Is White House Blocking Search for Bin Laden?
Pentagon Would Use Special Forces to Nab Bin Laden in Pakistan, New York Times Says
By MARTHA RADDATZ
June 30, 2008
RSS The Pentagon has drafted a secret plan that would send U.S. special forces into the wild tribal regions of Pakistan to capture or kill Osama bin Laden and his top lieutenants, but the White House has balked at giving the mission a green light, The New York Times reported today.
New leaked reports have exposed U.S. covert operations in the Middle East.The Bush administration, which has seven months left in its term, gave the go-ahead for the military to draw up the plan to take the war on terror across the Afghan border and into the mountains of Pakistan where bin Laden is believed to be hiding, according to the newspaper.
Intelligence reports have concluded that bin Laden has re-established a network of new training camps, and the number of recruits in those camps has risen to as many as 2,000 in recent months from 200 earlier this year.
Although the special forces attack plan was devised six months ago, infighting among U.S. intelligence agencies and among White House offices have blocked it from being implemented, the Times reported.
Related
Accused 9/11 Planner in Guantanamo CourtHow Much Did He Really Do?ABC Exclusive: Pakistani Bomb Scientist Breaks SilenceThe Bush team would like to leave office next January having put bin Laden, the man behind the Sept. 11 attacks, behind bars or in his grave.
But sending U.S. forces into Pakistan would be controversial and risky. The rugged mountain area is populated by bin Laden sympathizers, hurting the chances that such a raid could succeed. It would also trigger a diplomatic outcry from the Pakistani government.
The United States has conducted a series of aerial drone attacks on Taliban and al Qaeda leaders in Pakistan, killing several key Qaeda figures and narrowly missing bin Laden's deputy, Ayman Zawahiri, in one strike. But an attack earlier this month killed several Pakistani border guards instead and has made Pakistan less willing to allow U.S. strikes on its territory.
The Taliban of Pakistan, who are close al Qaeda allies, have grown alarmingly stronger in Pakistan's lawless border areas and threatened the regional capital of Peshawar last week.
Pakistan's new coalition government, which has made a series of truces with the militants in recent months, was forced over the weekend to launch an offensive to push the militants back from the outskirts of Peshawar.
Pakistan called the operation a success, even though none of the heavily armed militants in the area were reported killed.
Monday, June 30, 2008
Thursday, June 26, 2008
UNITY!!! YAY
After the longest primary battle in modern U.S. history, Barack Obama will campaign with former rival Hillary Clinton on Friday for the first time since the New York senator abandoned her presidential bid.
Sen. Barack Obama will make his first campaign appearance with Sen. Hillary Clinton on Friday.
Their joint appearance will be at a rally in Unity, New Hampshire, a small town on the state's western border where the two candidates tied in the January primary.
"It is not only well-named, but in the New Hampshire primary both of us received exactly 107 votes," Clinton said Thursday in Washington. "So it pretty much mirrored the rest of the campaign, where it was right down the middle."
Clinton and Obama endured a protracted and, at times, fierce primary season. After months of divisive contests that took them through every state, the two are now focused on uniting their party in order to defeat the Republicans in November.
Concern about the division in the party arose because the two candidates appealed to such different segments of the electorate. Clinton did well with working-class voters and the elderly. Obama rallied the support of affluent, well-educated voters, African-Americans and the younger generation. Watch what Clinton and Obama hope to accomplish »
In exit polls conducted throughout the primary season, many Clinton backers said they either would not vote or would vote for Sen. John McCain, the presumptive Republican candidate, should Obama become their party's nominee.
Clinton has said it would be a "grave" mistake for her supporters to cast their votes for McCain.
"Anyone who voted for me has very little in common with the Republican party. If you care about the issues I care about, and the future that I outlined during my campaign, then you really have to stay with us in the Democratic Party and vote for Sen. Obama to be our next president," she said in Washington on Tuesday.
Ever since Clinton endorsed Obama this month, she has been urging her supporters to follow suit.
"The way to continue our fight now to accomplish the goals for which we stand is to take our energy, our passion, our strength and do all we can to help elect Barack Obama the next president of the United States," she said as she suspended her campaign.
