Sad 8th year anniversary of Iraq war

[pronk]

Yes fellas, tomorrow March 19 is the 8th year anniversary of that crommy and pointless war against Hussein's Iraq and against common sense.

I salute our soldiers for risking their lives for our Country and I shed a tear, bow my head and fall on my knees for those who never came home alive, for our silenced fallen hero's.

Thank you fellas!

[FourLengthsClear]

I wonder how many Americans who now think that the invasion or Iraq was pointless were in favour of it at the time
Opinion polls would suggest a very high number albeit I don't have a lot of faith in opinion polls.

[Carseller4]

If Saddam hadn't lied about WMD's there would have been no need to take his ass out. Miss having a decisive leader. The guy we have now can't tie his shoe without OK from the UN.

[iceminers26]

now blackie is sending the boys back to war, wish someone would just take him out

[Dirty Sanchez]

Yes fellas, tomorrow March 19 is the 8th year anniversary of that crommy and pointless war against Hussein's Iraq and against common sense.

I salute our soldiers for risking their lives for our Country and I shed a tear, bow my head and fall on my knees for those who never came home alive, for our silenced fallen hero's.

Thank you fellas!

That guy defined my career...lost friends and teammates...but never looked back and tried to blame anyone or become hateful over it. Too many people today have become racist and despicable over the country and its President. There's a reason the US is the country that many want to go to and no matter what side of the fence you fall on politically you should always support the guy carrying the torch. Too many today forget that and would rather spew trash.

[chemicalbrother]

my cousin...year older than me, great friends growing up, still awesome as we went our separates on opposites coasts..

he has 2 beautiful daughters and a wife, and is leaving for 6 months in afghanistan on sunday. he's the baddest man i know, but we've had some drunken convos lately that have my eyes open...shit is really real over there.

break 'em off B, we're all right back here waiting for you ************. my brother and i....you're our hero. stay up, go do your things and get back so we can get back to having your girls (and kendall) being with their family.

[chemicalbrother]

now blackie is sending the boys back to war, wish someone would just take him out

careful there, killer.

[pico]

i think we won like 7 and half years ago

[str]

The whole thing is pitiful.

[GmCrazy]

They should send all the troops home immediately, wayy too long

[katstale]

I know Bhagdad Bob is sad for sure.

[Vesuvius]

Yes fellas, tomorrow March 19 is the 8th year anniversary of that crommy and pointless war against Hussein's Iraq and against common sense.

I salute our soldiers for risking their lives for our Country and I shed a tear, bow my head and fall on my knees for those who never came home alive, for our silenced fallen hero's.

Thank you fellas!

CHANGE is coming!

[pronk]

War facts



U.S. Troop Casualties – 4,374 US troops; 98% male. 91% non-officers; 82% active duty, 11% National Guard; 74% Caucasian, 9% African-American, 11% Latino. 19% killed by non-hostile causes. 54% of US casualties were under 25 years old. 72% were from the US Army



Non-U.S. Troop Casualties – Total 316, with 179 from the UK

US Troops Wounded – 31,616 through September 30, 2009, 20% of which are serious brain or spinal injuries. (Total excludes psychological injuries.)

US Military Helicopters Downed in Iraq – 73 total, at least 36 by enemy fire.


March, 2003

Journalists killed – 140, 93 by murder and 47 by acts of war
Journalists killed by US Forces – 14
Iraqi Police and Soldiers Killed – 9,356
Iraqi Civilians Killed, Estimated – A UN issued report dated Sept 20, 2006 stating that Iraqi civilian casualties have been significantly under-reported. Casualties are reported at 50,000 to over 100,000, but may be much higher. Some informed estimates place Iraqi civilian casualities at over 600,000.
Iraqi Insurgents Killed, Roughly Estimated – 55,000
Non-Iraqi Contractors and Civilian Workers Killed – 569
Non-Iraqi Kidnapped – 306, including 57 killed, 147 released, 4 escaped, 6 rescued and 89 status unknown.
Daily Insurgent Attacks, Feb 2004 – 14
Daily Insurgent Attacks, July 2005 – 70
Daily Insurgent Attacks, May 2007 – 163
Estimated Insurgency Strength, Nov 2003 – 15,000
Estimated Insurgency Strength, Oct 2006 – 20,000 – 30,000
Estimated Insurgency Strength, June 2007 – 70,000





