors false information to questions put
before him. Physically, Col. Day was totally debilitated and unable perform
even the simplest task for himself. Despite his many injuries, he continued
to offer maximum resistance. His personal bravery in the face of deadly enemy
pressure was significant in saving the lives of fellow aviators who were
still flying against the enemy. Col. Day's conspicuous gallantry and
intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty are in
keeping with the highest traditions of the U.S. Air Force and reflect great
credit upon himself and the U.S. Armed Forces.

Thanks for the subject today, Sam! Good morning!

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Good morning, Spook! That picture is pretty with all the snow. That is what it looks like here today...without the hills!

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Good morning, Sweet Freedom! How ya doing, Jen? :)

Thanks for your support each day! It is very much appreciated! :)

Current Military News
Interception at Sea

U.S. Navy Gunner's Mate 1st Class Jeremy Sharp confronts the crew of a Chinese vessel leaving Iraq, during Maritime Intercept Operations in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. U.S. Navy photo y Photographer's Mate 2nd Class Jeffrey Lehrberg

Gunner's Mate 3rd Class Heath Banks, assigned to the USS Paul Hamilton, checks out a Thai ship's sonar during Maritime Intercept Operations. The USS Paul Hamilton is currently operating in the Central Command area of operations supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. U.S. Navy photo by Photographer's Mate 2nd Class Jeffrey Lehrberg

U.S. Navy Sonar Technician Shawn Bezel, assigned to the USS Paul Hamilton, looks for weapons on a Chinese vessel leaving Iraq. U.S. Navy photo by Photographer's Mate 2nd Class Jeffrey Lehrberg

During Maritime Intercept Operations, U.S. Navy Sonar Technician Shawn Bezel inspects a small space on a Chinese vessel leaving Iraq. U.S. Navy photo by Photographers Mate Second Class Jeffrey Lehrberg

U.S. Navy Damage Controlman 3rd Class Jim Bischoff, assigned to USS Paul Hamilton, assists a crewmember of a Thai ship in opening the cargo bay for inspection during Maritime Intercept Operations. U.S. Navy photo by Photographer's Mate 2nd Class Jeffrey Lehrberg

U.S. Navy Fire Controlman 2nd Class James Chisolm, assigned to USS Paul Hamilton, inspects the cargo hold of a ship during Maritime Intercept Operations. U.S. Navy photo by Photographer's Mate 2nd Class Jeffrey Lehrberg

Good Morning SAM!!!

Thank you all for your service to our great nation!

Good morning. Thanks for sharing your experience with us!

Hi Bentfeather. Thanks for dropping in today.

Good morning, Bentfeather! Thanks for the support you give each day.

I like that graphic.

