Some fascinating bits ...No place too small: While Pentagon officials swear that no draft is on the horizon (the horizon being, of course, November 2, 2004), a draft of sorts -- it's referred to as an "involuntary recall" -- is underway; and that giant sucking sound you hear is Iraq sucking in American troops from garrisons as far away as South Korea (this is dubbed rearranging our "footprint" in the world), from Reserve and National Guard units being called up with increasing frequency, from soldiers being kept with their units in Iraq beyond their contracts, and from among the 5,674 Individual Ready Reservists, defined by the military newspaper Stars and Stripes as "former soldiers living as civilians and awaiting expiration of service obligations." These -- the involuntarily recalled in our all-volunteer military -- are generally soldiers from combat-support units who had fulfilled their active-duty obligations and believed themselves done. They're about to return because, as Gen. Richard A. Cody, the Army's vice chief of staff, testified recently, "The Army is having trouble getting civilians to fill such assignments." I wonder why.
...
In the meantime, at the distant island fringes of empire, the Pentagon is scraping the barrel's bottom. John Ravelo of the Saipan Tribune, reports (7/8/04) that island policemen in reserve units are being stripped from the local force in an Iraq-driven call-up of reserves. He writes, "
Callaghan refused to officially disclose the number of police officers headed to Hawaii , but said it was 'enough to be a matter of concern for the Governor and the commissioner.'"
Your Congress quietly at work: According to Arnaud de Borchgrave of the Washington Times (Iran in bombsights?, 7/5/04), "A U.S. House of Representatives resolution last May 6 authorized 'all appropriate means' to end Iranian nuclear weapons development. The Senate is yet to vote on the resolution. But it leaves no doubt it is a green light for offensive military strikes against Iran's three nuclear facilities.... While an 'October surprise' of U.S. air strikes to rid the world of Iran's looming nuclear threat might help President Bush Nov. 2, the blowback of unintended consequences would further destabilize the world's most volatile region -- the Middle East." (Conservative critic William S. Lind also recently suggested that an attack on Iran might prove to be Bush's "October surprise.")
But here's my question: Where has the Senate been when it comes to giving carte blanche to the President to make war, not -- forget the Clinton administration -- love? If, even in a second Bush term, we -- with or supporting the Israelis -- attacked Iran, we might manage to create a completely police-less Saipan. That would be an accomplishment.
a great deal more
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