Iraq Withdrawal

[Dion]

Originally Posted by MarchHare

The nature of an all-volunteer military is that it doesn't tend to attract highly-educated people from wealthy families (particularly in the combat arms branches, such as the infantry). Of course there are exceptions to this, but the grunts on the ground armed with rifles (i.e. the ones most in danger of being killed in Iraq) by and large are not university-educated and come from lower-income families. More often than not, the children of senators and congressmen don't fit that profile.

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"it is well known that to fill the ranks of enlisted soldiers, sailors and Marines, the Pentagon draws heavily on the bottom half of the nation's income distribution, favoring in its hunt for recruits schools in low-income neighborhoods."

Or how about social welfare economics as another explanation?

"Only slightly more crudely put, the central idea underlying this theorem of what economists call "social welfare economics" is that if a nation must use human bodies to stop bullets and shrapnel, it ought to use relatively "low-cost" bodies -- that is, predominantly those who would otherwise not have produced much gross domestic product, the main component of what economists call "social opportunity costs." On this rationale, economists certify the all-volunteer army as efficient and thus good."

"Small wonder, then, that even college students who ardently supported the invasion of Iraq and just as ardently favor "staying the course" in Iraq argue smugly that, instead of serving their country in uniform, they can serve it so much better in law school or by trading bonds for Goldman Sachs."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...110301372.html

[mykalberta]

Originally Posted by Slava

That would be the only way I suppose. I don't quite know if they should cut and run but if they were to, that would be the only way.

The only problem is with the number of embedded reporters there, they would know something is up. I would start moving troops closer and closer to the Saud border then one night cross it and never come back.

The American public doesnt equate 9-11 to the Iraq War, simple as that and they dont have the stomach for it. I think they are even tiring on Afghanistan and the complete failure that mission had been. They should have been wiped off the face of the map by now, who cares what Pakistan says about there un watched borders.

MYK