Models showcase a hangover drink at an event in Seoul on July 29, 2014. (Yonhap)
Picture of the Day: Would You Like Some Milk With That?
| July 30, 2014
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Veteran Responds to Senator Walsh's PTSD Claim
| July 30, 2014
Here is a veteran’s response to Senator John Walsh’s claim that PTSD is to blame for him committing plagiarism:
What really upsets me is Walsh’s use of post-traumatic stress disorder to defend academic dishonesty. It has the potential to further distort society’s understanding of mental trauma and create space for veterans to misuse their diagnoses in any number of situations, academic or otherwise. [New York Times]
Read the rest at the link.
Tweet of the Day: North Korea Test Fires More Rockets
| July 30, 2014
ALERT: North Korea test-fires 4 short-range rockets, says Yonhap http://t.co/KVGyDrPaev
— NK NEWS (@nknewsorg) July 30, 2014
Picture of the Day: Miss Korea 2014
| July 21, 2014
GI Flashback: The 1981 Ingman Range Massacre
| June 30, 2014
In recent years the US military has seen massacres committed by fellow soldiers such as the 2009 Nidal Hasan and the 2014 Ivan Lopez shootings at Ft. Hood. However, these recent massacres are not something new as an incident that happened over three decades ago in South Korea proves. On June 5, 1981 soldiers from the 2nd Engineer Battalion were conducting an M-16 qualification range at Ingman Range on Camp Casey. Ingman Range is named after Corporal Einar Ingman Jr. who was recognized with the Medal of Honor for heroic combat actions on February 26, 1951 while serving with the 7th Infantry Division. During the battle he was seriously wounded and survived his wounds to become one of 39 living Medal of Honor recipients from the Korean War.
In recognition of Corporal Ingman’s combat actions the 2nd Infantry Division named Ingman Range in his honor. Unfortunately a range that was named after someone so honorable would become the scene of possibly the most dishonorable act committed by soldiers of the 2nd Infantry Division.
As the 2nd Engineer Battalion soldiers conducted the M-16 range in 1981 everything started out quite normal. Ingman Range has 8 firing points with two firers per foxhole with a Non-commissioned Officer (NCO) working as range safeties standing behind them. However, an unusual feature of the range was that firing points 6, 7, and 8 are obscured from the range control tower due to terrain masking caused by the range being built on the slopes of Mt. Soyo. The website KoreaATourOfDuty.us has a 1968 picture of the steps leading up to these firing points on Ingman Range:
After the range control tower gave the command, firers in the foxholes began to engage their assigned targets on the range. After the first round of firing the personnel in the tower saw something strange happen. The white helmet that designated a range safety was seen rolling down the hill from between firing point 6 and 7. The tower immediately called a halt to firing on the range. The NCO range safety on firing point 6, Sergeant Bruce Cardinal ran up the steps to firing point 7 to see what was going on. He was then shot and fell back down the hill. Other soldiers rushed to him to give him first aid. While first aid was being administered to SGT Cardinal, two soldiers Specialist Archie Bell and Private First Class Lacy Harrington were then seen walking down the steps from firing point 7 with Bell claiming there was a crazy man up on the hill shooting people. Bell then fainted and was carried over to a shady area while the rest of the soldiers gathered on nearby bleachers. By this time the Military Police had arrived and began to investigate the scene on the hill. At firing point 7 they ended up finding 4 dead soldiers, 3 white and 1 Hispanic who had all died of gun shot wounds. The names of the deceased soldiers were:
- SPC Ralph M. Clark
- SGT James M. Elliott
- PFC Richard L. Marteny
- (Could not locate the 4th name)
By this time SPC Bell had become the chief suspect because he had woken up shouting in Arabic and English “They are Devils” and that he did it. He also told people to “Study Islam, then you’ll understand. I took the first step, the rest is up to you.” The wounded SGT Cardinal told the MPs that Bell had shot him and PFC Harrington would later tell investigators that Bell came down from firing point 8 and shot the scorer and safety NCO there after he had already shot the two people up on firing point 8. Bell apparently did not shoot Harrington because he was his roommate, but told him to keep quiet about the killings. The fact that four non-black soldiers were killed by a black soldier with a Nation of Islam background who did not kill a black soldier caused immediate concern within USFK that this could be interpreted as a racial hatred incident. In 1991 Richard Machamer wrote a detailed case study about the Ingman Range murders and how the Public Affairs Office (PAO) handled the messaging to ensure that it was not interpreted as a racial incident. It appears that the PAO’s messaging worked because there was little state side news coverage of the killings and what stories there were did not dwell on the racial angle. Here is an example of the limited news coverage of the massacre at the time:
This link shows a Miami Herald article that provides another example of the limited news coverage this massacre received that trumpeted the messaging put out by USFK. The article also shed light on the fact that Bell was a 21 year old high school drop out from New Jersey who was considered “well adjusted” before joining the Army. This “well adjusted” individual was ultimately arrested for the murders of four soldiers and the attempted murder of SGT Cardinal. However, SPC Bell would never stand trial for the murders because a medical board met the same night of the murders and declared that he was crazy and lacked the capacity to appreciate the criminality of his conduct.
