Well, its been awhile since my last post due to being shut down under the new rules for military blogging. And now that I am home and my tour in Iraq is finished, I have returned to civilian life again and have reactivated my blog.

 I have a lot of things that I need to add to this post. Not just the thoughts I had during the rest of my time in Iraq, but I really want to get into detail about the demobilization process that is in place to return a soldier back to his family and return to a normal productive civilian life.

However my posts are going to be a little slow due to the fact that I have so many thoughts going through my mind at any given time these days, and I have been avoiding watching the news or reading any articles that has anything to do with the war. It feels strange to be here where everything is green and the mortars have stopped, and I havnt heard a weapon fired in anger in over a month. Especialy when I know that so many are still stuck in that shit hole and going through what I had gone through, while I am now here trying to go about my life like that place doesnt exist.

But dont worry, I will deffinatly be adding posts as often as I can, so check back once in awhile and as I start adding I am sure that the posts will eventually start to be added on a regular basis again.

 I would like to thank all those that have supported me while I was over there, just knowing that that there were people back home that were concerned made a large difference.

Today I feel the need to clarify something for a lot of the people back home.

There are a lot of people back home and in the military that are saying that we are all volunteers. That we all raised our hands and volunteered to join the military and we have nobody to blame but ourselves for being deployed to a combat zone over and over again.

So today I am going to address and dispell this myth, and inform you that slavery does exists in America today. What? You dont believe me? Read on.

Lets say you Join the Army National Guard to serve your community, state, and nation. After all for those that dont know, the National Guard has what is called a duel mission. Their primary responsability is to the state to which it belongs. It is called upon in cases of state emergencies, like fires, floods, huricanes, and other natural disasters. And yes, if need be, they can also be called into federal service in time of war, not to exceed 2years, and can not be deployed again involuntarily for 5 years afterwards.

A lot of us are former regular active duty members who have decided to return to civilian life but also wanted to continue to serve. And we like the idea of serving the communities that we live in. Not to mention the fact that our active duty time and our reserve time all count towards retirement.

So lets say that you have served for 10 or 15 years on active duty and you go home and join the Guard for 2 years. And on your 2nd year you get mobilized and deployed to iraq. You are gone for 18 months, which is a standard deployement for the National Guard, because they will send you to a base 1000 miles away and lock you down for 6 months before leaving for Iraq. It also doesnt matter that your enlistement has ended because they have what is called stop loss. That means that you are screwed. You can not get out. So you are serving at the whim of the government. Your contract obligation has ended and you have completed your time that you have agreed to serve and owe the military nothing. Yet you will remain on active duty till 90 days after the deployment ends. Can you say slavery?

So once your contract ends they offer you a $15,000 re-enlistment bonus. I know what your thinking, your thinking that, oh so he re-enlists and he is now a volenteer again. Wrong, here is why. You start to think about what that offer means. Remember the rule that you can not spend more than 2 years on active duty and you can not deploy involuntarily for 5 years afterwards?

So look at the big picture, according to the rules you can re-enlist, and get the bonus, plus you will be guaranteed to be at home for 5 years afterwards. That means that you will be able to complete your 20 years and get your retirement without having to be subjected to returning to Iraq again.

So you go ahead and do it. Then after you have completed your tour and you have been home for a year. Another unit has gotten there orders to deploy, and they really need your specialty. So they aproach you and they ask you to sign a waiver and volunteer to deploy with them. Its called a COTTAD waiver. You think about it for all of 2 seconds and you say why would I do that? What have I got to gain from going again? I make more money on my civilian job than I do on active duty. You are going to have to offer me something, because I cant think of a good reason to leave home and go back to Iraq making less money than I do now.

So they come back and tell you well if you sign the waiver we will promote you to the next higher pay grade and you will be entitled to an extra $1000 a month AIP. Now we are getting somewhere right? I mean after all, your country needs you and you are not going to lose any money in the deal right?

So you go ahead and sign the waiver to deploy for a specific number of days on active duty including accumulated leave with a specific end date. And you head out to the mobilization station with that unit.

Now you get to the mob station and they tell you that they can not promote you because there is no slot available for that higher paygrade. So not only will you not be promoted, you will not be promoted till after you get back from that deployment in 18 months. Effectivly you have just had your career advancement set back by 2 years because you have been deployed.

But they tell you that thats just to bad, there is a war going on and everybody has to make scrifices. So suck it up and drive on.

Than when you get to Kuwait and you are supposed to become eligable for that additional $1000 dollar a month AIP entitlement that you desperatly need because you have taken a pay cut by going on active duty. And all your bills have gotten behind because you just spent 6 months at a mob station making a lot less money than you are used to making.

But unfortunatly, because the last unit you were with, didnt do your paperwork right when they discharged you after your last deployment. You will not be getting that extra money. And again they tell you, oh well. We tried but there is nothing that we can do about it. So you are going to have to suck it up and drive on.

So you go to the IG, (the Inspector General) and you make a complaint. Because you are entitled to the money and you would not have signed the waiver to deploy in the first place if you were not going to get it. Because you can not afford the loss in pay between your civilian job and active duty.

They tell you that they will see what they can do, but that it will take a long time and has no gaurantee that you will get it. So in the mean time you need to suck it up and drive on.

Then when you hit the halfway mark in your deployment the pentagon decides that they are going to suspend the rules that pertain to how long a reservist can be involuntarily called to active duty. And now it says that you can not be called up on active duty for 5 years after you have been called up for 2 years CONSECUTIVELY. I made that last word caps for a reason. Because that one word changes a lot of things. That now means that since the National Guard does 18 month deployments, they can be called up over and over again, as long as they are not on active duty for a single period that lasts for 24 months.

Then you also find out that instead of the $1000 dollar AIP payment they will give us days off instead. And I am not talking about a lot of days by any means. What I managed to find out about it was that it is 2 extra days off a month for every month deployed over a total fo 2 years all together. Woohoo, thanks a lot. What a great deal huh?

So now that your moral is basicaly non existant, they drop the other shoe. But they dont have the balls to tell you, no instead what happens is you are contacted by your wife back home. And she tells you that she just got a letter in the mail from the Army. With no explanation at all. It is just an amendment to your current COTTAD orders. So they have just involuntarily extended your time in Iraq on voluntary orders.

So now the contract that you have signed that promised you certain things is no longer valid at all. You are effecively  a slave. Because you didnt volunteer to serve on an open ended contract. But that is just what they did. They have removed the time limits. And you will continue to serve in Iraq until they decide you can come home. So you are told to suck it up and drive on, after all there is a war going on and everybody  has to make sacrifices. Not only that, if your unit that you will be returning to back home gets called up, or if you transfer to another unit that gets called up, you will now do that deployment too. Regardless of how short a time you get to be home. Forget the fact theat when you re-enlisted that was not part of the deal. You would never have re-enlisted if you could be called up over and over again. That was not part of the deal.

