"80% of armed forces in Iraq are from Red States"

talullah

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Tue Nov-16-04 04:01 PM
Original message

"80% of armed forces in Iraq are from Red States"

Edited on Tue Nov-16-04 04:02 PM by talullah

-heard this quote the other day. What is the deeper meaning of this?

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Walt Starr

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Tue Nov-16-04 04:02 PM
Response to Original message

1. Got a citation for this

Otherwise I call bullshit on the figure as being made up.

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aquart

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Tue Nov-16-04 04:03 PM
Response to Original message

2. It means red states lack jobs and opportunity.

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Walt Starr

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Tue Nov-16-04 04:04 PM
Response to Reply #2

3. assuming it's a real numbner, which I find highly suspicious.

It's a bogus claim. California was the first state to lose over 100 in Iraq, followed by Texas.

The number is phony.

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Hobarticus

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Tue Nov-16-04 04:05 PM
Response to Original message

4. Most military bases are in the South to begin with...

to better facilitate year-round training.

With the military so ingrained in local culture, it's probably not uncommon for the military to be seen as "just the thing you do".

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nadinbrzezinski

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Tue Nov-16-04 04:08 PM
Response to Original message

5. I would not bet on that

troops come from all states and all strata of society

This is propaganda trying to prove that the south is more "loyal"

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Shakespeare

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Tue Nov-16-04 04:10 PM
Response to Reply #5

6. Me, neither-California has seen a disproportionate number of fatalities.

I'm not sure I buy that statement at all.

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RevCheesehead

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Tue Nov-16-04 04:11 PM
Response to Original message

7. Might be Freeper Math..

Wisconsin has lost 5 soldiers/guardsmen THIS WEEK. Maybe we in the blue states don't know how to duck.

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Burma Jones

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Tue Nov-16-04 04:13 PM
Response to Original message

8. I work for the USMC and can relate a story

In a briefing for one of the Deputy Commandants, he replied to a proposal for new technologies by saying that recruits tend these days to come from the Right Wing side of the political spectrum. He said that while this was good for indoctrination, it was lousy for teaching the warfighters new concepts as they have a built-in aversion to change and a notable lack of "intellectual flexibility"

Speaking for myself, I think this is particularly true in the USMC, but is probably true to an extent in the other branches.

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Sleepless In NY

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Tue Nov-16-04 04:17 PM
Response to Reply #8

9. Do you have a link for that? I heard the opposite

on Daily Kos. That more Blue Staters were serving. But I hope you are right. Seems fitting that Red States should be, after all they are the ones backing bush.

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Kathy in Cambridge

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Tue Nov-16-04 04:18 PM
Response to Reply #9

12. We posted at the same time

I heard the same thing on kos and my local news. Apparently, NH and MA have the largest percentage of their National Guardsmen in Iraq.

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Burma Jones

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Tue Nov-16-04 04:18 PM
Response to Reply #9

13. I'm not saying that they're Red Staters except in their opinions

There are plenty of Red State types in the Blue States..........

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Kathy in Cambridge

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Tue Nov-16-04 04:17 PM
Response to Original message

10. Please back up with link

I heard the opposite, because California alone has lost so many in Iraq.

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Walt Starr

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Tue Nov-16-04 04:17 PM
Response to Original message

11. Okay, I CALL BULLSHIT!!!

Original poster throws out a bogus statistic and never answers anything on this thread and has no backup for completely bogus numbers.

I CALL BULLSHIT!

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LisaLynne

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Tue Nov-16-04 04:18 PM
Response to Reply #11

14. Dang, you beat me to it!

I was trying to give the poster a chance to check back.

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Kathy in Cambridge

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Tue Nov-16-04 04:20 PM
Response to Reply #11

15. Or one could say something smells....

like an oncoming pizza!

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Sandpiper

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Tue Nov-16-04 04:36 PM
Response to Original message

16. The enlisted ranks always tend to be over represented

Edited on Tue Nov-16-04 04:38 PM by Sandpiper

By kids from poor and working class families.

Of the bottom 25 states in per capita income, 23 of them are Red States.

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ThoughtCriminal

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Tue Nov-16-04 04:36 PM
Response to Original message

17. 543 fatalities are Blue state

My quick back of the envelope calculation
Out of 1198 US fatalities - about 45%.

139 from CA
62 from PA
50 from NY
34 from Michigan

http://lunaville.com/oif/default.aspx

there are also 18 fatalities from Territories. I suspect the 80% is completely bogus, but if they insist, ask why 20% of the troops are experiencing 45% of the fatalities. Those Red staters must pull a lot of duty in the Green Zones.

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Kathy in Cambridge

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Tue Nov-16-04 04:49 PM
Response to Reply #17

19. New England, IL, and WI have had quite a few fatalities too

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ThoughtCriminal

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Tue Nov-16-04 04:56 PM
Response to Reply #19

23. A more complete list - and comment

CA 139
CT 11
DE 6
DC 3
HI 2
IL 54
ME 6
MD 18
MA 24
MI 34
MN 11
NJ 25
NH 5
NY 50
OR 23
PA 62
RI 6
VT 9
WA 28
WI 27

Did I leave any out? (OH would be 42)

You know, it never would have occured to me to even look at this stat until that absurd stat came up. To me, they're just my fellow citizens that we've lost and I don't care if their state went 51-49 for a particular candidate. Yeah, these guys are "Uniters".

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HereSince1628

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Tue Nov-16-04 04:45 PM
Response to Original message

18. What is the meaning of "FROM?"

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vpigrad

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Tue Nov-16-04 04:53 PM
Response to Original message

20. It does make sense since...

How many smart people will swear to kill for Bush? Not a one, so of course the people who will take that pledge aren't very bright and come from somewhere that supports Bushy.

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superconnected

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Tue Nov-16-04 04:56 PM
Response to Reply #20

22. go figure

Edited on Tue Nov-16-04 05:02 PM by superconnected

The 2004 Election Map

Purely a coincindence, I'm sure.

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donheld

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Tue Nov-16-04 04:55 PM
Response to Original message

21. ""80% of armed forces $$$ in Iraq is from Blue States""

Ok maybe not but probably the lions share is

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Javaman

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Tue Nov-16-04 05:18 PM
Response to Original message

24. Talullah of 23 posts, you're a freep, go away

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