Some things never change, and very few people remember stories of the massed charges of Chinese soldiers in Korea, with only one of every three carrying rifles. The other two were screaming and blowing bugles, and were supposed to retrieve the rifle from a fallen comrade and press on. A seemingly endless supply of troops would overrun American positions with sheer mass of numbers. My landlord for a time was a medic in Korea, and he said the machine gunners in his unit kept a stash of spare barrels and got really good at changing melted-down barrels in the middle of a firefight. Does anyone really think China wouldn't repeat that kind of tactics?
Chinese Commies learned that 3 men to one rifle BS from the Russians in WW2. The Soviets did the same thing on the Russian front...and also gave each man, a bandoler of just 5 or 6 rounds ONLY. My Step Dad was a young Marine in Korea, was with the first Marines to be shipped over from Japan in 1950. 18 years old and 160 pounds of in shape Marine Corps. He ended up leading a Marine Long Range Recon unit, on raids and Search & Destroy missions at night and they had to try to sleep in the Trenches on our side, the following day. He was in constant combat until the day the Korean War ended, on July 27th 1953. That was his 21st birthday, he weighed 95 pounds.
He talked of, what it was like in the trenches in Korea. Wave after wave of chinese troops in attacks. There were human waves of people, with only the front ones carrying a rifle, followed by two more men who were supposed to pick it up and keep charging. The leaders for the attack, did not lead from in front of their men, but from behind. Charges were pushed by Communist Party Political Officers, who carried AKs. Anyone trying to retreat were mowed down by the Political Officers. The Marine Corps machine gunners would try to mow down as many of the people they could in the front of the ranks, with 30 caliber machine guns. 50 caliber machine guns were fired at the Political Officers in the rear. Their uniforms stood out, among the troops with OD Quilted Fatigues, in sharp contrast. The Marines also used the ONTOS, to fire on the Political Officers. each had six 105 or 106 Mm Recoilless Rifles on them, mounted on a tank chassis.
At times the bodies would stack so high, the ONTOS would have to blow shooting lanes for the troops to see the next wave coming behind the dead.
Dad said the Marines could never figure out why, but somehow the Chinese troops would know when all the political officers had been killed and would turn and retreat. The Marines would cease fire, to conserve ammo. Even in winter and the cold, after the shooting stopped, Marines couldn't help notice that their feet were sloshing in blood, that had came into the trenches, as it would run into there in little creeks, from the carnage that the attack had caused, flowing down the hill. You could tell the new Marines in the unit. After the fighting, they were the ones barfing their guts out from all the carnage they had just endured...experienced Marines were use to it.
My step Dad really never did come home from the Korean War. I remember times growing up, at 3 in the morning, I'd hear him balling his eyes out.
He never wanted anyone to see him cry, so he'd just hold it in, until bad dreams woke him up....in the middle of the night.
Doubt much has changed in the Chinese military, and their indifference to sacrificing thousands of young men's lives. Seems the Russians are doing the same thing in the Ukraine right now. Their units are followed by mobile cremation units to get rid of the bodies of their dead.
can the young generation of this nation, stand up to that kind of experiences to defend our nation and its existence? I highly doubt it.
