Whether Iraq will be the next Vietnam may be very interesting, especially to those still basking in the I-told-you-so glow of Saigon's fall. But taking into account that this is 2003, here's the more illuminating question: Is Vietnam the next Iraq?
The author makes some interesting, overlooked points about comparisons between Iraq and Viet Nam.
I realize that for some reason we have to torture ourselves with this question over and over, but still I ask, why do we have to ask this question, at least now.
This current assault began less than a year ago. It didn't begin with sending 'advisors' and then a few more troops. This was an all out invasion with the intent to win (even though the dims would have us think our main objective was to enter so that we could exercise our "exit strategy").
It seems that because our post-Vietnam 'wars' have lasted a few days (or hardly that in the case of the 100 Hours War) or have been fought from 30,000' with no casualties, everyone thinks that any conflict which continues through the dinner hour or which results in a death is a "Vietnam."
Pres. Bush at least warned all of us in Sept. 2001 that this would be a long and sometimes difficult struggle.
To paraphrase JS Mill, war is a bad thing, but it's not the worst thing. The worst thing is getting to the point where people think nothing is precious enough to fight for.
Thank you for your thoughtful response to this article. You make some great points. I agree 100%. Also, the Democrats have very willing allies and accomplices in the media who are determined to make Bush look bad no matter what. They are glad to the Dem's dirty work for them.
Monday, November 17, 2003
Here's a brief overview of America's wars and their subsequent casualities. For each war, I am listing the start and end dates, its duration in months, the number of battle deaths for American soldiers, and the average battle death rate per month.
Revolutionary War
April 1775 - April 1783: 96 months
4,435 total troops killed
46.20 troops killed per month
Note: British general Cornwallis actually surrendered to General Washington following the Battle of Yorktown in October 1781. For all intents and purposes, this ended the war, but Congress didn't issue a formal end to hostilities until April 1783.
War of 1812
June 1812 - January 1815: 32 months
2,260 total troops killed
70.63 troops killed per month
Mexican War
April 1846 - February 1848: 23 months
1,733 total troops killed
75.35 troops killed per month
Civil War
April 1861 - April 1865: 48 months
140,414 total Union troops killed
2,925.29 Union troops killed per month
74,524 total Confederate troops killed
1,552.58 Confederate troops killed per month
214,928 total combined troops killed
4,477.67 combined troops killed per month
Spanish-American War
April 1898 - July 1902: 51 months
385 total troops killed
7.55 troops killed per month
World War I
April 1917 - November 1918: 20 months
53,402 total troops killed
2,670.10 troops killed per month
World War II
December 1941 - September 1945: 46 months
291,557 total troops killed
6,338.20 troops killed per month
Korean War
June 1950 - July 1953: 37 months
33,686 total troops killed
910.43 troops killed per month
Vietnam War
August 1964 - April 1975: 129 months
47,410 total troops killed
367.52 troops killed per month
Gulf War
January 1991 - February 1991: 2 months
148 total troops killed
74.00 troops killed per month
War on Terror
Afghanistan
October 2001 - present: 25 months
84 total troops killed
3.36 troops killed per month
Iraq
March 2003 - present: 9 months
292 total troops killed
32.44 troops killed per month
As of Nov. 17, 2003
Combat: 292
Non-Combat: 127
Total: 419
http://www.historyguy.com/american_war_casualties.html Sources: Revolutionary War through Gulf War, Department of Veterans Affairs
http://www.va.gov/pressrel/amwars01.htm