I think the terms that would be used in court if this was a civilian company doing these types of things to a citizen would be involuntary cervitude, slavery, or any number of other things. But since at one time or another we decided to raise our hand and take an oath to defend the constitution from all enemies foreign and domestic, we are labled as volunteers. After all that is a lot more acceptable word that conscripts or slaves isnt it?

Nowhere in our history have less than half of 1% of the American population been forced to shoulder the burden of a war by themselves. It is nothing more than a back door draft, and in some cases outright slavery. It is time to start drafting those that have not shouldered any of this burden. If we are going to remain here than we need to have larger numbers of military in theater to acomplish the security tasks that we need to, in order to stabalize the government.

And Peter has already been robbed to pay Paul, the active duty reserves and guard has already been overused to the point where they are piecing together people from different units to make a complete unit available to deploy. And especialy now that people are seeing the deployments legthened at the whim of our top leadership, they are going to find it harder and harder to get people to enlist. So the only answer is to re-enstate the draft and make the military larger. Or send us home.

Either way, something is going to have to change, because this isnt working. And what we are going to be left with is a whole lot of pissed off military veterans that were lied to and screwed over.

And oh yeah, I am on my 7th month of waiting for results from the IG.

Today I was watching another one of those crappy “commercials” on AFN. They had A Command Sgt Major telling troops that he wanted them to tell there stories to the people back home, that is of course as long as they stay in their lane, and only talked about the things that they knew about. Like we all act like politicians and only talk about the things we know nothing about.

So I figured ok then, I will. I will give you a little insight into some of the self inflicted pain that we suffer needlesly because some idiot that is running this circuis show has decided that he has nothing better to do.

Ok you ready? Try not to laugh too much, here goes. Lets start with stupid chowhall rules.

The chowhalls are guarded by nigerians, and one of the first times I went to the chowhall without a weapon they wouldnt let me in. They said “sorry, no can let you in with no weapon.” I jumped back and asked “Why? Whats going on in the chowhall? Should I call in air support? True fact, you cant get into the chowhall without a weapon, so of course common sense will tell you that it is better to walk the mile back to where you secured your weapon and then walk back.

They also will not let you in after dark without a reflective belt on. (Usually worn diagnally across your chest, thats why I call it a Miss America badge.) The first time they told me that, I was like why? am I going to get run over in there by a truck when the lights go out? Again, somehow its safer to walk a mile in the dark to go get your Miss America badge and walk back.

Here is an especialy cool idea. Lets say you walk all the way to the chowhall and right when you get there there is a mortar atack. Guess what? They wont let you in. Thats right, instead of letting you in where you at least have some kind of protection, they think it is smarter to make you stand outside in the open till the mortar atack is over before letting you in.

Ok so lets say you are in the chowhall and in line when the mortar attack starts. Guess what happens? The food workers cover the food and step back. They will not serve you till the attack is over. So we all stand there and look at each other. Then when the all clear is given they will uncover the food and continue serving you. Like somehow the very act of getting food and eating is more dangerous than standing there looking at each other.

So lets say you have your weapon, and your Miss America badge on, and there is no mortar attack and you go to the chowhall. You are military in uniform carrying a weapon on a military camp in a combat zone 8000 miles from home. The first thing the Nigerian wants you to do is show him your military ID. Like I had nothing better to do than to come all the way over here to steal army food from a chowhall. What the fuck are they thinking?

Ok, so here is another really good rule they have that has no purpose other than to make your life a living hell. Imagine that you wake up in the middle of the night and you have to pee. You would just go to the bathroom right? Not us, we get up and get dressed into a full uniform, put on our Miss America badge grab  your rifle and then walk 20 yards to the porta john. Like somehow that uniform is gonna protect me from a mortar. The same rule applies when you go to take a shower too.

Here is another good one. People here buy bicycles to get around on. Guess what you are required to wear when you ride it? You guessed it, a Miss America badge. Like we arent presenting a big enough target as it is. And let me tell you its a lot of fun to try and ride a bicycle when you have to carry a rifle and wear an armor vest.

And how much sense does it make to be required to carry a flight line id badge to get on the flight line? Here is how carried away they have gotten. The badges are cheap and the picture wears off after a couple months. Which is no big deal for the Air force who requires us to have them, because they are only here for a few months anyway.

Now this is where it gets really fun. To get a badge you first have to go to the S-2 and tell them you need one. Then they will fill out a form that you need to take to your commanding officer. Only his office is guess where? Yup, on the fight line. So you manage to get an escort and get the signature you need. Then you take the paperwork back to the S-2 and they tell you to come back the next day because the security officer who also has to sign it, (After your commanding officer of course, it would have been too easy to get his first.) but he works nights so you will have to come back the next day.

So the next day you go back and get the paperwork, and you go and ride a bus all the way over to the Air Force side of the base and wait in line to get a badge. When you get to the front of the line the security guy tells you that it is no good because the signature block for your commanding officer is not typed. Its hand written, and therfore not valid. You need to go back and repeat the process. So after you get through telling him that we are not all in the Air Force and dont all have access to computers and printers because uhm, This is a war zone you fucking moron. You go back and repeat the process. And when you do get it done and he accepts it what does he do? He hand writes his signature block and signs it. Your standing there going what the fuck?

Then before you leave they have you cover the badge with 2 inch clear tape so the picture wont rub off so easily. And a month later you are walking through the gate and they say sorry you cant have tape on your badge, you need to take it off. And you say what the fuck over? Your guys are the ones that put it on there in the first place. There response is yeah well we got a new commanding officer and he changed the policy. So you peel off the tape and guess what? Thats right, the picture comes off with it. So you are now back to sqaure one.

Or my personal favourite, is the simple fact that I can go into the PX and purchase the most up to date pimpin car stereo with dvd player and everything I need to pimp my military hummv, that is of course if I had one. And, Get this, I can even purchase a baby seat. Yup just in case I feel the need to take the kiddos along on a combat patrol outside the wire. We wouldnt want them to get hurt in the unfortunate event of an IED explosion would we?

I can go on and on pointing out this kind of assinine stupidity all day. But it is nothing more than a testament to the serious case of cranium rectomitis that has infected the leadership that makes up these dumb assed rules.

