Bush: The Army and Marines Pay the Price

[Dover]

President Bush was asked in an interview this week why our military and their families are bearing all the sacrifices of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. His response was telling.

...snip..

The educator-in-chief said that it's been his view all along that the American people need to keep living their lives without making sacrifices while 25,000 of their sons and daughters have been killed or wounded in combat in the last five years.

...snip...

There's no need, he said, to revive some form of mandatory national service so the children and grandchildren of all those Americans living their comfortable lives might make both sacrifices and contributions to the defense and well-being of our country.

Our volunteer military is working just fine, Bush said. It can continue to shoulder the entire weight of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the wars that have ground the Army and the Marine Corps beyond the breaking point.

The new secretary of defense, Robert Gates, began his term by recommending that the permanent strength of the Army and the Marines be increased by nearly 100,000 soldiers, something that could be suggested only after his predecessor, Donald H. Rumsfeld, had been fired.

Rumsfeld, with the backing of Vice President Dick Cheney, was the architect of the idea that 21st century wars could be won and soldiers replaced by high-tech weaponry. That you can do much more with much less.

Anyone in uniform who suggested otherwise was throwing his career away, as was made amply clear in late February 2003, when then-Army Chief of Staff Gen. Eric K. Shinseki, under questioning from Sen. Carl Levin, opined that it would take "several hundred thousand" troops to pacify and occupy Iraq...cont'd

http://www.newsobserver.com/559/story/533767.html

[james101]

1. What we need is 100,000 Military Police

These soldiers trained to do combat are more and more being put in the role of policemen. Combat is basically fully won by dropping bombs from air craft, ships, and submarines. Most of these soldiers today are not really doing anything more than being a baby sitter. These soldiers have the job of doing humanitarian jobs and martial law enforcement. I was in Kosovo in 2000 and got out of the 101st airborne in 2001. The reason I left is because if I wanted to be a cop I would have just joined the PD in my county. At least these cops here get paid overtime and get excellent benefits.

[Dover]

2. Welcome to DU! Exactly right!

And perhaps having a country behind your cause, and a Congressional agreement to invade another country would give one's service some sense of purpose as well.

I wonder how many of these volunteers do it for the money and benefits? I wonder if they would be in Iraq voluntarily as a well paid corporate hired contractor?

[james101]

3. Most I've seen are in it for the money.

It's rare to find soldiers enlisted for the purpose of living for the purpose of being a soldier or patriotism. The few soldiers who did enlist for that reason are highly motivated. The problem is that highly motivated soldiers are the ones who end up carrying the water for all those who signed up for the MG BILL, not to be homeless or some other fickle reason. You should be able to trust your own soldiers to watch your back. Sadly I found out being an enlisted grunt was much like that movie "platoon". Hopefully the Iraq Campaign has enlightened many who think about joining the military.