Saddam's in the slammer, so why are we on orange?

World Net Daily ^ | 12/30/2003 | David Hackworth

[JohnGalt]

Saddam's in the slammer, so why are we on orange?

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Posted: December 30, 2003 1:00 a.m. Eastern

© 2003 David H. Hackworth

Almost daily we're told that another American soldier has sacrificed life or limb in Iraq. For way too many of us – unless we have a white flag with a blue star in our window – these casualty reports have become as big a yawn as a TV forecast of the weather in Baghdad.

Even I – and I deal with that beleaguered land seven days a week – was staggered when a Pentagon source gave me a copy of a Nov. 30 dispatch showing that since George W. Bush unleashed the dogs of war, our armed forces have taken 14,000 casualties in Iraq – about the number of warriors in a line tank division.

We have the equivalent of five combat divisions plus support for a total of about 135,000 troops deployed in the Iraqi theater of operations, which means we've lost the equivalent of a fighting division since March. At least 10 percent of the total number of Joes and Jills available to the theater commander to fight or support the occupation effort has been evacuated back to the USA!

Lt. Col. Scott D. Ross of the U.S. military's Transportation Command told me that as of Dec. 23, his outfit had evacuated 3,255 battle-injured casualties and 18,717 non-battle injuries.

Of the battle casualties, 473 died and 3,255 were wounded by hostile fire.

Following are the major categories of the non-battle evacuations:

Orthopedic surgery – 3,907 General surgery – 1,995 Internal medicine – 1,291 Psychiatric – 1,167 Neurology – 1,002 Gynecological – 491

Sources say that most of the gynecological evacuations are pregnancy-related, although the exact figure can't be confirmed – Pentagon pregnancy counts are kept closer to the vest than the number of nuke warheads in the U.S. arsenal.

Ross cautioned that his total of 21,972 evacuees could be higher than other reports because "in some cases, the same service member may be counted more than once."

The Pentagon has never won prizes for the accuracy of its reporting, but I think it's safe to say that, so far, somewhere between 14,000 and 22,000 soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines have been medically evacuated from Iraq to the USA.

So at the end of this turbulent year, we must ask ourselves: Was the price our warriors paid in blood worth the outcome? Are we any safer than before our pre-emptive invasion?

Even though Saddam is in the slammer and the fourth-largest army in the world is junkyard scrap, Christmas 2003 was resolutely Orange, and 2004 looks like more of the same. Or worse.

Our first New Year's resolution should be to find out if the stated reasons for our pre-emptive strike – Iraq's purported weapons of mass destruction and Saddam's connection with al-Qaida – constituted a real threat to our national security. Because, contrary to public opinion, the present administration hasn't yet made the case that Saddam and his sadists aided and abetted al-Qaida's attacks on 9-11. We also need to know why our $30 billion-a-year intelligence agencies didn't read the tea leaves correctly, as well as what's being done besides upgrading the color code to prevent other similar strikes.

Congress should get with the program and lift a page from the U.S. Army handbook on how to learn from a military operation. When an Army-training or actual-combat op is concluded, all the key players assemble for an honest, no-holds-barred critique of everything that's gone down – the good, the bad and the ugly. Some of the participants might walk away black and blue, but everyone learns from the mistakes.

Donald Rumsfeld, Paul Wolfowitz and retired Gen. Tommy Franks should be required to report to a congressional committee convened to investigate both the invasion and the planning – or lack of planning – for the occupation of Iraq. This committee must operate without the political skullduggery that occurred during the numerous investigations into the Pearl Harbor catastrophe – when high-level malfeasance that cost thousands of lives and put America's national security in extreme jeopardy was repeatedly covered up for more than 50 years.

Our Iraqi casualties deserve nothing less than the unvarnished truth. Only then will their sacrifices not have been in vain. And only then can we all move on with the enlightenment we need to protect and preserve our precious country's future.

[JohnGalt]

Hack comes through with the first numbers I have see on what could be the 'pregnancy casulaties' coming back from Iraq. No numbers yet on how many will be aborted or raised fatherless.

[dirtboy]

First of all, we have no way of correlating these numbers to anything. Second, we have no context given of how these numbers, if accurate, trend with previous conflicts. And third, Hack has no honor left as a pundit - he rightly derided Wesley Clark as a perfumed prince and then turned around and hailed Clark as a wonderful general and a great presidential candidate - once Clark started attacking the Iraq war. So I don't trust Hack as far as I could throw him.

[meenie]

You could also include orphaned for the families of single mothers that have been killed in Iraq.

[DB]

What exactly has Hack gotten right in the last two years?

Considering virtually everything he predicted was wrong why should we believe him now?

[over3Owithabrain]

No to mention how far off ol' Hack was during the beginning of the Iraw War.

