Looting of America
Pennsylvania Congressman John Murtha is chairman of the House Appropriations Defense Subcommittee. He reminds us that after Bush ordered an additional 10,000 troops into Baghdad last year, we had an increase in violence, with more Iraqis and more Americans being killed.
Murtha points out that in 1983, President Reagan put our troops in Lebanon and the Marines got wiped out in their barrack, because they had no mission except to indicate our resolve. Bush’s so-called “surge” of troops in Iraq is another example of a symbolic gesture of resolve, because there he has no real strategy.
The problem with Bush’s “surge” this time is that he won’t be able to send all 22,000 in at the same time. He’ll have to extend troops, who are in Iraq and Afghanistan and send others back before they’ve completed their training cycle and a year at home with their families.
Presently, there’s no strategic reserve in the United States, because of the war in Iraq. If something happened in Iraq or North Korea, we don’t have the troops to deploy, nor would we be able to sustain a deployment.
In order to try to get Baghdad under control, we would have to use many more troops. Kosovo had two million people and we had 40,000 troops. In Iraq, there are 26 million people and we’ll have a mere 140,000 troops. We’re putting our military in harm’s way unnecessarily, because an extra three or four brigades are not going to make a difference.
Furthermore, billions are being wasted in Iraq by Halliburton and its offshoots KBR and Bechtel, which are Republican-run firms. These firms are regularly charged with cheating our government. The “War on Terror” should really be called the “Looting of America” by the Bush regime.
An end to the occupation of Iraq would allow our nation to focus on rebuilding our military and on problems such as corporate outsourcing of jobs, schools, the environment, the elderly and affordable quality health care for all.
Murtha points out that in 1983, President Reagan put our troops in Lebanon and the Marines got wiped out in their barrack, because they had no mission except to indicate our resolve. Bush’s so-called “surge” of troops in Iraq is another example of a symbolic gesture of resolve, because there he has no real strategy.
The problem with Bush’s “surge” this time is that he won’t be able to send all 22,000 in at the same time. He’ll have to extend troops, who are in Iraq and Afghanistan and send others back before they’ve completed their training cycle and a year at home with their families.
Presently, there’s no strategic reserve in the United States, because of the war in Iraq. If something happened in Iraq or North Korea, we don’t have the troops to deploy, nor would we be able to sustain a deployment.
In order to try to get Baghdad under control, we would have to use many more troops. Kosovo had two million people and we had 40,000 troops. In Iraq, there are 26 million people and we’ll have a mere 140,000 troops. We’re putting our military in harm’s way unnecessarily, because an extra three or four brigades are not going to make a difference.
Furthermore, billions are being wasted in Iraq by Halliburton and its offshoots KBR and Bechtel, which are Republican-run firms. These firms are regularly charged with cheating our government. The “War on Terror” should really be called the “Looting of America” by the Bush regime.
An end to the occupation of Iraq would allow our nation to focus on rebuilding our military and on problems such as corporate outsourcing of jobs, schools, the environment, the elderly and affordable quality health care for all.
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