How legit is this troop withdrawl from Iraq?

[ResistRevoltReform]

http://www.cnn.com/2011/10/21/world/mea ... ?hpt=hp_c1" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Seems too good to be true. And considering we still have 30,000 troops in vietnam, I don't know why we would be leaving this country at all.

[Phys]

I will believe it when it happens. Until then, its just lip service.

[ipsissimus]

articles are saying specifically iraq. not mentioning troops in other countries.

in obama's address he thanks the 4500 people that lost their lives, from iraq and the us.
and that the sky is green with purple polka dots, saying 4500 is the number of people killed. even if he was referring only to service personnel. i vote david blaine for president. at least his misdirection works.

[ResistRevoltReform]

I just came across somebody saying this on reddit.

The Deadline was negotiated by George W. Bush years ago.

The U.S.-Iraq Status of Forces Agreement was signed between the US and Iraqi governments in November 2008. It set a deadline of 31 December 2011 whereby the USA had to have removed ALL of it's combat forces.

Obama was desperately trying to extend the deadline but within the last few weeks the government of Iraq made it absolutely certain that US troops in Iraq after 31 December 2011 would no longer be protected from prosecution by the Iraqi government for any crimes they committed.

At that point Obama had to give up his dreams of keeping the Iraq war going for a few more years.


Is this true?

[pro-Gentile]

And what of the 130,000 or so military "contractors" (read-mercenaries) who work for Xe which was formerly known as Blackwater who have reportedly been there for years?

Is that number still accurate?

[ipsissimus]

And what of the 130,000 or so military "contractors" (read-mercenaries) who work for Xe which was formerly known as Blackwater who have reportedly been there for years?

Is that number still accurate?

im not sure, but good point. probably not since they already seem to do whatever the fuck they want anyway.
and somehow the educated in this country either dont know about it, dont mind it, or think its wrong to dispute the "free market"

[dicktater]

Obama was desperately trying to extend the deadline but within the last few weeks the government of Iraq made it absolutely certain that US troops in Iraq after 31 December 2011 would no longer be protected from prosecution by the Iraqi government for any crimes they committed.

At that point Obama had to give up his dreams of keeping the Iraq war going for a few more years.


Is this true?

Total bullshit. The Pentagram ain't skeered of no puppets. All that would have to happen to end any notion of prosecuting US troops is withholding some puppet chow, or a few short drone flights, or a couple of errant cruise missiles. US troops would once again be welcomed by puppets throwing flowers.

[dicktater]

And what of the 130,000 or so military "contractors" (read-mercenaries) who work for Xe which was formerly known as Blackwater who have reportedly been there for years?

Is that number still accurate?

I think it's probably safe to assume that to be an accurate enough number. But, given the uncertainties in iraq expenditures pointed out in the NYT article below, who the fuck really knows? It wouldn't take too many trained assassins for the Pentagram to keep their little puppy puppets shushed, though.

Census Counts 100000 Contractors in Iraq
http://www.washingtonpost.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Dec 5, 2006 –
There are about 100000 government contractors operating in Iraq

Use of Iraq Contractors Costs Billions, Report Says
August 11, 2008
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/12/washi ... ctors.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Record number of US contractors in Iraq
Some 190,000 private personnel were working in the Iraq theater as of early this year, a new report says.
The Christian Science Monitor
August 18, 2008
http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Military/2 ... -usmi.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Iraq Withdrawal? Obama and Clinton Expanding US Paramilitary Force in Iraq
Jeremy Scahill on July 22, 2010
http://www.thenation.com/blog/37877/ira ... force-iraq" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

The coming surge in contractors in Iraq is being done under the auspices of the State Department's diplomatic security division, which was massively expanded under the Bush administration paving the way for the Department's almost total reliance on private contractors for security in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere.

The State Department is asking Congress to approve funds to more than double the number of private security contractors in Iraq with a State Department official testifying in June at a hearing of the Wartime Contracting Commission that the Department wants "between 6,000 and 7,000 security contractors." The Department also has asked the Pentagon for twenty-four Blackhawk helicopters, fifty Mine-Resistant Ambush-Protected (MRAP) vehicles and other military equipment. "After the departure of U.S. Forces [from Iraq], we will continue to have a critical need for logistical and life support of a magnitude and scale of complexity that is unprecedented in the history of the Department of State," wrote Patrick Kennedy, under secretary of state for management, in an April letter to the Pentagon. "And to keep our people secure, Diplomatic Security requires certain items of equipment that are only available from the military."

What is unfolding is the face of President Obama's scaled-down, rebranded mini-occupation of Iraq. Under the terms of the Status of Forces agreement, all US forces are supposed to be out of Iraq by the end of 2011. Using private forces is a backdoor way of continuing a substantial US presence under the cover of "diplomatic security." The kind of paramilitary force that Obama and Clinton are trying to build in Iraq is, in large part, a byproduct of the monstrous colonial fortress the United States calls its embassy in Baghdad and other facilities the US will maintain throughout Iraq after the "withdrawal." The State Department plans to operate five "Enduring Presence Posts" at current US military bases in Basrah, Diyala, Erbil, Kirkuk and Ninewa. The State Department has indicated that more sites may be created in the future, which would increase the demand for private forces. The US embassy in Baghdad is the size of Vatican City, comprised of twenty-one buildings on a 104-acres of land on the Tigris River.

For years, companies operating in the private security/defense logistics industry have predicted an increased reliance on contractors in Iraq that would accompany a draw-down of official US forces. What is clear from the current State Department plan for Iraq is that the United States is going to have armed forces in the country for the foreseeable future. The only question is, How many will be there as uniformed soldiers and how many will be private paramilitaries?

[pro-Gentile]

I'm looking at a DOD pdf which has the 100K figure for each of Troops and contractors up until about March of '10 but I don't know how to post the graph itself from the pdf showing this, sorry.

Instead I'll post the link and if anyone wants to see the graph it's on p.19 or graph number 7.

As of March of this year, it is said that there are about 66K private contractors , 39K (about 61%) of which provide "base support functions".

Also, there were about 44K troops as of that date.

Here's the link:

http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/R40764.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Ry]

This Iraqi government made that agreement with Bush his last year as president. And don't hold your breath on it. Obama hasn't told the truth once yet.