On This Day In History

Birthdates which occurred on December 20:
1539 Paul Melissus [Paul Schede] German poet/composer
1579 John Fletcher Elizabethan dramatist (Phylaster) (baptized)
1594 Giovanni Battista Gagliano composer
1606 Christoph Schultze composer
1629 Pieter de Hoogh Dutch painter
1659 François Fagel Dutch lawyer/statesman
1720 Charles Edward Stuart [Bonnie Prince Charlie/Young Pretender]
1729 Franz Xaver Thomas Pokorny composer
1758 Othon Joseph Vandenbroek composer
1774 Guillaume-Perre-Antoine Gatayes composer
1786 Pietro Raimondi composer
1805 Thomas Graham father of colloid chemistry
1807 Richard Lucian Page Brigadier-General (Confederate Army), died in 1901
1808 Thomas Tinsley Craven Commander (Union Navy), died in 1887
1809 Friedrich Karl Kuhmstedt composer
1812 Achille Peri composer
1813 Samuel Jordan Kirkwood (Governor-IA)/US Secretary of Interior (1881-82)
1819 John Geary 1st San Francisco postmaster, 1st mayor (May 1, 1850)
1825 Romeyn Beck Ayres Bvt Major General (Union Army), died in 1888
1833 Dr Samuel A Mudd convicted of giving medical aid to John Wilkes Booth
1841 Ferdinand-Èdouard Buisson France, educator (Nobel Peace Prize 1927)
1858 Jean/Johannes T "Jan" Toorop Dutch painter/graphic artist (3 Brides)
1859 Antonius J Derkinderen Dutch painter/etcher
1865 Maude Gonne Irish nationalist (Irish Joan of Arc)
1867 Fini Valdemar Henriques composer
1868 Harvey S Firestone Industrialist, where the rubber meets the road
1869 Charley Grapewin Xenia OH, actor (Wizard of Oz, Libeled Lady)
1870 Pieter C Boutens Dutch poet (Voices, Carmina)
1871 Henry Kimball Hadley composer
1872 Lorenzo Perosi Italian composer
1875 T F Powys Wales, writer (Captain Patch, Goat Green)
1876 Jan Van Oudshoorn [Jan K Feylbrief] Dutch writer (Maze of Senses)
1876 Walter S Adams US astronomer/director of Mount Wilson (1923-46)
1881 Branch Rickey baseball executive (Dodgers)
1884 Marius HLW "Max" Blokzijl Dutch nazi collaborator/traitor
1886 Hazel Hotchkiss Wightman California, tennis player (US Open 1909-11)
1886 Domingo Julio Gomez Garcia composer
1889 Bozidar Sirola composer
1894 Sir Robert Menzies Australian PM (1939-41, 1949-66)
1895 Susanne Langer US, philosopher/educator (Philosophy in a New Key)
1898 Irene [Marie] Dunne Louisville KY, actress (Show Boat, I Remember Mama, My Favorite Wife)
19-- Luisa Maria Guell Havana Cuba, singer (Tres Palabras)
1900 Gabby Harnett (National League MVP 1935)
1901 Robert Van de Graaff Alabama, physicist (Mobility of Gaseous Ions)
1901 Louis I Kahn US architect [or Feb 20]
1902 Max Lerner US, columnist (New York Post)
1902 Sidney Hook anticommunist philosopher (Paradoxes of Freedom)
1902 George English prince/earl of St Andrews
1904 [Schmidt] Hans Burkhardt artist
1904 Albert Van Dekker Brooklyn NY, actor (Dr Cyclops, Beau Gesture)
1905 "Tiger" Bill O'Reilly cricketer (mighty Australian leg-spinner)
1906 Dick White head of British secret service (MI-5/MI-6)
1906 Irving Krick meteorologist
1906 Lowell Gilmore Minnesota, actor (Living Christ Series)
1908 Giulio Cesare Brero composer
1908 Norman Hackforth broadcaster
1909 Vagn Holmboe composer
1911 Hortense Calisher New York NY, novelist (Arts & Letters 1967)
1915 Aziz Nesin writer
1918 Audrey Totter Joliet IL, actress (Carpetbaggers, Set-Up)
1920 Väinö Linna writer
1922 Charita Bauer Newark NJ, actress (Guiding Light, Aldrich Family)
1922 George Roy Hill director (Slap Shot, Little Drummer Girl, Little Romance)
1923 Nadine Gordimer Springs South Africa, novelist
1924 Charlie Callas Brooklyn NY, comedian/actor (High Anxiety, Hysterical)
1924 Errol John Port-of-Spain Trinidad, actor (PT-109, Assault on a Queen)
1924 F Mayröcker writer
1924 Inge[borg] Beekman actress (Horizon)
1925 Bob de Moor Flemish comic strip artist (Kuifje, Lion of Flanders)
1925 Datuk Seri Mahathir bin Mahamad premier of Malaysia (1981- )
1925 Frederick Edward Nicklin architect
1925 Vlastimir Nikolovski composer
1926 David Levine US painter
1927 Jim Simpson sportscaster
1928 Jack Christiansen Kansas, NFL hall of famer defensive back (Lions)
1928 Charles Donald Adams singer
1929 Milan Panic premier of little Yugoslavia
1931 Mala [Mary Ellen] Powers San Francisco CA, actress (Cyrano de Bergerac, Death in Small Doses)
1932 John Hillerman Denison TX, actor (Higgins-Magnum PI)
1933 Gordon Getty
1933 Rik Van Looy Belgian cyclist (world champion, 1961)
1935 Khalid "Billy" Ibadulla cricketer (166 on debut Pakistan vs Australia 1964)
1938 John Harris Harbison Orange NJ, composer
1939 Agatha N "Kim" Weston US gospel/singer (It Takes Two)
1939 Dianne Arndt artist/photographer
1939 Klaus Schweizer composer
1940 Larry Willis rock keyboardist (Blood, Sweat & Tears)
1941 Frank Creton Suriname/Netherlands painter
1942 Robert L Hayes Jacksonville FL, 100 meter/4x100 meter runner (Olympics-2 gold-1964)
1943 Angel Tompkins Albany CA, actress (Gloria-Search)
1944 G Wolfgruber writer
1944 Robert Colomby New York NY, rock drummer (Blood Sweat & Tears-When I Die)
1946 John Spencer actor (Tommy Mullanney-LA Law)
1946 Patti Smith singer/songwriter
1946 Uri Geller Israel, psychic (bends forks)
1947 Gigliola Cinquetti Italian singer
1947 Peter Criss[coula] Brooklyn NY, rocker (Kiss-Beth)
1948 Alan Parsons England, musician/producer/engineer (Alan Parsons Project, Pink Floyd, Beatles)
1948 "Little" Stevie Wright rocker (Easybeats)
1949 Claudia Jennings [Mary Ellen Chestrerton] Minnesota, playmate (November 1969)
1952 Jenny Agutter Taunton England, actress (Logan's Run, Equus, Amy)
1952 Sergio Vastano Italian actor (Nightclub, Prete Bello)
1955 Ed Kuepper German/Australian, singer/songwriter (Saints)
1955 Pierre Bokma Dutch actor (Avonden, Leedvermaak)
1955 Sammy Mitchell US programmer (Qedit/TSE/Semware)
1956 Blanche Baker New York NY, actress/Carroll Baker's Daughter (French Postcard)
1957 Anita Baker [Ward] Detroit MI, vocalist (Rapture)
1957 Billy Bragg Barking Essex England, singer/songwriter (It Says Here, Ideology)
1957 Mike Watt US bassist (Rockband Firehose)
1959 David Lutz NFL guard/tackle (Detroit Lions)
1960 Carolyn Seaward Devonshire England, Miss United Kingdom (1979)
1960 John Fitzgerald Australia, tennis star
1960 Piet Keur Dutch soccer player/trainer, (SC Heerenveen)
1961 Bonnie Marino Cleveland OH, playmate (June 1990)
1961 Gale Gilbert NFL quarterback (San Diego Chargers)
1961 Nate Newton NFL guard (Dallas Cowboys)
1962 Thomas Newberry NFL guard (Pittsburgh Steelers)
1963 Pam Casale Camden NJ, tennis player (Marco Island finals 1985)
1963 Karen Moncrieff Sacramento CA, actress (Xtro 3, Days of Our Lives)
1966 Chris Robinson Atlanta GA, rocker (Black Crowes-Shake Your Money Maker)
1966 Ed de Goey Dutch soccer goalie (Feyenoord)
1966 Tim Hauck NFL safety (Denver Broncos, Seattle Seahawks)
1967 Duncan Kennedy Burlington CA, luger (Olympics-1994)
1967 Wendy Hamilton Detroit MI, playmate (December 1991)
1969 Bobby Phills NBA guard (Cleveland Cavaliers, Charlotte Hornets)
1970 Dino Felicetti hockey forward (Team Italy 1998)
1970 Grant Flower cricketer (brother of Andy Zimbabwe Test opening batsman)
1970 Jason Simmons CFL/WLAF defensive tackle (Roughriders, Claymores)
1970 Scott Slutzker tight end (Indianapolis Colts)
1970 Tony Semple NFL guard (Detroit Lions)
1970 Travis Green Castlegar, NHL center (New York Islanders)
1971 Jerry Ellison NFL running back (Tampa Bay Buccaneers)
1972 Jan Caloun hockey forward (Team Czechoslovakia Olympics-gold-1998)
1972 Jonathan Wyatt Lower Hutt New Zealand, 5000 meter (Olympics-96)
1973 Barry Stokes WLAF offensive linesman (Rhein Fire)
1973 Cory Stillman Peterborough, NHL center (Calgary Flames)
1973 Jenny Boucek WNBA guard (Cleveland Rockers)
1973 Muadianvita Kazadi linebacker (St Louis Rams)
1974 Augie Ojeda Los Angeles CA, baseball infielder (Olympics-bronze-96)

