All but 160 U.S. soldiers will be out of Iraq by January 2012

[ClarkUSA]

End of an era: The closure of Camp Victory after eight years

The Associated Press
Published: Saturday, October 15, 2011 at 7:56 p.m.
Last Modified: Saturday, October 15, 2011 at 7:56 p.m.

BAGHDAD — The U.S. is abandoning plans to keep U.S. troops in Iraq past a year-end withdrawal deadline, The Associated Press has learned. The decision to pull out fully by January will effectively end more than eight years of U.S. involvement in the Iraq war, despite ongoing concerns about its security forces and the potential for instability.

http://www.ocala.com/article/20111015/WIRE/111019795/1402/NEWS?Title=All-but-160-U-S-soldiers-will-be-out-of-Iraq-by-January

"... a senior Obama administration official in Washington confirmed Saturday that all American troops will leave Iraq except for about 160 active-duty soldiers attached to the U.S. Embassy.

A senior U.S. military official confirmed the departure" to the AP.... "Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue."

Read more: http://tinyurl.com/presidentobamaendediraqwar

[AngkorWot]

1. inb4 misplaced anti-Obama ragefest

[joshcryer]

2. Yep

[Name removed]

60. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Number23]

61. Too late!

:rofl:

[treestar]

63. So true!

160? That's a battalion! :rofl:

[bluestateguy]

3. Just enough to guard the embassy

which is pretty standard around the world.

I'm proud to have opposed the war from Day 1, unlike the Johnny Come Lately American public.

[BeHereNow]

4. Those numbers are irrelevant without knowing the number

of private contractors that will remain.
Half the truth is not the whole truth but
perhaps a bid to gain some public approval.
I do not approve of manipulation.
How many private mercs with remain in Iraq
on payroll (our tax dollars) at many times the cost of troops.
Sorry, but this press release means nothing with out knowing
who IS STAYING in Iraq and to me, is nothing more
than a manipulation for political gain.
BHN

[Name removed]

8. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[BeHereNow]

19. Pay attention Clifford...

Who do you think is footing the bill for the private contractors?
I'll give you a hint: It is not the Iraqis.

And just a question as an aside-
Must you always be so vitriolic when you reply to my posts?
What is that about anyway?

BHN

[renate]

23. yep. an in-law of mine is going to be in Iraq for two more years

Construction, but still, there he'll be.

[Tx4obama]

24. There are Americans working in countries all over the world.

I take it that if your in-law wanted to quit his job he could come home, right?
That would be his choice.

Choice is something that Our Troops do not have, so I am thrilled to hear the good news!

[Scuba]

25. How many contractors? 64,000 of them. More than the number of troops...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x1891617

[bhikkhu]

55. Many of them Iraqi - cooks, laundry service, drivers, translators, etc

There have been contractors involved in every US presence everywhere - it just means someone hired to fill a role on a temporary basis.

With the troops gone, there will be far fewer roles to fill.

[BeHereNow]

58. THANKS for the link- great thread and gets to the bottom line.

As written by bvar22:

"if the American people got The OIL,
I could understand it,
not condone it, but understand it.

But The American people do NOT get The Oil and other resources.
The Global Corporations get THAT for FREE.
If we're lucky, the Global Corporations will SELL some of it to us for vastly inflated prices.
The American People only get to PAY for The WARS with our Blood & Money.
The Global Corporations get The LOOT!"

Indeed- the multi nationals use American tax dollars to pay
for the private companies given the no-bid contracts to perform
security, construction, and other infrastructure operations, many of whose employees
are veterans from previous wars.

Met one yesterday. A vietnam vet leaving for Washington today
for training to guard the US Embassy in Iraq.
His salary- $100,000.00 dollars a year, paid for by our tax dollars.
While not joyous with his new career, he explained that
it was not possible for him to turn down the money.

He knows that the whole operation is a scam and that the operations
there have nothing to do with the rhetoric presented by our
government, but at his age, in a country that offers him no future-
what are his choices?

