The World Peace Herald via UPI provides a summary of the growing number and frequency of US military deaths in Iraq as the referendum elections draw near on October 15, 2005. We see and read about the stories each day in the media and we know the death toll of American casualties on any given day, but a look at the increased violence in such stark statitistics as those presented in this article is alarming.

Despite President Bush’s continued message that “progress” is being made in Iraq, what he does not reveal is the increasing urgency these numbers represent. “Progress” is getting messier and much more dangerous.

With proper reverance that each number represents a human being with friends, mates, relatives, families and so many other loved ones, here are the numbers.

On Thursday alone 13 people were killed, including one U.S. soldier in Iraq.

That brought the death toll of U.S. soldiers killed in Iraq as of Thursday, Oct. 6, since the start of hostilities in March 2003, to 1,945, a rise of 21 U.S. soldiers killed in the previous eight days. U.S. soldiers were therefore dying in Iraq at a rate of more than 2.5 per day. That was almost double the 11 U.S. troops killed in action over the previous eight-day period and a massive increase on the comparative lull during the first half of September.

The rate at which U.S. soldiers are being killed in Iraq, therefore, rose from only 0.5 a day from Sept. 8 through Sept. 13 to 1.375 a day from Sept. 14 to Sept. 21, and even further to more than two a day over the Sept. 22-28 period, an increase of 400 percent. The most recent eight-day period was even worse than the eight days of Aug. 24 to Aug. 31, when two U.S. soldiers died every day in Iraq. The latest figures show an increase in the rate at which U.S. soldiers are being killed in Iraq of 25 percent over the previous eight day period.

and the wounded…

The number of U.S. troops wounded in action from the beginning of hostilities on March 19, 2003, through Sunday, Oct. 2, was 14,641, an increase of 114 in only four days. This was almost double the rate at which U.S. soldiers were injured by insurgent action in the previous seven-day period when 114 were injured. The rate of injuries inflicted on U.S. forces per day therefore jumped from 16.3 per day from Sept. 21 through Sept. 28 to 28.5 per day from Sept. 29 to Oct. 2. That figure was far worse than the comparable figures for most of August and early September.

The article provides more statistics and ends with this analysis:

These figures clearly document an insurgency that is remorselessly spreading in area and getting worse in intensity and capabilities.

The next time Bush or any of his warmongering supporters mention “progress” and “Iraq” in the same sentence, show them this article. And, if you need even more ammo, send them to Arianna who takes a good long look at Bush’s math.    

As always, we will never have accurate statistics on the number of innocent civilians killed since this crime began. And that, is the true shame of this so-called war.

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