Harring Report: The National Young Men’s Meat Grinder

Photo AFP

"The essential act of war is destruction, not necessarily of human lives, but of the products of human labour. War is a way of shattering to pieces, or pouring into the stratosphere, or sinking in the depths of the sea, materials which might otherwise be used to make the masses too comfortable, and hence, in the long run, too intelligent. Even when weapons of war are not actually destroyed, their manufacture is still a convenient way of expending labour power without producing anything that can be consumed".

George Orwell, ‘1984’

“Whether war is a necessary factor in the evolution of mankind may be disputed, but a fact which cannot be questioned is that, from the earliest records of man to the present age, war has been his dominant preoccupation. There has never been a period in human history altogether free from war, and seldom one of more than a generation which has not witnessed a major conflict: great wars flow and ebb almost as regularly as the tides. This becomes more noticeable when a civilization ages and begins to decay, as seemingly is happening to our world-wide industrial civilization. Whereas but a generation or two back, war was accepted as an instrument of policy, it has now become policy itself.”

General J.F.C. Fuller, 1954

The Bush/Cheney Butcher’s Bill: Officially, 16 US Military Deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan from 1 August 2006 - 7 August 2006- Official Total of 2,777 US dead to date (and rising) The actual total of dead American military personnel is now over 12,000 and also rising and the number of seriously wounded is now ca 25,000

by Brian Harring, Domestic Intelligence Reporter brianharring@yahoo.com

Mr. President, why don’t you pull out…like your father should have?

Brian Harring

Note: There is excellent reason to believe that the Department of Defense is deliberately not reporting a significant number of the dead in Iraq. We have received copies of manifests from the MATS that show far more bodies shipped into Dover AFP than are reported officially. The actual death toll is in excess of 10,000. (See the official records at the end of this piece.) Given the officially acknowledged number of over 15,000 seriously wounded (and a published total of 25,000 wounded overall,), this elevated death toll is far more realistic than the current 2,000+ now being officially published. When our research is complete, and watertight, we will publish the results along with the sources In addition to the evident falsification of the death rolls, at least 5,500 American military personnel have deserted, most in Ireland but more have escaped to Canada and other European countries, none of whom are inclined to cooperate with vengeful American authorities. (See TBR News of 18 February for full coverage on the mass desertions) This means that of the 158,000 U.S. military shipped to Iraq, 26,000 deserted, were killed or seriously wounded. The DoD lists currently being very quietly circulated indicate over12,000 dead, over 25,000 seriously wounded and a large number of suicides, forced hospitalization for ongoing drug usage and sales, murder of Iraqi civilians and fellow soldiers, rapes, courts martial and so on -

The government gets away with these huge lies because they claim, falsely, that only soldiers actually killed on the ground in Iraq are reported. The dying and critically wounded are listed as en route to military hospitals outside of the country and not reported on the daily postings. Anyone who dies just as the transport takes off from the Baghdad airport is not listed and neither are those who die in the US military hospitals. Their families are certainly notified that their son, husband, brother or lover was dead and the bodies, or what is left of them (refrigeration is very bad in Iraq what with constant power outages) are shipped home, to Dover AFB. This, we note, was the overall policy until very recently. Since it became well known that many had died at Landstuhl, in Germany, the DoD began to list a very few soldiers who had died at other non-theater locations. These numbers are only for show and are pathetically small in relationship to the actual figures. You ought to realize that President Bush personally ordered that no pictures be taken of the coffined and flag-draped dead under any circumstances. He claims that this is to comfort the bereaved relatives but is designed to keep the huge number of arriving bodies secret. Any civilian, or military personnel, taking pictures will be jailed at once and prosecuted. Bush has never attended any kind of a memorial service for his dead soldiers and never will. He is terrified some parent might curse him in front of the press or, worse, attack him. As Bush is a terrible physical coward and in a constant state of denial, this is not a surprise.

Official Casualty List for August, 2006

1

The Department of Defense announced today the death of two Marines who were supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Lance Cpl. Anthony E. Butterfield, 19, of Clovis, Calif., Sgt. Christian B. Williams, 27, of Winter Haven, Fla. Both Marines died July 29 while conducting combat operations in Al Anbar province, Iraq. They were assigned to 3rd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Twentynine Palms, Calif.

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a Marine who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Cpl. Phillip E. Baucus, 28, of Wolf Creek, Mont., died July 29 while conducting combat operations in Al Anbar province, Iraq.  He was assigned to 3rd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Twentynine Palms, Calif.

2

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a Marine who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Pfc. Jason Hanson, 21, of Forks, Wash., died July 29 while conducting combat operations in Al Anbar province, Iraq.  He was assigned to 3rd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Twentynine Palms, Calif.

3

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Sgt. Ryan D. Jopek, 20, of Merrill, Wis., died in Tikrit, Iraq on Aug. 2 of injuries suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his convoy. Jopek was assigned to the Army National Guard's 2nd Battalion, 127th Infantry Regiment, Waupun, Wis.

