Dual Mission Puts Strain on Nat'l Guard

[RedEarth]

LAS VEGAS -- The National Guard soldiers were upbeat and their sense of mission strong at their annual convention. But they were also painfully aware that their mission no longer involves being mere "weekend warriors."

The National Guard -- long viewed as an emergency backup to the U.S. military -- now looks more like another full-fledged branch of the armed forces, making up 40 percent of those fighting in Iraq.

More than one of every six U.S. casualties in Iraq has been a National Guardsman or reservist. The turmoil has stretched the Guard thin as it carries out a dual mission of fighting a bloody insurgent war while also protecting airports and nuclear power plants from terrorists.

"This is not your father's National Guard," said Lt. Gen. H Steven Blum, who oversees the National Guard. "It's not an either-or deal. We must do both."

Bush "did not give them training and equipment. He has never given them a good reason why they are fighting and dying for him," said Karma Kumlin, whose husband is deployed with the Minnesota National Guard.

http://www.newsday.com/news/politics/wire/sns-ap-a-changing-guard,0,1495186,print.story?coll=sns-ap-politics-headlines