As close as I can figure it there have bee 2,573 U.S. Military deaths in Iraq since March of 2003. All but 537 of the deaths are considered combat fatalities. That seems like almost 20% accidental deaths. There have also been somewhere between 39,000 and 44,000 civilian deaths.
The reason I bring this up is that it seems strange to me that almost the only place where you get any detailed information about the solders who have given everything for their country is usually in local papers in their home towns. We all get to read about Cindy Sheehan’s son and might hear about the ones who were singled out by the sick members of that church that believes that the reason the solders are dieing is because of the acceptance of gays in the U.S. and see it as their mission to show up at funerals and cause even more grief to for the families.
Now suddenly, a solders death is national news and why? He happened to be the nephew of a U.S. Senator.
Marine Cpl. Phillip E. Baucus died Saturday in Al Anbar province in Iraq. The loss is just as devastating to his family as all the others before him; I don’t mean to minimize that but what about all the others?
The other thing that bothers me is that almost 20% are considered accidental deaths. If they hadn’t been sent all the way to Iraq would they be dead now? In my book that makes them combat deaths.
As for the Iraqi civilian deaths,
“We don’t do body counts.”
General Tommy Franks
Then again I could be full of shit.
i read some place, had to be dallas paper, that suicide is higher with this war than any other war we have been it...i forget what the percentage was ..but it was really high..and you never hear about them..it must be in that 20%, i dont know why but it seems like it was 8%...tht is so very sad....