Armv Declares GI Insane SEOUL, South Korea (UPI) An American GI charged with shooting to death four fellow soldiers during rifle practice has been declared insane by an army sanity board, U.S. military authorities said Thursday. An army official indicated Spec. 4 Archie R. Bell would not be put on trial. He said the board Wednesday also found thai Bell, 21, of Long Beach, Calif., “does not possess sufficient mental capacity lo intelligently coop- crate in his own defense.” Bell apparently went berserk June 5 and was one of two soldiers who fired on a group of -10 men taking part in Ml 6 qualification firing on a rifle range. Four soldiers were killed and one wounded. Pvt. Lacy M. Harrington, 19, of Baltimore, Md., also has been charged in the shooting. Army officials said he, too. was examined by a sanity hoard, but no official report on those hearings have been released. He remains in custody of U.S. military authorities at the 8th Army confinement facility at Camp Humphrey, 40 miles south of Seoul. Bell was charged with four counts of murder and one count of attempted murder. The official said he will be transferred to the Eisenhower Army Medical Center at Fort Gordon. Ga., for further treatment. [Syracuse Post Standard – June 19, 1981]
It is interesting that this diagnosis happened so quickly after the incident and coincided well with USFK not wanting this to be interpreted as a racial incident. Plus Bell would not have to stand trial which could inflame racial tensions if he decided to take the stand and make provocative statements. However, the diagnosis of Bell as being crazy would not end USFK’s racial tension concerns because it would later come out that Harrington may have been involved in the murders as well.
On June 9th Army investigators questioned Harrington after his account of what happened on the hill did not match the forensic evidence. Faced with the ballistic evidence and then failing a polygraph test, Harrington admitted that Bell forced him to shoot the range safety on firing point 7, SGT James Elliott. However, Bell would go on to maintain that he killed all four soldiers on firing point 7 and 8, but could not remember shooting SGT Cardinal who ran up the stairs to see what was going on. As the investigation turned to focus on Harrington’s involvement, SGT Cardinal began to change his story as well. Under hypnosis he began to remember that it was Harrington that shot him and not Bell as be had originally believed. That fall Harrington would receive a court martial for murder and attempted murder and it would be the first time that hypnosis induced testimony would be used in a trial:
[Pacific Stars & Stripes – Nov. 4, 1981]
During the trial Bell was also brought in to testify against Harrington where he maintained that he killed all four soldiers on the firing points, but that Harrington shot SGT Cardinal. Ultimately the jury convicted Harrington of unpremeditated murder and sentenced him to 20 years of confinement.
[Eugene Register Guard – Nov. 5, 1981]
However three years later in 1984 a military appeals court over threw the convictions due to the hypnosis induced testimony by SGT Cardinal. Harrington was released from confinement in Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas with an honorable discharge from the Army. So an admitted killer of a US Army NCO was set free and treated as if nothing had happened because Army prosecutors were dumb enough to enter hypnosis based witness testimony into the trial to support the attempted murder charge.
Whatever happened to PFC Lacy Harrington after the trial is unknown. He is from Baltimore, Maryland and would be around 52 years old today. I was able to find this MyLife profile for a 52 year old Lacy Harrington living in Baltimore, but I have no idea if it is the same person. It would probably be an interesting article if someone from the media was able to track him down and interview him about what happened that tragic day in 1981. As far SPC Archie Bell, I could find nothing out about what he is doing today either. I would hope he is still locked up in a mental institution somewhere for these murders. Justice would not be served if both of these individuals are both walking free today.
As far as Ingman Range is concerned, today it is still used by soldiers of the 2nd Infantry Division stationed on Camp Casey:
The range has gone on to train thousands of soldiers each year living up to the honor shown by the range’s namesake CPL Einar Ingman. Today what happened in 1981 has largely been forgotten by the US Army, but here on the ROK Drop the lives of the soldiers lost that day will not be forgotten.
Further Reading:
Special Forces Soldier Arrested for Wanting To Pay Girls To Watch Him Play With Himself
| May 31, 2014
This guy is quite the weirdo:
The man arrested for allegedly offering to pay young women to watch him masturbate is a medical sergeant assigned to the 10th Special Forces Group, Fort Carson officials confirmed Friday.
Sgt. 1st Class Duston Ridner, 43, from Austin, Texas, was arrested around 4:30 p.m. at North Academy Boulevard and Shrider Road, according to a news release from police. Colorado Springs police said there are at least 13 incidents in which a man drove a red pickup truck and offered to pay young women to watch him masturbate.