Deaths which occurred on December 20:
0069 Aulus Vitellius Roman commandant of Rhine & 7th emperor, murdered
0910 Alfonso III de Great king of Asturias, dies
1073 Domingo Spanish monastery founder/abbot/saint, dies
1355 Stefanus IX Uros IV Dusan king (1331-46)/Serbia (1346-55), dies
1590 Ambroise Paré French surgeon, dies at 80
1632 Nicolas Antoine French cath pastor who converted to Judaism, executed
1676 John Galle Flemish engraver/printer, dies at 76
1679 Johan Maurits count of Nassau-Siegen, dies at 75
1738 Jean-Joseph Mouret composer, dies at 56
1749 Pakubuwono II susuhunan of Mataram Java, dies
1783 Antonio Francisco Jawer Jose Soler Sp composer (Fandango), dies at 54
1793 Joseph Legros composer, dies at 54
1798 Cornelis Ploos van Amstel Dutch engraver/art collector, dies at 72
1799 David Traugott Nicolai composer, dies at 66
1812 Sacagawea Shoshone interpreter for Lewis & Clark, dies
1815 Giovanni Meli Sicilian poet (Buccolica), dies at 75
1819 Louis-Luc Loiseau de Persuis composer, dies at 50
1821 Gian Francesco Fortunati composer, dies at 75
1875 Michail P Pogodin Russian historian/writer (Povesti), dies at 75
1876 Hannah Omish at 12 is youngest ever hanged in US
1903 Gavriil Musicescu composer, dies at 56
1909 Benjamin Ipavec composer, dies at 79
1916 Manuel Giro composer, dies at 68
1916 William Wallace Gilchrist composer, dies at 70
1929 Emile Loubet French premier (1892)/President (1899-1906), dies at 90
1936 Baron De Borchgrave Belgian ambassador, murdered in Madrid
1937 Erich Ludendorff German general (WWI), dies at 72
1939 Hans Langsdorff German captain (Graaf Spee), commits suicide
1942 Jean Gilbert [Max Winterfield] German composer, dies at 63
1944 Abbas Hilmi II viceroy of Egypt (1892-1914), dies at 70
1945 Charles Eady cricketer (Tasmanian player for Australia 1896-1901), dies
1947 St-Georges de Bouchélier French author (Children's Carnival), dies at 71
1948 C Aubrey Smith actor (Prisoner of Zenda), dies at 85
1948 Ladha Ramji cricketer (brother of Amar Singh, Test India 1933-34), dies
1954 Emilis Melngailis composer, dies at 80
1954 James Hilton English author (Lost Horizon), dies at 54
1961 Moss Heart US dramatist (You can't take it with you), dies at 57
1962 Erik William Gustav Leidzen composer, dies at 68
1962 Luis Abraham Delgadillo composer, dies at 75
1963 Paul Constantinescu composer, dies at 54
1965 Egon Freiherr von Eickstedt German anthropologist, dies at 73
1968 Bax Brod composer, dies at 84
1968 John Steinbeck author (Grapes of Wrath, Nobel 1940 & 1962), dies in New York at 66
1968 Max Brod writer, dies at 84
1971 Roy O Disney Brother of Walt, dies of cerebral hemorrhage at 78
1972 Günter Eich German literary (Botschaften des Regens), dies at 65
1973 Bobby Darin singer (Mack the Knife), dies of heart failure at 37
1973 Luis Carrero Blanco PM of Spain (1973), assassinated by ETA
1974 André Jolivet French composer (L'eunuque), dies at 69
1975 Vincent Lopez orchestra leader (Welcome Aboard), dies at 76
1975 William Lundigan Syracuse NY, actor (Climax), dies at 61
1976 Richard J Daley Chicago mayor dies at 74
1976 Walter Fitzgerald actor (Adventures of Sadie, Fallen Idol), dies at 80
1982 Artur Rubinstein pianist (My Young Years), dies in Geneva Switzerland at 95
1988 Max Robinson 1st black network (ABC) TV anchor, dies of AIDS at 49
1989 Audrey Christie actress (Splendor in the Grass), dies at 77
1991 Andries D Copier Dutch glass designer (Guild glass), dies
1991 Fop[pe] I Brouwer biologist (Everything That Lives & Grows), dies
1991 Helene Heigh actress (Undercover Woman, Teen Age Thunder), dies at 86
1991 Sam Rabin speaker of house, dies at 88
1991 Stephen Birnbaum US tourism writer, dies at 54
1991 Thomas Newman actor/composer (Cape Fear), dies of heart attack at 60
1991 Walter Chiari actor (Girl Under Sheet), dies of heart attack at 67
1993 Moses Gunn actor (Shaft), dies at 64
1993 W Edwards Deming US economist (helped Japan after WWII), dies at 93
1994 Dean Rusk US Secretary of State (1961-69), dies at 85
1994 J C "Jody" Bateman fiddler, dies at 75
1995 John Henry Jacques co-operative retailer, dies at 90
1995 Madge Sinclair actress (Star Trek IV, Conrack, Convoy), dies at 55
1996 Amata Kabua President of Marshall Islands (1979-96), dies
1996 Carl Sagan scientist (Contact), dies at 62
1996 Roger Peacock writer, dies at 76
1997 Dawn Steel film maker (When Harry Met Sally), dies at 51
1997 Denise Levertov poet, dies at 74
1997 Vincent Ciccone inventor (Blow-Pops candy), dies at 81