But I guess that I can take comfort in the fact that they require us to salute all officers here in a combat zone. So that effectively lowers my chances of being a sniper victom by 50% everytime i do it doesnt it?

I have been on a mission for the past week, and away from phones, computers, and television. So I must have been one of the last people on the planet to hear about the VA Tech shootings. But I did have a few thoughts on the subject.

I was in a chowhall in a crappy little base in south central Iraq when I first seen it on AFN on a tv set up in a corner. After eating I went to the flight line to see about getting a cable fixed for my test set that had broken while on a fob in the middle of nowhere, and didnt have the tools or parts I needed for the repair.

When I got there, the unit I was on the mission for was a helo medivac unit. I had caught a ride with them from the fob to the base I was at. And the electronics guy I needed was busy getting aircraft ready to go in case they got another call to pick up wounded in the field and take them to the cash for medical treatment.

One of the birds was sitting on the pad and they were removing all the equipment from it, so I went over to lend a hand while I waited. I figured I wasnt doing anything anyway, I might as well help out.

Apperantly they had gotten a call to pick up a patient that had lost his arms and legs to a suicide bomber at a police station. He didnt make it. As you could only imagine with those type of wounds, there was blood everywhere. The aircraft had to be hosed out. It took 2 large bags to handle the medical waste of bloody bandages and used needles. The other patient didnt survive either. And the combat life saver that was on the seen had accidentaly stuck himself with the needle he had used on the other guy that they didnt bring back.

So they also had to transport him to the cash for blood tests. Then try and get a blood sample from the guy that was left behind. So it was a busy day for them and it had just begun.

Afterwards I was in the makeshift hanger still waiting for the electronics guy to finish his work so I could get his help. I was looking at the helicopter and the puddle left under it from the water and blood, and a couple hundred yards past it to the T-wall with a sign that says remains collection point- no photography allowed.

I was thinking about what I had heard on the news earlier. Not so much about the victoms of VA Tech, but the reaction everybody in the states was having to it. I felt nothing, not a thing. I think I should have been outraged because I have children and I dont feel safe about them in public schools. Or maybe I should have been outraged by the fact that a person diagnosed with mental illness should have access to a gun. But all I could think of was the picture of all the students that were huddled together crying, and generaly acting like it was the end of there lives.

They all obviously felt they wanted to be together because they felt touched by the tragedy because of the common bond of going to the same school. Even though most of them had probably never even heard of the victoms, and some of them didnt even attend the school. They just lived in the community where the school is.

Instead I am saddened by the fact that those of us in the military have the same kind of bond, only its made a hundred times stronger by the shared sacrifices we make together. And the shared goal that we are willing to put our lives on the line for.

People are calling for stricter gun laws. Saying that the system needs to change. And this has to stop. We have to find a way to prevent this from happening  again so our children can be safe.

The fact is that these students are the same ages as most of the service men and women that are here dying at an average rate of 80 per month. And the fact that the students all have families and friends that will miss them is not any different than those men and women dying here in Iraq.

Yet we are still here. And it only seems to be getting worse. I dont care how you look at it, the fact is that the more deployments you do, and the more time you spend here, your odds of winning the Iraqi lottery are getting higher every time.

But the focus seems to be on the victoms of VA Tech, after all we volenteered for this right? that is what they keep telling us. I have something to say to those that say that. FUCK YOU! None of us volenteered to come over here and die for no good reason. We volenteered to protect and deffend the constitution from all enemies, foreign and domestic. And everytime we sign a contract, they changed the rules and the contract doesnt mean anything anymore. Now it doesnt matter what that contract says, you will stay and deploy over and over again. But they continue to say that we volenteered. To us, it is a draft. Nobody volenteered to join the military for the rest of their life.

The more I see from back home, the more I think we do need a draft, just so we can spread the burden of this war a little more evenly. If the American people are shocked by 32 young adults getting killed than they obviously have not been effected by what is going on over here.

I feel a little guilty because these were peoples children that they raised and sent to college in the hopes that they would grow up and live long fullfilling lives. But all I could think about was that puddle under the aircraft and the 2 bags of medical waste sitting next to it, and that sign on the T-wall reminding me that there will be a lot more sacrifice here before we are all sent home.

And the majority of the American people are so far removed from the realities of what is going on here every day that we live out this nightmare with nobody to huddle together with except each other. And that alone will deffinatly seperate us even furthar from those that are at home living out there lives because we are taking there turn on the line again and again.

Or maybe I am just tired and unable to feel anything anymore because I have just been here too many times for really long tours. Either way, since I got extended I guess it doesnt matter much, because tomorow will be no different than today, and neither will the next day, or the day after that.

Ok, so I have been listening to the news reports just like everybody else. And I deffinatly have a couple things to say.

First of all, Mr Gates, How fucking dare you. Who the fuck do you think you are? You go on national TV and inform the world about troop extensions, instead of informing the very people that it effects first. Now we know where the priority lies. It is with the people that this war and the extensions doesnt even effect. Not with those of us that are shouldering the burden. I dont give a shit that some idiot leaked the information to the press. The official notification should have gone through the chain of command to the troops and there families first. I thought that was a lesson that was already learned. But apperently not, instead you have chosen to do it again.

Now then, that being said, lets talk about what Mr Gates precieves to be how the troops are recieving the news. Bullshit, we have a saying for the feeling that we are getting. Its called the big green weenie. And we recognize the feeling of deep penetration when it happens.

Active duty units will now do 15 months boots on ground instead of 12. They will be compensated at a rate of $1000 dollars a month. You forgot to mention that that is an entitlement that will only be paid for the additional 3 months, not the entire tour. Oops, you left that little part out didnt you? That will, supposedly stableize the dwell time at home so they can get 12 months between tours. How nice for them. When I see an active duty troop here at Camp Anaconda, (Which is rare, most here are National Guard and Reserves.) I will congradulate them on their victory. Only they arent that happy about it either. Now they can pretty much be guaranteed a 15 month deployement every other year. Instead of getting up to 2 years at home and possibly being extended for up to 4 months when they finally do deploy. I have no idea where they are getting these happy soldiers that are on tv saying it is a good thing. Because nobody here is happy about it.

Now lets talk about what he did to the National Guard. Because we got fucked pretty hard in the deal. He avoided talking about what he did to us. It wouldnt look good for him if he told the world what he did to us. No that little piece of information has not been put out on a national news broadcast. In fact it hasnt trickeled its way down to us in any form other than word of mouth. Instead it has become the big secret that you dont find out about until they mail the orders to your family back home,  and you go ask your command about what the fuck is going on.

