Re: Turncoats

[James Dennis <jrdennis@earthlink.net>]

>James,
>
>That's an interesting story.
>
>Did you actually patrol inside the DMZ?
>Were you afraid of stepping on landmines?
>
>It's incredible to hear that someone could walk
>around in the DMZ for six hours and not get hurt.
>Was White very lucky?
>
>John
>

Hey!  I was a Brigade Staff Officer (Intelligence), if it was dangerous, 
I wouldn't have gone <grin>.  

I have my Imjin Scout Badge and Certificate, my DMZ Police Arm Band, my 
honorary Counter Intelligence Badge and my "permanent DMZ pass" in my "I 
love me" shelf.    The Imjin Scout Badge required 30 something "combat 
patrols" in the DMZ (most of the ones I was on, involved me, a camera 
with a crew served lens and tripod and two or three body guards.  But I 
also tried to spend at least one night with a new platoon taking over a 
guard post, to answer questions and to keep in touch with what was going 
on up there.  Back at Camp Howze, it could have become easy to forget 
what was going on up there.   My section was responsible for approving 
the 5-6 daylight/recon combat patrols and 3-4 night/ambush patrols that 
happened on a daily basis, so it was necessary to keep up with what was 
going on.    The North Koreans were also in the middle of a flood control 
project but we didn't exactly know this at the time (sort of like their 
digging of the tunnel not too far from Panmunjon in the 70s).  

Was I concerned about Mines, honestly no.  We generally knew where the 
mines were and the North Koreans weren't planting new minefields or booby 
traps on our side of the DMZ.  The minefields were generally along the 
old Main Line of Resistance (south barrier fence).    I was more 
concerned about a soldier getting bored some night/day and actually 
tossing rocks at what looked like a mine.  The temptation was there and 
there were a lot of bored soldiers.  There was one time when someone put 
a butane cigarette lighter on one of the "silver bullet stoves" and the 
damned thing went off.  Scared the crap out of all of us and a few 
soldiers learned an object lesson on why Zippos were better.  

In the American Sector and still at Panmunjon there was a "village" of 
South Koreans that farmed the DMZ around the Truce Village.   At night 
the S. Koreans would put a platoon or two of "civic action troops" but 
the North Koreans seemed to get into the village when ever they wanted 
to.   There was what we in Texas would call a "stock tank", a lot of rice 
paddy's and so on.  There were a lot of foot trails, tractor tracks and a 
few jeep trails and most often we went down those tracks (rice paddys are 
wet and smelly) in the summer.  In the fall, winter or spring we would go 
across a frozen or untilled rice paddy (which was dry and as hard as 
concrete).

What concerned me was a "snatch and grab" attempt when we were trying to 
take pictures of a new North Korean site that would require us to get 
within 50 meters or so of the MDL.   I am sure the NKs had a picture of 
me and knew I might know secrets.  But I think I was prepared for 
something like that.  I also always wore my Armor Brass (instead of MI), 
no point in wearing a "I know secrets" badge.   

While both sides of the DMZ are alert, there wasn't (isn't) the wartime 
activity that was happening during the Viet Nam era when there were 
firefights on an almost daily basis.   We did engage North Korean 
infiltrators several times and there were times when we didn't (rules of 
engagement), but they were the exception rather than the rule.  When you 
look at the map, there were other easier and better ways to get south 
than to come through us.   

I think White was a loser.  He intentionally left his post and wandered 
around because he got disoriented.   I just wish someone in his guard 
post had noticed him missing sooner and would have been able to grab him. 
  I used to get stories of him fishing in the Han River Estuary (seen by 
some of my Radar people), it was a white male about once a month.  I also 
think that the North Koreans got fed up with him and intentionally 
drowned him.