Our Troops Have Not Failed: Bush and Cheney Have Failed Our Troops

By Gregg Zoroya - USA Today
Posted : Tuesday Jun 19, 2007 17:28:26 EDT

WASHINGTON — U.S. commanders in Iraq are rejecting a recommendation by Army mental health experts that troops receive a one-month break for every three months in a combat zone, despite unprecedented levels of continuous fighting and worsening risks of mental health problems.

Instead, commanders are trying to give troops two to three days inside heavily fortified bases after about eight days in the field, said Brig. Gen. Joseph Anderson, chief aide to the ground forces commander in Iraq, Lt. Gen. Raymond Odierno.

“We would never get the job done of securing [of Baghdad] if we went out for three months and came back” for one, Anderson said.

U.S. forces in Iraq spend more time in continuous combat without a break than those who fought in Vietnam and World War II, according to Army psychologists who studied troops in Iraq.

U.S. commanders can’t match the World War II policy, Odierno said in a news conference late last month. “Even in World War II and other times ... we would pull forces off the line and bring them back on. Here we don’t do that,” Odierno said. “They [U.S. troops] are out there consistently every single day. So you have to be mentally and physically tough.”

President Bush committed 28,000 more troops to Iraq this year as part of an escalation that started in February.

Army psychologists say continual combat may cause more mental health problems. Their research, conducted in Iraq last year, shows that 30 percent of soldiers and Marines experiencing high levels of combat demonstrate signs of anxiety, depression or acute stress. MORE

I checked CNN to see if they carried this story - but found that "Anna Nicole Smith's weepy judge retiring," and "Judge Judy: 'Vacant' Paris Hilton deserved jail Video" were considered to be more important than our troops being mistreated, forced into fighting for their lives to the point of breaking - all because we have a President that is too cowardly or stupid, or maybe a combination of both, to do the right thing!

I haven't checked the rest of the networks, and am not picking on CNN exclusively, just presenting an example of an organization that constantly reminds us they provide the best world-wide coverage - of what now appears to be gossip! CNN, my apology, but I could care less about Anna Nicole Smith's Judge or Paris Hilton's incarceration when US troops are being slaughtered on the ground in Iraq - and in some cases, their deaths may often be attributed to battle-fatigue, too exhausted and worn-out to react fast enough, or miss a crucial detail that would have saved their lives... Why hasn't the media raised hell about that?

And what would a responsible President do in the face of extended deployments, a financial crisis that threatens to bankrupt the country, and a military worn so thin that America would be hard-pressed to send troops to another crisis that erupted somewhere else in the world, or even a threat from our southern borders! Even the Neo-conservatives and warmongers should be concerned about an America that is so over-stretched militarily that we can't even give our own troops a break, or something as minor as protecting the country from other dangerous situations that could arise; heck, maybe we can mobilize the Boy Scouts if there's another natural disaster, and they can use Tonka Toys instead of the vital rescue equipment that's been sent to Iraq and Afghanistan.

Oh, about the "right thing" the President should do... What would you do if you were the President? I know what I'd do, but it wouldn't be popular, or make everyone happy, but if you really support the troops, and want America to come out of this in one piece - it's time for someone in Washington to act responsibly, and do something to give our troops the support they really need, and protect a weakened United States from threats that could materialize because the rest of the world is acutely aware we're stretched to the limit! Who will be the first to take advantage of our President's folly? Frankly, I don't know, but I do know I'd feel better if we could defend ourselves without having to resort to nuclear weapons - and then use the excuse we didn't have the troops available to handle the situation any other way...

A real President would immediately reinstate the draft, political suicide of course, but why should that matter to a President who is already hated by the majority of America? If he won't abide by the mandate of the people and Congress, the least he could do is bring back the draft - and share this military responsibility equally among the people rather than beating down the same bunch of tired, over-deployed and exhausted soldiers. I'll bet if it's your sons or daughters caught in the never-ending quagmire of Iraq and Afghanistan you'd appreciate that they would get a break, and might even support such a solution - but you'd have to fight the GOP who will protect their party's sons and daughters to the end, just as they support a President that has lost the confidence of the nation - and trampled on our Constitution and Bill of Rights!

The nation is going further into debt as each day passes, and yet the President hasn't had the courage to ask "the people" to car-pool, cut off as much recreational driving as possible - and do everything in our power to conserve gas and oil, which would help to reduce the national debt. He hasn't levied any new taxes on bloated oil companies that reach new levels of profit everyday, nor has he cut-back on tax-breaks for the rich, another piece in the puzzle to help reduce the debt. In fact, I'm having a hard time thinking of one thing this President has done to help "the war effort" except to make sure his political friends and cronies receive the no-bid contracts that are draining our economy - stealing our tax dollars as surely as if they had held a gun to our heads, and then having the nerve to admonish Democrats for being fiscally irresponsible!

The bottom-line is that we need "a real President," one who isn't afraid or too arrogant to realize that he's in over his head - and the lives of 300 million Americans, plus those who may soon die in the Middle-east - are his responsibility - one that he has ignored and refused to accept. Tell you what, to hell with Congress and a news media that is controlled by Corporations; they're both worthless, refuse to do their patriotic duty, so here's what I suggest. Every American that can afford to do so should go to the store and buy a small bag of pretzels; send them to the White House addressed for President Bush. Enough bags of pretzels would send an undeniable message to our President - and the world at large. Maybe he'll get the hint...

William J. Cormier