Now if you are in the Guard, then you can look forward to getting involentarily deployed for up to 2 years. And if your unit does not complete 2 consecutive years, then the clock is reset and you can be deployed again for up to 2 years involentarily. So if you come back from a deployement, and your unit is reorginized, or you are promoted into another unit, or you move to another part of the state and have to change units, you are subject to whatever deployement comes down the line for that new unit.

If you make the mistake of completeing a 2 year involentary tour and you are talked into signing a waiver to deploy with another unit. Then you sign your COTTAD waiver for X amount of days. If that unit gets extended, (and the guard units are still left wide open for tour extensions) and your waivered number of days runs out, you get put back on involentary deployment orders again till the unit returns. That also means that you will be back under title 10 section 12302 and therefore not entitled to the extra $1000  a month AIP entitlement.

Then when you do go home and back to your unit, then your clock starts over again and you are again subject to any deployement that your unit is scheduled for.

I have already found one guy that is here with our brigade that was promoted back in his home state into a slot in another unit, and that unit has been identified for an upcomming deployment. So he got fucked with another deployment, and he hasnt even finished this one yet.

So far, I have been deployed for a total of 4 years as a reservist on 2 different deployments, just since the attack on the world trade center, and I have to transfer to another unit when I get home, because I was double slotted in this unit for the deployment. So I am waiting to get fucked again. And I am not even done with this deployment yet. How is this considered deployment stability? How is this supposed to create predictability in when Guard members are going to deploy? Because as far as I can tell, some of us are being deployed longer than active duty soldiers.

I am tired of hearing about how Air Force and Marines are on there 5th, 6th , or 7th tours. I dont really give a shit. When you take the length of those deployments and add them together, they are only a fraction of the deployed time that a lot of us have.

So, I dont know how stupid Mr Gates thinks we are, but you just keep traveling on this path and the Guard will not be able to recruit anybody. And mark my words, when this brigade returns, you will see very large numbers of soldiers getting out, retiring, and just no longer showing up for drills anymore, so they can get an administrative discharge.

As for me, my sense of duty is becomming less than my level of distaste for being in a branch of service that doesnt take care of its people. I was supposed to be able to be a citizen/soldier. If you notice the first part of that is citizen not soldier. It is supposed to be a way for those of us to continue serving after returning home as a civilian citizen. And our mission is Community, State and Nation, IN THAT ORDER. If I had any intention of measuring my time on active duty in years, I would have stayed on active duty. And I am not alone in that intention.

We havnt even discussed what kind of discrimination we will recieve trying to find a civilian job. The second that they find out you are in the National Guard they will not be inclined to hire you. Why would they? Would you hire an employee that could leave in short notice, and not return for 2 years? Then he could disapear again for another 2 years at any time? You would have to be an idiot to hire sombody in that position wouldnt you?

In the end, we are the most underfunded, overused, and abused red headed stepchildren in the United States Military. And I dont speak for everybody, but all the people I talk to are sick and tired of getting fucked over. 

Today, since I get a lot of traffic from people trying to get information on multiple deployments by searching for keyords like COTTAD and AIP on google and other search engines. I figured I would have to add what I know about the subject, so I can at least help them out a little.

First of all let me start out this way. If you are asked to volunteer for a tour in Iraq Or Afghanistan by signing a COTTAD waiver, I have a small piece of advice for you. DONT DO IT! WALK AWAY! DONT SIGN ANYTHING!

That might sound kind of harsh, and given the circumstances, it could even sound like I am being a totaly self centered ass. But really Im not. Ultimatly it is your choice to go or not. It is you that will have to way the pro’s and con’s and make the decision. But here are some things to think about while considering.

First of all, the rules have changed, and nobody knows what the rules are anymore. You see the policy reagrding the lenght of time that a Reserve or Guard member can be on title 10 orders have changed. And the new policy is not available or has not been implemented yet. Nobody seems to know which. So before you take my word for it, you should try and find out what is in effect now.

Ok, that said here is what the deal was a few months ago.

Reserve and guard are normaly on title 32. To the people that dont know, that basicaly means that you are on active duty for 1 weekend a month and 2 weeks a year. What is reffered to as a Traditional Reservist or M-day person. Normal Active duty is Title 10. For the National Guard there is also State Title 10 active duty, but we will not get into that here. Congress has mandated that no reservist or guardsman may be involentarily ordered to title 10 active duty for any conflict unless during an emergency and is authorized by Congress. And further stated that the time that an M-day person can be on title 10 is limited to a total of 2 years within a 5 year rolling window. You can be mobilized involentarily multiple times, but not to exceed the 2 year limit.

So lets say that your unit is  mobilized for an 18 month tour. You will be given an order that will state you have been mobilized under title 10 section 12302, which is the presidential authority under partial mobilization. When you return, your unit can still be mobilized, but only for another 6 months.

So what normaly happens is the indivisual finishes the tour, and for whatever reason has been transfered to another unit. Now that unit gets orders to deploy for an 18 month tour. You can not be forced to deploy with that unit. The rules state that in order to leave CONUS (continental United States) with that unit. However, you can be mobilized and sent to the mobilization station for a period of 6 months. The time at which you would reach the 2 year mark. But the rule also states that you can not leave CONUS with the unit unless you have enough time waivered by COTTAD (contingency operations temporary tour of active duty) orders, to complete the entire deployment with the  unit.

Now we are into the fun part. This is usually where the unit comes to you and asks you to sign a waiver to the policy so you can deploy with them. There is a specific set of rules that cover this process. You can not be coerced, tricked, or forced  into signing this waiver. It has been my first hand experience, and I have seen it a lot, where this is abused. Because like in my case, you will be thinking, why would I want to sign that? What am I going to get out of it? I already have the combat patch, and a global war on terrosrism expeditionary medal, (And you can only get one of those.) Basicaly nothing, you are being asked to go with the unit and leave your family with little or no justification. There might be other underlying reasons you might consider going. Like for me, If I didnt go then the unit would not have had the best person for the job. Actually they would have deployed with no person in that position at all.

But you should be aware of some of the implications that the unit will not make you aware of. Even though part of the waiver process states very clearly that you are supposed to get a briefing by the first O-5 in your chain of command regarding what you are entitled to for singing, and what you are not entitled to. Then a copy of a sworn statement by that officer that includes the information covered in the briefing along with a copy of the sign in roster showing all that attended it is supposed to be attatched to the 4187 which is part of the waiver packet. However in the case of 36th CAB, that process never happened for any of the units. Not a single person recieved that brief. In fact in one case, a soldier in 449ASB, he signed a COTTAD waiver to go on a deployment  back in 2004. He did not get selected to go on that trip. But the unit took that waiver and whited out the date and changed it, then submitted it for approval. It actually got approved. he is now 3 months away from finishing the 18 month deployment and is still waiting for some kind of resolution from the Inspector Generals office.