On this day...
0069 General Vespasianus occupies Rome
1046 Synod of Sutri: German king Henry III removes Popes Gregory VI, Benedictus IX & Silvester III & names Bishop Siutger, Pope Clemens II
1192 Richard the Lionhearted captured in Vienna
1448 Pope Nicolaas V named Utrechts bishop Rudolf of Diepholt, cardinal
1585 English fleet & earl Robert Dudley van Leicester reach Vlissingen
1600 Ottario Rinuccini/Giulio Caccini's opera "Euridice" published
1606 Virginia Company settlers leave London to establish Jamestown VA
1626 Emperor Ferdinand II/Transylvanian monarch Gábor Betlen signs Peace of Pressburg
1661 Corporation Act enforced in England
1669 1st jury trial in Delaware; Marcus Jacobson condemned for insurrection & sentenced to flogging, branding & slavery
1688 Prince Willem III's troops pull into London
1694 Frederik van Brandenburg flees Schweiben
1699 Peter the Great ordered Russian New Year changed-Sept 1 to Jan 1
1745 Bonnie Prince Charlie's army meets de Esk
1780 England declares war on Netherlands
1790 1st successful US cotton mill to spin yarn (Pawtucket RI)
1803 Louisiana Purchase formally transferred from France to US for $27 million
1820 Missouri imposes a $1 bachelor tax on unmarried men between 21 & 50
1823 Franz Schuberts "Ballet-Musik aus Rosamunde" premieres in Vienna
1830 England, France, Prussia, Austria & Russia recognize Belgium
1850 Hawaiian post office established
1860 South Carolina votes 169-0 for Ordinance of Secession, 1st state to secede
1861 Battle of Dranesville VA
1862 Battle of Holly Spring MS
1862 Battle of Kelly's Ford VA
1862 Brigadier-General Nathan B Forrest occupies Trenton KY
1862 Vicksburg campaign
1864 Battle of Fort Fisher NC
1865 De Clear-Alkmaar railway opens
1879 Tom Edison privately demonstrated incandescent light at Menlo Park
1880 New York's Broadway lit by electricity, becomes known as "Great White Way"
1880 Battle at Bronker's Spruit, Transvaal: Farmers beat Britten
1883 International cantilever railway bridge opens at Niagara Falls
1891 Strongman Louis Cyr withstands the pull of 4 horses
1892 Phileas Fogg completes around world trip, according to Verne
1892 Pneumatic automobile tire patented, Syracuse NY
1893 1st state anti-lynching statute approved, in Georgia
1894 Day Six 1T Australia vs England Australia need 177 to win, all out 166
1894 England beat Australia by 10 runs in the 1st six-day Test Cricket
1900 Giacobini discovers a comet (will be 1st comet visited by spacecraft)
1906 Venezuela (under Vice-President Gomez) attacks Dutch fleet
1907 Explosion at Yolande AL, coal mine kills 91
1912 J Hartley Manners' "Peg O' My Heart" premieres in New York NY
1912 Paul Claudels "L'Annonce Faite à Marie" premieres in Paris
1915 Russian troops overrun Qom, Persia
1917 Russian secret police in Czechoslovakia forms under Felix Dzerzjinski
1918 Eugene O'Neill's "Moon of the Caribees" premieres in New York NY
1919 Canadian National Railways established (North America's longest, 50,000 KM)
1919 US House of Representatives restricts immigration
1920 Bert Collins scores 104 on Test Cricket debut vs England SCG
1920 Bob Hope becomes an American citizen
1921 American League votes to return to best-of-7 World Series, while National League votes best-of-9 Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis casts deciding vote for best-of-7
1922 14 republics form Union of Soviet Socialistic Republics (USSR)
1922 Polish parliament selects Stanislaw Wojcieckowski as president
1924 Adolf Hitler freed from jail early
1926 Cardinals trade Roger Hornsby to Giants for Frankie Frisch & Jimmy Ring
1926 Pope Pius XI convicts fascist pursuit in Italy
1926 Sidney Howard's "Silver Cord" premieres in New York NY
1928 1st international dogsled mail leaves Minot ME for Montréal, Québec
1928 Ethel Barrymore Theater opens at 243 W 47th St NYC
1929 Mount Davidson dedicated as a San Francisco city park
1929 Heinie Wagner replaces Bill Carrigan as Red Sox manager
1930 Learie Constantine cricket 100 in 52 minutes West Indies vs Tas (10x4, 1x6, 1x5)
1932 Queensland all out 74 vs Victoria, Ironmonger (age 50) 7-13
1933 Bolivia & Paraguay sign weapon cease fire
1935 Pope Pius XI publishes encyclical Ad Catholici Sacerdotii
1937 Bill O'Reilly takes 9-41 for New South Wales against South Australia
1938 Vladimir K Zworykin (Pennsylvania) receives patent on the Iconoscope TV system
1939 Radio Australia begins overseas short-wave service
1940 Connie Mack acquires controlling interest in the Athletics for $42,000
1941 Free France under Admiral Muselier occupies St-Pierre et Miquélon
1941 Japanese troops lands on Mindanao
1942 1st Japanese bombing of Calcutta
1943 "International" is no longer USSR National Anthem
1944 Battle of Bastogne, Nazis surround 101st Airborne (NUTS!)
1944 Archbishop De Young & bishop Huibers condemn black market
1944 Bishop forbids membership in non Catholic unions