U.S. SPENDING IN IRAQ

Spent & Approved War-Spending – About $800 billion of US taxpayers’ funds spent or approved for spending through mid-2009, including $76 billion requested by President Obama and approved by Congress.
However, Nobel laureate economist Joseph Stiglitz and Harvard's Linda Bilmes put the true cost at $3 trillion once additional impacts on the US budget and economy are taken into account.
U.S. 2009 Monthly Spending in Iraq – $7.3 billion as of Oct 2009
U.S. 2008 Monthly Spending in Iraq – $12 billion
U.S. Spending per Second – $5,000 in 2008 (per Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid on May 5, 2008)
Cost of deploying one U.S. soldier for one year in Iraq – $390,000 (Congressional Research Service)
Lost & Unaccounted for in Iraq – $9 billion of US taxpayers’ money and $549.7 milion in spare parts shipped in 2004 to US contractors. Also, per ABC News, 190,000 guns, including 110,000 AK-47 rifles.
Missing – $1 billion in tractor trailers, tank recovery vehicles, machine guns, rocket-propelled grenades and other equipment and services provided to the Iraqi security forces. (Per CBS News on Dec 6, 2007.)
Mismanaged & Wasted in Iraq – $10 billion, per Feb 2007 Congressional hearings
Halliburton Overcharges Classified by the Pentagon as Unreasonable and Unsupported – $1.4 billion
Amount paid to KBR, a former Halliburton division, to supply U.S. military in Iraq with food, fuel, housing and other items – $20 billion
Portion of the $20 billion paid to KBR that Pentagon auditors deem “questionable or supportable” – $3.2 billion
Number of major U.S. bases in Iraq – 75 (The Nation/New York Times)

[JoeVig]

now blackie is sending the boys back to war, wish someone would just take him out

I thought he was supposed to be busy getting his new betting exchange up and running.

[pronk]

War through the lens


Bush gives Hussein 48 hours to get out of Iraq
WASHINGTON, March 17 (UPI) -- President Bush speaks to the United States and the world from the White House on national television on March 17, 2003, giving Iraqi President Saddam Hussein 48 hours to leave Iraq or face a war with the U.S. and it's allies



Operation Iraqi Freedom
OPERATION IRAQI FREEDOM -- F-16 Fighting Falcons wait on the "hot ramp" at a forward-deployed location while maintenance crews ready the weapons for a night mission March 21. The F-16s are from the 20th Fighter Wing at Shaw Air Force Base, S.C., and they are flying Operation Iraqi Freedom missions for the 363rd Expeditionary Fighter Squadron.



Operation Iraqi Freedom
USS HARRY S. TRUMAN, The Mediterranean Sea, March 23 (UPI) -- An F/A-18 Hornet assigned to the "Raging Bulls" of Fighter Attack Squadron Thirty Seven (VFA-37) launches from one of four steam powered catapults on the flight deck aboard USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75) during early morning flight operations on March 23, 2003. Truman and her embarked aircraft are deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, the multi-national coalition effort to liberate the Iraqi people, eliminate Iraq's weapons of mass destruction, and end the regime of Saddam Hussein.


Oil well fires still burn in southern Iraq
RUMELIA OIL FIELDS, Iraq, April 2 (UPI) - A soldier from the Army helps to guard the Rumelia Oil Field in southern Iraq as firefighters prepare massive water lagoons in the desert to extinguish the last two fires at sabotaged oil wells by the fleeing Iraqi Army on April 2, 2003. Teams from Boots & Coots International Well Control and the Kuwait Oil Co. failed to put out the blazes earlier this week, using water from smaller storage tanks.


Oil well fires still burn in southern Iraq
RUMELIA OIL FIELDS, Iraq, April 2 (UPI) - A soldier from the Army watches two Chinook helicopters fly over the Rumelia Oil Field in southern Iraq as firefighters prepare massive water lagoons in the desert to extinguish the last two fires at sabotaged oil wells by the fleeing Iraqi Army on April 2, 2003. Teams from Boots & Coots International Well Control and the Kuwait Oil Co. failed to put out the blazes earlier this week, using water from smaller storage tanks.


WAR IN IRAQ
IRAQ, April 3 (UPI) -- A soldier serving with Number 1 Company 1st Battalion The Irish Guards looks for possible Iraqi Eneny positions as Royal Engineer technicians prepare to cap one of the burning oil wells within the city of Basra, Iraq, on April 3, 2003. In a dawn raid on a University / factory complex within sight of their patrol base at Bridge Four on the outskirts of Basra the Irish Guards attacked and cleared the base after coming under fire from small arms mortars and SAM Missile systems which were fired from Iraqi positions at a British Lynx Helicopter supporting the Irish Guards.


Operation Iraqi Freedom
IRAQ, April 6 (UPI) -- Senior Airman Greg Pelletier and Senior Airman Phil Soares, both security forces journeyman deployed from the 157th Security Forces Squadron, Pease Air Reserve Guard, NH, to the 363rd Expeditionary Security Forces Squadron, authorize a vehicle to proceed through an entry control point during a sand storm on April 7, 2003. The 363rd ESFS members work around the clock performing force protection measures, air base defense, and protecting personnel in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom at a forward deployed location in Southwest Asia.


OPERATION IRAQI FREEDOM
NAJAF, Iraq, April 8 (UPI) -- Jubilant Iraqis cheer U.S. Army Soldiers at a humanitarian aid compound in the city of Najaf, on April 8, 2003. The U.S. military is working with international relief organizations to help provide food and medicine for the Iraqi people in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.


War in Iraq
Basra, Iraq, April 8 (UPI) -- A burnt out Iraqi T55 tank on the southern road to Basra, Iraq on April 8, 2003. Members of the 40 Commando Royal Marines look on.