Obama and Clinton have appeared on good terms in recent weeks. Obama has repeatedly praised Clinton while on the trail, and this week he asked some of his top donors to help Clinton retire some of her campaign debt.
Obama has shied away from any talk of a possible joint ticket, although he's said Clinton "would be on anyone's short-list."
The senator from Illinois has made it clear, however, that he wants Clinton to help as much as she can.
"I want her campaigning as much as she can. She was a terrific campaigner. She I think inspired millions of people, and so she can be an extraordinarily effective surrogate for me, and the values and ideals that we share as Democrats," Obama said Wednesday while in Chicago.
"I think we will have a terrific time together in New Hampshire. And I think that she will be very effective all the way through the election," he said.
But voters aren't quick to forget what was, at times, was a contentious race for the Democratic nomination.
Clinton labeled Obama and "elitist" for saying some small-town Pennsylvanians were "bitter" people who "cling to guns and religion" in the days leading up to that state's primary.
Obama accused Clinton on Sunday of acting like "Annie Oakley ... packin' a six-shooter" in her attempts to connect with gun owners.
Clinton questioned Obama's experience; he made swipes at her judgment.
The two also endured preacher-gate, Bosnia-gate and a bitter battle over the race card, among other controversies that have framed the race.
So will Democrats be able to coalesce around their nominee? Political analyst and Democratic superdelegate Donna Brazile says absolutely.
"They were allies before the campaign. They will be allies again. They are very -- two astute politicians, very smart individuals, and I am sure that Sen. Obama will have Sen. Clinton as a trusted adviser. Someone who can help guide him along the path as he goes forward," she said.
Ahead of their appearance Friday, Clinton and Obama planned to meet privately with donors Thursday night.
Sen. Barack Obama will make his first campaign appearance with Sen. Hillary Clinton on Friday.
Their joint appearance will be at a rally in Unity, New Hampshire, a small town on the state's western border where the two candidates tied in the January primary.
"It is not only well-named, but in the New Hampshire primary both of us received exactly 107 votes," Clinton said Thursday in Washington. "So it pretty much mirrored the rest of the campaign, where it was right down the middle."
Clinton and Obama endured a protracted and, at times, fierce primary season. After months of divisive contests that took them through every state, the two are now focused on uniting their party in order to defeat the Republicans in November.
Concern about the division in the party arose because the two candidates appealed to such different segments of the electorate. Clinton did well with working-class voters and the elderly. Obama rallied the support of affluent, well-educated voters, African-Americans and the younger generation. Watch what Clinton and Obama hope to accomplish »
In exit polls conducted throughout the primary season, many Clinton backers said they either would not vote or would vote for Sen. John McCain, the presumptive Republican candidate, should Obama become their party's nominee.
Clinton has said it would be a "grave" mistake for her supporters to cast their votes for McCain.
"Anyone who voted for me has very little in common with the Republican party. If you care about the issues I care about, and the future that I outlined during my campaign, then you really have to stay with us in the Democratic Party and vote for Sen. Obama to be our next president," she said in Washington on Tuesday.
Ever since Clinton endorsed Obama this month, she has been urging her supporters to follow suit.
"The way to continue our fight now to accomplish the goals for which we stand is to take our energy, our passion, our strength and do all we can to help elect Barack Obama the next president of the United States," she said as she suspended her campaign.
Obama and Clinton have appeared on good terms in recent weeks. Obama has repeatedly praised Clinton while on the trail, and this week he asked some of his top donors to help Clinton retire some of her campaign debt.
Obama has shied away from any talk of a possible joint ticket, although he's said Clinton "would be on anyone's short-list."
The senator from Illinois has made it clear, however, that he wants Clinton to help as much as she can.
"I want her campaigning as much as she can. She was a terrific campaigner. She I think inspired millions of people, and so she can be an extraordinarily effective surrogate for me, and the values and ideals that we share as Democrats," Obama said Wednesday while in Chicago.
"I think we will have a terrific time together in New Hampshire. And I think that she will be very effective all the way through the election," he said.
But voters aren't quick to forget what was, at times, was a contentious race for the Democratic nomination.
Clinton labeled Obama and "elitist" for saying some small-town Pennsylvanians were "bitter" people who "cling to guns and religion" in the days leading up to that state's primary.
