Large force turnover under way in Iraq

[lebkuchen]

The 21-year-old from Reno, Nev., will help manage convoys of heavy gear and equipment now on the way from European- and U.S.-based units. Most of the gear will arrive in Kuwait to make the long journey across Iraq’s dangerous desert highways.

“Of course there’s fear, especially dealing with the convoys,” said Stevenson. “But we did a lot of training before we left. I feel very well prepared.”

<snip>

Those forces will arrive inside a still very volatile Iraq.

Over the past week alone there has been an average of 18 attacks against military units every day, Army Brig. Gen. Mark Kimmitt told reporters Thursday in Baghdad.


http://www.estripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=19777

[alfredo]

1. This could be a very dangerous period.

I worry about our soldiers.

[leftchick]

2. oooohhhh this sucks sucks sucks....

I feel so bad for our soldiers, my cousin and nephew included. Bring them the fuck HOME!!!!

[Mari333]

3. I know...my stepsons whole Army Reserve Unit is at Ft Dix

waiting to see where they will be sent. His orders read : Operation Iraqi Freedom .
He will be walking into Hell, Im afraid.
May God bring justice to the bastards who created this fake war for greed.
The day this administration is brought to justice, is the day my life will be filled with joy.

[acmavm]

4. His orders actually say Operation Iraqi Freedom? This is just tooooo

over the top in my opinion. Those papers should be nominated for a literary prize in both the fiction and science fiction categories.

[lebkuchen]

5. Unfortunately, his orders don't say who will be replacing him

Nobody knows. The Bushies are making it up as they go along.

[Malva Zebrina]

6. Perhaps we should not be allocating to a god the lives of the troops

over the lives of the Iraqi people or the resisters who are in agony over this invasion and this occupation and the taking over of their country by the corporations who are, by now, obviously taking over every aspect of their lives. Imagine that happening in our own country and imagine how we would feel.

Obviously there is a conflict between the gods and that is the rub. One god says that Iraqi people are justified and the other says that the US troops are justified--both are praying for the survival of their family and their children, except the Iraqi people are praying for the survival of their five year old, perhaps younger, children, while the Americans are praying for the survival of their twenty year old adult, volunteer soldiers, who are the occupying troops under the coward and the bully, George Bush, the AWOL Commander in Chief, who has a weird and strange propensity toward donning all sorts of costumes and playing a part as a loving and a caring AWOL Commander in Chief while secretely enjoying his power over the proletariat of the armed forces--HIS armed forces!!

What will be his next costume? The costume of the crusaders? The tunic with the red cross on it?

And the same thing happened in WWII. The enemy, the Germans wore a belt buckle as part of their uniform that said "God be with us" and the Americans prayed that their god would protect them from being killed. The gods were really conflicted not knowing really which side to support. And further to pray that one or the other would be killed over himself, is rather a little on the selfish side, I would say.

The whole thing is a despicable application. I am sorry that people have their loved ones caught in this--but caught they are.

Perhaps in the future -people should not let their children become soldiers-=-they are serving so far in the past fifty years, greedy empire seekers. Take a look at who profits from the deaths of five hundred of our soldiers and despise the entire system. We are not getting anything from it anyhow. We the people are being screwed=from the very youngest to the very oldest, while we conscript our young people to die in order to enable the rich bastards who for some reason have NEVER served in the miliatary. That is for , to quote the famous Leona Helmsley, "for the little guys"

Do not let your children grow up to be soldiers to die for the greed of a leaders such as a Bush. An AWOL Bush, a coward Bush and a boy Dauphine, ignorant and lacking in intelligence, Bush.

[Gin]

7. the soldiers have been there for months...know some of the customs.

and the neighborhoods...and now new troops are coming in large numbers...so the trip to Baghdad via the long and dangerous road is one phase of trouble they will heading into.

The news guys will have to get a handle on a seriously dangersous situation.

Gradual transitioning of troops should have been the plan. I saw on tv 130,000 expected home w/in 4 months.

God help them.. and all of us.

[Malva Zebrina]

8. right and the god help the Iraqi resistors, or is that saying something

that is outrageous?
I mean, who, exactly, is this god supposed to be favoring?

The United States? How can that be when we here on DU do not favor George Bush ourselves?

How can we then ask a "god" to favor us over an above the innocent children and people we kill in Iraq?

I simply do not and cannot understand these "prayers" for the survival of one over the other under the auspices of a god.

Is the god on the side of the US? If so, howcome? Bush lied so how can the god be on our side if he is an ommipotent and
"just" and "merciful"
god?

[Just Me]

9. Sometimes, prayer for the innocents,...is all we have,...

I believe I understand the direction of your questions. I believe that, when there are moments which are inevitably beyond one's control, prayer is important and relevant to maintain strength and hope. Otherwise, we may fall into a place where nothing can be accomplished,...despair.

[BeFree]

10. Who's God, which God, what God

It is sick how more people have died under the name of God than any other.

The idea of God is as well corrupted as any.

Why did our forefathers try so hard to keep God out of our Government? They saw how leaders corrupt the idea of God for their own ill-gotten gains.

They damn near succeded, eh?

God bless you, Marianne