I wished him well, sincerely. My brother is in a similar position.
But as Bvar22 has so succinctly pointed out- these corporate
monsters, with the complicity of our representatives are basically
using our tax dollars for their personal gain.

BHN

[In Other News]

5. Excellent

:thumbsup::thumbsup:

[avaistheone1]

6. How about all the contractor/soldiers we are paying a million dollars a head for?

Will they all be out by 2012 as well?

[EFerrari]

11. This article says 5K will remain in security roles. n/t

[Tx4obama]

14. Where does it say that? n/t

[joshcryer]

15. "security contractors" = "U.S. Soldiers"

duh

[Tx4obama]

17. "security contractors" ARE NOT "U.S. Soldiers". All the TROOPS are coming home :)

Except of course for the ones guarding the U.S. Embassy but all of our embassies have U.S. troops as guards.

[sabrina 1]

22. Security contractors are mercenaries. Blackwater was in Iraq Caci

and many English mercenary companies who got the 'contracts' in return for their assistance with the war. Some of their 'contractors' came from some of the worst and most brutal dictatorships in the world.

[avaistheone1]

45. That's right sabrina. Look at atrocities the military contractors were responsible for in Fallujah.

They made things much worse.

[ClarkUSA]

16. They'll "be tasked with helping protect American diplomats and facilities around the country"

About 5,000 security contractors and personnel will be tasked with helping protect American diplomats and facilities around the country, the State Department has said.

The U.S. Embassy will still have a handful of U.S. Marines for protection and 157 U.S. military personnel in charge of facilitating weapons sales to Iraq. Those are standard functions at most American embassies around the world and would be considered part of the regular embassy staff.

http://www.ocala.com/article/20111015/WIRE/111019795/1402/NEWS?p=3&tc=pg

[ClassWarrior]

32. Sort of like how they've protected American diplomats and facilities...

...by mowing down and blowing up countless innocent Iraqi civilians?

And all on our dime?

NGU.

[ClarkUSA]

46. Your rhetoric is patently false.

:boring:

[EFerrari]

49. And your story has been repudiated by the White House. n/t

[ClarkUSA]

53. lol! Since when do you believe what the White House says?

[SwampG8r]

66. since when do you not?

[sabrina 1]

67. The Arms Trade IS a standard function of the American Empire

Why are we in the business of selling weapons? The CIA is also in Iraq. The US is not leaving Iraq, not until the last contractor/mercenary, soldier, arms dealer and anyone else who doesn't belong there, are gone. That is what the Iraqi people have demanded, but for their trouble, they were shot at 29 peaceful protesters slaughtered, hundreds of others imprisoned and tortured, their Arab Spring was not cheered on by the US, and the US Media completely ignored it, and not a single US official condemned the brutality of the regime installed by them in the name of Democracy and the American people. Not one.

Nothing has changed in Iraq, we just have a new dictator who so far has behaved himself as far as his bosses are concerned. But if he ever gets any ideas, such as Iraq owns its oil, his fate will be no different than any of our other brutal allies once they strayed from the agenda.

All these things are what have to change and I hope now that the people of world are awakened and united, those changes will begin to happen in the near future. This is the old way, and it has been bloody and brutal and shameful.

[slay]

7. I hope this is true

i read on yahoo news (blech) that the white house has not actually made this decision yet - but if they haven't THEY BETTER! both wars are wasteful, murderous bullshit wars for profit.

[ClarkUSA]

9. "AP: U.S. drops keeping troops in Iraq" (USAToday.com)

BAGHDAD (AP) – The U.S. is abandoning plans to keep U.S. troops in Iraq past a year-end withdrawal deadline, The Associated Press has learned. The decision to pull out fully by January will effectively end more than eight years of U.S. involvement in the Iraq war, despite ongoing concerns about its security forces and the potential for instability.