Obama accused Clinton on Sunday of acting like "Annie Oakley ... packin' a six-shooter" in her attempts to connect with gun owners.
Clinton questioned Obama's experience; he made swipes at her judgment.
The two also endured preacher-gate, Bosnia-gate and a bitter battle over the race card, among other controversies that have framed the race.
So will Democrats be able to coalesce around their nominee? Political analyst and Democratic superdelegate Donna Brazile says absolutely.
"They were allies before the campaign. They will be allies again. They are very -- two astute politicians, very smart individuals, and I am sure that Sen. Obama will have Sen. Clinton as a trusted adviser. Someone who can help guide him along the path as he goes forward," she said.
Ahead of their appearance Friday, Clinton and Obama planned to meet privately with donors Thursday night.
More lives taken to this war today!
Three US Marines and two interpreters were among scores of people killed Thursday in two bombings in predominantly Sunni provinces in Iraq, the US military said.
See full story here.
See full story here.
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
10 things to know about McCain
10 things to know about John McCain
For all the coverage this week of Senator John McCain's background, there are some important things you won't learn about him from the TV networks. His carefully crafted positive image relies on people not knowing this stuff—and you might be surprised by some of it.
Please check out the list below, and then forward it to your friends, family, and coworkers. We can't rely on the media to tell folks about the real John McCain—but if we all pass this along, we can reach as many people as CNN Headline News does on a good night.
10 things you should know about John McCain (but probably don't):
John McCain voted against establishing a national holiday in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Now he says his position has "evolved," yet he's continued to oppose key civil rights laws.
1. According to Bloomberg News, McCain is more hawkish than Bush on Iraq, Russia and China. Conservative columnist Pat Buchanan says McCain "will make Cheney look like Gandhi."
2.His reputation is built on his opposition to torture, but McCain voted against a bill to ban waterboarding, and then applauded President Bush for vetoing that ban.
3.McCain opposes a woman's right to choose. He said, "I do not support Roe versus Wade. It should be overturned."
4.The Children's Defense Fund rated McCain as the worst senator in Congress for children. He voted against the children's health care bill last year, then defended Bush's veto of the bill.
5.He's one of the richest people in a Senate filled with millionaires. The Associated Press reports he and his wife own at least eight homes! Yet McCain says the solution to the housing crisis is for people facing foreclosure to get a "second job" and skip their vacations.
6.Many of McCain's fellow Republican senators say he's too reckless to be commander in chief. One Republican senator said: "The thought of his being president sends a cold chill down my spine. He's erratic. He's hotheaded. He loses his temper and he worries me."
7.McCain talks a lot about taking on special interests, but his campaign manager and top advisers are actually lobbyists. The government watchdog group Public Citizen says McCain has 59 lobbyists raising money for his campaign, more than any of the other presidential candidates.
8.McCain has sought closer ties to the extreme religious right in recent years. The pastor McCain calls his "spiritual guide," Rod Parsley, believes America's founding mission is to destroy Islam, which he calls a "false religion." McCain sought the political support of right-wing preacher John Hagee, who believes Hurricane Katrina was God's punishment for gay rights and called the Catholic Church "the Antichrist" and a "false cult."
9.He positions himself as pro-environment, but he scored a 0—yes, zero—from the League of Conservation Voters last year.
