Rumsfeld extends tours of 4,000 US troops in Iraq

Flowers and cakewalks.

Damn.

Whew!

This is what causes those on the edge to do suicide and other extreme behaviors.

Troops don't like the combat but they accept its risk.

This surprise will likely hit like a bolt outta the blue in their most vulnerable mental space, that cherished space that was that long awaited date of return from overseas...they'll be feeling like they let their loved ones down...cancelling long made plans for reunions, weddings, etc., and then they'll be waiting out getting blown up by an IED during their 120 days more in purgatory.

today, because of this order and reporting on it.

Not to worry, this latest extension for the troops is only temporary. Things are improving at such a rapid pace in Iraq, it's only a matter of weeks until all the troops are back in the U.S. safely.

:sarcasm:

Cheap fucking liar. He had absolutely no factual basis for making those statements.

and we're in a exitless circular room.

They were planning to announce a troop withdrawal just in time for the election. No way they can pull that off now.

The very thing they lusted for.....day & night....(Iraq) they dreamed about it, Dick Cheney put the map of Iraq under his pillow and had sweet dreams of BLACK GOLD...

The very place they thought would be their Prize has turned out to be their Quagmire. It has sucked them in & will not release them anytime soon.

At least not until the November elections......

Another 80 Vermont Guard members just left for an 18-month stint in Iraq.

:sarcasm: more stop-loss.

(as per your other post)

Sheeesh. How break the military: by not providing adequate armor, extending tours of duty, poor recruiting practices, not having troops at home prepared...it just goes on. If space aliens attacked the US, we could not defend ourselves, because the military is overextended.

Why do I keep thinking about the last days of the Roman empire...?

Rip Van Lib here, I just awoke and found myself in the early 70s, heard the promises about Viet Nam on the old black and white t.v., prepared for the big antiwar rally downtown....

...I mean, back then our military was overextended and we were fighting against a nebulous worldwide enemy that existed more in our minds than reality; the military was headed by Don Rumsfeld and the country's confidence in government had been shattered by executive abuses of power. People like Dick Cheney and Paul Wolfowitz were pulling strings to continue America's overseas military commitments. Most of the world was deeply angry at the country for betraying the principles that at one time had made us a beacon of hope to them. The economy was troubled by inflation and insufficient jobs growth. Layoffs and outsourcing were hitting a generation of workers that weren't used to that. Soldiers returning from a foreign war with no end or strategic goal in sight were turning to drugs and alcohol and winding up homeless at an alarming rate. Ah... crap... who left the time machine running?

Rumsfeld extends tours of 3,500 US troops in Iraq
by Jim Mannion
2 hours, 14 minutes ago

WASHINGTON (AFP) - The Pentagon extended the tours of about 3,500 US troops in Iraq for 120 days, dashing hopes of US force cuts this year in the face of surging sectarian violence.

The Pentagon also identified army and marine units totalling about 25,000 troops that have been scheduled to deploy to Iraq late this year and early next, enough to maintain the US force at about 130,000 troops for a year.

"Additionally, the secretary of defense approved a request by the commander of Multi-National Forces-Iraq (MNF-I) to extend the deployment of the 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team operating in Iraq for up to 120 additional days," it said.

The move indicated that US commanders have effectively given up hopes for even a gradual reduction in the US force this year on account of a bitter insurgency and spiralling sectarian violence.
(snip/...)

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20060728/wl_afp/usiraqmilitarytroops

nobody gets out alive. we wouldn't want to see bushco's perfect record of failure broken, would we?

You dont come home, unless you come home in a box.:mad:

Wonder if the terms of those stateside who expected to get out after serving their time will be extended. Besides those already over there?

All's fair. In love and war. And midterm elections.

Support the troops?
Support the troops!
Universal draft.
Men and women. 18-30. Lottery.
Share the joys and the burdens of freedom.

Wouldn't that get all the butts outta da chairs?
Oooooooh yeah.

many psychological problems when they ever come home. this is so bad. This regime really cares about our troops don't they?:sarcasm:

... My family has never had anyone in the military, so I know next to nothing about it, but ---

if the U.S. has approximately 1,500,000 people in uniform, why are the same 130,000 people being subjected to tour after tour in Iraq?