So anyway, one of the answers your unit will come up with for your question will be that you are entitled to an extra $1000.00 a month, known as AIP. ( Asignment Incentive Pay)

So let me try and help you with this. Forget it. Dont count on it. Good luck. Ever known anybody that actually got it without haveing to fight for months to get it? Didnt think so. The Inspector Generals office in Baghdad is full of complaints of people not recieving this payment. As a COTTAD you are entitled to start recieving it once you are in the theater of operations. You have to apply for it with, you guessed it, another 4187, and a copy or your orders from your last deployment, and the refrad orders and your DD214. And it doesnt matter what the regulation says about how to, and what is required to apply for it, the request goes through the reserve finance center in Kuwait. And they have pretty much written there own set of rules. And they change all the time. In my case they wanted to see that the DD214 said that I was on title 10 section 12302 orders on the remarks block of the DD214 from the Navy Reserves. But the Navy Reserves does not add this info because it is on the mobilization orders, and they do not do a refrad order because the mob order is self canceling and has all the info on them. It doesnt matter that it is not in writing anywhere that says it has to be there. Therefore they decided not to pay me anything. Too bad, go away, next? Nor does it matter that I have been on COTTAD orders since the first day of mobilization. I took my complaint all the way up my chain of command through the Brigade, and have had an Inpsector General complaint since November. Nothing yet. So like I said, dont let the AIP have anything to do with your decision to sign.

Another good one is the ol we will promote you trick. That is a real common one. The unit states that they will promote you if you sign the waiver. Here is a little secret. If they really are going to promote you, then they will have no objections to doing it right before you sign the waiver. Once you sign it you can forget it. I was promised a promotion by 2 o-5’s and an o-6. Nope still no promotion. In fact ill tell you something else. If you dont have all your NCOES schools completed for the next rank, you will not be elligable for promotion. And you will not be given the oportunity to go to those schools while deployed. So in reality, if you dont have the school, not only will you not get promoted, you will set your carreer progression back by 2 years. Think about it, you wont be able to attend the NCOES school till after you get back from that 18 month deployement.

Here is another good one to consider. You remember that little rule they like to show you when you are getting all your affairs in order to deploy? You know the one, its the one that the ESGR (employer support of the Guard and Reserves) says your civilan employer has to hold your job for you for up to 5 years. That way you are entitled to get your civilan job back when you are done with the mobilization. Guess what? If you deploy volentarily, you are not covered. Thats right, if you sign that COTTAD waiver, your civilian employer does not have to give you back your job when you return.

Ok, so now you are probably thinking, wow thats fucked up. Well you would be right, but we arent done yet. There is more. It gets even better.

Remember when I said that when you are involentarily called up you are under title 10 section 12302 orders? COTTAD orders are covered under title 10 section 12301 (D). And therefore do not count against the 5 year rule. So you can be called up again involentarily under title 10 section 12302 after you get back. The chances of that are increased, if you are transfered to another unit for any reason. With my luck, I would be offered a promotion in another unit, and if i accept it, I would find out afterwards that that unit is scheduled for a deployment. So if you have the kind of luck that I do, then I would think about that one hard.

So basicaly, the army is hard up, and it will do anything in its power to find the neccesary people to deploy and copmplete the mission. I dont have a problem with them doing what it can to fill the ranks, but I do have a problem with people in the chain of command lying to the soldiers. Not to mention the fact that these are the very people that are charged with taking care of these soldiers. I also believe that the soldiers need to be well informed about what they are getting into by signing the waiver. Not to mention that if they sign and dont get the things they were promised than you are going to have some disgruntled people on your hands, at the time when you have other things that really need attention . And besides, like it or not, this war wont last forever. And what is going to happen when these good soldiers cant be retained against there will by rules like stop loss and IRR recalls? They are going to leave, and what types of people are we going to have left then?

I have spent the last few days thinking about what is going on back home with our budget. And generaly all the things that concern me and my future. And it doesnt look too good right now.

I turn around every once in awhile and try to decide who is still behind us and our mission here. And try and come up with some kind of picture of what I will be doing in the next few years. But wait, somebody is missing. The group of people that used to be standing behind us, chearing us on to victory has gotten a lot smaller. And I am not talking about the kind of slowly dwindeling presence that was there at the beginning of this excursion in 2003.  I am talking about the imediate downsizing in the crowd that happened all at once.

Oh I know who is missing, its the people with the purse strings that sent us here in the first place. They very ones that voted to send us here in 2003. They are gone, no notice or anything. They have just thrown in the towell, raised the white flag, and told our enemies the exact date we will be leaving. Does that mean that I can call and tell my wife the exact date that I will be comming home over an unsecure line too?

I dont pretend to know all about how the government works, I kinda have to keep a *tunnel vision* just to stay on top of my own little slice of the pie. But I have learned this. Nothing is free. What I mean by that is this. In order to get the votes needed to secure a withdrawl date im sure there were some crack deals going down in the dark corridors and hallways and back rooms of government buildings all over D.C.  How else would an extra $75 million dollars for storing peanuts get added to an emergency war funding bill?

I wish I had knowledge of who voted which way, and a list of all the things that were included in that bill. Along with who benefited from them. They should be ashamed of themselves. Actually, I would go so far as to say that not only have they told our enemies that no matter what happens, when the withdrawl date comes they will have won, and we are here for no reason at all anymore. They have also caused major delays in the war funding bill being actually approved. And any equipment repair or replacement that stops or is slowed because of it, in this time of national security, (Especialy with all that is going on in the world today.) then that should be considered criminal as well.

I didnt agree with going into Iraq in the first place, but you cant send troops in and then abandon them halfay through the fight. And you sure as hell shouldnt tell us that we are going to be here for another year, and its all going to be for nothing once the deadline gets here. It makes no sense to me at all. Either you feel so strongly about it that you pull the troops out imediatly, or you do everything it takes to win. Is that what our country has come to? A country full of people that only do a half assed job of anything? Wouldnt it be nice to finish one thing that we started since WW2?

And where are the rest of the American people? Shouldnt they be raising hell about this too? Or are the majority of Americans like sheep? They just go wherever they are led. I would hope that people would stand up and demand that we get our second wind and throw everything we have at winning complete and total victory. And send a clear mesage to those that are more concerned about storing peanuts then the lives of americans they sent to fight for their freedom. That there will be strong  and swift actions taken for trading our honor and our national security for a few stupid pet projects that only they will benefit from.