Ridner, who has been active duty military for 12 years, was arrested on suspicion of obscenity, a felony, and two misdemeanors: attempted indecent exposure and soliciting for prostitution, the news release said. Police did not say which of the 13 cases Ridner is accused in.
Police spokeswoman Lt. Catherine Buckley said she could not provide any additional information, including how police zeroed in on a suspect, because the case has been sealed by the District Attorney’s office.
According to information provided by Fort Carson, Ridner has been awarded the Bronze Star Medal, the Iraq Campaign Medal with campaign star, and the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, and earned the Special Forces Tab, Pathfinder Badge and Parachutist Badge.
The arrest comes after officers spent three weeks canvassing the city in search of a suspect and his red pickup truck. [The Gazette]
You can read more at the link, but it seems like this guy must have been wanting to get caught because when he was arrested he was wearing his uniform that made him easily identifiable to the person he made contact with. I have heard of people having a mid-life crisis, but this is ridiculous.
Tweet of the Day: Vice On South Korean Racism
| May 31, 2014
Why Do Non-White Immigrants Face So Much Racism in South Korea? | VICE http://t.co/H72WAgYb3F via @VICEAU
— KimcheeGI (@KimcheeGI) May 30, 2014
Picture of the Day: Chinese Memorial to Korean Independence Fighters
| May 31, 2014
Andrei Lankov Explains How Surveillance and Indoctrination Works In North Korea
| May 21, 2014
A ROK Drop favorite Dr. Andrei Lankov has an article published that discusses how the Kim regime prevents dissent within North Korea:
However, terror alone does not explain the remarkable staying power of the regime in Pyongyang. The presence and role of daily surveillance must not be underestimated. North Koreans have good reason to believe that even a minor deviation from the officially approved political line will be noticed and punished by the authorities. Punishment, like the misdemeanour itself, might be quite mild. However, it is the ubiquity of surveillance which is important. (……)
Perhaps, one should first mention the neighbourhood watch groups, known as the inminban (literally, people’s group). Each inminban consists of 15-30 families living side-by-side in a village, urban block, or multi-story building. Such a group is headed by a junior official, whose task is to look for all suspicious activities within her (this is always a woman’s job) jurisdiction. She is also charged with the registration of overnight visitors because one cannot stay overnight even with friends or relatives without giving prior notice to the authorities. The official is required to have intimate knowledge of all families under her jurisdictions: their occupation, income level, family relations and even work routine. At their briefings with police, the inminban heads have always been reminded that they should know “how many chopsticks are in any given household” – and this oft-repeated sentence is not a joke.
Another responsibility of the “people’s group” and its head is to ensure that no forbidden items are kept in private houses. The list of such items includes, above all, tunable radio sets and DVDs of South Korean as well as some Western movies. [Aljazeera]
You can read the rest at the link, but Dr. Lankov also discusses how the regime uses indoctrination as a means of political control. There is really nothing new in Dr. Lankov’s analysis for people who closely follow North Korea, but it should make for interesting reading for those who do not. On this topic I highly recommend reading Babara Demick’s book, “Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea” which goes into great detail through interviews of North Korean defectors how the caste system, inminban, and indoctrination systems work.
Should the US Advocate to Liberate the Kuril Islands from Russia?
| May 2, 2014
The Fiscal Times has an article about what the US should do in response to Russia’s actions in Ukraine that involves Japan:
Kuril Islands via Wikipedia.
Russia stands on disputed territory everywhere: in the southern Kurile Islands off Japan, in Abkhazia and South Ossetia off Georgia, on restive Muslim areas in the Caucasus, and now in Crimea. Closer to Central Asia, it rules several additional Muslim populations like the Tatars, who don’t have their own states only by the whim of early Soviet cartographers. More than 20 percent of Russia’s population are minorities, since historically Russia’s borders have fluctuated wildly. It thus needs reminding that discarding territorial integrity can have serious consequences elsewhere.
- The United States should issue a strong statement supporting Japan’s ownership of the southern Kurile Islands.
- Reengage—loudly–with the Europeans and Tbilisi launching Georgia’s NATO Membership Action Plan.
- Refer to Chechnya and Dagestan as “disputed” areas, at the UN and other multilateral fora.
Nothing would rattle Russian confidence like the prospect of United States officials meeting – even expressing interest in meeting – opposition leaders in Dagestan. And perhaps the Tatars should have their own state as well. Maybe the UN should look into it.
Yes, there are many ethnic Russians in Europe. There are also many non-Russians in Russia. Let the Kremlin chew on what real revisionism would look like. [Fiscal Times]
This will probably annoy the Russians, but would the Russians actually believe anyone would follow through on the threats? Is anyone in Europe and the US ready for Operation: Kuril Freedom? Or better yet Operation: Chechnya Freedom? Few people have an appetite for military intervention now a days and Putin knows this and is why he taking advantage of this while he can in the Ukraine.