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Sgt. Dustin D. Laird, 23, of Martin, Tenn., died on Aug. 2 during combat operations in Rawah, Iraq. Laird was assigned to the Army National Guard 913th Engineer Company, 46th Engineer Battalion, Union City, Tenn.

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a Marine who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Cpl. Joseph A. Tomci, 21, of Stow, Ohio, died Aug. 2 while conducting combat operations in Al Anbar province, Iraq.  He was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C.

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Spc. Hai Ming Hsia, 37, of New York, N.Y., died Aug. 1 during combat operations in Ar Ramadi, Iraq.  Hsia was assigned to the 6th Infantry Regiment, 1st Armored Division, Baumholder, Germany.

4

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a Marine who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.Lance Cpl. Kurt E. Dechen, 24, of Springfield, Vt., died Aug. 3 from wounds received while conducting combat operations in Al Anbar province, Iraq.  He was assigned to 1st Battalion, 25th Marine Regiment, 4th Marine Division, while attached to Regimental Combat Team 5, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Pendleton, Calif.

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a Marine who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Sgt. George M. Ulloa Jr., 23, of Austin, Texas, died Aug. 3 from wounds suffered while conducting combat operations in Al Anbar province, Iraq. He was assigned to 2nd Tank Battalion, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C.

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.  Sgt. Joshua A. Ford, 20, of Wayne, Neb., died on July 31 during combat operations in Al Numaniyah, Iraq.  Ford was assigned to the Army National Guard 189th Transportation Company, 485th Corps Support Battalion, Norfolk, Neb.

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a sailor who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Petty Officer 2nd Class Marc A. Lee, 28, of Hood River, Ore., was killed on Aug. 2 during combat operations while on patrol in Ramadi, Iraq.  Lee was an aviation ordnanceman and a member of a West Coast-based SEAL Team.

5

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. Staff Sgt. Daniel A. Suplee, 39, of Ocala, Fla., died on Aug 3 at James A. Haley Veterans Hospital, Tampa, Fla., of injuries sustained on Apr 1 in Kabul, Afghanistan, when his HMMWV was involved in a traffic accident.  Suplee was assigned to the National Guard 153rd Cavalry Squadron, Ocala, Fla.

6

The Department of Defense announced today the death of two soldiers who were supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.  They died in Ar Ramadi, Iraq, on August 4, when an improvised explosive device detonated near their HMMWV while conducting combat operations.  Both soldiers were assigned to the 1st Calvary Regiment, 1st Armored Division, Friedberg, Germany. Killed were: Staff Sgt. Clint J. Storey, 30, of Enid, Okla,.Sgt. Bradley H. Beste, 22, of Naperville, Ill.

7

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Sgt. Leroy Segura Jr., 23, of Clovis, N.M., died on Aug 4, in Habbaniyah, Iraq, of injuries suffered from a HMMWV accident.  Segura was assigned to the 362nd Engineer Company, 54th Engineer Battalion, Fort Benning, Ga.

Army Makes Way for Older Soldiers: Nursing Homes Tapped

by Tom Vanden Brook
USA TODAY

FORT JACKSON, S.C. — The Army has begun training the oldest recruits in its history, the result of a concerted effort to fill ranks depleted during the Iraq war.

In June, five months after it raised the enlistment age limit from 35 to just shy of 40, the Army raised it to just under 42.

To accommodate the older soldiers, the Army has lowered the minimum physical requirements needed to pass basic training.

The first group of older recruits is going through basic training here. So far, only five people 40 and older — and 324 age 35 and older — have enlisted, Army records show.

The Army also hopes to attract more recruits by offering shorter active-duty periods for some recruits, signing bonuses and bonuses for soldiers who persuade others to join.

David Chu, undersecretary of Defense for personnel and readiness, says the improved health and fitness of middle-aged Americans makes it possible for them to enlist.

The Army has the military's highest age limit. The Air Force's and Marines' limits are 27, while the Navy's is 35.

Allowing older soldiers makes sense if done properly, says Loren Thompson, a military analyst at the Lexington Institute, a non-partisan think tank in Arlington, Va.

"For front-line combat troops, it's a bad idea," Thompson says. "But nobody is proposing putting 42-year-olds next to 18-year-olds on combat patrols. If it is correctly run, it could be a real boon."

The Army, which supplies most of the troops for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, is on track to meet its recruiting goal of 80,000 new soldiers this year.

In 2005, the Army missed its 80,000 goal by 8% when it recruited 73,373 new soldiers.

Comment: The U.S. Army is now reduced to taking autistic high school children, ex-convicts, members of the Aryan Nation, grammar school drop outs and 50 year old grandfathers. Think of the wonderful impression this makes on the rest of the world. Not that Bush or Cheney care what the rest of the world thinks. If either of them did, they would use what little influence they have left to put a stop to Israel’s senseless and vicious butchery in Lebanon. BH