have uploaded by latest photo album to the GI Korea photo archives, which just happens to be Dobongsan mountain which is part of the Pukhansan National Park and located just north of Seoul. The mountain is great place to escape the summer heat and an easy subway ride from Seoul or from the 2ID area since the mountain is located just south of Uijongbu. Go check it out.
It is becoming more and more clear that the US military seems to care more about the security of Korea than Korea’s own president:
President Roh Moo-hyun on Wednesday said Korea is capable of exercising sole wartime operational control of its troops ¿even if we get it back now.¿ In an interview with the Yonhap news agency, the president said, ¿The South Korean military’s capability is sufficient and it can get U.S. military support.” The remarks pour oil on the flames of controversy by suggesting that what Seoul calls the ¿withdrawal¿ of operational control will be possible to achieve even before the 2012 timeframe the government has set. Scores of foreign and security affairs experts including 13 former defense ministers say even 2012 is unfeasible.
What I find interesting is that President Roh who is not a military man, yet he thinks he is a better security expert for the country than all the military and former defense ministers who say Korea will not even be ready for sole operational war time control by 2012. Basically what President Roh is doing is playing again to his domestic political base by saying Korea could take back control now, but he is also like the Chosun article said, trying to hedge his bet by maintaining that Korea should stick to the 2012 timeline. For reasons I have discussed before, President Roh wants to keep that 2012 timeline for his own political reasons.
President Roh is right about one thing, the ROK Army does have sufficient capability to defeat a North Korean attack now. What President Roh fails to look at is if war broke out what additional cost would the country absorb with no immediate US support? How many more lives in South Korea would be lost during a North Korean attack than they would with an immediate US counterattack? President Roh is playing around with the potential lives of many Koreans because he hopes the North Koreans will not strike South Korea if the US does redeploy it’s forces from Korea. Someone in the military does not plan around hope, military people plan around reality.
The US operational control turn over and camp consolidation plan were all closely planned in conjunction with the ROK military’s transformation in order to ensure that the national security of the country was not compromised due to these changes on both sides of the alliance. However, a good plan the military officials on each side came up with is being compromised by those with their own axe to grind and political ambitions. Than again it is easy for a Korean politician to plan around hope when they know when the kimchi hit’s the fan, the Yankee cavalry will save your ass anyway.
From the Stars and Stripes:
A military policeman was sentenced Tuesday to two months¿ confinement, a $2,000 fine and a reduction of two ranks ¿ from sergeant first class to sergeant ¿ after he admitted to an adulterous affair with a younger soldier within his own platoon, according court-martial proceedings.
But James E. Thompson, who enlisted 19½ years ago, was spared a discharge from the Army, and he promised to retire as soon as he is eligible, he told the court in a tearful statement.
¿I¿m no longer fit to serve in the Army,¿ a weeping Thompson told Col. Gregory Gross, chief judge for the 6th Judicial Circuit. ¿I am totally ashamed and humbled to be here today ¿ I have fallen from my path.¿
Earlier in court, Thompson, 47, admitted to having a sexual relationship with Pfc. Lindsey Bishop, who also is a member of Bravo Platoon, 557th Military Police Company within the 8th Military Police Brigade.
This MP is very lucky to be allowed to retire. However, think about the loss of pay this guy is looking at. An E7 retiring with 20 years in service would make $1,783 a month in retirement pay. An E7 would even make more if they stayed in service longer or was promoted, so this is the bare minimum number. Now compare this number to what he will get instead which is an E5 pay which is $1,263 month. That is loss of $6,240 retirement dollars a year. This guy is 47 and let’s say he lives to the average age of 72 years old. That is 25 years from now, so the total amount of money he would then loose is $156,000. Also, remember that is the conservative number of what this guy has lost not to mention that his marriage is probably over and the damage he has done to his kids if he has any.
Looking at the monetary consequences of stupidity in my opinion is a great way to pound home a point into soldiers about indiscipline. I have always been a big believer that informed soldiers make good decisions. It is a shame that a platoon sergeant, an MP to boot, couldn’t make good decisions for himself.
Nomad is all over the story of another shooting of fellow soldiers by a ROK Army serviceman:
A South Korean soldier who deserted his Army unit after opening fire on colleagues was found on a mountain Thursday with a bullet wound in his head, a military official said.
The Army private, identified by his family name Lee, was immediately sent to a military hospital south of Seoul, but is in a coma, an Army official said.
¿There is little possibility of his surviving because the bullet seemed to have been shot through his head,¿ the official said.
