It's a lot worse than we thought.

[caduceus]

In previous postings, we discussed the unreported attrition rate of soldiers in the Middle East (specifically in Iraq) to possibly average 3 to 5 per day due to injuries.

But according to these articles, it appears as though the average attrition rate due to injuries is closer to 10 per day, or even far greater.

"Indeed, the number of troops wounded in action in Iraq is now more than twice that of the Persian Gulf War in 1991. The total increased more than 35 percent in August -- with an average of almost 10 troops a day injured last month."

http://www.commondreams.org/headlines03/0902-01.htm

And according to this account, it could be exponentially greater.

"The numbers of soldiers wounded in action are hard to come by. Since the start of Operation Iraqi Freedom, the Pentagon has put the figure at 827. But Lieutenant-Colonel Allen DeLane, the man in charge of airlifting the wounded into Andrews Air Force Base, recently mentioned much higher numbers in an interview with National Public Radio.

"Since the war has started, I can't give you an exact number because that's classified information, but I can say to you over 4,000 have stayed here at Andrews," he said. "And that number doubles when you count the people that come here to Andrews, and then we send them to other places like Walter Reed and Bethesda...""

http://tompaine.com/feature2.cfm/ID/8736/view/print

So I ask the same question again. How can the military maintain this attrition rate?

Considering the number of wounded, the number of personnel closely associated with the wounded, and the family members of those personnel and of the wounded, this could be the administrations “Achilles heel.”

[quilp]

1. Thanks for your post. Mike Kinsley of Slate reported this on NPR

at least a month ago. I posted his number of over 4000 on DU. Then I felt rather foolish because since then the numbers in the media have been in the reported in the 1500 range. I thought I must have just misunderstood him. This is something being kept very far under the rug. Once again Bush can fully rely on the media.

[lcordero]

2. This is pretty smart on the part of the Iraqis

If you hurt ten soldiers everyday rather than kill ten soldiers. As far as all related compensation for disability, it will be more expensive to tend to the needs of the soldier than to just bury a dead soldier.

[ShaneGR]

3. How do they maintain their attrition rate?? It's simple!

Send most of them back. An injury short of permanent disability guarantees the unfortunate soldier a trip back to the Raq.

[Atlant]

4. And it's probably only going to get worse. :-(

"Waist-deep in the big, big, muddy
And the big fool says to push on..."

-- Pete Seeger