1944 Terence Rattigans "O Mistress Mine" premieres in London
1945 Rationing of auto tires ends in US
1946 Darius Milhaud's 2nd Symphony, premieres
1948 Second Chamber accept 2nd Police Action in Indonesia
1949 Maurice Ravel/John Cranko's ballet "Beauty & the Beast" premieres
1950 "Harvey", starring James Stewart, premieres in New York
1952 KHQ TV channel 6 in Spokane WA (NBC) begins broadcasting
1953 KID (now KIDK) TV channel 3 in Idaho Falls ID (CBS) 1st broadcasting
1953 KWTV TV channel 9 in Oklahoma City OK (CBS) begins broadcasting
1956 Military coup under colonel Simbolon in Sumatra
1956 Montgomery AL, removed race-based seat assignments on its buses
1957 Elvis Presley given draft notice to join US Army for National Service
1959 Jasu Patel takes 9-69, India vs Australia at Kanpur
1960 Auschwitz-commandant Richard Bär arrested in German Federal Republic
1962 The Osmond brothers debut on the Andy Williams Show
1962 Dmitri Shostakovich opera "Katerina Ismailova" premieres in Moscow
1963 Berlin Wall opens for 1st time to West Berliners
1963 Massemba-Debate elected President of Congo-Brazzaville
1963 Trial against 21 camp guards of Auschwitz begins
1964 Levi Eshkol forms Israeli government
1966 NBA awards Seattle Supersonics a franchise for 1967-68 season
1966 Brussels: Nuclear Planning Group established
1966 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1967 "The Graduate", starring Dustin Hoffman & Anne Bancroft, premieres
1967 474,300 US soldiers in Vietnam
1967 Ian Anderson & Glenn Cornick form rock group Jethro Tull
1969 Peter, Paul & Mary's "Leaving on a Jet Plane" reaches #1
1970 Edward Gierek succeeds Wladyslaw Gomulka as Poland's party leader
1971 Pakistan President Yahya Khan resigns
1972 Neil Simons "Sunshine Boys" premieres in New York NY
1973 American League President Joe Cronin refuses to allow Dick Williams to manage Yankees
1973 Montréal Canadien Henri Richard scores his 1,000th NHL point
1973 Dutch Antillean government of Evertsz forms
1974 George Harrison releases his "Dark Horse" album in UK
1974 Ethiopia becomes socialist one-party state
1975 Joe Walsh recruited to join Eagles
1975 Pope Paul VI named J Willebrands archbishop of Utrecht
1976 Israel's PM Yitzhak Rabin resigns
1976 "Music Is" opens at St James Theater NYC for 8 performances
1977 1st Space walk made by G Grechko from Salyut
1977 RAF -terrorist Knut Folkerts sentenced to 20 years
1978 H R Haldeman, Nixon's White House chief of staff released from jail
1980 USSR formally announces death of Alexei Kosygin
1980 NBC broadcasts New York Jets' 24-17 win over Dolphins without audio
1981 Doug Small (Winnipeg Jets) ties NHL record scoring at 5 second mark
1981 Browns set team records for most fumbles (9) & most turnovers (10)
1981 Harry Krieger/Tom Eyen's musical "Dreamgirls" premieres at Imperial Theater NYC for 1522 performances
1983 Guy Lafleur, Montréal, becomes 10th NHLer to score 500 goals
1983 New York Islanders score their most goals (11) vs Pittsburgh Penguins
1983 PLO chairman Yasser Arafat & 4,000 loyalists evacuate Lebanon
1983 El Salvador adopts constitution
1984 33 unknown Bach keyboard works found in the Yale library
1984 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1985 Denis Potvin passes Bobby Orr as NHL defenseman scorer (916 points)
1985 Howard Cosell retires from television sports after 20 years with ABC
1985 Position of American Poet Laureate established (Robert Warren is 1st)
1986 White teenagers beat blacks in Howard Beach NY
1987 Worst peacetime shipping disaster, Dona Paz ferry sinks after collision with oil tanker Vector; 1,749 confirmed deaths (probably closer to 3,000)
1987 "Nuts" with Barbra Streisand premieres
1987 76th Davis Cup: Sweden beats India in Gothenburg (5-0)
1987 Nancy Lopez/Miller Barber win LPGA Mazda Golf Championship
1988 Animal rights terrorists fire-bomb Harrod's department store, London
1988 NBC signs lease to stay in NYC, 33 more years
1988 Premier Ranasinghe Premadasa elected President of Sri Lanka
1989 US troops invade Panama & oust Manuel Noriega, but don't catch him
1989 Premier Lubbers sees CDA-party leader Elco Brinkman as successor
1990 Pentagon warns Saddam Hussein that US air power is ready to attack on 1/15
1990 Robert F X Sillerman purchases WAFL New York-New Jersey Knights for $11 million
1990 Soviet Foreign Minister Eduard Shevardnadze resigns
1991 NHL grants permanent membership to Tampa Lightning & Ottawa Senators
1991 Paul Keating installed as premier of Australia
1992 Northwest & KLM introduce a new joint logo "Worldwide Reliability"
1992 Slobodan Milosevic re-elected President of Serbia
1993 Donald Trump weds Marla Maples
1995 "Paul Roebson" opens at Longacre Theater NYC for 14 performances
1995 American Flight 965 crashes in Colombia, 159 die, 5 survive
1998 Wendy's Three-Tour Golf Challenge
1999 Portugal returns Macau to China