John McCain is not who the Washington press corps make him out to be.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sources:
1. "The Complicated History of John McCain and MLK Day," ABC News, April 3, 2008
http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2008/04/the-complicated.html
"McCain Facts," ColorOfChange.org, April 4, 2008
http://colorofchange.org/mccain_facts/
2. "McCain More Hawkish Than Bush on Russia, China, Iraq," Bloomberg News, March 12, 2008 http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=aF28rSCtk0ZM&refer=us
"Buchanan: John McCain 'Will Make Cheney Look Like Gandhi,'" ThinkProgress, February 6, 2008 http://thinkprogress.org/2008/02/06/buchanan-gandhi-mccain/
3. "McCain Sides With Bush On Torture Again, Supports Veto Of Anti-Waterboarding Bill," ThinkProgress, February 20, 2008
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/02/20/mccain-torture-veto/
4. "McCain says Roe v. Wade should be overturned," MSNBC, February 18, 2007
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17222147/
5. "2007 Children's Defense Fund Action Council® Nonpartisan Congressional Scorecard," February 2008
http://www.childrensdefense.org/site/PageServer?pagename=act_learn_scorecard2007
"McCain: Bush right to veto kids health insurance expansion," CNN, October 3, 2007
http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/10/03/mccain.interview/
6. "Beer Executive Could Be Next First Lady," Associated Press, April 3, 2008
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5h-S1sWHm0tchtdMP5LcLywg5ZtMgD8VQ86M80
"McCain Says Bank Bailout Should End `Systemic Risk,'" Bloomberg News, March 25, 2008 http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aHMiDVYaXZFM&refer=home
7. "Will McCain's Temper Be a Liability?," Associated Press, February 16, 2008
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory?id=4301022
"Famed McCain temper is tamed," Boston Globe, January 27, 2008
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2008/01/27/famed_mccain_temper_is_tamed/
8. "Black Claims McCain's Campaign Is Above Lobbyist Influence: 'I Don't Know What The Criticism Is,'" ThinkProgress, April 2, 2008
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/04/02/mccain-black-lobbyist/
"McCain's Lobbyist Friends Rally 'Round Their Man," ABC News, January 29, 2008
http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=4210251
9. "McCain's Spiritual Guide: Destroy Islam," Mother Jones Magazine, March 12, 2008
http://www.motherjones.com/washington_dispatch/2008/03/john-mccain-rod-parsley-spiritual-guide.html
"Will McCain Specifically 'Repudiate' Hagee's Anti-Gay Comments?," ThinkProgress, March 12, 2008
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/03/12/mccain-hagee-anti-gay/
"McCain 'Very Honored' By Support Of Pastor Preaching 'End-Time Confrontation With Iran,'" ThinkProgress, February 28, 2008
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/02/28/hagee-mccain-endorsement/
10. "John McCain Gets a Zero Rating for His Environmental Record," Sierra Club, February 28, 2008
http://www.alternet.org/blogs/environment/77913/
Support our member-driven organization: MoveOn.org Political Action is entirely funded by our 3.2 million members. We have no corporate contributors, no foundation grants, no money from unions. Our tiny staff ensures that small contributions go a long way. If you'd like to support our work, you can give now at:
http://political.moveon.org/donate/email.html
For all the coverage this week of Senator John McCain's background, there are some important things you won't learn about him from the TV networks. His carefully crafted positive image relies on people not knowing this stuff—and you might be surprised by some of it.
Please check out the list below, and then forward it to your friends, family, and coworkers. We can't rely on the media to tell folks about the real John McCain—but if we all pass this along, we can reach as many people as CNN Headline News does on a good night.
10 things you should know about John McCain (but probably don't):
John McCain voted against establishing a national holiday in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Now he says his position has "evolved," yet he's continued to oppose key civil rights laws.
1. According to Bloomberg News, McCain is more hawkish than Bush on Iraq, Russia and China. Conservative columnist Pat Buchanan says McCain "will make Cheney look like Gandhi."
2.His reputation is built on his opposition to torture, but McCain voted against a bill to ban waterboarding, and then applauded President Bush for vetoing that ban.
3.McCain opposes a woman's right to choose. He said, "I do not support Roe versus Wade. It should be overturned."
4.The Children's Defense Fund rated McCain as the worst senator in Congress for children. He voted against the children's health care bill last year, then defended Bush's veto of the bill.
5.He's one of the richest people in a Senate filled with millionaires. The Associated Press reports he and his wife own at least eight homes! Yet McCain says the solution to the housing crisis is for people facing foreclosure to get a "second job" and skip their vacations.
6.Many of McCain's fellow Republican senators say he's too reckless to be commander in chief. One Republican senator said: "The thought of his being president sends a cold chill down my spine. He's erratic. He's hotheaded. He loses his temper and he worries me."
7.McCain talks a lot about taking on special interests, but his campaign manager and top advisers are actually lobbyists. The government watchdog group Public Citizen says McCain has 59 lobbyists raising money for his campaign, more than any of the other presidential candidates.
