Barbara Zelter's letter in Sunday's paper says that all the National Guard is in Iraq, and they are
needed at home.
So is the war in Iraq causing troop shortfalls for hurricane relief in New Orleans? In a word,
no.
A look at the numbers should dispel that notion. Take the Army for example. There are
1,012,000 soldiers on active duty, in the Reserves, or in the National Guard. Of them, 261,000
are deployed overseas in 120 countries. Iraq accounts for 103,000 soldiers, or 10.2 percent of the
Army.
That's all? Yes, 10.2 percent. That datum is significant in itself, a good one to keep handy the
next time someone talks about how our forces are stretched too thin, our troops are at the
breaking point, and so forth. If you add in Afghanistan (15,000) and the support troops in Kuwait
(10,000) you still only have 12.6 percent.
So where are the rest? 751,000 (74.2 percent) are in the U.S. About half are active duty, and
half Guard and Reserve. The Guard is the real issue of course the Left wants you to believe
that the country has been denuded of its citizen soldiers, and that Louisiana has suffered
inordinately because Guardsmen and women who would have been available to be mobilized by
the state to stop looting and aid in reconstruction are instead risking their lives in Iraq.
And so another leftist myth lies is shot down. A myth promulgated and pushed by the rabid left
in their desperate attempt to blame the President and the war in Iraq for the plight of the people in
New Orleans.
Other myths can & are shot down every day, on the Republican Web Page. At:
www.catawbagop.org.
Edgar A. Readling
Hickory, NC 28602