Holidays
Note: Some Holidays are only applicable on a given "day of the week"

Taiwan : Bank Holiday
World : Underdog Day - - - - - ( Friday )

Religious Observances

Religious History
1552 Death of Katherine von Bora, 53, a former nun and the widow of German reformer Martin Luther. They married in 1525, when Luther was 42 and Katie was 26, and bore six children. Luther died in 1546; Katie, six years later.
1787 A revival broke out among the Shakers of New Lebanon, Indiana, soon igniting a religious fervor among other denominations, especially in Kentucky and other colonial frontier regions.
1845 Baldwin Institute was chartered in Berea, Ohio, by the Methodists. Changing its name in 1854 to Baldwin University, the college merged in 1914 with German Wallace College and adopted its present name: Baldwin Wallace University.
1856 Newberry College was chartered in Newberry, SC, under Lutheran auspices. The campus moved to Walhalla, SC, in 1868, but returned to Newberry in 1877.
1961 Swiss Reformed theologian Karl Barth wrote in a letter: 'What God chooses for us children of men is always the best.'

Thought for the day :
" To criticize the incompetent is easy; it is more difficult, to criticize the competent. "

Read About the Blackout!

thanks, Sam!

LOL! Good quote, Valin! Thanks for the history!

Well, that explains why I alwyas get criticized!

