NOVANEWS
The Iraq War – It’s Not Really Over
August 22, 2010
Mainstream television news has begun making a big show of the withdrawal of America’s “last combat troops” from Iraq, but the painful saga continues for our service members. Many being show by local TV stations returning home to their tearful and joyous families in the coming days will ultimately be sent to serve more tours of duty in both Iraq and Afghanistan and how many media outlets will raise the hard questions as to why or how?
In fact, members of two different units heading to Iraq and Afghanistan are calling on their commanders right now to halt their deployments because they are not physically or mentally ready to deploy.
Posted by: Robert L. Hanafin, Major, U.S. Air Force-Retired, GS-14, U.S. Civil Service-Retired, Veterans Issues Editor, Veterans Today News Network ON BEHALF OF Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW)
Will WE stand with any Troops, Veterans, and Military Families that question or oppose continued deployments?
Readers, the collective WE need to understand the media spin that will be placed on the Iraq War and Pentagon Spin that will be placed on troops diagnosed with PTSD being deployable.
What excuses will the Pentagon use in order to be able to deploy back into war zones troops still having difficulty physically and mentally transitioning to civilian life at home here in America?
It is a READINESS Issue that the Pentagon does not want made PUBLIC!
At the same time mainstream media and the Pentagon paints a rosy picture of the successful end of the Iraq War, combat units are still being sent back to Iraq and Afghanistan, into the fray, with troops who are not physically or mentally ready to deploy. That readers is a readiness issue that both the Army and Marines are not going to be willing to admit publicly for it will stop the momentum of the Pentagon-Mainstream Media collaborative media blitz.
Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW), Military Families Speak Out (MFSO), and other Veteran, Military Family, and Peace Activist groups note that at least two different units heading to Iraq and Afghanistan are calling on their commanders right now to halt their deployments because they are not physically or mentally ready to deploy.
We at Veterans Today view this as only the tip of the iceberg as more units begin questioning the rationale of continued deployments to both Iraq and Afghanistan. We also foresee a Pentagon crackdown on troops, Military Families, but especially whole units questioning let alone opposing deployments to war zones our government and media paint as success stories or almost victories.
For Troops Remaining or Going to Iraq it WILL NOT BE DESK JOBS!
President Obama makes it sound like the troops remaining in Iraq [or en route] will be serving largely administrative and ‘advisory’ functions. But in reality, 50,000 “combat capable” troops will remain in Iraq to:
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Train the Iraqi military, including accompanying them on dangerous patrols;
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Support special forces operations in their continued hunt for terrorists; and
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Provide air support to the Iraqi military (a.k.a overhead artillery and bombing).