Well, I’m in my Jan-term now and I don’t have tons of time to post or read anything but the assigned work. The course is a missions course and is taught very well, the classes themselves are thoughtful and engaging. My only criticism would be the amount of rote memorization required (not my strong suit). This means however that any substantive blog posting is delayed, yet again.

On a rather non sequitur note, I’m on my way up the coast in the Downeaster out of Boston to Dover, NH. I have taken this train once before (all the way to Portland, ME) and the upgrade to business class ($8) is worth it; It is by far the most pleasant trip on a train in the entire northeast.

Now, back to memorizing most of the countries in the world!

Gratia et Pax!

The book is written care and precision that is almost unparalleled in much war writing. It is not simply the account of the events with some anecdotes from witnesses, but rather there is a much larger story arc present throughout the work; a story arc of a reluctant world power, unsure and confused as the the path forward internationally when it came to projecting that power against threats. Halberstam is scathing in his criticism of both General Almond and General MacArthur as well as the entire pre-war and early conflict intelligence filtered through General Willoughby’s intelligence service.

I was most struck by the pedagogical intent behind much of the work – it was as if Halberstam felt our involvement in Iraq was a clear sign that we had not learned our lessons, neither in Korea nor in Vietnam. The Coldest Winter was not simply critical, but hopeful; The valor of the enlisted men and officers who fought at the front lines, the eventual democratization of South Korea, and the enduring American spirit for democratic freedom and liberty were positives that can also be learned from.

Ultimately the work is a massive (736 page) read, which carried me though a story I thought I knew and blew my mind with his detailed descriptions and overarching understanding. The work was both a story of individuals and their units, but also a story of great powers finding their way in the early atomic age. A definite must read for anyone seeking to fill a gap in their knowledge regarding the Korean War or someone seeking a read that will leave them a little different at the finish than at the beginning.

Well, I was going to get back to blogging… and I’m currently without Internet access (posting from my iPhone). I’m taking the time off from classes to read “fun books” for me. I just finished “In harm’s way” by Doug Stanton; it was a soul wrenching read telling the tragic story of the events surrounding the sinking of the USS Indianapolis in the dusk days of World War II. An excellent naval history written with a strong narrative style that kept me captivated throughout it. I was initially reluctant to read “In harm’s way” due to the already knowing how the tragic story would end, however the tale, although gruesome, is one well told and had well be told for generations to come.