[Vision2020] Remember POWs and MIAs

[lfalen]

Tom

Thanks for posting. Rodrick Meyer from Lewiston was in my class an an undergratuate. He became an officer through the ROTC program. The last I heard of him he was A POW in Veitnam, just prior to the large release of prisoners after the war. He was not one of those released. I applaud those that continue the search for POW/MIA.

Roger
-----Original message-----
From: "Tom Hansen" thansen at moscow.com
Date: Tue, 05 Sep 2006 12:38:19 -0700
To: "Vision 2020" vision2020 at moscow.com
Subject: [Vision2020] Remember POWs and MIAs

> >From the September 11, 2006 edition of the Army Times -
> 
> --------------------------------------------------
> 
> Remember POWs, MIAs
> 
> News reports about Staff Sgt. Keith "Matt" Maupin get a lot of attention
> because he is the only soldier listed as missing or captured in Iraq.
> 
> The Army press release announcing his promotion to staff sergeant, though,
> is notable. It demonstrates - in one simple phrase - the steadfast
> commitment of the military to account for all of its service members,
> whether dead and not recovered or missing in action. 
> 
> "This will keep Staff Sergeant Maupin in line with his peers so that when he
> returns ..." the Aug. 9 release said.
> 
> When he returns? The faith and optimism of the message are clear. Make no
> mistake about it, the Army intends to find Maupin and bring him home. And
> failure is not an option. 
> 
> This attitude is embodied in the "warrior ethos," a series of four
> statements, embedded within the Soldier's Creed, that affirm the principles
> of character the American people have come to respect in their soldiers.
>  
> . I will always place the mission first.
> 
> . I will never accept defeat.
> 
> . I will never quit.
> 
> . I will never leave a fallen comrade.
> 
> American soldiers live and breathe this ethos every day as they serve their
> country at home and abroad, in peace and in harm's way. 
> 
> They are dedicated to their nation and to each other.
> 
> And amid the chaos and confusion inherent in a global war on terrorism, they
> continue to search for their comrades from this conflict and from conflicts
> past. 
> 
> Under the direction of the Defense Prisoner of War/Missing Personnel Office,
> U.S. government civilians and uniformed military personnel actively pursue
> the cases of our soldiers missing from all of America's wars. 
> 
> Diplomats confer with representatives from other nations and negotiate for
> access to battle sites, and search-and-recovery teams interview witnesses
> and conduct excavations in methodical searches for remains or personal
> effects.
> 
> Of the 2,646 service members originally listed as missing from the Vietnam
> conflict there and in Laos, Cambodia and China, 841 had been repatriated and
> identified as of May 1. Efforts continue to account for the remaining 1,805.
> 
> 
> [There are still 78,000 troops unaccounted for from World War II; 8,100 from
> the Korean War; and 120 from other Cold War conflicts, according to the
> Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command.]
> 
> Teams of Americans relentlessly work in numerous countries to ensure that
> our nation's defenders eventually make their way home. 
> 
> Sept. 15 has been designated as National POW/MIA Recognition Day. Memorials
> will be held, veterans organizations will organize rallies, and government
> officials will make speeches. In Bartonville, Ill., friends and family will
> come together to remember Maupin and to pray for his safe return. 
> 
> Every American should take the opportunity that day to pause and reflect on
> what it means to be an American soldier.
> 
> Capt. Greg C. Reeson
> 
> Fort Lee, Va.
> 
> --------------------------------------------------
> 
> Unaccounted for POWs:
> 
> World War 2:  29,850
> 
> Korean Conflict:  2,100
> 
> Vietnam Conflict:  587
> 
> And the beat goes on . . .
> 
> Tom Hansen
> SFC, US Army (Retired)
> Moscow, Idaho
> 
> "Patriotism is not a short and frenzied outburst of emotion but the tranquil
> and steady dedication of a lifetime." 
> 
> --Adlai E. Stevenson, Jr.
> 
> 
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