Position:Home>History> Why is the Korean War called "The Forgotten War"?

It was "forgotten" even as it was taking place!. Life pretty much went on as normal at home and civilians could easily go about their business without paying much attention to the war!.
Remember this was before TV was omnipresent in the American home!.(The TV was just starting to become available and altho my own family were early adopters, TV just wasn't important then!.) Vietnam would be the first war in which everynight battle scenes were played out in the Am!. living room!.
With Korea, you didn't have the protests that you had with Vietnam!. Korea hardly scratched the surface of the Am!. consciousness at the time!.
Perhaps also a part of the "forgetfulness" is that Korea came just after WW II, a HUGE war by comparison!. In terms of costs, casualties, etc!., Korea hardly is a blip on the radar screen!. And the mood of the country after WW II was to return to civlian life, live in the suburbs, have children, tend to one's individual life, and generally enjoy the benefits of being a victor in the World War!.
Note particularly that my point is not merely that K was forgotten by history, but it was forgotten even as it was occuring!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

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Umm, madmax, are you talking about the movie, We Were Soldier!?
The part where the general place that flag on the bark of the tree after the battle cause alot of comotion back in Vietnam!. Its the Vietnam War not Korean!. Korean was cold and mostly winter like, Vietnam war humid!.

It was known as the "The Forgotten War" war because it was basically forgotten!. Not much attention is on the war!. It was a really bloody war if you guys have try reading about it!.

Reading about histories of wars for the United States, its mostly The Revolution, Civil War, WW1, WW2, Vietnam, and now Iraq!.

Basically, the Korean War has nothing unique compare to other war!. WW1 was the first war the United States joined with other countries!. WW2 was the biggest war!. Vietnam was like a war that has no winner!. Iraq is going to be the most hated war in the United States history but Vietnam beats it!.

Korean War, it didn't have anything that can make it more notice able them WW1 or WW2, it also had no winners and everything was basically the same before it started!. People also hated this war and saw no reason to fight in it!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

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It's often compared to Vietnam in the minds of Americans for obvious reasons!.!.!. Asia, Communism vs!. Capitalism/Democracy, America didn't win, etc!.!.!. but they were very different wars!.

So!.!.!. Since it's compared to Vietnam in the minds of many it gets less attention for these reasons:

Vietnam War was much later, and there was far more media attention due to: Improved tele-communications; the counter culture and the dove vs!. hawk mentality that permeated the time; Increased burden of wars on the conscious of Americans (as if WWII and the Korean War weren't enough!.!.!. another one!?)

The results of the Korean War were unsubstantial in comparison: It basically ended in a tie, the newly created borders at the DMZ were quite simliar to the pre-war borders; The political ideologies of the North and South both remain intact to this day!.

Again, the prevailing attiutudes of the times were so different!. The 50's were a time of conservatism, the wars (ww1 & ww2)were supposedly over!. The focus was on the economy!. TV was a new medium of entertainment, but was predominantly for family entertainment!. The 60's contrasted this decade in almost every fashion!.

So in short, people were't watching at home!. Bodycounts and slaughted "friendlies" (southern vietnamese mistakely killed) didn't rule the headlines!. People wanted to move on from the great wars that had dominated the headlines!. The conflicting attitudes of the two vastly different generations of the 60's would see to it that the Vietnam War would recieve geart media attention!.!.!. and the Korean War simply failed in comparison in terms of remembering the wars of the Cold War era!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

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I believe I have seen a movie about that war but I don't remember the name!.
Anyway, I was thinking about it too, not that I'm a historian or something like that!. I'm just a movie buff!.

I think they call it "The Forgotten War" because after they were defeated everything they fight for, all their believes, all their triumphs and hopes are so shattered and even their General at that time put up a small hand-held flag of their enemy at the bark of a tree before they left the hill where the war was fought, that they choose to forget it and erase it from their history!.

Just a guess!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

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Because technically it wasn't a war ,but a police actionWww@QuestionHome@Com

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