Dunne (5)

JOSEPH A. DUNNE (5 of 5)

Wounded in Korea

Paratrooper Chaplain
Sees Need For Strength

   An Army paratroop chaplain who is convalescing in Miami Beach from critical wounds suffered in the Korean fighting said Wednesday the United States must have “a big striking force to put the fear of God" in the Communists.
   "That’s the only language they understand” added the Rev Joseph A Dunne a Catholic priest who made 33 parachute jumps in Europe during World War II and in Korea.
   The good-looking 35-year-old priest a major in the Chaplain Corps asserted that the United Nation action in Korea has been worthwhile despite the 102,000 casualties.
   "It reassured free peoples everywhere,' he said, "and gave new hope to the people behind the Iron Curtain.
   "Korea has accomplished Its purpose" he said as he sat in the lobby of the Olsen Hotel to take a load off the feet which were torn by a land mine blast 10 months ago.
   “Wbat we have to do there now is arrange a peaceful settlement along the battle line to return to the South Korean the freedom they lost. That's what we are trying to do. It depends on the Kremlin pulling strings to bring it about."
   "If the settlement can be arranged we must continue our armament progress and anticipate their next move — and they will make it.
   "When we are ready we can put the cards on the table call a spade a spade and take what measures we deem best to assure peace in the world".
   If the current peace talk fait and a settlement is thwarted Father Dunne said the United Nations can authorize an all-out drive to clean out North Korea or compel Russia to order it stooges to come to terms in Korea.
   “If the decision is to clear out North Korea" be said “we are going to need a Jot more troops than we have there now.”
   Father Dunne is aware of the big picture since a chaplain's job in Korea Includes explaining to the men what they are fighting for but his heart is with the doughfoots the guys they used to call GIs before the Army banned use of the term.
   The men he said are marking time to see if the current tasks produce peace or the "maximum effort” which the 8th Army has promised as the alternative to peace.

   "But the men are not Interested in that," he said. “They are interested in putting in their time and getting out. Rotation is the big thing in their minds"
   Morale is high, he added. That he attributes to Gen M B Ridgway’s establishing of a clear-cut perimeter and launching of Operation Kilter with the men inching forward and clearing out guerrillas as they advanced.
   The doughfoots may be bearded and dirty he said but "their mess gear is always shiny." They are always thinking. he added, of "good chow."
   Father Dunne believes the American people need to be “shocked” Into a keener awareness of what's going on in Korea and why “The American people are prone to forget things because they take too much for granted," he said. "Most people in the world don't even aspire to owning an automobile. I wonder if our people realize it."
   Father Dunne, who went into the Army two years after he was ordained In 1942, said the chaplains’ job in Korea is to “keep that kid happy."
   And in the paratroops he said “they love to have you aboard."
   “The plane with the chaplain aboard is a lucky plane," he observed In the soldier language as he held both hands aloft 'with fingers crossed “He’s God's man and nothing ran happen to them."
   The chaplain usually jumps first.
   It was shortly after Father Dunne's last jump on Good Friday of last year that the ambulance on whose running board he was riding was blown up by a mine.
   His left leg and both feet were broken and he suffered serious Internal Injuries which led the medic to think he'd never make it.
   But he did even though he'll probably get a disability discharge now. He was evacuated to a hospital in Valley Forge. Pa. last May and now outfitted with custom-built shoes he can walk unaided.
   He came to Miami Beach as the guest of Ben T Olsen, Jr operator of the Olsen Hotel, 73rd st. and the ocean who had written Francis Cardinal Spellman offering to house wounded Korean war veterans.
"“Mr. Olsen is doing a lot of good in hid own quiet way," the father said.
   He has orders to return to the hospital Feb 30 — and that no kidding, is the date on his orders — so he figure he'll stay here enjoying the sun and surf until March 1.

[The Miami Herald, Miami, FL, 14 Feb 1952, Thu, Page 64]