Okay, what's wrong with my math? ( re: GAO benchmarks)

[State the Obvious]

1. The GAO reports that only 3 of the 18 benchmarks for the Iraq War have been met. Doesn't that mean 15 benchmarks have NOT been met? (18-3)

2. All I have heard on CNN and MSNBC (early this morning) is that 13 (instead of 15) of the benchmarks have NOT been met (which seems to say that the media is getting "creative" with the GAO facts).

3. It was reported that the Pentagon is now "objecting" to the numbers in the GAO report....and trying to negotiate a change.

4. The media is now reporting the "change" (13 instead of 15) as fact.

(I am just soooooo tired right now......is it just me?, or are the spin machines hard at work?.......maybe I didn't get enough sleep last night......) :boring: :boring: :boring:

[EVDebs]

1. Reductio ad absurdum, the benchmarks haven't been met. Period. nt

[valerief]

2. They couldn't subtract here.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=132&topic_id=3453094

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2007-08-15-army-suicides_N.htm

1991 + 16 = 2007 (not 26). This was all over the news and I never saw it corrected anywhere.

I think this bad arithmetic is a new propaganda ploy.

[Arkansas Granny]

3. In July they reported that 8 of the benchmarks showed

"satisfactory" progress. So, what happened? I thought the surge was supposed to be working.