I agree that most people who join the service understand the seriousness of their charge, and understand that they may be required to go to extraordinary lengths on behalf of their country. For that, they deserve our gratitude and respect.

The right wing spin of the vast liberal + centrist ubermajority of opinion on Iraq is that we’re all in favor of “cutting and running.” Redeployment as a strategy does not have to be the same as beating the hell out of Saigon. (And let’s not even mention that our military presence is rivaled in size by our civilian contractor/mercenary forces, which I assume would continue on no matter what we do with our soliders and marines.)

I do not want another killing fields, and am happy to debate a humane withdrawl strategy. It’s equally possible that our presence in Iraq to prop up the Shia government may simply result in installing a despotic regime that will engage in ethnic cleansing– and in that sense, the longer we stay to build up their miliatry strength, the more we may be collaborating unwittingly in a future genocide. We’ve already lit the fuse to a powder keg. There’s already a refugee crisis. There are already death squads.

Instead, we have an administration that refuses to even talk about Plan B. It’s a bullshit disrespect to the citizens of this country.

All of this, of course, is way beyond the comprehension of my five year old son, who was the real subject of the post originally.

As for deployments, when I started making deployments in the Navy, they were 9 months. In the mid-seventies, they reduced them to 6 months. But every Sailor knows that, if need be, all deployments are open-ended. When my father fought in Europe in WWII, it was “for the duration of hostilities.”

Ask Marines, soldiers, Sailors and airman who have or are serving in theater if they think the effort to save millions of Iraqis is worth the effort. Look at the retention among those who serve on the front lines.

I, speaking only for myself, don’t want to see a repeat of 1975 to 1978. Once the American people, and more importantly, the Congress abandoned Vietnam, millions died in the killing fields of SE Asia. I realize it’s hard, it takes too long and we mourn for the young warriors lost and their families.

Should we depart Iraq in the near-term, untold millions will die. Iran’s supremacy will be challenged by Suni-dominated Saudi Arabia and Syria will be emboldened to enslave the Lebanese.

I would urge you to read dispatches from the field (Michael Yon) or, if you have the opportunity, speak to a recently returned veteran.

But recruitment isn’t the only issue. The Army has been forced to extend deployments from 12 to 15 months, and the war has gone on long enough that some units have been through several deployments.

“They have set in motion a process that could easily break the Army over the next couple of years,” said Edwin Dorn, a professor at the University of Texas and a former undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness. “It is setting the Army on a descending spiral. You make the job harder, you make the tours longer, you put additional stress on families — all of which makes it harder to recruit new people,” he said.

Gates, citing solid recruiting and retention numbers, said the escalating demands do not mean the Army is “broken.” But senior Army leaders have said it is approaching that point.

http://www.defenselink.mil/releases/release.aspx?releaseid=9152

Keep parenting the right way.