2-0-0-0
The death toll of American forces in Iraq has reached two thousand after two years and seven months. Here at TSTF, I'd like to put this in its proper context.
Guadalcanal - nearly 1,600 killed in six months
Tarawa - over 1,000 killed in three days
Okinawa - over 12,000 killed in three months
Iwo Jima - 7,000 killed in two months
Saipan - nearly 3,500 killed in less than a month
Normandy - 9,000 killed
Ardennes (B of Bulge) - 19,000 killed in a month and a half
Inchon - 222 killed in half a month
Chosin Reservoir - 2,500 killed in a matter of days
Ia Drang - 1,037 killed in three days
Tet Offensive - 4,324 killed in a matter of days
Two thousand American military personnel have died in the fight for Iraq, and that is unfortunate. However, when you consider that loss in a historical context, you come to realize that the casualty figures in Iraq are astonishingly low, particularly when given the amount of time we've been there. Size isn't an issue; Tarawa, Iwo Jima, Okinawa, these places were a fraction of the size that the nation of Iraq is, and their casualty figures were far more severe.
I mourn for those who have died, and I rejoice for the amazing things that have been accomplished. They knew what they risked when they signed up, and the vast, vast majority of service personnel and their familys understand the ramifications of those decisions and support the mission.
This is a war we cannot afford to lose, and it's a war that we're winning. Let's not lose sight of the context of these deaths, and what they have accomplished.
Thus saith the Fly.
Two thousand American military personnel have died in the fight for Iraq, and that is unfortunate. However, when you consider that loss in a historical context, you come to realize that the casualty figures in Iraq are astonishingly low, particularly when given the amount of time we've been there. Size isn't an issue; Tarawa, Iwo Jima, Okinawa, these places were a fraction of the size that the nation of Iraq is, and their casualty figures were far more severe.
I mourn for those who have died, and I rejoice for the amazing things that have been accomplished. They knew what they risked when they signed up, and the vast, vast majority of service personnel and their familys understand the ramifications of those decisions and support the mission.
This is a war we cannot afford to lose, and it's a war that we're winning. Let's not lose sight of the context of these deaths, and what they have accomplished.
Thus saith the Fly.
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