And yes, I did say our national security. I am sure that other countries are watching to see if we cut and run rather then stay and see it through. If we quit now then we will pay for it in the long run. Especialy when they know that the country with the greatest military in the world can be beat so easily, by just waiting for congress to give up.

And what will I tell my kids when they ask why I spent 4 out of the last 6 years away from them, missing their first steps, and riding their bikes without training wheels for the first time? Knowing that sooner or later, their generation will have to come over here and try to finish the job that we were not allowed to.

This whiny sniveling baby boomer generation that is in control of our government today, is giving up to easily. And the worst part is, they are not even paying the price, WE, THE MILITARY ARE. Not them. The very ones that are trying to wave the white flag, are not even effected by this war. So I have no idea why they are the ones that are giving up. Unless there is some political reason that effects their bottom line some how that I dont know about.

So I guess we just wait for the veto and see what happens from there. In the mean time, I will continue to do my best with my little slice of the pie and hope that some common sense will prevail.

Ok so, in light of recent news events concerning the budget impass, I have decided to way in with my 2 cents worth.

A devided house voted Friday to order President Bush to bring home “combat troops” from Iraq next year. Ignoring a veto from the white house they voted 218-212 in favor.

And as I understand it, if it is vetoed, they will need 2/3 majority to overide it. Which is not likely to happen.

In the Senate the Dempcrates  will need 60 votes to prevail. A tall order, because they will need about a dozen republicans to join them.

An hour later President Bush held a press conference standing in fron to military families and veterans and acused Democrates of doing nothing more than political theater that will delay the delivery of needed resources to troops here in Iraq.

Ok, so i am just a soldier looking at it from 8,000 miles away here in Iraq. But, it would seem to me that he is only the pot calling the kettle black. Both sides are using us, (the troops) as leverage to further their own agenda. But wait it gets better, somebody else also spoke spoke about this subject.

On Thursday, Robert Gates said “Lengthy delays in finalizing  supplemental war funding could force army leaders to extend some soldiers tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. Army officials are planning cutbacks in home station training, cuts in prepare of pre deployment training equipment and delays in upgrades to barracks and family facilities worldwide if the Presidents $94 billion dollar supplemental request isnt approved by congress by April 15th. If the funding impass by May 15th, officials will consider even more severe measures: canceling all orders for all repair parts for equipment not related to the war, reducing all repair work at all army depots, and sharply cutting pre deployment training of some brgade combat teams. This in turn will cause units in theater to have their tours extended, because other units are not ready to take their place.”

So how am I supposed to not take this personaly? I dont like to be a pawn used as leverage in some political agenda. I dont care which side is doing it. And in this case, it is blatantly both sides. Not to mention what it does to morale. Not that we have much around here anyway. But this is something everybody here is talking about, and it isnt looking good for us.

The fact is that no matter how we got here, we are here. So why not give us everything we need to finish this as quickly as possible? Send in the thousands and thousands of troops it takes to secure the entire country and then do a one for one swap of authority. One of our brigades for one of the new Iraqi ones? they can train as they go. And if they fail, fuck them. I dont care. Then we can at least say we gave them a chance. And if they choose to continue with their infighting, which they will. Then at least we can say we tried and it was their choice and not our fault.

What we are doing now is just hopeless. And most of us here have already come to the conclusion that if you are waiting on politicians back home to do anything to end this, then you will be waiting a very long time. It is just politics as usual in Washington. And we will continue to be thier pawns.

That is why we need a draft. That way at least we can share the burden of this war with everybody. Not just us comming back here over and over again, while nothing changes. The fear of all “of age” Americans getting drafted and being sent to Iraq would surely force those in Washington to actually look at this war differently. Especially when it starts to effect them on a personal level and not just monetarily.

But oh yeah, that will never happen. Since it is them that would also have to vote to approve a draft.

Well the old saying is deffinatly still true today. Halliburtons trash is this soliers treasure. I am constantly amazed at the amount of money that is wasted every day. How much do you think a 2006 Ford F-350 Super Duty King Cab Duely 4X4 with a power stroke 6.0Liter with less than 10,000 miles on it would cost? Then factor in that this is not a stock OEM vehicle. It is a Centigon armored truck. If you dont know what that means, here is a link to their website with a description of the truck. http://www.centigon.com/index2.html 

So it would be rather stupid to sustain minimal damage to this vehicle and then just throw it away, wouldnt it? I mean, if it was your money and not tax dollars anyway, right? Well this particular one that I am reffering to sustained damage to the front end from an IED. (improvised eplosive device) And that is exactly what happened to it.

Luckily a few enterprising soldiers, ( Ahem, I wont mention any names) found it in the wrecking yard before it was stripped of usefull parts. And recognized that it just needed a couple small things to get it running again. I am not talking about making it look brand new by any means. That would mean it would have to have a new front clip and doors put on it. Parts that are not easy to come by here in Iraq.  I am talking about just making it a good reliable truck for use while finishing the remainder of my tour here.

So after some close inspection of the vehicle and a phone call to a friend I used to work for way back in my teen age years. He owns a company called Picture Vehicle Rentals in Sunland California. He rents cars and trucks to the studios for use in movies and commercials. He has lots of experiance with vehicles that have sustained simialar damage while in Vietnam, and on movie sets. So he was the first one to call and ask for an oppinion.

After talking with him we came to the conclusion that this was going to be a very easy project. Basically the only real damage that is keeping it from running is the transmission cooler lines took shrapnel damage, the fuel lines took shrapnel damage, and the lower radiator hose is shredded. Oh yeah, and the column has been ripped out because “somebody” didnt have a key.

All the other stuff , like the plastic door handles that got wasted, the A/C cooler that took a great deal of shrapnel, and the busted bullet proof glass, and missing left headlight, can all be stuff that is repaired after the truck is running and in use.

So this has become my project, and time is a precious comodity here in Iraq. So unfortunatly my articles might not get posted as quickly as I would like. But it will also help make my time go by faster. I jsut wish that people in the states would give up such an expensive vehicle so easily. Then I could get rich repairing them and selling them.

And if I could find a way to ship this truck back home. I would put a new front clip on it and keep it. I have always wanted one of these trucks. But they are way out of my price range. So I guess it would figure that I can only have one here and I cant take it home.

I will update this post when the truck is running again. Hopefully next week. I will have to wait for a new radiator hose to come from the states. By the way the dealer charges $140.00 for that radiator hose. Ford is very proud of these trucks, arent they?

