rfthomas

  • Attached is my reflective essay.

  • rfthomas replied to the topic Section 8 in the forum 1-5 Cav 6 years, 3 months ago

    S3: Given the protracted conclusion of the war, who would you consider its winners in 1953? How about 2017?

    According to UN economic data, South Korea’s 2016 GDP is approximately $1.4 trillion, while North Korea’s GDP is an astonishingly low $12.4 billion. Per capita, the average South Korean produced approximately $37,000/year, while the average…[Read more]

  • HAMMER:

    The ABCT rotational model currently in place for Korea, Kuwait, and Europe is hardly sustainable. The costs imposed by the model are significant for both units and personnel, as units are required to focus on deployment and redeployment for a significant portion of their time in theater and are only able to dedicate a relatively small…[Read more]

  • Fires:

    The Chinese treatment of POWs in Korea was abhorrent for a multitude of reasons, and treating officers just as badly as junior enlisted was only one of their crimes. The degradation of morale and discipline among the POWs was the result of a multitude of factors, and the disregard for officer/NCO status is certainly one reason. By…[Read more]

  • Alpha:

    Ferenbach returns to his refrain on the “far frontier” repeatedly, comparing American involvement in Korea with the wars on the fringes of the British and Roman Empires. While I believe his analogy is perhaps applicable in the specific case of Korean intervention, it is clear that he is operating under the faulty assumption that any action…[Read more]

  • North of the 38th parallel, the Pyongyang-Wosan road and rail line served as the only possible route of communication between UN Forces on the eastern and western sides of the peninsula. Separated by the Taebaek Mountains running north-south, X Corps and the Eighth army were forced to fight independent of each other at the strategic level. On the…[Read more]

  • rfthomas replied to the topic Section 3 in the forum 1-5 Cav 6 years, 4 months ago

    S3: What role did initiative play for UN Forces in the Pusan Perimeter and their subsequent breakout?

    The collapse of the UN front and the retreat to the Pusan perimeter can be largely attributed to the initiative displayed by the NKPA forces in the opening weeks and months of the war. The north began the war by taking the initiative, pushing UN…[Read more]

  • rfthomas replied to the topic Section 2 in the forum 1-5 Cav 6 years, 4 months ago

    S2 Questions: A significant contribution to the failure of US intelligence services to prepare for the Korean threat can be attributed to the remaining “war weariness” that afflicted the US immediately following the conclusion of the Second World War, as well as an overreliance on nuclear forces. Even as the KMAG forces were pushed forward to…[Read more]

  • rfthomas replied to the topic Section 1 in the forum 1-5 Cav 6 years, 5 months ago

    S3: What factors made Korea vulnerable and appealing for military occupation? What geopolitical factors in the 20th century led Korea’s invasion and occupation in June 1950?

    As the Second World War came to a conclusion and the bipolar balance of power began to emerge, it became clear to American military leadership that the Korean peninsula was a…[Read more]

  • Thomas became a registered member 6 years, 10 months ago

  • rfthomas became a registered member 6 years, 10 months ago