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Korean War veterans will
be honored
Gathering thanks those who 'came home to nothing'
There were no celebrations when members of the U.S. military returned from the Korean War 50 years ago.
James Diestel of Aberdeen was in the Navy for five years in the 1950s. He remembers the conflict in Korea, but no sense of gratitude for his service there.
"I came home to nothing. I never got any special treatment. Nobody said, 'Thanks for protecting our country,' " said Diestel, now 69.
That attitude has changed in recent years, though - at least in South Dakota. A few years ago, the state's congressional delegation started issuing Republic of Korea War Service Medals to veterans of the conflict. South Korea first made the medals immediately after the 1950-53 war, awarding them to soldiers from countries that served alongside Americans. But U.S. military personnel never received them at the time because of clearance issues.
"That medal I got (in 2000) was the first" sign of appreciation, Diestel said.
Diestel got out of the Navy in 1957. Most of his time in the service was spent in or near Korea, although his ship, U.S.S. Comstock, was rotated in and out of the region. He was a storekeeper who worked in the supply department, but during battles he manned a 20-mm gun and fired at the enemy.
"We really weren't afraid to die," he said. "We were fighting for our country no matter what it took."
The Comstock, a dock landing ship, spent a lot of time mine-sweeping and hauling equipment. But Diestel said it also made at least three trips to Vietnam, often to pick up U.S. soldiers.
In the five decades since the Korean War, Diestel said he's never wanted to go back to that nation. It was a tough place to serve and locals weren't terribly welcoming to American troops, he said.
Even so, he has lots of memories, although not necessarily good ones. "One Christmas, I never got my present . . . It's at the bottom of the ocean," he said. That's because the ship delivering holiday mail was hit by enemy fire.
Saturday should be a happier day. After a noon meal, a formal 50th anniversary observance will begin at 1 p.m. Daschle and Janklow are both scheduled to be on hand. Daschle is an Air Force veteran, Janklow a former Marine.
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It's how it is
A man in mall walks up to woman and asks if he might talk with her for a few minutes.
"But, why do you want to talk with me?" She asks.
To which the guy replies, "I can't find my wife, and whenever I'm talking to a woman with your good looks and figure, she instantly appears out of nowhere."
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Anything?
A woman was sitting at a bar enjoying an after work cocktail with her girlfriends when an exceptionally tall, handsome, extremely sexy middle-aged man entered. He was so striking that the woman could not take her eyes off him.
The young-at-heart man noticed her overly attentive stare and walked directly toward her. (As all men will.) Before she could offer her apologies for so rudely staring, he leaned over and whispered to her, "I'll do anything, absolutely anything, that you want me to do, no matter how kinky, for $20.00......on one condition." (There are always conditions)
Flabbergasted, the woman asked what the condition was.
The man replied, "You have to tell me what you want me to do in just three words." (controlling huh?)
The woman considered his proposition for a moment then slowly removed a $20 bill from her purse, which she pressed into the man's hand along with her address. She looked deeply into his eyes, and slowly and meaningfully said....
* "Clean my house."
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