Pentagon weighs troop extension for Iraq

[LiberalNation]

Sucks for them, seems like stuff like this would be really bad for moral. They were all planning to go home on x date then bam your hafta stay 3 more months. Why not just send in fresh toops from the US or all the nice bases we have around the world I wonder.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070411/...VQe3hbFIADW7oF

WASHINGTON - The Pentagon is considering stretching the tour of duty for every active-duty Army unit in Iraq to 15 months instead of 12 as the military struggles to supply enough troops for the conflict.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates could make a decision on the proposal in the coming days, said a defense official speaking on condition of anonymity because the plan has not been approved.

It is the third option to become known in the last several days in what has become a drumbeat of unsettling news for a military strained by two wars over the last five years.

Officials on Monday announced some 13,000 National Guard troops were receiving orders alerting them to prepare for possible deployment to Iraq late this year, which would be the second tour for several thousand of them. Officials said those four infantry combat brigades come from Arkansas, Indiana, Oklahoma and Ohio.

The Guard units would serve as replacement forces in the regular troop rotation for the war, and would not be connected to President Bush's military buildup for security operations in Baghdad, the Pentagon said.

Word has also emerged that Defense Department officials were considering a plan to extend by up to four months the tours of duty for up to 15,000 U.S. troops already in Iraq as a way to maintain the buildup past the summer.

There are currently 145,000 U.S. troops in Iraq, and when the buildup is complete in late May or early June, there would be more than 160,000, officials have said.

[grunt]

You know...being extended does suck. There are a lot of things that suck about being a soldier or Marine. Those things, however, don't outweigh the good. Any GOOD Marine or soldier will suck it up, throw some dirt on it and push forward.

Now, I do wish that every single American Military man and women were at home right now with their families...but guess what? Fighting wars are what Marines and soldiers do. I never, (and I'm positive the majority of America's fighting force feel the same), wanted sympathy or favoritism from people like you...just some respect and gratitude. So cry someone else your river, asshole...the TROOPS ARE FINE!

[LiberalNation]

The troops may be fine but this still sucks for them and I bet they aren’t liking it one bit. Anyway has for sympathy, not from me. It's a volunteer force, they shouldn't have joined if they didn't want things like this to happen.

[stephanie]

The troops may be fine but this still sucks for them and I bet they aren’t liking it one bit. Anyway has for sympathy, not from me. It's a volunteer force, they shouldn't have joined if they didn't want things like this to happen.

Aaa.
So you just posted this article and at first pretended to care...So you could turn around and spew your hate at them....

Class act

[LiberalNation]

No, I first posted this article because I had the thought sucks for them after reading it and wanted to exspress that.

[Gunny]

You know...being extended does suck. There are a lot of things that suck about being a soldier or Marine. Those things, however, don't outweigh the good. Any GOOD Marine or soldier will suck it up, throw some dirt on it and push forward.

Now, I do wish that every single American Military man and women were at home right now with their families...but guess what? Fighting wars are what Marines and soldiers do. I never, (and I'm positive the majority of America's fighting force feel the same), wanted sympathy or favoritism from people like you...just some respect and gratitude. So cry someone else your river, asshole...the TROOPS ARE FINE!

My 6 month deployment in 1990 ended up being 301 days. Yeah it sucked, and yeah we hated it. So what's new? We did our jobs. When we were finished, THEN we went home.

It's the job, and nobody twisted our arms and made us go.

[Gaffer]

I think the extensions are geared toward bigger things than just the fact of not enough troops. Somethings in the works. A surge, extended time in theater, three carrier groups in the gulf. My military experience tells me, somethings up. And it ahs everything to do with iran.

[stephanie]

I think the extensions are geared toward bigger things than just the fact of not enough troops. Somethings in the works. A surge, extended time in theater, three carrier groups in the gulf. My military experience tells me, somethings up. And it ahs everything to do with iran.

Could be gaffer....
I'm wondering the same.

[Samantha]

Are you people FOR overextending our troops and sending them out without the proper equipment because we just can't build it fast enough?

I would have thought you supported the troops.

[stephanie]

Are you people FOR overextending our troops and sending them out without the proper equipment because we just can't build it fast enough?

I would have thought you supported the troops.

No..we people aren't for that...
What are you people for???

Cutting off their funding while their still fighting..
Take your high and mighty bullshit and stuff it up You peoples know what..

I laugh at YOU people just like I laugh at Scary Ried...

[Gaffer]

Are you people FOR overextending our troops and sending them out without the proper equipment because we just can't build it fast enough?

I would have thought you supported the troops.

It's the lib congress that wants to cut the funding for the troops, not us. It's not that its not being built, it needs to be paid for. Any shortage cause by the libs will only effect troops stateside. iraq and afgan will get all they need.

[manu1959]

Are you people FOR overextending our troops and sending them out without the proper equipment because we just can't build it fast enough?

I would have thought you supported the troops.

the dems control the house and senate.....why are they doing this to these poor boys....

[Samantha]

The funding has been there for 5 years. The troops are in the battlefield right now without enough equipment. Are you guys even paying attention at all? Today it was announced that instead of 12 month tours, they all have to stay for 15 months instead. This isn't the congress, this is the US government, the Pentagon. Gates was just on cspan today talking about how the Generals ask the government for equipment and it takes too long to get it to the troops.

The White House hasn't been on the ball, on this war.

He says now, finally, there will be a civilian in the White House appointed to coordinate and to contact, who will cut through the red tape. It wasn't the Democrats who prevented this from being done sooner. It was the Bush administration.

You can't blame the past on the latest war funding bill waiting to be passed.

Do you guys get all your news from your fellow righties on this site, or do you watch cspan and find out what is actually going on? It seems you just want to pretend it's all going swimmingly and close your eyes to the facts.

[manu1959]

The funding has been there for 5 years. The troops are in the battlefield right now without enough equipment. Are you guys even paying attention at all? Today it was announced that instead of 12 month tours, they all have to stay for 15 months instead. This isn't the congress, this is the US government, the Pentagon. Gates was just on cspan today talking about how the Generals ask the government for equipment and it takes too long to get it to the troops.

The White House hasn't been on the ball, on this war.

He says now, finally, there will be a civilian in the White House appointed to coordinate and to contact, who will cut through the red tape. It wasn't the Democrats who prevented this from being done sooner. It was the Bush administration.

You can't blame the past on the latest war funding bill waiting to be passed.

Do you guys get all your news from your fellow righties on this site, or do you watch cspan and find out what is actually going on? It seems you just want to pretend it's all going swimmingly and close your eyes to the facts.

all yall control the house and senate...do something....fix it ... stop complaining and blaming and do something ...

[stephanie]

all yall control the house and senate...do something....fix it ... stop complaining and blaming and do something ...

What the hell??

Fix-Democrats??? those two words don't comingle...

Whine=Democrats
Cut and run=Democrat
claim defeat=Democrats
President is a fuck up=Democrats...
sacrifice our troops for political gain=Democrats

That's all they got....