Posted on 10/17/2003 10:53:32 AM PDT by PatrioticCowboy
US troops question presence in Iraq
Suzanne Goldenberg in Washington Friday October 17, 2003 The Guardian
A sizeable portion of US forces serving in Iraq describe troop morale as low, and say they have no intention of re-enlisting, damaging the campaign by the US government to brighten up the image of the postwar occupation.
The survey of 1,935 troops, published in a series of special reports on Iraq in the Stars and Stripes newspaper, also found that a significant number of troops were confused about the purpose of their presence, and had lost faith in their mission.
Coinciding with the report, the army yesterday admitted that at least 13 US troops had committed suicide in Iraq, representing more than 10% of American non-combat deaths there, and said the army had sent a suicide-prevention expert to Iraq.
Stars and Stripes, which is funded by the Pentagon, says it embarked on the project after receiving scores of letters from disenchanted servicemen.
The mailbags belied claims last week by President Bush that increasingly negative public perceptions of Iraq were a product of media spin, and that those who had been there held different views. Not so those for serving up to 12 months in Iraq, according to Stars and Strips, which noted that the troops' views stood in sharp contrast to those of senior officials on brief visits to Iraq.
Yesterday the newspaper quoted an unidentified master sergeant as saying that the delegations of officers and Congressmen only met small groups of specially selected soldiers. "They stacked the deck," he says.
Instead, 49% of those who answered the newspaper's questionnaire rated the morale of their unit as low or very low, 49% said it was unlikely they would re-enlist, and 31% said they thought the war had not been worthwhile.
Stars and Stripes noted that soldiers who were open about morale problems had at times faces disciplinary action. Although the malaise appears to be linked to uncertainty about the length of tours of duty in Iraq, pay scales, and conditions on the ground, another significant factor appears to be the meaning of their mission. Stars and Strips said 35% of respondents complained their mission was not clearly defined. It quotes a member of the National Guard as saying: "We're in the dark."
Patriotic Cowboy's daily bad news from the front threads:
Car Bomb at US Military Outpost near Arbil Northern Iraq~~~ there are wounded.
U-S Military Reports Another American Soldier Killed In Iraq
Two U-S Soldiers Injured; Two Iraqis Killed In Separate Incidents
Suspected Taliban Attack Second Police Station In Southeast Afghanistan, Take Four Hostages
Iraq: Four U.S. Soldiers Reported Wounded In Separate Attacks
8 US soldiers wounded in Iraq attack, 1 person killed in bomb at NBC HQ
In other words, 1/2 of those who answered the questionnaire (what was the response rate, I wonder?) said their morale was high or very high, 51% said it was likely they would re-enlist (what's the normal re-enlistment rate during peacetime?) and a WHOPPING 69%, over 2/3, in other words, a SUPER-MAJORITY, thought that the war has been worthwhile.
Well, I'm for real, and he's right: S&S is a lot more oriented towards the shitbirds than most civilians realize. Too bad so many people think it is the DoD's baby.
'Cause it ain't.
BTW, posting another version of this does make me wonder if the others have you pegged.
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