Death marches at double in Iraq but US public unaware

[kentuck]

http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/08/04/1059849347169.html

>SNIP< linked from www.buzzflash.com

United States military casualties in Iraq are running at more than twice the number most Americans have been led to believe they are. The public is largely unaware of a high number of accidents, suicides and other non-combat deaths.

Since May 1, when President George Bush called an end to combat operations, 52 of his troops have been killed by hostile fire, according to Pentagon figures.

But the total of deaths from all causes is much higher at 112.

The other unreported cost of the war for the United States is the number of wounded - 827.

But unofficial figures put the total in the thousands. Many of the wounded have lost limbs.


....more

[jmcgowanjm]

1. Ignorant and free will never be-Jefferson

...that's classified information, but I can say to you over 4000 have stayed here at Andrews, and that number doubles when you count the people that come here to Andrews and then we send them to other places . . ." Colonel DeLane told National Public Radio

Good post Kentuck

[jmcgowanjm]

2. Based on the official figures,...

Venik/www.aeronautics.ru

...on the average the US forces sustain about 9 wounded for every two fatalities. The resulting wounded-to-killed ratio of 4.5 is the highest of any sustained combat operation conducted by the US military during the past hundred years. The wounded-to-killed ratios for previous armed conflicts involving the US troops are as follows:

Conflict: Wounded-to-Killed Ratio

WWI: 1.75
WWII: 1.65
Korean War: 2.45
Vietnam War: 2.64
Persian Gulf War: 1.59
Afghanistan War: 3.21
Iraq War: 4.5
The high wounded-to-killed ratio is an indicator of intense guerilla warfare.
NY times reports 2 dead on 2.8.03 but AP resurrects them on 3.8.03 - no deaths for 2 days. Refer to link below: http://www.nytimes.com/2003/08/03/international

[TahitiNut]

6. Wrong.

"The high wounded-to-killed ratio is an indicator of intense guerilla warfare."

I believe it's well-established that a 'high wounded-to-killed ratio' is primarily due to the immediacy of medical care. Medical corpsmen, field hospitals, rapid evacuation, and improved medical treatment are all factors in preventing loss of life due to combat injuries. The Civil War saw that ratio as something near or less than 1.00. The Korean War showed the efficacy of M.A.S.H. units. The Vietnam War saw the efficacy of helicopter evacuation -- something notably atrophied in the Gulf War. At the same time survival rates go up, the diminished quality of life of survivors is horrendous.

[Beetwasher]

7. Not to mention the use of body armor

What was once a mortal blow is now not as deadly due to armor and improved Med Care...

[TahitiNut]

11. Yes, but secondarily.

You can see how much less effective body armor is in preventing death when you look at Gulf War 1. The rapid movement (without fixed basing at or near the ephemeral front line) of forces precluded both M.A.S.H. units and rapid evacuation. The Gulf War was the first to see nearly ubiquitous use of body armor. While we sure used flak jackets extensively in Vietnam, Kevlar hadn't yet seen widespread use. (My personal flak jacket was ceramic.) Because they were heavy, they didn't get used as much, especially on LRRPs. Kevlar permitted more widespread use, but heat and humidity (as well as other loads) run contrary to its use.

[underpants]

3. The COMBAT deaths since major military operations..........

were declared over.......

A not too subtle way that the press is trying to keep the number they announce as low as possible.

[xchrom]

4. costs, casualties -- so much

hidden losses -- whats amazing to me is the public's humdrum, almost bored response to this when the news does manage to dribble out more accurate information.
well that makes me outraged on the one hand and dumbfounded on the other.

[Beetwasher]

5. Cooking the Casualties

"Military observers say it is unusual, even in a "low-intensity" guerilla war, for non-combat deaths to outnumber combat casualties."

That's because the admin. is full of shit. They are lying about the real causes for a lot of these deaths. They're combat related but they're classifying them as accidents.

[dArKeR]

8. To Americans it's a football game not a war. These are IR players and

the Dead are just retired players.

Wounded = IR
Dead = Retired

[mistertrickster]

9. Here's a link for a running total of American dead--

<http://www.antiwar.com/ewens/casualties.html>

A fellow DUer gave me this awhile back.

Also muddying the situation is that a "military contractor" was killed yesterday (today, our time)by a truck bomb. He doesn't seem to have been included in the total above.

I think Kellogg, Brown and Root (i.e., Halliburton) employees should also be counted as military casualties since they are in the field aiding and abetting military operations.

[bodhisattava]

10. Because these are poor white, black and hispanic

soldiers who are forced to volunteer to earn a living, nobody gives a damn if they are wounded or dead.The attitude of the press and TV would be quite different if Rumsfeld, Cheney or Bush's children were
on combat duty.

It is a sad commentary on our " leaders" that they cannot find the time to visit these soldiers at Walter Reed.Instead, we are told a thousand and one times that Bush is going for his summer vacation
in Crawford.

He was AWOL in Vietnam.He is now AWOL even for visiting our wouded soldiers. This in a country that has produced leaders like Patton and Eisenhower. The shame one feels is overwhelming.

[Voltaire99]

14. Good point--something very cheap and dirty is underway

In the media's eyes, the race--and class--of the soldiers qualifies them as expendable.

But it is not only in the media's eyes that they are cannon fodder, worthy of being milked for ad dollars in the fever pitch of nationalistic broadcasting but savagely ignored in their misuse and plight.

In the better neighborhoods, the homes and the SUVs are covered in American flags, and the mantra is "support our troops."

One way to understand this apparent patriotism is as cover: it's a way of saying, "Keep using those poor minority kids, and I'll do my part right here by cheering them on, much as I do my football team. See my flags, my signs. Do not think of ever coming for my son or daughter for such disagreeable business as war; they have their entire life ahead of them."

This cynical position will spell trouble for the majority culture. Already among black Americans, polls indicate fierce opposition to the war. And all troops, regardless of color, will return to discover reduced benefits, which is perhaps the ultimate expression of contempt. This could translate into lower recruitment levels. It will also exert political pressure upon the putative party of minorities and the poor--the Democrats. If a pro-war consensus man like Lieberman is given the nomination, he will come to be identified with this corrupt enterprise and lose the support of the base.

[BenFranklinUSA]

12. Americans ARE Aware Of Non-Combat Deaths

Everytime I turn I the TV I hear about another death, non-combat related included. :(

[BenFranklinUSA]

13. Americans ARE Aware (Part2)

Additionally, we have been so "good" at war that we've generally come to expect that US solidiers die more often in accidents and friendly-fire than at the hands of the bad-guys.