1,000th Coalition Soldier Dies in Iraq - Good email to send to friends

[sandboxface]

We’ve reached a sad milestone today. The 1,000th coalition solider dies. That brings the US total fatality rate in Iraq to 880 (60 for the UK and 60 from other countries.) An additional 5,394 soldiers have been wounded in action, according to the Department of Defense.

With the military calling for the involuntary mobilization of thousands of reservists (last resort before full out draft) AND scandalous corporations like Halliburton making millions in Afghanistan and Iraq, there is no end in sight to this purposeless war in Iraq.

In the hour it took me to put this email together, 2 more American soldiers have died, bringing the total to 882.
http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2003/iraq/forces/casualties/


Faces of the Fallen: US Fatalities
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/world/iraq/casualties/facesofthefallen.htm

Death toll for U.S.-led coalition in Iraq tops 1,000
The deaths bring multinational fatalities -- both in combat and "nonhostile" situations -- to 1,002 since the start of the war in March 2003. U.S. military deaths now total 881.
http://www.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/meast/07/09/iraq.main/index.html

Wounded soldiers Iraq's untold story
New segment of disabled vets growing by the day
http://www.tallahassee.com/mld/democrat/7360322.htm?template=contentModules/printstory.jsp

Army's propaganda war collides with reality
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/chitribts/20040709/ts_chicagotrib/armyspropagandawarcollideswithreality&cid=2027&ncid=1473

Ex-Army reservist sues to avoid recall
A former Army reservist who returned to civilian life in December - only to be recalled five months later - filed a lawsuit Thursday to avoid duty in Iraq.

Todd Parrish, 30, served four years of active duty and another four years in the reserves, a commitment he believed expired Dec. 19. The Army maintains he will be in a voluntary reserve status until he's 50. The Army says Parrish never formally resigned his commission as a lieutenant, making him eligible for involuntary recall to duty. He received a letter May 10 to report for duty at Fort Sill, Okla., and is due Aug. 10.
http://www.modbee.com/24hour/nation/story/1483888p-8927360c.html

Hidden Scars of Battle
A new study shows that 1 in 6 Iraq veterans has psychological damage — and the toll could get worse
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1101040712-660943,00.html

Back from Iraq: I KILLED INNOCENT PEOPLE FOR OUR GOVERNMENT
http://peopleforchange.net/commentaries/backfromiraq

US probe finds Iraqi security forces plagued by mass desertions
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/afp/20040630/pl_afp/us_iraq_security&cid=1521&ncid=1473

US may keep 145,000 troops in Iraq up to five years: Myers
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/afp/20040702/pl_afp/us_iraq_forces&cid=1521&ncid=1473

'Back-Door Draft' Raises Questions
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/05/28/sunday/main620263.shtml


New abuse allegation in Afghanistan
http://www.aljazeera.com/cgi-bin/news_service/middle_east_full_story.asp?service_id=2618

U.S. Soldiers Charged in Iraqi Drowning Death
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A24325-2004Jul2.html

When Saddam Fell: How the Press was Misled From Day One – ARMY used PSYOP
They were the shots seen 'round the world: newspaper photographs and TV images of jubilant Iraqis toppling a giant statue of Saddam Hussein in Baghdad on April 9, 2003, shortly after the U.S. military chased him out of town. Now, after months of rumors, the U.S. military has confirmed that the entire stunt was conceived by the U.S. military and enacted with the help of a fast-thinking Army psychological operation (PSYOP).
http://www.mediainfo.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1000562754

Sexualized Violence Against Female Soldiers Going Largely Unpunished
http://newstandardnews.net/content/?action=show_item&itemid=549

Rumsfeld orders review of sexual assaults
http://www.cnn.com/2004/US/02/06/military.assault/index.html
Report says military distorts war deaths
http://www.boston.com/news/world/asia/articles/2004/02/18/report_says_military_distorts_war_deaths/

10% At Hospital Had Mental Problems
As many as 1 of every 10 soldiers from the war on terror evacuated to the Army's biggest hospital in Europe was sent there for mental problems.

"We certainly have seen an average, I would say, of 8 to 10 percent of our casualties have some psychiatric or behavioral health issues for which they were evacuated," Cornum told United Press International in an interview at the hospital.
http://www.military.com/NewsContent/0,13319,FL_mental_021904,00.html


Soldier who refused to return to Iraq turns self in as protest
'I am saying no to war; I have chosen peace,'' Mejia said before turning himself in. ''I went to Iraq and was an instrument of violence, and now I have decided to become an instrument of peace.''
http://www.boston.com/dailynews/075/region/Soldier_who_refused_to_return_:.shtml


Navy drug probe nets 18 sailors
A three-year Navy investigation has led to drug charges against 18 sailors on 10 nuclear vessels from Connecticut to Hawaii, Navy officials said. Charges stemmed from the alleged sale and use of Ecstasy, LSD, cocaine, methamphetamines and marijuana, Navy officials told The Day of New London for a story in Thursday editions.
http://www.cnn.com/2004/LAW/02/26/sailors.drug.charges.ap/index.html


Fort Lewis soldier accused of killing wife
A 31-year-old soldier based at Fort Lewis was arrested Wednesday for allegedly killing his wife at their apartment in Lakewood. According to Pierce County Sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer, the soldier turned himself in Wednesday, saying he had committed a homicide.
http://www.king5.com/topstories/stories/NW_042104WABsoldierwifedeathKC.14ac53b46.html


In Army Survey, Troops in Iraq Report Low Morale
A slim majority of Army soldiers in Iraq -- 52 percent -- reported that their morale was low, and three-fourths of them said they felt poorly led by their officers, according to a survey taken at the end of the summer and released yesterday by the Army.

