accidental(?) deaths
via salon, rasheed sahib, a new yorker and a soldier with the 4th Infantry Division died on the 18th of may when he was shot in the chest, not by an iraqi insurgent, but by a negligent chappie in his own division as the other fellow cleaned his weapon. agreed, accidents happen, the american soldier in iraq is not exactly having the time of his life and shit happens but to this extent? from an article in a regional tv station's website,

Since the war began in March, 145 troops have died in hostile combat circumstances. Those include ambushes, sniper attacks and bombings.

Over the same span, 115 have died from accidents. And more than half of those deaths, 59 have occurred since May 1, when President Bush declared the combat phase of the U.S. mission in Iraq essentially over.
[my emphasis]

are the soldiers in iraq improperly/insufficiently trained? is the number of accidental deaths nothing to be alarmed about? is this just another twist on 'collateral damage'? i'm sure the administration has its own spin on these incidents, what i'd like is someone who's been through such hell and knows what it's like to tell me how alarmed we should be. as of now, i'm very alarmed.
posted by ubaid - Wednesday, September 10, 2003 at 11:39 PM - 0 comments - post anonymously