Read more: http://www.usatoday.com/news/military/story/2011-10-15/Iraq-withdrawal-war-troops/50786604/1?csp=34news

[Tx4obama]

10. It is true. And it is on the front page of CNN.com right now. n/t

[EFerrari]

43. Then it must be true.

WMD - Yellow Cake - Bush was right

http://ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-130619

[Name removed]

12. Deleted message

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[JohnnyRingo]

13. 160 soldiers carrying wallets that say:

"bad motherfucker"

I'm an antiwar activist since the '60s, but I wouldn't mess with that last score of soldiers that asked to be left behind.

[sabrina 1]

18. What about the Private Army of Mercenaries, which is bigger

than the regular army in both Afghanistan and Iraq right now? The law, airc, says that they can be there so long as there are regular army personnel there.

The Iraqis, in their Arab Spring demonstrations (yes they had them, but they shot and arrested by our puppet government there) demanded that all military bases be removed from their country and the huge 'Embassy' also. What will happen to with them? Are they going to be handed over to the Iraqis?

[EFerrari]

20. The crux is the Iraqis do not want to extend immunity

and the Pentagon won't stay without it. It sounds like a stand off.

[malaise]

26. You are 100% correct

:hi:

[joshcryer]

21. Yes, the Iraqis get all the bases and equipment.

[aikoaiko]

29. I wondered about the private security types as well.

The last I heard was that contractors with guns (i.e., mercenaries) was actually a small percentage of all contractors.

Where did you see info that mercenaries outnumbered official US troops?

edited to add some info:
http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/R40764.pdf

[Agony]

35. Who the hell knows and how could we...

Exclusive: U.S. Blocks Oversight of Its Mercenary Army in Iraq

"Stuart Bowen, the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction (SIGIR), is essentially in the dark about one of the most complex and dangerous endeavors the State Department has ever undertaken, one with huge implications for the future of the United States in Iraq. “Our audit of the program is making no progress,” Bowen tells Danger Room."


http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2011/07/iraq-merc-army/

[sabrina 1]

62. Thank you. That needs full exposure so we don't fall for this

deception that the US is out of Iraq. Last I heard there was an army of 'private contractors' of over 120,000 there. I know there is a law that says they can only be there funded by the American taxpayer IF they are supporting the US Military. Not sure how many actual people in the US Military have to be there to get around that law. And how about the CIA? We KNOW they are all over the ME. They are in Pakistan helping with the Drone program, eg along with Blackwater now X something or another.

I hope these questions will be asked and ANSWERED. It's the people's money after all.

[Agony]

65. THIS is what needs full exposure...

"My Administration is committed to creating an unprecedented level of openness in Government."

http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/TransparencyandOpenGovernment/

:angry:

Cheers anyway
Agony

[piratefish08]

27. how many 'contractors'? thousands? tens of thousands?

how many licks to the center of a Tootsie Pop?

the world may never know.

[EFerrari]

44. This article says 5K but, it's the Pentagon.

Who knows, maybe they lose "contractors", too.

[seaglass]

28. Only because Obama cannot get the Iraqi govt to agree to immunity for the troops

he wants to keep there after the negotiated deadline.

[spanone]

30. k&r...

[lonestarnot]

31. Good fucking thing since we are a trillion and over on these damn wars.

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

33. AKA The SOFA negotiated by Chimp.

This is what happened at the announcement of the Agreement

[MadHound]

34. Just in time for them to be redeployed to Yemen or Uganda, or to the Big Kahuna,

The Af-Pak theater.

Glad they are coming home, but we're still involved in far too many military actions and are spending far too much of our money on the military.

[woo me with science]

36. The administration is not leaving Iraq and has no plans to weaken the military industrial complex.

US plans 3 billion dollar mercenary force in Iraq for 2012
http://jhaines6.wordpress.com/2011/06/07/u-s-plans-3-billion-mercenary-force-for-iraq/

Mercenary forces to double in Iraq after 2011
http://waronyou.com/topics/u-s-to-double-mercenary-forces-in-iraq-after-2011-military-pullout/

As U.S. Military Exits Iraq, Contractors To Enter
http://www.npr.org/2011/05/17/136357821/as-u-s-military-exits-iraq-contractors-to-enter

White House denies decision to pull troops out of Iraq is final
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x5028292


There is always isolated talk of troop drawdowns in this or that place by this administration and its mouthpieces, who conveniently neglect to mention escalations or new conflicts elsewhere or the replacement of drawn-down troops by mercenaries.

