World War II Chronicle: December 5, 1942
Click here for TODAY’S NEWSPAPER
On the front page is a report that 15,000 Soviet prisoners of war have died in Finland. While this may initially sound bad, Finland claims that the Red Army men were mostly wounded and soldiers were already suffering from malnutrition, digestive issues, and epidemics when they were captured by the Finns. Indeed, the Soviets likely have a better diet as prisoners than they did as “free” men.
This gives us an opportunity to examine another area of the casualty statistic: troops that are captured by the enemy. Finland has captured some 56,000 Red Army soldiers to date according to the piece. Finland probably can feed its population of around three million residents during peacetime, but food production is certainly strained from having been at war with the Soviet Union since 1939. Now they have to devote scarce manpower resources to building camps, providing food and medical treatment, guarding the detainees, etc. But imagine the amount of attention required for a prisoner who has frostbite, is suffering from scurvy, lice-ridden, and has been shot. Now multiply that soldier by 50,000. Bear in mind, you have to care for soldiers who invaded you in the first place.
The United States housed nearly half a million German soldiers during the war in a vast network of prisoner of war camps for Axis troops. Military policemen had to move them across Europe or Africa, the POWs had to be shipped across the Atlantic, moved again across the country — all under guard. For the scores of camps across the United States, ground had to be cleared (you couldn’t keep POWs near populated areas), buildings built, utilities, fences, and so on. This all has the effect of keeping an army of young men occupied at home and away from the front lines. That is like how it is better to wound your enemy than to kill him: A dead soldier can be left where he fell, while someone who is wounded needs medics, ambulance, nurses, a doctor and hospital…
20 B-24 bombers from IX Bomber Command targeted Naples yesterday in the first American raid against Italy, story on page two… Capt. Robert E. Galer, skipper of Marine Fighting Squadron 224 (VMF-224), is pictured back at home with his family. Stay tuned for more on Galer… Sports section begins on page 21, featuring a Grantland Rice column and another on page 22
Evening star. (Washington, D.C.), December 5, 1942. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Lib. of Congress.
https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83045462/1942-12-05/ed-1/