UPDATE:

24MARCH 2007

Well it turns out that this vehicle did not come from a DRMO lot. And the civilian company that does own it has been actively looking for it. So it will be turned over to them as soon as possible. I guess this blog had something good come of it after all. I can at least say that I helped sombody out with it.

I can only imagine that they will be happy to get it back. Hopefully they will repair it and put it back in service, rather than waste a perfectly good truck by scrapping it for parts.

19 March 2007

Today is the 19th of March 2007. That may mean nothing to a lot of people, but I remember exactly where I was on this day 4 years ago. You see the was the day that we started the war here in Iraq. And yes I was here then too.

It was also the day that President Bush stated “American forces had launched an invasion to disarm Iraq, to free its people, and to defend the world from grave danger. Now that conflict has come, the only way to limit its duration is to apply decisive force. And I assure you, this will not be a campaign of half measures, and we will accept no outcome but victory.”

Here we are, 4 years later. And we are still here. More troops are comming in an attempt at curbing the violence in and around Baghdad. Because apperently, we didnt have enough troops to do it in the first place…OOPS!

So today I thought that I would post some figures about the war so far. I know that to most people these are just numbers, but to the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, and Marines, and their families, and friends, and those of us that wear the uniform now, and have worn it in the past. These are more than just statistics. Every one of these numbers represents something much more to us than just a number on a piece of paper. Please try and keep that in mind when you read them.

1,461–Number of days since the beginning of the Iraq war

2–Number of Medals of Honor awarded

200,000,000–The number of Meals ready to eat handed out

7 Liters–Average amount of water consumed per servicemember per day

33,302–Iraq-related patients treated at Landstuhl as of March 12

7,069–Patients treated for battle injuries

 718,883–Army troops who have served in Iraq as of 31 January

100,000–Marines who have served in Iraq as of 31 January

22,000–Sailors who have served on the ground in Iraq as of 31 January

93,689–Sailors served in Iraq as of 31 January

2,600–Coast Guard Sailors who have served on the ground in Iraq as of 31 January

3,208–U.S. Military deaths through 16 March 2007

23,417–U.S. military wounded through 16 March 2007

2–U.S. military troops missing or captured (SSG Keith Maupin, Spc Ahmed Altale)

2,000,000–Humanitarian rations handed out

9,800,000–Number of Iraqi people that voted in October 2005

79%–Number of voters that voted to adopt the constitution

12,400,000–Number of voters in the December 2005 election

8–Iraqi divisions created and trained

4,135–Planned construction projects

3,128–Completed construction projects

4.5 Billion–Construction costs of those projects

530–Water projects completed

161–Primary healthcare centers planned

31–Primary healthcare centers completed

9–Number of those healthcare centers impacted by insurgent attacks

962–Schools built or renovated

500,000–Students in those schools

17,000–Minimum number of prisoners held by the U.S. as of March 2007

769–Contractors killed through 2006

3,367–Contractors wounded through 2006

134–British military deaths as of March 16 2007

124–Other coalition deaths as of 16 March 2007

Well I was told that yesterdays post was mean. It makes me sound like an asshole. Oh well. Too bad. I dont care what it makes me sound like. As I said in the beginning, this is my blog. If you dont want to hear it, or are otherwise offended then I have and idea, STOP READING IT.

The fact of the matter is that I really dont just hate muslims. I hate all organized religion. Cathoilics, Jews. Protestants, Baptists, Hindu, Mormans, Budhists. All of them. They all have the same agenda. Their goals are pretty much the same across the board. That they are right, and everybody else is wrong. And to convert as many people on the planet as they can to their religion. When in reality, they dont even follow the rules of their religion to begin with.

And in case you didnt already know it, more wars have been fought, and more people have been killed over religion than any other thing in the history of the human race.

That does not mean that I dont believe in god, I do. I also think that I will more than likely spend eternity rotting in hell. But I will not be alone, I will have plenty of religious hypocrites to keep me company. And it will be fun to say I told you so for all of eternity.

There is only one thing that I hate more than religion. And that is stupid people. (So naturally hating muslims comes so easily, dont it?) That is people who do really stupid shit. And then convince others to do it with them.

Case in point. The cultural awareness training that we are now forced to attend prior to deploying over here now. We have gotten to the point in our society that it is more important to make sure that we do not hurt their feelings while we are occupieng their country. What ever happened to the old saying that to the victor goes the spoils? No, now we put ourselves at more risk to make sure that we apease them and their culture. Even if it goes against ours.

In western culture, we have always shied away from deliberatly placing women on the front lines. Agree with it or not, it doesnt matter. It doesnt matter what side of the isle you are on in this agrument. The fact is that females are not allowed to be in combat arms jobs. But to apease the culture here, we go against our own culture and do everything we can to make sure that there are females available to all patrols, so that they can do the body searches of potential enemy females for weapons and IED’s. That way we dont offend the male family members of the women. (And we are not talking about strip searches here.)

Not long ago, if an army conquered a country they made that country stop practicing their customs and culture and made them assimilate the customs and cultures of the conquering army. We have gone from one extreem to another.

Now we are being forced to adapt to a culture that they dont even fully practice or believe in themselves. Alchohol is a good example. And since yesterday was St Patricks day it is a fitting one too. You can get alchohol in ever country in the middle east. A lot of soldiers here have been given non judicial punishment for drinking booze that was made by Iraqi’s and sold to them. If you go Dubai,or Bahrain you can find nightclubs and bars everywhere. They even have an Irish village. Complete with an Irish pub and plenty of Irish ex-pats. Forget the fact that it is illegal to be intoxicated in that country. And if you go to these night clubs you can hang out in the parking lot and watch the women change from their traditional atire, into something a little more appropriate (slutty) for the evening. But god damn us to hell if we are going to break the rules. Only they are allowed to do that. 

The Navy even made it illegal to place mesages on bombs we were dropping at the start of the war. One reporter took a picture of a 500lb bomb on the flight deck waiting to be loaded and dropped on a target in Afghanistan, that said “Hijack this, fags.” Somehow, it made it to the front page of Time magazine. And the american people were outraged. Oh my fucking god, are they really doing that? We cant have that. We need to put a stop to that, after all, we have an image to uphold. They should have though it through a little more thoroughly in the beginning. After all, what the fuck difference does it make what is said on the bomb that is about to kill them? Its ok to kill them as long as we dont insult them while we are doing right? Because we care more about their feelings than their lives.

And now, it seems that Americans care more about the enemies feelings than our lives. And that just pisses me off. I am getting the feeling that the United States is becomming a country full of politicaly correct pussies. I also wouldnt be suprised if that comes back to haunt us someday.