8.McCain has sought closer ties to the extreme religious right in recent years. The pastor McCain calls his "spiritual guide," Rod Parsley, believes America's founding mission is to destroy Islam, which he calls a "false religion." McCain sought the political support of right-wing preacher John Hagee, who believes Hurricane Katrina was God's punishment for gay rights and called the Catholic Church "the Antichrist" and a "false cult."
9.He positions himself as pro-environment, but he scored a 0—yes, zero—from the League of Conservation Voters last year.
John McCain is not who the Washington press corps make him out to be.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sources:
1. "The Complicated History of John McCain and MLK Day," ABC News, April 3, 2008
http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2008/04/the-complicated.html
"McCain Facts," ColorOfChange.org, April 4, 2008
http://colorofchange.org/mccain_facts/
2. "McCain More Hawkish Than Bush on Russia, China, Iraq," Bloomberg News, March 12, 2008 http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=aF28rSCtk0ZM&refer=us
"Buchanan: John McCain 'Will Make Cheney Look Like Gandhi,'" ThinkProgress, February 6, 2008 http://thinkprogress.org/2008/02/06/buchanan-gandhi-mccain/
3. "McCain Sides With Bush On Torture Again, Supports Veto Of Anti-Waterboarding Bill," ThinkProgress, February 20, 2008
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/02/20/mccain-torture-veto/
4. "McCain says Roe v. Wade should be overturned," MSNBC, February 18, 2007
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17222147/
5. "2007 Children's Defense Fund Action Council® Nonpartisan Congressional Scorecard," February 2008
http://www.childrensdefense.org/site/PageServer?pagename=act_learn_scorecard2007
"McCain: Bush right to veto kids health insurance expansion," CNN, October 3, 2007
http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/10/03/mccain.interview/
6. "Beer Executive Could Be Next First Lady," Associated Press, April 3, 2008
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5h-S1sWHm0tchtdMP5LcLywg5ZtMgD8VQ86M80
"McCain Says Bank Bailout Should End `Systemic Risk,'" Bloomberg News, March 25, 2008 http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aHMiDVYaXZFM&refer=home
7. "Will McCain's Temper Be a Liability?," Associated Press, February 16, 2008
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory?id=4301022
"Famed McCain temper is tamed," Boston Globe, January 27, 2008
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2008/01/27/famed_mccain_temper_is_tamed/
8. "Black Claims McCain's Campaign Is Above Lobbyist Influence: 'I Don't Know What The Criticism Is,'" ThinkProgress, April 2, 2008
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/04/02/mccain-black-lobbyist/
"McCain's Lobbyist Friends Rally 'Round Their Man," ABC News, January 29, 2008
http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=4210251
9. "McCain's Spiritual Guide: Destroy Islam," Mother Jones Magazine, March 12, 2008
http://www.motherjones.com/washington_dispatch/2008/03/john-mccain-rod-parsley-spiritual-guide.html
"Will McCain Specifically 'Repudiate' Hagee's Anti-Gay Comments?," ThinkProgress, March 12, 2008
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/03/12/mccain-hagee-anti-gay/
"McCain 'Very Honored' By Support Of Pastor Preaching 'End-Time Confrontation With Iran,'" ThinkProgress, February 28, 2008
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/02/28/hagee-mccain-endorsement/
10. "John McCain Gets a Zero Rating for His Environmental Record," Sierra Club, February 28, 2008
http://www.alternet.org/blogs/environment/77913/
Support our member-driven organization: MoveOn.org Political Action is entirely funded by our 3.2 million members. We have no corporate contributors, no foundation grants, no money from unions. Our tiny staff ensures that small contributions go a long way. If you'd like to support our work, you can give now at:
http://political.moveon.org/donate/email.html
Here's how the average tax bill could change in 2009
Here's how the average tax bill could change in 2009 if either John McCain's or Barack Obama's tax proposals were fully in place.