Stalag XIII-D, Nürnberg— The sight of a grotesquely burned pilot, wandering lonely about the camp, was a shock to all who saw him. He had no ears, no eyelids, and his mouth just a hole in a face of hideously scarred skin drawn taut over a scull topped with hair the color and texture of a dead mouse. We tried not to stare. More than a hundred of us lived in a huge tent, crammed together on the ground on straw ticks. Mess hall meals were sumptuous feasts of a thin broth garnished with bugs, accompanied by dehydrated black sauerkraut, and bread largely composed of sawdust. We ate it all! One day the grotesque pilot wandered over to my area and said, "Hi Wright." Dumbfounded, I could only stammer, "I'm sorry, I don't know who you are." "I'm Ray Trombley," he responded. Stunned, I could only babble stupidly. The Ray Trombley I'd known so well in flight school was cherub-faced with curly blond hair, and an impish grin from Springfield, Mass. I was unable to comprehend this was the same person. Nor could I bring myself to ask him what had happened. Shamefully, I was relieved, when he wandered off, clutching a dirty piece of gauze to wipe pus from his eyes. It was a terrible moment—sympathy and revulsion intertwined. I was not proud of myself. When Ray had left, one in my quartet took me aside, stunning me when he said, "Phil, please don't ask Ray to eat with us. I couldn't take it." It seemed terribly cruel, but I understood. I said I wouldn't. The point was moot, as Ray never asked to join us. Only later did I learn that he'd gone on to fly P-38s in Italy north of Foggia. On his 17th mission to Vienna on November 1, 1944 he caught a wing tip on a tree while strafing a large concentration of trains and locomotives in Hungary and cart wheeled in. He was burned horribly climbing out of the flaming wreckage. Hungarian soldiers captured him and lugged him in a horse drawn cart to a Catholic hospital in Kormand, Hungary where he was expected to die. He survived, and in a month or so two Hungarian guards took him to another hospital in Budapest by train disguised as a Czech prisoner-of-war. On the train two German soldiers came up to him and put a gun to his head threatening to shoot him as a spy in disguise before letting him go. It was just one of the many close calls he was able to survive. By the middle of January he was believed to be well enough to join up with six other P.O.W.s, and two old guards to go to Frankfurt-am-Main. On the way to Vienna they were chased by angry civilian crowds trying to hang them. In Vienna they were made to stay on the top floor of a department store that was bombed nightly by Allied planes. From Vienna, they went by train and on foot for roughly 250 miles through the beautiful Danube valley to Regensburg. Coming into Regensburg they were strafed by P-38's, but fortunately no one was hit. From Regensburg to Frankfurt was another 200 miles. So, fifty-four days after leaving Budapest, and traveling at less than 10 miles a day, they finally arrived in Frankfurt on March 10, 1945. Saying goodbye to the guards, who had become good friends during the long trip, they were interrogated and deloused. Then the seven of them were led into a huge room where several hundred starving Russians were lying on the floor. The stench was so overwhelming one of the guys fainted. After awhile they were given bars of rough soap and led into a huge shower room to finally get clean. A few days later they were all sent off to Nürnberg in miserably crowded boxcars that were the lot of all large groups of POWs traveling by train. Also at Nürnberg, from flight school, and flying P-47 Thunderbolts with me in the 36th Fighter Group, 9th A.F., were Harry Vibbert and Joe Schultis. Harry was shot down in September of '44. He suffered very severe burns on his arms, legs, throat, forehead, and broke his ankle when he landed in his parachute. The Germans walked him several miles until he finally collapsed standing at attention in front of a German officer seated behind a desk. But regardless of how rough a time Harry had he never lost his indomitable sense of humor. Joe was shot down during The Battle of the Bulge and evaded for five days. His feet were badly frost bitten crossing streams in the frigid December weather. He came that close to the lines that he could smell GI cooking and hear American voices before he was captured. I was shot down in March of '45 and suffered from two infected hangnails and bunch of flea bites!! Ray, on the other hand, was in terrible shape both mentally and physically. To sleep he had to roll his eyes up into his head. In the mornings he'd hold a little pocket mirror in one hand and wipe the caked pus from his eyes with the dirty piece of gauze, while staring at his horribly disfigured face. Our hearts went out to him, but there was nothing we could do. In a way, Harry was Ray's savior. Though even more badly burned than Ray, his face wasn't as disfigured as Ray's nor was he as overwhelmed by his condition. But only Harry, with his unflagging humor, could allow him to get away with dubbing Ray "Prune Face" and himself "The Brow"—from the comic strip characters in Dick Tracy. Whenever Ray sank into a funk, Harry would say, "Come on 'Prune Face,' I'm 'The Brow,' and I'm the boss," and Ray would buck up. It was beautiful to watch what those two men did for each other. One giving - one receiving - both gaining. It's a memory I'll treasure forever. We were liberated on April 29, 1945 from Stalag VII-A at Moosburg, and Ray and Harry were flown home immediately for hospitalization. Later, Harry, Joe, and I had a couple of wild nights out in Detroit, before going on to our life's separate ways. Years later, I visited Harry in the veteran's hospital in Detroit - he was dying of cancer - and he kidded me about getting bald. For Christmas that year he sent me a cheap red pen embossed with his name and a dime store comb. I treasure them. He died shortly afterwards. I loved that man, as only men who share in combat can. Harry had given me Ray's address, and we still correspond. Photographs put the lie to the old saying, "You can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear." He looks great - just an older addition of that baby-faced blond guy I knew in flight school. But, "Prune Face" and "The Brow" will never be forgotten - God bless-em!

Nikki is a new member of FreeRepublic. Visit her site by clicking the picture!

Welcome to Free Republic NikkiUSA.

Thanks for the story about Ray Trombley.

Thanks, Light! What a story! Thanks for finding it and sharing it with us.

Ah...Right. If you say so. :-)

Of course , if I wanted to not get criticized, I should have stayed single and not picked up a Mother-in-Law.

LMAO!

Robert Reppa's ordeal began in the morning hours just a week before Christmas 1944. During the second day of the Battle of the Bulge, Reppa's cavalry troop headquarters was overrun by advance elements of the German 1st SS Panzer Division in Honsfeld, Belgium.