Normally not long ago, we would also be authorized to recieve what is called the Ocupation Medal.Its given to servicemembers that served in a country that is being occupied by the U.S. Army. But we are not allowed to recieve it. Because we are not categorized as an army of occupation. And it would be politicaly incorrect to say we are. I guess that President Bush was wrong then. The end of major hostilities never really happened. But they keep saying we are not at war. Then they say we are caught in the middle of a civil war. Except its not really a civil war. So if we are not at war, and we are not an army of occupation, and their is no civil war to break up. Then what the fuck are we doing here again?

Well I had written a very good article for today. Unfortunatly, because the Iraqi’s are hell bent on destroying everything, including each other and their own infrastructure. Just as I was about to hit the publish button, the power went out and the computer shut off. Thats it, end of story, literaly.

So instead, now that I am in a very bad mood. I am going to take this oportunity to tell you how I feel about them. You know the ones, the ones that want to be stupid and try to kill each other instead of advancing out of the stone age, and have reliable electricity, and running water with the rest of the planet. No wonder they say the Jews are Gods “chosin people.” If I had to choose between the Jews and the ignorant stupid little pieces of shiite garbage, which way do you think I would go?

Fuck, I am so pissed at these fucking morons right now. All they have to do is cure the permanet case of cranium rectomitis that seems to be a common plague around here, and we can help rebuild their fucking nasty piece of shit country.

But instead, they would rather expend every ounce of energy in their nasty little boddies to try and kill each other and any progress we are trying to make.

I am convinced that the planet would be a lot better place without them. I am tired of having my life interupted, and getting dragged to this shithole, armpit, boil on the ass of the planet place to continue this worthless fucking cause of trying to make their lives better.

Who gives a fuck about them? I sure as hell dont. They are some of the most worthless, fucking nasty little cockbite, stupid, uneducated, hypocrite, dirty, pieces of shit it has ever been my misfortune to see in all my travels around the world in my entire life.

They are the reason we have nuculear weapons. Fuck, I say the change in policy should be to train them all and arm them all to the teeth. then leave. Then we can watch them kill each other more efficiently from a distance. And when they are done we can come back and finish the rest of the fucks off that are still alive. Because they will, like everything else they do, do a half assed, slipshod, crapy job of that too.

Because that is how fucking stupid they really are. They have been here for thousands of years, and they have more sand than any other country on the planet. But it took sombody from the west to come and show them how to make fucking glass, and drill for oil. What a fucking monumentaly stupid mistake that was.

So I say FUCK THEM. I say that all the countries on the planet need to hold a summit, and decide which countries people have worn out their welcome on this planet. And start exterminating them like the nasty little insects that they are.

They dont have a single redeeming quality about them or their culture. Shit, even their food sux. And they are some of the worst polluters on the planet. Wait a minute, what am I saying? They ARE the worst polluters on the planet.

Then maybe I can return to my piecefull life that I only got to enjoy for six months, before these muslim fucks interupted it.

If this sounds predjudice to you then you are right, I am. Being predjudice is something you learn. And if you had been forced to spend as much of your life over here dealing with these idiots as I have then you would feel the same way as I do.

  Well tody I woke up with the same questions on my mind as I do every other day. Only today Joe Galloway wrote about them too. So I figured that since he can ask them better than I can, I would just add his article here today.

COMMENTARY

A desperate Army is scraping the bottom

By JOSEPH L. GALLOWAY

McClatchy Newspapers

An Army already stretched painfully thin is now being asked to find the additional 25,000-plus troops to man President Bush’s escalation in Iraq and, it’s now obvious, prepare for additional combat rotations next year.

All the easy sweeping up of manpower already has been done. All the obvious moves to rob Peter to pay Paul have been carried out just to keep this unending war going.

Now comes the hardest part: Units that are completing their second or third yearlong combat tours are being extended for another four or six months. Other units, now home for their promised 12 months with their families, are being told they will go back to combat sooner than that.

Army National Guard units that’d already served the maximum time on active duty, in combat, are being told that the rules have changed, and they’re again being called back for Iraq service.

It doesn’t matter that those Guard units were ordered to leave virtually all of their equipment in Iraq and have had none of it replaced so that they might actually train for the eventuality that has befallen them. Nor does it matter that there may not be equipment and vehicles waiting for them in Iraq when they get there.

Nor does it seem to matter that, four years into this war, there still aren’t enough sets of body armor to provide one for every soldier sent to Iraq in this escalation.

Or that in the fervent search for bodies to fill the quotas the Army has begun combing the lists of wounded soldiers and re-evaluating their fitness to return to the war, rating some soldiers who are no longer physically able to even wear the 35 pounds of body armor good to go.

That might be one solution to the scandalous treatment of soldiers on outpatient status at Walter Reed Army Hospital - rate them good to go and send them back to Iraq.

The Army, that once-magnificent Army we counted on as our shield in a dangerous world, is being bled to death in the streets and on the roads of Iraq and Afghanistan.

Politicians only now are talking about adding 100,000 more soldiers to the Army and Marine Corps, when that’s something that should have begun on Sept. 12, 2001.

Where and how do they propose to find and enlist 10,000 or 20,000 more troops each year when it is literally all the recruiters can do to find enough young men and women to fill the existing quota of at least 80,000 each year?

Again, all the cheap fixes have been used. They’ve raised the maximum age for enlistment from 35 to 42. Should we kick that higher, say 65? Then you would have your choice: Medicare or boot camp?

We’ve doubled the number of convicted felons permitted to enlist. We’ve lowered the minimum standards to allow for more high school dropouts, more people who test in the lowest quarter on mental aptitude, more people who are tattooed from elbow to ear.

And we’ve boosted enlistment bonuses to $25,000. Sign on the dotted line, young man, and you’re on your way to boot camp and Iraq with money in your pocket.

Of course, if the economy does a meltdown there could be a boom in enlistments and all our problems would be solved.

If this war continues much longer it may be hard to postpone that economic meltdown. The Defense Department budget is now running at half a trillion dollars annually. The war in Iraq costs more than $2 billion a week. The long-term costs of Bush’s great adventure in taking down the late and unlamented Saddam Hussein are now estimated at perhaps $2.5 trillion when lifetime health care for thousands of wounded and disabled soldiers and Marines is figured in.

If the war ended today it would cost $65 billion to repair and replace the equipment worn out or destroyed in Iraq.

All of these costs are being pushed down the line to be borne by our children and grandchildren and their children in the form of burgeoning budget deficits seen and, as yet, unseen.

When is someone, somewhere in this country going to stand up and demand an accounting for all we’ve lost in a foolish, unjustified and unnecessary war in