[yoe]

It could be that Orange remains the dominant color because of the terrorism threat here at home. Seems some folks from Mexico have been helping Arabs come into the US illegally - for some time. Homeland security means the country's citizens are armed with legal guns and ammo. The Homeland Security department is aware that we have cells of terrorist here and other than recommending blanket amnesty for those law breakers, is slowly finding and deporting those that would harm America. So local Homeland security is up to us – stay alert.

[ontos-on]

Is he trying to claim that the practice is that after each battle in WWII, we had a congressional investigation in order to determine what could be done better? Obviously not. So, what is the colonel really trying to say? Oh yes, I recall that Hackworth was against the Iraq invasion from the start. This appears to be a flank attack on the Iraq war effort. Thanks, but no thanks, colonel.

[over3Owithabrain]

Sorry for the typos folks - preview is our friend!

[meenie]

Your argument would be far more persuasive by listing those predictions that he got wrong and detailing how they were wrong.

[JohnGalt]

All reasonable points, and while I agree with you on Hack's 180 on Clark, Hack has never given me the impression he understand much about the nature of politics--having read a couple of his books, JMHO. I try to ignore that stuff in his writing because he so clumsily switches sides.

On a separate note, dating 1/2 a year ago, I had an exchange with a couple of military mothers who were equally curious on why the Pentagon was keeping the 'pregnancy casualty' numbers from the public.

If you recall, it was bit of a scandal during the Clinton years when the percentage of women sent home from Kosovo due to pregnancy was released.

This was the first I had seen of a 'number' so I posted it.

[BlueLancer]

"Orthopedic surgery – 3,907 General surgery – 1,995 Internal medicine – 1,291 Psychiatric – 1,167 Neurology – 1,002 Gynecological – 491"

Well, unlike the soldiers here at Fort Hood, for most anything more serious than a "sick call" visit, the troops there would have to be evacuated for more complete treatment. What does old Hack use as his baseline numbers, those being treated for the same or similar reason when compared against a similar number of troops stationed Stateside, in Korea, or in Europe? Darnall Hospital here is always full of troops being treated, as are the dispensaries and the local hospitals .. Scott and White, Metroplex, and Kings' Daughters. And Fort Hood doesn't have close to the numbers of troops deployed to Iraq.

Only 491 gynecological problems among all of those female troops? As opposed as I am to female troops in combat- or combat support- or combat service support positions, that doesn't seem to be a very large number for the duration of the deployment and the numbers of troops deployed.

Without a baseline number to compare this with, ol' Hack is just putting out b*llsh*t numbers and playing in the latrine with them.

[DB]

Just type "hackworth" in the search bar and have at it.

[PISANO]

Hack has long since left the reservation of objective reasoning. A great soldier, scarred permanently by Vietnam, and his country's treatment of those who returned and those left behind. There may be a more cynical explanations for his recent turnaround but it is a New Year and I am trying to stay positive.

[Gunslingr3]

This committee must operate without the political skullduggery that occurred during the numerous investigations into the Pearl Harbor catastrophe ? when high-level malfeasance that cost thousands of lives and put America's national security in extreme jeopardy was repeatedly covered up for more than 50 years.

This kind of committee could, sadly, only be convened in someone's imagination...

[marty60]

If this is his title, he is showing a shocking lack of thought.

Does Hack think SADDAMN is the one that carries bombs. Does Saddamn board planes in murderous dead ender assignments. Does Saddamn drive cars to be exploded next to woman and children. The answer is no. He just handed out money and played leader. He is nothing more than a serial killer with an army to carried out the dirty work. Hack needs to get a brain.

[marty60]

If this is his title, he is showing a shocking lack of thought.

Does Hack think SADDAMN is the one that carries bombs. Does Saddamn board planes in murderous dead ender assignments. Does Saddamn drive cars to be exploded next to woman and children. The answer is no. He just handed out money and played leader. He is nothing more than a serial killer with an army to carried out the dirty work. Hack needs to get a brain.

[OldFriend]

Many of us have long ago tired of Hack's ranting. He just can't get off the stage.

So glad FNC invited him OUT.....he was a perfect fit for CNN

[meenie]

The baseline number would be 491 if he is truthful about the numbers he got from the head of the military transportation department. Male soldiers do not get pregnant. It is doubtful if there is much concern in Iraq among the troops concerning potency problems.

[JohnGalt]

Hack is not at his best (to say the least) when he talks politics, but give him props for hanging himself over the barb wire to throw out a number on the women being sent home pregnant.

Maybe someone in the establishment press corps will actually do some digging to get that number.

[KellyAdmirer]

Hackworth commits a logical fallacy. He presumes that since the terror threat remains, any efforts in Iraq were not worthwhile. That conclusion does not follow from the fact that a terror threat reamains. The threat might have been much worse without the Iraq war. We would point to the fact that there were no major terrorist attacks on US soil in 2003 and say, that's a great success for our anti-terrorism effort. But that would not serve the Democrat or Hackworth agenda.