Monday, April 07, 2003

Half of U.S. Troop Deaths Said Accidental

Of the 108 coalition troops reported dead in Iraq as of midday Monday, 53 had been killed in action, according to military reports. Of the remaining 55, helicopter accidents had killed 28 and 14 others died in land accidents, according to a casualty database maintained by The Associated Press.

Non-hostile deaths - defined as deaths that are not the direct result of fighting the enemy or friendly fire - have been a part of warfare for centuries. The Defense Department considers those killed by friendly fire combat casualties.

Duke University's Alex Roland believes the U.S. military is suffering too many non-hostile deaths in Iraq, particularly given the high levels of training and technology involved.

There will be accidental deaths "simply because of the pace of operations," said Roland, a Marine who served in Vietnam. But "something's wrong here. We're taking more than we should."

In the 1991 Persian Gulf War, 235 of the 380 deaths, or 62 percent, were considered non-hostile, according to Defense Department statistics. Some experts attribute the large percentage of non-combat deaths to fighting a quick ground war on uncertain terrain.

The Army and the Marines have suffered all but a few of the U.S. military's fatalities in the latest war.

The Army said it has reduced accident rates since the late 1980s by teaching a five-part "risk-management strategy."

Maj. Pete Janhunen kept a laminated card listing the five steps in his wallet when he led a platoon a decade ago. Reviewing it helped take "some of the instinct and emotions out of a decision," Janhunen said.



Well, as long as he has a card. I wouldn't want instinct getting in the way of any decisions being made. And before all you mongers out there tell me how 'thinking and emotions' in war can get you killed, um, look at the numbers.

53 - Killed in action
55 - Killed by something else

Of the 55 not killed in action;
28 - Helicopter accidents
14 - Land accidents (whatever the hell that means)
13 - ???(what was the cause of these 13 deaths? Suicide?)

And notice something else. The 53 that are considered killed in combat? That number includes those KILLED BY FRIENDLY FIRE. Which, in my humble opinion, should be considered accidental deaths also. How drastically would these numbers change if that were the case?

But even without those added numbers, fifty-five men killed, in war, but not because of combat. This is an unacceptable number for me. But it was acceptable for the Gulf skirmish, and what's good enough for Daddy...

Just call a spade a spade. When you update your list of dead, include them ALL. They all died because of your war, have the decency to include them in your tallies. I know as the COMPLETE number of dead rises (not just the cleaned up number you recite), YOUR numbers will go down. Be a man, suck it up, report the truth.

Our soldiers deserve it.

Kansas @ 5:10 PM