At the time, many American prisoners of war were being killed, but Reppa was among the lucky ones to be shipped to Nuernberg and later, Hammelberg.

The POW life was one of cold, crowded boxcars and prison camps, with just one coal-dust briquette per day to warm the room's stove. Food was scarce, and POWs depended on the twice-monthly arrival of Red Cross parcels to help pull them through.

Hope finally came to the prisoners in March 1945. Gen. George Patton sent the 4th Armored Division's Task Force Baum to fight 60 miles through German territory to liberate the POWs at Hammelberg. Unfortunately, the force was too small to handle the hundreds of POWs who were wandering around in the darkness. The task force was surrounded and wiped out, but Reppa was among the lucky few to escape.

Four days after making their way west, the escapees were recaptured by the Germans and returned to the camp; there, they helped bury their fellow POWs who had died trying to free them.

For Reppa, freedom came following a month-long forced march that ended just east of Munich when the Germans prematurely blew up a bridge at Gars. Reppa and another soldier escaped, taking refuge in a German house that flew a white sheet. They waited for the American forces to get closer. When they did, the former POWs were finally free.

Reppa gained a pound a day for 32 days and vowed never to go hungry again.

Thank you.
This thread brought back sad memories of a book that I read a few years ago. I don't remember the name or the author; I'm not sure if my Dad still has it.
It was written by a Bataan Death March survivor. It was a heart-breaking story of the hell these men endured. God bless them and their families.
Thank you both for this service for our veterans. Without veterans, there would be no America.

Harold Kaschko survived three months of combat field artillery duty with Gen. George S. Patton's Third U.S. Army in World War II only to be taken prisoner in the Korean War.

Kaschko was the commanding officer of Battery C, 38th FA Bn., 2nd Inf. Division, when it went into action on Aug. 20, 1950, at the Naktong Perimeter. On Dec. 1, he and several other soldiers were captured. On that day, his division had 1,461 casualties.

The POWs were herded into a four-foot-high mine tunnel near Sunchon, North Korea, where they stayed for six days. Soon after, they began a 20-day series of night marches, covering nearly 200 miles before ending in the appropriately named "Death Valley."

Many POWs dropped out of the march along the way, from illness, injuries, wounds or exposure. Many more simply died.

Food and sleep were luxuries at their camp. "We could not lie down to sleep for about two months, as there was not enough room in the Korean hut," Kaschko said. "We had to sit up all night with our knees in the back of the man in front of us."

Food consisted of half-cooked mush, he said. "I didn't have a spoon or bowl to eat from for about four weeks, so I used my helmet liner cap and ate like a pig. Later, I received a spoon when someone died."

Death stalked the compound. Diseases like pneumonia, dysentery, pellagra and beri beri were rampant. Starvation, exposure and enemy harassment accounted for more deaths, Kaschko said, especially before the Armistice negotiations began in July 1951.

Kaschko and others were repatriated on the last day of the prisoner exchange, Sept. 6, 1953. He retired from the Army as a lieutenant colonel in 1962.

"I am 100 percent convinced that I am alive today because I prayed to God for help," he said.

Jack Sulser was a squad leader in the 106th Infantry Division's Company F, 423rd Inf. Regiment, on Dec. 16, 1944.

The 423rd, along with the division's 422nd Regt., was in the Allied front lines during the Germans' last big World War II offensive - the Battle of the Bulge.

Some 24 hours into the battle, the Germans broke through the regiments' perimeter defenses, surrounding Sulser and his comrades.

"We were ordered to hold our positions," Sulser remembered. "A U.S. armored division was expected to fight its way to us the next day." But only a fragment of the division actually arrived, not enough men to counterattack.

On Dec. 18, the U.S. regiments were ordered to fight their way out, Sulser recalled. "By then, the Germans had been reinforced by SS and elite armored units. And by midday Dec. 19, a quarter of both regiments had been killed."

The regimental commanders, realizing further escape attempts would be in vain, surrendered their troops.

"Soon after, we were herded into boxcars, en route to our first POW camp," Sulser recalled. "We arrived at Bad Orb, 'Stalag IXB,' on Christmas Day and had the first food we'd eaten since Dec. 16."

Ten days later, Sulser was herded aboard another boxcar for a POW camp at Ziegenhain. Until March 30, when U.S. troops liberated the camp, Sulser lived on what a U.S. Army doctor estimated was a 900-calorie diet: herbal tea for breakfast, soup for lunch and a slice of bread for supper. By January, the men began dying of malnutrition.

"We slept in triple-decker bunks, without heat, and had only cold water for washing and the use of one outside latrine," Sulser said.

"On Easter Sunday, as the ex-POWs began conducting their own sunrise worship service, a U.S. Army chaplain arrived and passed out communion wafers and hymnals. It's then that we felt truly liberated," Sulser reflected.

Good morning Freeper Soldiers

Well report off hareetz wire that US and Israeli forces are teaming up on new weapons apparently they develop a weapons that could spot and laser hit him 1,000 yard aways

It was developing by fun-loving Mossad

Also another report is reporting off UK Telegraph in today cycles that possibity the war on Saddam going happen mid Januray or early Februrary NOT SURE YETTT

Thank you for this additional information.
Here's wishing all veterans a very Merry Christmas!! You are not forgotten.