In addition, seven in 10 of those surveyed characterized the morale of their fellow soldiers as low or very low. The problems were most pronounced among lower-ranking troops and those in reserve units.

"Nearly 75% of the groups reported that their battalion-level command leadership was poor" and showed "a lack of concern" for their soldiers, said an Army report accompanying the data. "Unit cohesion was also reported to be low."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A25127-2004Mar25.html


U.S. Deaths from Enemy Fire at Highest Level Since Vietnam
With fighting in Iraq now at its worst, the number of U.S. troops killed by enemy fire has reached the highest level since the Vietnam War.

The first part of April has been the bloodiest period so far for U.S. troops in Iraq. There were 87 deaths by hostile fire in the first 15 days of this month, more than in the opening two weeks of the invasion, when 82 Americans were killed in action.
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines04/0417-02.htm


U.S. sent medically unfit soldiers to Iraq, Pentagon acknowledges
To meet the demand for troops in Iraq, the military has been deploying some National Guard and Army Reserve soldiers who aren't fit for combat. More than a dozen members of the Guard and reserves told Knight Ridder they were shipped off to battle with little attention paid to their medical histories.

Those histories included ailments such as asthma, diabetes, recent surgery and hearing loss. Once in Iraq, the soldiers faced severe conditions that aggravated their medical problems, and the medical care available to them was limited.
http://www.twincities.com/mld/twincities/news/politics/8268706.htm


$5 Million Air Force Band Rehearsal Building Under Scrutiny
While billions of taxpayers' dollars go toward the United States military, not all of it is going to weapons of warfare and battles in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The $5.4 million rehearsal building cost $2 million more than the new radar approach control facility being built down the street, which won't be finished for another three months.

"There's a lot to get upset about. A practice facility for a band is among them," Schatz said. "It simply shows that the priorities are not what they should be at the Department of Defense."

Inside the 25,000-square-foot facility are a variety of rehearsal rooms, including special booths, which -- at the push of a button -- let musicians practice under a variety of acoustical conditions.
http://www.thekcrachannel.com/news/3289974/detail.html


Soldiers' Doubts Build as Duties Shift
When the Army's 1st Armored Division arrived in Iraq 13 months ago, its job was to close out Iraq's
past by wiping out remnants of former president Saddam Hussein's armed base of support. Now several
of its units are confronting a new threat, Moqtada Sadr, a Shiite cleric who is leading an armed
revolt in defiance of U.S. plans to sideline him in a new Iraq.

This shift in responsibility is hitting hard at soldiers who moved into this area south of Baghdad
last Wednesday for a short mission to fight Sadr's militia. In the view of many troops in Company A
of the division's Task Force 1-36, the old battle, though filled with hardship, was imbued with the
optimism of liberation. The new one is tinted by pessimism. Soldiers feel themselves mired in an
effort to navigate the indecipherable intricacies of Iraqi politics.

"I just think it's a lost cause," said Spec. Will Bromley, a gunner who sits inside the turret of a
Bradley Fighting Vehicle and mans a 25mm cannon whose rounds can blast walls to pieces. "This has
become harder than we thought. Getting rid of Saddam Hussein, that's one thing. Getting Iraqis to do
what we want is another. It's like we want to give them McDonald's and they might not want
McDonald's. They have to want it or we can't give it to them."

Sgt. Jerry Sapiens, a specialist in nuclear, biological and chemical warfare, suggested there was no
end in sight. "We're in the baby-sitting phase and my question is, how long can we baby-sit for the
Iraqis? We want the Iraqis to change, to be like us, and to do this we will have to be here
forever."

"The enemy is not the same as before," said Spec. Matthew Aissen, a medic. "I fear that people who
use religion as a power point are taking over the place. It's a power struggle. Our weak point is
they think we are evil and we're not so popular, so we become part of the mess."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A52971-2004May24.html

U.S. Military 'Sure' to Catch Bin Laden
http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/news/politics/7827304.htm

[Katherine2]

1. Thanks for all

this information. And you mention the 5,394 total for those wounded in action, but last week the DOD announced it had "misunderestimated" the actual number of wounded by 11,000. So it's actually 16,000.

Do you know what happened to the lunaville.org website that used to list the numbers of casualties. I can't get to it anymore, and don't know where to go to get a current count. Do you know of any other webesites that list this information the lunaville.org used to? Thanks.

[progressiveBadger]

2. here

http://icasualties.org/oif/

[sandboxface]

3. Can you get me a link for that???

I'd really appreciate it!

[Katherine2]

4. After much searching

all I could find was this:

www.veteransforcommonsense.org/newsArticle.asp?id=1782.

(I don't know how to do actual links, and I'm not a big google whiz)

But I did see it other places, and people at my office were talking about it as well. Hope this helps.