Lee, 20, was returning from guard duty when he abruptly went on a shooting rampage around 1 a.m. Friday, killing one soldier and injuring another. The motive for Lee’s shooting isn’t known yet.
After the incident, Lee fled his unit in Gapyeong, a city just south of the demilitarized zone, with a K2 rifle and 13 rounds of ammunition.
About 12 hours after his desertion, Lee was found on a mountain near his unit with a bullet wound in his head, an official at the Army said.
This comes on the heels of a ROK Army soldier that was killed last week north of Paju not to mention last year’s shooting rampage in Yeoncheon near the DMZ. Is this a symptom of a bigger problem?
Then:
 Uijongbu in 1973 courtesy of Mike Ward. Camp Kyle can be seen towards the lower right of the photograph. The amount of rice paddies inside the city is amazing compared to Uijongbu today. Also the stream running through the city is now completely canaled with concrete or rock.
Now:
Uijongbu as seen today. In this picture you can see Camp Kyle in the foreground with Camp Essayons in the lower right. Dobongsan Mountain is in the distance. Notice no more rice paddies in Uijongbu and the stream is not even visible due to all the buildings. The changes in this city are really amazing.
One of the very few Congressmen that currently understands what is going on in Korea, Congressman Henry Hyde is bringing the big time smackdown to Seoul and Joshua at the Korea Liberator has the scoop on what Congressman Hyde is going to tell President Roh. Here is what he is going to tell President Roh about a topic I have been covering extensively:
* You want operational control of all forces during wartime. How is that going to
work? Will there be a U.S. general and a Korean general commanding the entire force jointly or two forces separately? Either way, aren¿t those both recipes for chaos, given that the two generals might not necessarily share the same immediate goals? [Yonhap reports that Hyde has said (Yonhap¿s words), ¿South Korea is now ready to reclaim its wartime operational control from Washington.¿]
Here is the parting shot he is taking at Roh:
* We¿re going to watch ¿Yoduk Story¿ when it comes to Washington in September. Have you seen it?
Check out the TKL link and read the rest of what Congressman Hyde is going to tell President Roh because he is taking many more good shots at Roh and I don’t want to take all of Joshua’s thunder from his scoop. God, I hope there is video of this because this is going to be one brilliant conversation.
On one good note for Roh, Congressmen Hyde said he would help out with the visa waiver issue.
John has posted an insightful letter he received from the former 8th Army Chief of Staff who just completed a 14 month tour in Iraq. It is a great non-sugar coated look at the situation in Iraq. Great read.
If you haven’t seen them yet Robert has some great photos posted of his trip to Chunju Lake in the central Korean province of Chungcheongbuk-do. This lake is one of my favorite places in Korea because by Korea standards it is not swamped with tourists, has beautiful scenery, good hiking opportunities, and some great nearby cultural attractions. In my GI Korea Photo Album page one of the albums I have posted is a few of my pictures from Chunju Lake, of particular interest is that I have pictures posted from both summer and autumn. I still need to work on creating more albums on some of the nearby attractions such as Woraksan National Park and Mireauksaji, however feel free to check them out and comment if you like.
Usually speeches from the brass during graduations or change of command ceremonies are not something anyone remembers from the ceremony, however this speech is definitely one that I’m sure the young soldiers in that formation are going to remember for a long time. This is actually one of the best speeches I’ve heard from anyone during the entire War on Terror. I wish our political leaders had the same kind of moral courage and convictions as this lieutenant colonel.
Hat Tip: Korea Liberator, Big Hominid
Recently the attacker who slashed prominent Korean politician Park Geun-hye was rightfully sentenced to 11 years in prison for the attack:
Ji Chung-ho has been sentenced to 11 years in prison. He was indicted on charges with assaulting (allegedly, attempted murder) Park Geun-hye, ex-chairwoman of the Grand National Party, ahead of the May 31 local elections.
The Court of West Seoul decided on 11 years of imprisonment, including eight years for his mayhem and violation of election law and another three years for attempted blackmailing and mischief of public properties.
The Court denied his intention of murder due to a lack of evidence. In its verdict, the Court said, ¿Ji made a cut on the face of a female with a razor. His behavior was so vicious and the victim¿s scar was serious.¿
However, what I find interesting is that this guy receives a sentence of 11 years in prison for the attack, while a taxi cab driver who raped 19 year old US Army private who had just arrived in Korea and was taking the rapist’s taxi from the airport to the base, only received a 10 month sentence and was actually released early. It is good to see that justice was served for an attack on a Korean politician, but where is the justice for someone who came to Korea to help protect it and instead was raped for doing so?
