Jack Hager

I served in Vietnam. I did time in a maximum security prison. There were times I was scared in each of those scenarios.

But the most frightened I’ve ever been was in South Korea.

On January 23, 1968 I was at our unit’s headquarters when we were all called in for a briefing.

The briefer began by saying the session was Top Secret Codeword. Serious stuff. He then told us the US Ship “Pueblo” had been seized by the North Koreans.

We knew the “Pueblo” was a spy ship. We were involved in similar work (if I tell you what I actually did I’d be forced to kill you)

It was at that point I entered into the most scary part of my life.

Why?

Because I knew we wouldn’t abandon the 82 captured men (another was killed during the seizing).

Silly me.

And because of my security clearance I knew that everything we had in South Korea was nuclear. We had no aircraft with conventional weaponry.

I thought we were headed to nuclear war.

But…of course…we sold the crew out. The men were finally released on December 23.

The “Pueblo” is now a key part of the “Victorious Fatherland Liberation War Museum.”

Perhaps the saddest part – most of you had never heard of the “Pueblo” until you read this.

Side note – Going through the “Pueblo” debacle prepared me for the fall of Vietnam and the idiocy of the withdrawal from Afghanistan.