Tuesday, August 21, 2007

Iraq Surge at Breaking Point: Soldiers Speak Out

7 Soldiers in Iraq: The War as We Saw It
Countdown brings us an update to the earlier post:
Soldiers Speak Out About Iraq, Contradict O'Hanlon & Pollack

support the troops, not the chickenhawks
AP Survey: Army is strained to limits *

The Army’s 38 available combat units are deployed, just returning home or already tapped to go to Iraq, Afghanistan or elsewhere, leaving no fresh troops to replace five extra brigades that President Bush sent to Baghdad this year, according to interviews and military documents reviewed by the AP.

That presents the Pentagon with several painful choices if the Untied States wants to maintain higher troop levels beyond the spring of 2008:
Using National Guard units on an accelerated schedule.

Breaking the military’s pledge to keep soldiers in Iraq for no longer than 15 months.

Breaching a commitment to give soldiers a full year at home before sending them back to war.
For a war-fatigued nation and a Congress bent on bringing troops home, none of those is desirable. ...
Heartbraking report about Iraq's deadliest attack
Clearly anyone who still supports this war and this President's surge needs to be actively serving in the military. Replacements needed.

Update via Atrios:
Meanwhile ...
The governor, Mohammed Ali al-Hasani, was killed when the bomb exploded next to his convoy as it drove through the provincial capital, Samawa, police say. ...

He is the second Shia governor killed this month.
Iraq has 18 provinces....
Which lie is the reason we are there?