Operation Iraqi Freedom
AL NAJAF, Iraq, April 8 (UPI)-- U.S. Army military police provide crowd control while Iraqi citizens line up for food and water being distributed to citizens in need near Al Najaf in Iraq on April 8, 2003. The U.S. military is working with international relief organizations to help provide food and medicine for the Iraqi people in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Operation Iraqi Freedom is the multinational coalition effort to liberate the Iraqi people, eliminate Iraq's weapons of mass destruction and end the regime of Saddam Hussein.


State of Iraq's Hussein destroyed in Baghdad
BAGHDAD, Iraq, April 9 (UPI) -- A statue of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein is torn down in Firdos Square in downtown Baghdad, Iraq, on April 9, 2003, as seen in this CNN frame grab.


Operation Iraqi Freedom
USS Harry S. Truman, Mediterranean Sea, April 11 (UPI) -- Two F/A-18 Hornets assigned to the "Gunslingers" of Strike Fighter Squadron One Zero Five (VFA-105) fly close air support (CAS) missions for coalition special operations forces on April 11, 2003.


Operation Iraqi Freedom
IRAQ, April 2003 (UPI) --A dead Iraqi soldier lies on the side of a road as members of Naval Mobile Construction Battalion Seventy Four pass by in Iraq on April 3, 2003.


Full Honor Funeral
ARLINGTON, Va., april 17 (UPI) -- The U.S. Air Force Honor Guard marches behind the caisson of the first Air Force casualty during Operation Iraqi Freedom, Major Gregory L. Stone from the 124th Wing, Idaho Air National Guard, during his full honor funeral at Arlington National Cemetery, Va., on April 17, 2003.


Operation Iraqi Freedom
TALLIL, Iraq, May 1 (UPI)--Members of the 820th Security Forces Group wait to leave an HC-130 for a static line jump over Tallil Air Base, Iraq May 1, 2003 during Operation Iraqi Freedom.


Operation Iraqi Freedom
TALLIL, Iraq, May 1 (UPI)--Pararescuemen from the 301st Rescue Squadron perform a high-altitude, low-opening jump over Tallil Air Base, Iraq May 1, 2003, during Operation Iraqi Freedom.


OPERATION IRAQI FREEDOM
U.S. soldiers from the 173rd Airborne Brigade, raid the home of a suspected Ba'ath Party member during Operation Bayonet Lightning on Dec. 2, 2003 in Al Hawija, Iraq. The operation captured 26 individuals including three targeted individuals.


SADDAM HUSSEIN CAPTURED BY AMERICAN FORCES
Saddam Hussein captured Dec. 13, 2003. Troops from the 4th Infantry Division's 1st Brigade Combat Team captured former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein without incident. Saddam was found hiding in a storehouse at a remote farmhouse near Tikrit, Iraq.

[kiln]

now blackie is sending the boys back to war, wish someone would just take him out

Oh my goodness. You're really not particularly intelligent, are you? Well, I'm sure the Secret Service is looking forward to the opportunity to find out first hand.

[LUSabres]

Very sad

[Full Time Hobo]

That guy defined my career...lost friends and teammates...but never looked back and tried to blame anyone or become hateful over it. Too many people today have become racist and despicable over the country and its President. There's a reason the US is the country that many want to go to and no matter what side of the fence you fall on politically you should always support the guy carrying the torch. Too many today forget that and would rather spew trash.

Very true.
One of my best friends will most likely be over there in the next year or so.
Its sad to think of the losses and all the ignorant retards that still dont support our troops.They all just take it for granted.

[jnickell100]

If Saddam hadn't lied about WMD's there would have been no need to take his ass out. Miss having a decisive leader. The guy we have now can't tie his shoe without OK from the UN.

You sir, are an idiot.
There was NEVER, not once of any sort of evidence of WMD. We are the most powerful country in the World, and have the best intelligence in the World. Before invading a country, there should be some sort of proof or evidence, and everyone at the top knew there was not shit. We went in for oil and if you still think we went in for Sadam then you are very ignorant.

Afganastan and Iraq were running just fine without the big bad bullies of the world going into their country and starting a useless war for our own good. The Middle East has been at holy war since the beginning of time, im not sure why we would think we could just go in there an take it over.

[jnickell100]

Another thought, Think of all of the lives that have been lost. Not only from our troops that are over there, but the civilian lives that had absolutely nothing to do with this situation whatsoever. I ask a question for anyone that still does believe in the war in Iraq. How would you feel if someone came into youre house and started murdering your family and friends?
This is the sam situation they are in and is why more and more countries dislike the US

[FourLengthsClear]

If Saddam hadn't lied about WMD's there would have been no need to take his ass out. Miss having a decisive leader. The guy we have now can't tie his shoe without OK from the UN.

I am gueesing you still believe that there were WMDs at the time of the invasion.

[jnickell100]

Not sure why i posted in this thread, this shit gets me heated

[boscokid]

Not sure why i posted in this thread, this shit gets me heated

simmer down nickell

[Tommy_de1st]

Shit happens all the time

[csmkr18]

The sad thing is that americans rule the world...

[pronk]

The sad thing is that americans rule the world...

Would it make you feel any better if krouts or chinks or japs or commies ruled the world?