Income Avg. tax bill Avg. tax bill MCCAIN OBAMA
Over $2.9M -$269,364 +$701,885
$603K and up -$45,361 +$115,974
$227K-$603K -$7,871 +$12
$161K-$227K -$4,380 -$2,789
$112K-$161K -$2,614 -$2,204
$66K-$112K -$1,009 -$1,290
$38K-$66K -$319 -$1,042
$19K-$38K -$113 -$892
Under $19K -$19 -$567
Here is the link to the news article
Source:The Tax Policy Center
Income Avg. tax bill Avg. tax bill MCCAIN OBAMA
Over $2.9M -$269,364 +$701,885
$603K and up -$45,361 +$115,974
$227K-$603K -$7,871 +$12
$161K-$227K -$4,380 -$2,789
$112K-$161K -$2,614 -$2,204
$66K-$112K -$1,009 -$1,290
$38K-$66K -$319 -$1,042
$19K-$38K -$113 -$892
Under $19K -$19 -$567
Here is the link to the news article
Source:The Tax Policy Center
Thursday, March 27, 2008
The Status Quo
When our lives are going well, and sometimes even when they aren’t, we may find ourselves feeling very attached to the status quo of our existence--life as we know it. It is a very human tendency to resist change as though it were possible to simply decide not to do it, or have it in our lives. But change will come and the status quo will go, sooner or later, with our consent or without it. We may find at the end of the day that we feel considerably more empowered when we find the courage to ally ourselves with the universal force of change, rather than working against it.
Of course, the answer is not to go about changing things at random, without regard to whether they are working or not. There is a time and place for stability and the preservation of what has been gained over time. In fact, the ability to stabilize and preserve what is serving us is part of what helps us to survive and thrive. The problem comes when we become more attached to preserving the status quo than to honoring the universal givens of growth and change. For example, if we allow a situation we are in to remain stagnant simply because we are comfortable, it may be time for us to summon up the courage to challenge the status quo.
This may be painful at times, or surprisingly liberating, and it will most likely be a little of both. Underneath the discomfort, we will probably find excitement and energy as we take the risk of unblocking the natural flow of energy in our lives. It is like dismantling a dam inside ourselves, because most of the work involves clearing our own inner obstacles so that the river of our life can flow unobstructed. Once we remove the obstacles, we can simply go with the flow, trusting the changes that follow.
Of course, the answer is not to go about changing things at random, without regard to whether they are working or not. There is a time and place for stability and the preservation of what has been gained over time. In fact, the ability to stabilize and preserve what is serving us is part of what helps us to survive and thrive. The problem comes when we become more attached to preserving the status quo than to honoring the universal givens of growth and change. For example, if we allow a situation we are in to remain stagnant simply because we are comfortable, it may be time for us to summon up the courage to challenge the status quo.
This may be painful at times, or surprisingly liberating, and it will most likely be a little of both. Underneath the discomfort, we will probably find excitement and energy as we take the risk of unblocking the natural flow of energy in our lives. It is like dismantling a dam inside ourselves, because most of the work involves clearing our own inner obstacles so that the river of our life can flow unobstructed. Once we remove the obstacles, we can simply go with the flow, trusting the changes that follow.
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
What's your number? Mine is 2.
By LIEUT. SEAN WALSH
The passing of the 4,000th service member in Iraq is a tragic milestone and a testament to the cost of this war, but for those of us who live and fight in Iraq, we measure that cost in smaller, but much more personal numbers. For me those numbers are 8, the number of friends and classmates killed in Iraq and Afghanistan, and 3, the number of soldiers from my unit killed in this deployment. I’m 25, yet I’ve received more notifications for funerals than invitations to weddings...
The number 4,000 is too great to grasp even for us that are here in Iraq. When we soldiers read the newspaper, the latest AP casualty figures are glanced over with the same casual interest as a box score for a sport you don’t follow. I am certain that I am not alone when I open up the Stars and Stripes, the military’s daily paper, and immediately search for the section with the names of the fallen to see if they include anyone I know. While in a combat outpost in southwest Baghdad, it was in that distinctive bold Ariel print in a two-week-old copy of the Stars and Stripes that I read that my best friend had been killed in Afghanistan. No phone call from a mutual friend or a visit to his family. All that had come and gone by the time I had learned about his death. I sometimes wonder, if I hadn’t picked up that paper, how much longer I would have gone by without knowing - perhaps another day, perhaps a week or longer until I could find the time and the means to check my e-mail to find my messages unanswered and a death notification from a West Point distro list in my inbox. The dead in Afghanistan don’t seem to inspire the keeping of lists the same way that those in Iraq do, but even if they did it wouldn’t matter; he could only be number 7 to me.
