Here is another cost of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan that Kathleen Sebelius and other governors have been warning about: Equipment and personnel shortfalls are undermining the readiness of Army National Guard units to respond to domestic emergencies. A preliminary report released this week by a congressional commission rated 90 percent of National Guard units nationwide as “not ready.”
“We can’t sustain the (National Guard and reserves) on the course we’re on,” said Arnold L. Punaro, chairman of the Commission on the National Guard and Reserves.
Posted by Phillip Brownlee
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13 Comments
We don’t need any more dead or maimed soldiers fighting Israel’s war. If Israel doen’t feel “safe” then they ought to stop generating enemies.
Bush relies on faith based policies for the National Guard. He prays there won’t be any more natural disasters like the ones that hit the south last week.
Does Bush care about the troops? Hell no. He’ll just keep on sending them into his Stalingrad so he can boast to the public what a great leader he is an the sacrifices that he makes. Meanwhile the crippled come home to rat infested hospitals and are sent onto the streets penniless.
Ed, if I remember correctly all of our soldiers are positioned quite a bit further East than the West Bank or the Gaza strip.
It seems to me that Israel is quite capable of fighting their own wars. They have a pretty good track record in spite of the number of enemies.
bush has ruined the Guard services in their capacity to carry out their STATE based duties.
How much preparation does it take to get blown up by a roadside bomb, or booby trap, or sniped?
The misuse of National Guard resources is just another element of the hidden costs of the Bush War of Choice. This madness has to end soon, or it will destroy the economic future of the United States. We are already nine trillion dollars in debt and the bills just keep coming.
China is sitting on a trillion dollars in monetary reserves and Japan checks in at about 750 billion.
Some analysts place the total cost of the War on Iraq at two trillion dollars. I am not sure of that estimate, but certainly much of the total cost is hidden. The NG issue is just one element in the equation.
Thank God that we only have to endure 22 more months of the Bush fiasco. History will prove that George W Bush has earned the title of Worst President Ever.
In the book, “The case for impeachment of G.W. Bush” this is one of the reasons given. Along with his endangering the country. As a good number of those in the Guard and reserves are Police officers, EMTs, firemen, Doctors and other key members of those that protect us and keep us safe in everyday life.
You know when Rummy said “you go to war with the army you have. Not the Army you wish you had!”. I thought, if this is America, the most wealthy nation and we have the most powerful military in the world. What does it say about that assertion when they take the field without vests and armored vehicles? What does it say about our leaders that would send them in such a sad state?The more I think about it, the more one question that has appeared on this blog comes to mind…“Can we impeach the mother fooker now?”.
He’s a pretty scary man, isn’t he? I cannot imagine how ANYONE can support him. The war is a disaster beyond comprehension. The Taliban and al Qaeda are resurgent in Afghanistan. He is rattling our sabres at Iran, Israel is running amuck. New Orleans remains at third world status after Katrina.
And our debt continues to rise.
Just what the Hell have we received for our money?
If George W Bush was an automobile, he would be subject to lemon laws.
We are moving towards a new level of indebtedness. The current debt is nine trillion dollars. The GDP for 2005 was $12.49 trillion. Given that even the most optomistic projects deficit spending until at least 2012, it will not be long before our debt exceeds our Gross Domestic Product.
Bush hopes to bankrupt America, that way social services will have to be cut. Paying the debt still flows taxpayer money to the rich and it means no money will be going to the rest of us. Already to help pay for Bush’s illegal war he wants to cut health care for children despite it being a successful program.
Why do they have so many enemies?
Could it be that all the neighbors envy the little sea side resort they call home?
Shoreline? Now I’ve heard it all from the world’s greatest threat to peace { as surveyed worldwide }.
The mideast oil rip off must be well underway which likely will only feed the mideast patriots to do what is necessary to defend THEIR natural resources. The world truly does not need more oil as we need to be cutting back so why is Bush spending so much TAX money taking over the mideast oil fields which is fueling a civil war?
Considering USA corporate oil giants are setting up shop abroad proably means taxpayers will be receiving multi billion invoices for protection of USA special interest. Our soldiers are NEVER coming home. You know it just might be more sensible to buy the oil instead of claiming it as USA oil?
As of now there are approximately 153,000 dead or disabled soldiers. To date 150,000 are drawing disabilitypay each month forever and cannot return to active duty.
Where will additional soldiers come from….your home?
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http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,2763,1681119,00.html================================
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/story/0,,2030015,00.html