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Ex-POW warns of difficulty ahead 'Every American is going to know the sounds of war' By PAUL FATTIG WHITE CITY - Americans had better prepare for a major change in lifestyle after this week's terrorist attack, warns former prisoner of war Ernie Brace. "We're about to see what the Israelis have been facing for many, many years," he said. "We're going to have to fight the war against terrorism here within the United States." And it won't only be those in uniform serving in the war which will be fought worldwide, he said. "We are all going to have to be on the lookout for this beast called terrorism," he added. Brace, a civilian pilot with nearly eight years behind bars in Vietnam, most of that in the infamous "Hanoi Hilton" alongside Arizona Sen. John McCain, made the remarks as guest speaker at the Department of Veterans Affairs Domiciliary early Friday afternoon. Friday marked National POW/MIA Recognition Day. But it was also the National Day of Prayer and Remembrance called by President Bush for those who perished in Tuesday's terrorist attacks. About two dozen former POWs from Southern Oregon and Northern California were honored during the ceremony. Bill Cope, a retired Army forensic anthropologist who helped identify American military personnel remains in Vietnam, presented Brace with a brick that Cope had obtained from the Hanoi Hilton before it was torn down. The brick was one of three Cope obtained; another was given to McCain. Brace, who lives with his wife, Nancy, in Klamath Falls, was captured in May 1965 after his plane laden with military supplies was riddled with bullets when he landed on an airstrip in Laos. After three years in various prisons, he arrived at the Hanoi Hilton in 1968. "John made contact with me the second day I was there by tapping on the wall," said Brace, who gained a reputation as a communications expert in the POW underground while in prison. The two, who are now good friends, were both released on March 28, 1973. Standing 6 feet tall, Brace, a former Marine Corps pilot who was shot down in the Korean War in 1952, was held for years in small cells in Vietnam. Once, after escaping, he was buried in a pit up to his neck for a week. Another escape ended with him placed in leg stocks for two years. Yet, when he was offered early release because of his civilian status, he refused. While he was a civilian POW, he always considered himself still in the Marine Corps in which he served for a decade, he noted. Brace, who speaks at many high schools and colleges, notes that most of today's students were not yet born when he gained his freedom 28 years ago. Few of today's young adults know anything of war, he said. "But now, every American is going to know the sounds of war because they will see it on television every night," he said. "It will be a war graphically portrayed in our own homes on television every night of the week." Unfortunately, much of that war will be fought at home, he reiterated. "On Tuesday morning, about 6 o'clock, the drums of war started beating again for Americans," he said. "Only this time, they were beating at home." Ever since the Civil War that ended in 1865, America's wars have been on a distant shore, he noted. "But America will not be defeated by terrorism," he said. "We will defeat those elements in the world that threaten our way of life." Reach reporter Paul Fattig at 776-4496 or e-mail him at [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.