We are still always winning the war conflicts in East SouthWest Asia:
BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Five car bombs exploded across Baghdad Monday, killing 26 people and wounding scores, police said, after a spate of arrests targeting Sunni Arab fighters raised tensions in the Iraqi capital.[…]
The latest blasts followed a week of arrests in Baghdad by Iraq’s Shi’ite-led government of Sunni Arab fighters known as Awakening Councils, or Majalis al-Sahwa in Arabic.
Interior Ministry officials declined to comment on whether the bombs were a coordinated strike or a reaction to the arrests, which sparked clashes Saturday between Iraqi forces and supporters of one arrested Sahwa leader. […]
The government insists it is only detaining those wanted for grave crimes, but the fighters — many of them former insurgents — fear it is settling sectarian scores.
Luckily our troops are doing so well in Iraq, that we’re sending more of them to Afghanistan, instead:
KABUL (AFP) — About 17,000 extra US troops headed to Afghanistan will allow security forces to begin overcoming the Taliban in the volatile south, the top US military commander said in Kabul Sunday.
“I am convinced that the additional military capacity will certainly start to allow us to turn the tide in the south where it has not gone well,” Admiral Mike Mullen told reporters on the first day of a trip to Kabul.
“The trends in the south and east for the last few years are all going in the wrong direction,” said Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
And of course, new opportunities for us to seek victory in the war conflict are always popping up. Why, here’s another one!
KARACHI – The al-Qaeda-led insurgency reached Pakistan’s capital Islamabad on Saturday when a suicide bomber killed eight paramilitary police in an attack on a security base. The next day, militants proved through an attack on a Shi’ite mosque in which 26 people died in Chakwal, 90 kilometers south of Islamabad, that this was not an isolated operation.
Very much like Taliban-led insurgents have surrounded the Afghan capital Kabul, militants have stepped up their operations around Islamabad and its twin city, Rawalpindi, the military headquarters.
In telephone calls to the media, a militant claimed the attacks were part of a “campaign against infidels” and he promised two more operations a week in the country if the United States did not stop Predator drone missile strikes on Pakistani territory.
So, for all you newly unemployed bright young individuals seeking new careers and a chance for rapid job advancement in a challenging work environment, Uncle Sam’s military is always looking for a few good men — and women. Seriously.
Just as unemployment numbers are going up, so too has military recruitment. Pentagon officials say the economic downturn and rising unemployment rates are making the military a more attractive option. […]
And military analysts say the spike is coming just in time, after years of missing recruiting marks largely attributed to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Recruiting has now become even more vital as the military plans to expand so it can relieve the strain on troops and their families.
I hear the medical benefits are to die for.
Suicide rates in the U.S. Army reached an all-time high in 2008, according to Army officials. Last year, 128 active-duty soldiers committed suicide, an Army spokesman told The Avalanche-Journal. Another 15 potential suicides are under investigation, he said. […]
The Army’s alarming suicide trend continues this year, said David Rudd, the chairman of Tech’s psychology department who will head the $1.97 million Defense Department study.
“For the first time in history this January, more soldiers died by suicide than in combat. The problem is fairly complex, but ultimately, we’ve been in a two-front war now for six years. There have been high rates of psychological problems associated with that, and when that occurs, suicide rates increase,” Rudd is quoted as saying in a Tech news release.
Rudd said his study will examine whether a short-term psychological treatment plan can reduce suicide rates with those who report feeling suicidal. […]
In September, Rudd and his team will begin a random clinical trial offering cognitive behavioral psychotherapy to suicidal soldiers at Fort Carson, Colo., according to the Tech news release.
A short-term treatment plan makes sense for the military, which isn’t designed to give long-term psychiatric care, Rudd is quoted as saying in the release.
“When soldiers develop long-term psychological problems, they have to be discharged. We’re not only looking to see if a three-month treatment program will make a difference to reduce suicide attempts, but also whether it will allow soldiers to improve enough to stay in the military,” he said.
