The guards came, and they were very considerate

Saturday, January 2nd, 2021

This Kind of War by T.R. FehrenbachOn Christmas night 1950, T. R. Fehrenbach explains (in This Kind of War), some of the American POWs marching over the longest highest mountains in Korea started to break down:

Worn out, miserable, hopeless now, several of the American POW’s started to cry. One young boy gave up completely. He told Schlichter, “Sergeant, I can’t go on.”

Schlichter tried to argue him into continuing. But the boy refused to move. The guards came — and they were very considerate. They did not shoot or bayonet the boy, but brought a sled.

All night long, up the mountain and down its far side, other men took turns dragging the man who refused to march.

In the dawn, when the stooped, limping party halted under the harsh command of their guards, the face of the man who had been pulled on the sled was white with frost. He had frozen to death during the night.

[...]

As the long, bedraggled, stubble-faced column weaved its way into the mining valley, men falling out at each hut a lean collie dog ran up and down the column, barking happily. As the dog came up to sniff the strange Americans, Charles Schlichter held out a hand to the friendly animal, soothing it.

That night, Schlichter and the men in his hut ate roast dog. The other men let Schlichter, who did the honors, have the largest piece.

Popular Posts of 2020

Friday, January 1st, 2021

I just took a look back at my numbers for 2020. Here are the most popular posts during that calendar year, six of which are new, four of which are older:

  1. Robert Conquest’s Three Laws of Politics
  2. It is difficult to understand why this should be such a formidable task (new)
  3. He disappeared into a room, and you didn’t see him again until it was done (new)
  4. There is no reason for concern (new)
  5. No One Left to Blame (from 2015, making a comeback)
  6. It’s a teacher’s dream (new)
  7. The Bob Rubin Trade
  8. The Pros and Cons of Empires
  9. Happy Secession Day! (the newest compilation of Fourth of July posts)
  10. Freeman Dyson appeared for more esoteric topics (new)

Here are the most popular posts actually from 2020 and not from an earlier year:

  1. It is difficult to understand why this should be such a formidable task
  2. He disappeared into a room, and you didn’t see him again until it was done
  3. There is no reason for concern
  4. It’s a teacher’s dream
  5. Happy Secession Day!
  6. Freeman Dyson appeared for more esoteric topics
  7. The larger strategic goal was to puncture the myth of communist inevitability
  8. N95 versus KN95
  9. Both sons also later attempted suicide
  10. That place is like Africa Light

Again, I’m not sure what to conclude.

Also, I should thank some of my top referrers: Reaction Times, Western Rifle Shooters Association, Instapundit, Borepatch, and Z Man.