Milestone of 1,000th U.S. Death in Iraq Looms for Bush

[kskiska]

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States faces a painful moment probably next month when its military deaths in Iraq (news - web sites) are expected to surpass 1,000. It will also be a crucial moment for President Bush (news - web sites), who faces a presidential campaign in which Iraq is a central issue.

"Unfortunately that day will likely arrive next month and it will be a fulcrum event that may change many people's views of what we're doing in Iraq," said David Birdsell, a political scientist at Baruch College in New York City.

(snip)

According to the most up-to-date Pentagon (news - web sites) figure, which usually lags events on the ground by a few days, the United States has lost 931 military personnel in Iraq since the war began in March 2003.

The moment will likely arrive around the time when the candidates are preparing for their crucial debates, tentatively scheduled for late September and early October.

more…
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=615&e=4&u=/nm/20040811/pl_nm/campaign_iraq_dc

[sniffa]

1. i was going to vote for bush

when it was onLy 999 dead.. but 1000?

i feeL (sickLy i might add) that this may be Lowering the bar again... framing it so as if we don't hit 1000 the right can cLaim 'victory' (or mission accompLished).

[DS1]

5. George W. Bush. He didn't send 4000 troops to their deaths.

Do you know what John Kerry did in Vietnam?



*cue black screen with voice over*

George Bush, fighting for your safety

[AndyTiedye]

14. They'll Just Let LieBold (Diebold) Handle the Count

If people accepted Gore's vote totals going down as votes were tabulated in
Florida in 2000, they won't mind a little fiddling with the death toll of our servicemen:

"495? Wasn't it 931 yesterday? Oh well, 495 is better than 931, I guess".

[Skittles]

22. good lord sniffa

you nearly gave me a heart attack; I was fixing to come over to kick your ass.

[whistle]

2. This may be why the military is holding off going after Sadr....

...any resurgence of Iraqi resistance will most definitely bring on an acceleration in U.S casualties. Bush is not looking forward to having media coverage of the 1,000 U.S. soldier killed during his acceptance speech at the RNC, I sure.

[Jacobin]

3. Brace yourself for all the:

"Oh that's nothing there are more traffic accidents in Kalamazoo,etc etc etc."

Forgetting of course that out of 135,000 or so troops, one thousand will have died and many thousands are permanently maimed for life.

A very large percentage of casualties indeed.

I hate these fuckers running our country. I really do.

[Az_lefty]

4. If this planned battle takes off in Najaf

we may see 1000 KIA's before next month....not something I want to see but you know it's coming. bush* has got to be held accountable for this!
:cry:

[LauraK]

6. IMO we won't know an accurate toll for ages!

There are way too many indications that US death counts are not being recorded accurately. Last week NPR said 13,000 wounded from a good source. What does the pentagon say, 600? Brace yourself for the real numbers when we get control of our government back.

[luaneryder]

7. I don't think we'll have an accurate

total ever. DoD does their best to hide the stats from citizens and succeeds. We will never know the truth.

[Nambe]

8. I agree. We'll probably hear 2,000 non-combat deaths....

somewhere down the road. How can the rescue team report blood and flesh everywhere today and the pentagon only report one casualty?

[Beetwasher]

9. "Kerry may just keep quiet. The media will probably do the job for him,"

Oh, stop it, Yer Killing me!!!! The media doing it's job?!?

Iraq? What's that?

There's people dying over there?

I don't need to know about this shit! Tell me more about how Kerry is a coward and about the terraists under my bed!

[4_Legs_Good]

10. There will be *BIG* news the day we hit 1,000

It will last at the top of CNN Headline news for about 72 minutes. Then there will be another terrorist threat, we'll catch a major baddie, we'll find another Sarin gas cannister, Cheney will resign, etc.

It will happen, and it will be big.

(My other prediction is that we'll kill or capture Al Sadr by the end of next week)

david

[Rambis]

11. There have been 500+ suicides

They are not on record anywhere as far as I know.

[leftchick]

12. more than likely the 1000th will be within the coming week...

If the US continues to pursue the Najaf massacre.

[Zhade]

13. Just think how well we'd be doing with an anti-war candidate.

If the election is legit (hahahahaha! I crack myself up) we'll likely win anyway - but can you picture the numbers we'd be pulling with someone who had consistently denounced the illegal invasion and occupation?

It might have been a smackdown of Reaganesque proportion, with the added benefit of rewarding courage and honesty.

[ljm2002]

15. Not to mention...

...that 5 times as many American soldiers have died in combat since the so-called "end of major combat operations" than before that false marketing phrase was uttered.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

16. I can picture a terrific anti-bush ad

that utilizes these statistics, including the suicides, amid footage of Dumbyass declaring the war in Iraq officially over.

[catmandu57]

17. I believe we've passed that already

We are being lied to big time, and it's not about getting a blowjob. Where's the fucking outrage? I believe there are freezers with bodies stacked like cordwood, and even if we regain control of the govt. we may never know the true cost of our indifference.

[Merlin]

18. We need a great song to commemorate this event.

It should be a tragic-ironic adaptation of the Ballad of the Green Beret. (Wish I had the time!)

[dbt]

19. I want the name of that 1,000th KIA branded on bu$h's forehead!

BACKWARDS, so the Worthless Little Fuck can read it when he looks in the mirror!

Didn't we use to at least imprison murderers?

:freak:
dbt

[Tripmann]

20. Hopefully it will be a short name...

...so he can read it (better make it big-print too, just in case)

Tripmann

[Skittles]

21. Is that the magic number? 1000 needless, senseless deaths?

I am f***ing DISGUSTED.