http://start.earthlink.net/newsartic...301_lead_story

FORT CAMPBELL, Ky. - Despite the shrapnel wounds Staff Sgt. William Pinkley suffered during his tour in Iraq, the 26-year-old is joining other soldiers who are re-enlisting at rates that exceed the retention goals set by the Pentagon.

Maybe a little something to ponder before we would think about leaving Iraq.

__________________
Those who think they know everything, usually know the least.

From my digging it looks like last years goal for th Army was 73,000 while this year's goal is 56,000.

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/3540775/

The 56,000 was the re-enlistment number. Not the total.

My mistake. Sorry.

...on doing some more reading on the subject, I am finding that there are quite a few soldiers that are under a "Stop-Loss" order from the Pentagon which can extend their period of service from the point at which their voluntary term is over. Hadn't heard about that one before. Guess we won't really know how it all hashes out for a while...

That doesn't negate the fact that so many are re-enlisting. There is a huge difference in the two. A stop loss order keeps the soldiers active. Everyone has to serve in the reserves after they are discharged from the military. That means they can be called up at any time.

__________________
Those who think they know everything, usually know the least.

Not too many people, this side of Dennis Kusinich, are calling for us pull our troops out and abandon Iraq. We created the mess, now we gotta clean it up.

That being said, I'm glad to see the re-enlistment numbers that good. The last thing we need is a draft that would fill up the army with people that don't want to be there. The military is a great option for a lot of young people, and from it come our policemen, firemen, correction officers and other citizens who understand public service and the need for it.

I say, keep up the good work.

__________________
Politics is war without bloodshed while war is politics with bloodshed

why the heck would they *beep* the name of the candidate out? I didn't know it was a dirty word

__________________
Politics is war without bloodshed while war is politics with bloodshed

John Kerry. Just testing to see if his last name gets beeped

Great... with a little luck maybe my 18 year old son who I just got through high school might live long enough to have a family... instead of needlessly dying like so many.

If there was ever a time when I HOPE you are right, it is now.

__________________
"What does a former president's son know about the Iraq war anyway?"
-- GW Bush when asked about Ron Reagan's negative comments, 6/25/2004.
www.BushZombie.com