Posted on 07/24/2015 2:26:46 PM PDT by nickcarraway
Sandusky veteran spent more than two years as prisoner of Chinese
Many Americans took offense when Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump derided U.S. Sen. John McCain's war record — which included more than five years in a North Vietnamese prison.
But for former Korean War prisoner of war John Koopman, 82, the disdain was personal. "I think Donald Trump ought to be a prisoner of war for one day, and then say to McCain what he had said," said Koopman, 82, a patient at Stein Hospice on the south campus of Firelands Regional Medical Center in Sandusky.
Trump, while speaking Saturday at the Family Leadership Summit in Ames, Iowa, told the crowd, "He's a war hero because he was captured. I like people who weren't captured."
McCain flew a bomber for the U.S. Navy during the Vietnam War and was captured after his plane was shot down.
McCain, a Republican U.S. senator from Arizona, campaigned in Sandusky in 2008 when he was the Republican Party's candidate for president.
President Barack Obama, who defeated McCain in the election, has called McCain a "war hero," but it turns out that Trump is not the only politician who has attacked McCain.
Al Franken — then a comedian, now a Democratic U.S. senator from Minnesota — said in 2000, "I don’t buy the war hero thing. Anybody can be captured. I thought the idea was to capture them. As far as I’m concerned he sat out the war."
Koopman caught Trump's comments during a news broadcast. "It made me very upset," Koopman said.
Koopman was known as Earl Leroy Beck when he was captured during the Korean War on Dec. 1, 1950. His mother died when he was young, his father left the family, and eventually he was taken in at age 12 by a foster family. After the war, the foster family adopted him and gave him a new name.
According to the National Archives, which lists Earl L. Beck as a POW, 4,714 American service members were prisoners of war during the Korean War.
Koopman said he had been in Korea for several months as an infantryman when he was captured. The North Koreans had been defeated when the Chinese army suddenly intervened, and Koopman and his fellow soldiers in the Ninth Infantry Regiment in the 2nd Division found themselves under heavy attack.
Koopman said he and his fellow soldiers were captured when they couldn't resist any more. "We ran out of ammunition," he said. "We had to surrender or be shot."
The Chinese soldiers who captured him wanted to know if Koopman had any American cigarettes. Koopman pulled out a pack of Lucky Strikes. "They each took a couple and handed it back," Koopman said.
Despite this friendly beginning, life in the prison camp by the Yalu River was very hard. There was never enough to eat, and Koopman was sick much of the time with pneumonia, bronchitis and other ailments. "They fed us fish heads and rice. If we could capture a dog, we would have that," Koopman said.
"The only time you got enough to eat was if you stole it," Koopman said. "You wanted to share it with your buddies. We helped each other out the best we could."
After getting out of the camp in an exchange of sick and wounded prisoners, Koopman spent months in hospitals back in the United States.
Asked when he recovered, Koopman replied, "Sir, I'm not recovered yet." He now has congestive heart failure and other conditions.
After the war, Koopman, a Pennsylvania native, got married and moved to Cleveland to work. His wife died of a heart attack after 50 years of marriage. Koopman's second wife is in an Ohio nursing home, Koopman's daughter told the Register.
Koopman was at the Ohio Veterans Home until he came to Stein Hospice.
He praised Stein Hospice's care. "Very nice place. Very clean. Good food. Good service," he said. "This is a wonderful place for people who need help with tender, loving care. That's what they give here."
Koopman's daughter lives in the Cleveland area. His son lives outside of Ohio. Koopman also has grandchildren. "I love them all very much," Koopman said.
Koopman said Trump's comments were offensive because war isn't a partisan business. Americans go to war as Republicans or Democrats, he said.
"We go to fight for our country," he said.
So they found ONE veteran upset at Trump. How long did it take to find him?
Prayers up for this man and it looks like he finally got enough to eat
probably the morphine he is likely on..
a lot of good men died .. fate has no quota to meet..
I thank him for his service.. and pray for his release from this world.. to one without pain..
I can hazard a guess as to why he got caught.
Wait, what??
Looks as though he stole plenty.
A Cripsy Creme supporter no doubt.
Being a PW of any Army sucks. Sure, we were nice to many, we even gave them passes into town during WW II. We had Italian PWs where I grew up. No problems, they were out of the war just like the Germans from the Afrika Korps. In Germany, we set up an open PW camp in fields during the wars end, it turned into an Andersonville. We had the same problem as the Germans did, not enough food to feed them or enough medical personnel to care for them. The guys were PW’s so they were SOL. It didn’t make any of them heros? I was in Sinzig last year, there was nothing there other than a stone plaque by what was the PW camp. Check out this article, for photos or google Sinzig. (http://www.ww2incolor.com/german/DEaRuR_267_1%23.html)
<>I can hazard a guess as to why he got caught.<>
In all sincerity, FU.
Ok, but you’d be pregnant. :)
God bless him.
You’d end up missing.
Which also likely lead to adult Asthma and life long lung issues. The treatment for such often involves Steroids both in pill form Prednisone to treat infections and in the inhalants as well. Steroids have another bad side effect many don't realize and that is extreme increase in appetite. Even short term use can effect a person in that manner like a Cortisone shot as an example.
The end result in long term regular use can bring on CHF which basically means the body can not expel fluids and it is retained until the stressed heart and lungs fail. This fluid can be everywhere in the body on the lungs, near the heart, in the legs, arms, etc. CHF can bring death in a matter of days or months or in some cases years.
Never miss a hit. Especially on wide targets. :)
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