To the editor:

I was 8 years old during the summer of 1950 when North Korea suddenly and unexpectedly threw soldiers and tanks over the 38th parallel, towards Seoul, the capital.

Many may not realize the role Gen. Douglas MacArthur played in the defense of Korea. He flew over from Tokyo at great risk and saw firsthand the citizens of Seoul fleeing the Communists. He was our main hope of changing the tide of a new war there. We were caught by surprise.

His biography “Reminiscences” covers the Korean conflict in great detail, but I want to move ahead to the concept of a divided Korea. MacArthur was totally opposed to that and felt peace and prosperity would never come to a divided Korea. By September, he had invaded at Inchon and shortly liberated Seoul. Sadly, the war was far from over.

Now that point of view has been lost in the dust of time. President Truman later fired our longest serving soldier, Gen. MacArthur, in dispute over this. I offer one last salute to Gen. Douglass MacArthur.

The MacArthur Museum in Norfolk is a great spot for a MacArthur history revisit. Let’s give our president some credit for trying to get this all corrected.

Stuart MacArthur Resor

Suffolk