Symptoms Of Multiple Tours In Iraq

Army officials are expressing serious concern over the effect of multiple tours of duty in Iraq are having on troops' stress levels and mental health. Many soldiers are on their third or fourth tours in Iraq, and the Army is indicating that one in four soldiers are showing signs of anxiety, depression, and acute stress. This concern comes on the eve of General Petraeus' testimony to Congress, in which he is not expected to endorse any troop reductions beyond those already planned through July.

However, according to Dick "Five Deferment" Cheney, the soldiers are volunteers, so they can just be quiet and suck it up. Unlike Five Deferment during the Vietnam War, they may not have had "other priorities."

Tall Tales

The Decider has been making the rounds for over a week now, blasting the Democrats for their reluctance to give him a blank check for his misadventure in Iraq. He's also been claiming that if he didn't get a "clean" funding bill, the tours of duty of soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan may have to be extended. As Tim Grieve notes in Salon, his tale was undercut by the leaked information from the Pentagon that active duty Army soldiers will have their stays extended from 12 to 15 months. They were trying to hold this information back to use it later as a political hammer, and claim the Democrats forced them into it. Slimeballs.