"The odds of an individual soldier being wounded are very low, in fact so low that an individual is more at risk walking thru many American cities at night than they would be if they were deployed in Iraq"
How many soldiers have been wounded since Operation Iraqi Freedom began?
I was watching 'Baghdad ER' on HBO last night, and they flashed a number around 18,000. 90% of which lived. Out of somewhere around 500,000 total soldiers who have been cycled in and out, so about 3.5% or so injured. That's not a military disaster, in anybody's book.
And actually, we're comparing deaths here, I mis-spoke when I said 'wounded'. Altho I dare say the risk of being injured in NYC or elsewhere is likely higher than 3.5%, cuz that Iraq number includes car wrecks and other accidents. But I don't think we have those numbers for comparison.
With the 'killed by violence', the number is what, 2400 or so (1800 or so to "enemy action). Over 3+ years. 2400, including accidents. Out of 500,000. About .5%, half of one percent.
Clearly, not a military disaster. In fact, as military actions go, compared to past such examples, this is a giant, rousing success. Heck, at Iwo Jima, we took over 3000 casualties in the first 24 hours -- and that was a 'success'.