tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1837970659346946118.post6264600316185834358..comments2023-04-05T01:31:53.918-07:00Comments on A Writer's Life: Vampires in the DesertRichard Badalamentehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06008785529404172402noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1837970659346946118.post-83128797352835953882011-12-18T09:31:36.167-08:002011-12-18T09:31:36.167-08:00In the end, there were no weapons of mass destruct...In the end, there were no weapons of mass destruction, there was no tie to Al-Qaeda, American Forces were not greeted as "liberators," there was no plan to secure the country, its assets, or its weapon stores after the attack, the US military was not adequately prepared to deal with the insurgency, or its IEDs, troops were not supplied with adequate armor, and lack of leadership and proper supervision led to moral outrages like Abu-Graib and Haditha. The war cost American tax payers some $1 trillion dollars, billions of which have been lost or unaccounted for.Richard Badalamentehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06008785529404172402noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1837970659346946118.post-74790860664268554362011-12-17T10:10:09.865-08:002011-12-17T10:10:09.865-08:00As of the end of November of this year, 4486 Ameri...As of the end of November of this year, 4486 American soldiers have been killed in Iraq, 316 troops of other nations have been killed. Over half of those killed were under 25 years old. 32,226 have been wounded, about 20% of which are serious brain or spinal injuries. There is no official count of soldiers suffering PTSD. Iraqi Insurgents killed, roughly estimated at 55,000. A secret U.S. government estimate puts the Iraqi civilian death toll at over 100,000, although some estimates are 6 times that amount.Richard Badalamentehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06008785529404172402noreply@blogger.com