Iraq war into 6th year, same old story...

[JTrotter Fan]

I'm glad we agree!!  U.S.A.!!  U.S.A.!!

This is an excellent thread!

[rjs246]

So did anyone watch the Olympics? How did the Iraqis do?

[Sgt PSN]

So did anyone watch the Olympics? How did the Iraqis do?

The took the gold in Camel Humping and finished dead last in Jumping for Cover. 

Seriously though, this is getting rediculous over there.  American troops are dying for nothing, Iraqi civilians are dying for nothing and Dubbya's just as comfy as can be in the oval office.  Hooray! 

[hbionic]

Dio made a mom joke. Sweet!

[stalker]

Bush has to get off his ass and realize poll numbers are meaningless to him now. Hw can't be re-elected. Just completely flatten most of the mid-east. Pave it over and take the oil. Why the hell not? Who could stop us if we had the will to do it completely?

[Call me Ishmael]

Clearly, stalker majored in International Relations at University of Phoenix.

[PhillyGirl]

Troops to stay in Iraq until at least 2008...Bush says, Let another Prez pull them out

[Sgt PSN]

Booooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

[PhillyPhanInDC]

The thing with the Marines in this story is what happens when you take a group of generally good-hearted young men who are trained to kill and do so based on a belief that what they are doing protects their families and the families that live in their native land - and then have them realize that they have killed, maimed and destroyed people, families, and property for no other reasons than someone else's financial and political gain. They break; and become the evil that they once believed they were going to fight.

What some people don't realize when reading a story like this is that the victims aren't only the dead or injured Iraqis, but the young guys who carried out the act. I guarantee you, they were not like what they are now before being sent to that farging hellhole.

A tragic shame, and Bush and his cronies should be farging held accountable to the highest degree.

[Rome]

Worst goddamn president this country has ever seen.  Worse than Nixon, worse than Carter... an absolute disgrace.

What's even worse is, if was impeached, an even bigger @sshole would take his place.

Bush and his chickenhawk pals are leading us down the primrose path and no one has the balls to stand up to them and say "enough!" 

Where the hell is the loyal yet fervent opposition from the Democrats?  Are they so afraid of this administration that they refuse to put themselves in the firing line to stop this idiocy?  Or is it something even worse??  Are they eager participants because their pockets are being lined with the same kickbacks that the military industry in this country is busy jamming into Bush's post-presidency fortune?

Are all politicians nothing more than spineless cowards who're more interested in personal gain than serving the best interests of their constituencies anymore?

Argh!!!!!!!   

[PhillyPhanInDC]

I think Rome has more questions than answers.

[Sgt PSN]

Are all politicians nothing more than spineless cowards who're more interested in personal gain than serving the best interests of their constituencies anymore?

Yes. 

[Rome]

I think Rome has more questions than answers.

After five-plus years with that fargtard in office, I'd say that's an understatement.

[Diomedes]

abc

Army to expand by as many as 60,000?

Sept. 25, 2006 — The strain on the Army from the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan has become so great that top officials are now privately saying the only long-term solution may be to make the overall size of the Army bigger, adding as many as 60,000 troops, ABC News has learned.

It's not a request or a recommendation yet, but senior Army officials have discussed this for weeks and are now in agreement that the Army could meet its worldwide obligations more easily by expanding the overall size of its force.

There are currently 501,000 troops with the level expected to reach 512,000 by the end of next year. To add an additional 60,000 is a costly proposition that Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld has consistently opposed.

In a sign of the strain on U.S. troops, a brigade from the Army's 1st cavalry division was ordered today to return to Iraq a month earlier than planned, while another Army unit, now fighting in the violent city of Ramadi, has been ordered to extend its year-long stay in Iraq by another six weeks.

Both are examples of the trend where troops are spending more time in Iraq and Afghanistan and less time at home.

<snip>

The reason senior Army leaders want to go to a bigger Army is that they are worried about their ability to fight future threats. One official told ABC News, other than the troops now in Iraq and Afghanistan, there are only two to three combat brigades — that's 7,000 to 10,000 troops — who are fully trained and equipped to respond quickly to a crisis.


"If we keep forces in Iraq too long, we risk running into a situation where the force begins to break," said former U.S. Army officer Andrew Krepenevich.

<snip>

Increasing the size of the Army would take time and money, so to deal with the strain in the short-run, officials are also considering another costly and unpopular idea — using more National Guard troops in Iraq.

[Seabiscuit36]

I came across Nightline last night on ABC with a special about Philadelphia murders this year.  They had more people killed in Philly last month than american soldiers died in Iraq.