Drawdowns and end to war, my ass. War is PROFIT for the banks and corporations who hire our politicians, and they have no intention of slowing down the war machine. Draw down one place, ramp up somewhere else, or replace troops with mercenaries who cost ten times as much. Obama already had Panetta out talking about how the Super Congress must cut Social Security and Medicare rather than endangering the military budget, and this week he came out with another warning about cuts. And off we go into new countries.

Make no mistake about it, the military industrial complex need not worry about its future under Obama:


SOCOM. Bush- 60 countries. Obama 120 countries by end of 2011
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=439&topic_id=2118912&mesg_id=2122224

US Military pushing for up to 18,000 troops to remain in Iraq
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=439&topic_id=2118912&mesg_id=2119095 ; http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Foreign-Policy/2011/0907/Iraq-withdrawal-How-many-US-troops-will-remain

OBAMA AGREES WITH PANETTA, ENDORSES MEDICARE ‘ADJUSTMENTS’ OVER DEFENSE CUTS
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x1692899

Panetta Starts Singing Contractors’ Tune After Closed-Door Meeting
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x1964568

Panetta: Cutting too deep would devastate military
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x5025964

A Top Senate Dem Says Iran Plot May Be Act Of War
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x5024359

[WinkyDink]

40. Thank you for cutting through the Official BS.

[leftstreet]

48. +1

[bvar22]

50. I will have to see it

I will have to see it.


Recommending post #36 by woo me with science.



You will know them by their WORKS,
not by their excuses.

Solidarity!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[Desertrose]

51. +1

Thanks for this.

[rainbow4321]

37. Buried in the article: Iraq refusing troop immunity and US is getting pissy

The Iraqi PM quoted as saying he doesn't have the votes in Parliment to get the US troops immunity in Iraqi courts....


From the first link in the OP:

Throughout the discussions, Iraqi leaders have adamantly refused to give U.S. troops immunity from prosecution in Iraqi courts, and the Americans have refused to stay without it.

[Scurrilous]

38. K & R

:thumbsup:

[Bonobo]

39. Want to bet $1,000? nt

[ChiciB1]

41. I BELIEVE It WHEN I SEE It!! Senior Military Officials Simply Don't Make

my heart go THUMPITY, THUMP!

[polly7]

42. Who needs troops on the ground anymore when you've got drones and aren't afraid to use them? nt.

[EdMaven]

47. and how many contractors paid by the US government will remain?

[former9thward]

52. A false report according to the White House. Why is no one surprised.

http://news.yahoo.com/no-decision-yet-future-troop-presence-iraq-u-002648871.html

[ClarkUSA]

54. It sounds like some folks let the cat out of the bag before the WH was ready to go public.

From the OP:

"... a senior Obama administration official in Washington confirmed Saturday that all American troops will leave Iraq except for about 160 active-duty soldiers attached to the U.S. Embassy.

A senior U.S. military official confirmed the departure" to the AP.... "Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue."

Read more: http://tinyurl.com/presidentobamaendediraqwar

[former9thward]

56. Time will tell.

[Name removed]

68. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[bluestate10]

57. More good news. A US Drone may have killed the head of the Haqqani

network in Pakistan two days ago. If confirmed, another bastard has been sent to hell.

[Presidentcokedupfratboy]

59. 'Bout effin time

Never should have gone in to begin with.

[Romulox]

64. Obama supports legal MMJ

Wait, I may have gotten my propaganda mixed up... :silly:

[Fearless]

69. And the contractors? How about our money? Will they be leaving Iraq too?

[Umbral]

70. *this number does not include hired goons, CIA operatives, itinerant hikers, etc etc etc. nt