I’m not asking for pity, only understanding for the cost of this war. We did, after all, volunteer for the Army and that is the key distinction between this army and the army of the Vietnam War. But even as I ask for that understanding I’m almost certain that you won’t be able to obtain it. Even Shakespeare, with his now overused notion of soldiers as a "band of brothers" fails to capture the bonds, the sense of responsibility to each other, among soldiers. In many ways, Iraq has become my home (by the time my deployment ends I will have spent more time here than anywhere else in the army) and the soldiers I share that home with have become my family. Between working, eating and sleeping within a few feet of the same soldiers every single day, I doubt I am away from them for more than two hours a day. I’m engaged to the love of my life, but it will take several years of marriage before I’ve spent as much time with her as I have with the men I serve with today.
For the vast majority of American’s who don’t have a loved one overseas, the only number they have to attempt to grasp the Iraq War is 4,000. I would ask that when you see that number, try to remember that it is made up of over 1 million smaller numbers; that every one of the 1 million service members who have fought in Iraq has his or her own personal numbers. Over 1 million 8’s and 3’s. When you are evaluating the price of the war, weighing potential rewards versus cost in blood and treasure, I would ask you to consider what is worth the lives of three of your loved ones? Or eight? Or more? It would be a tragedy for my 8 and 3 to have died without us being able to complete our mission, but it maybe even more tragic for 8 and 3 to become anything higher. View this article on Time.com
The passing of the 4,000th service member in Iraq is a tragic milestone and a testament to the cost of this war, but for those of us who live and fight in Iraq, we measure that cost in smaller, but much more personal numbers. For me those numbers are 8, the number of friends and classmates killed in Iraq and Afghanistan, and 3, the number of soldiers from my unit killed in this deployment. I’m 25, yet I’ve received more notifications for funerals than invitations to weddings...
The number 4,000 is too great to grasp even for us that are here in Iraq. When we soldiers read the newspaper, the latest AP casualty figures are glanced over with the same casual interest as a box score for a sport you don’t follow. I am certain that I am not alone when I open up the Stars and Stripes, the military’s daily paper, and immediately search for the section with the names of the fallen to see if they include anyone I know. While in a combat outpost in southwest Baghdad, it was in that distinctive bold Ariel print in a two-week-old copy of the Stars and Stripes that I read that my best friend had been killed in Afghanistan. No phone call from a mutual friend or a visit to his family. All that had come and gone by the time I had learned about his death. I sometimes wonder, if I hadn’t picked up that paper, how much longer I would have gone by without knowing - perhaps another day, perhaps a week or longer until I could find the time and the means to check my e-mail to find my messages unanswered and a death notification from a West Point distro list in my inbox. The dead in Afghanistan don’t seem to inspire the keeping of lists the same way that those in Iraq do, but even if they did it wouldn’t matter; he could only be number 7 to me.
I’m not asking for pity, only understanding for the cost of this war. We did, after all, volunteer for the Army and that is the key distinction between this army and the army of the Vietnam War. But even as I ask for that understanding I’m almost certain that you won’t be able to obtain it. Even Shakespeare, with his now overused notion of soldiers as a "band of brothers" fails to capture the bonds, the sense of responsibility to each other, among soldiers. In many ways, Iraq has become my home (by the time my deployment ends I will have spent more time here than anywhere else in the army) and the soldiers I share that home with have become my family. Between working, eating and sleeping within a few feet of the same soldiers every single day, I doubt I am away from them for more than two hours a day. I’m engaged to the love of my life, but it will take several years of marriage before I’ve spent as much time with her as I have with the men I serve with today.
For the vast majority of American’s who don’t have a loved one overseas, the only number they have to attempt to grasp the Iraq War is 4,000. I would ask that when you see that number, try to remember that it is made up of over 1 million smaller numbers; that every one of the 1 million service members who have fought in Iraq has his or her own personal numbers. Over 1 million 8’s and 3’s. When you are evaluating the price of the war, weighing potential rewards versus cost in blood and treasure, I would ask you to consider what is worth the lives of three of your loved ones? Or eight? Or more? It would be a tragedy for my 8 and 3 to have died without us being able to complete our mission, but it maybe even more tragic for 8 and 3 to become anything higher. View this article on Time.com
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