[CWOJackson]

Having been very active with troops rotating in/out through Ft. Lewis (and McCord) up till two months ago, and having recently spent time at Ft. Riley (for the return of their troops) and Ft. Knox with the troops, I guess those places are exceptions...because the troops at Ft. Lewis, those passing through Ft. Lewis, and those at Ft. Knox sure aren't indicative of the agonzied troops this story is talking about. But then again, the troops really don't live in the same world as the media and armchair generals.

[centurion316]

I have seen some of those same troops and agree with your assessment. But, the problems lie just beneath the surfase. Its becoming very tough to meet the 12 month minimum between deployments, unit have already deployed with less. 12 month tours are also hard to sustain, many units have been extended. New units have been hard pressed to get both people and equipment delivered on time to support required training. No one is training on their basic warfighting tasks, there simply isn't time. They are working the priority, which to to be trained and ready for their GWOT mission.

We have a superb Army, the very best that has existed in my lifetime. It is, however, on the ragged edge. Without some relief, the force will begin to crack. Won't happen this year, probably not next year. High risk that it will happen in the future, especially if the politicians bail out on them like they did in 73.