Opinion: "Let's Put Iraq War Casualties in Perspective"....

October 27, 2005 was the day that the ghouls in the media and the quislings on the anti-war left were eagerly awaiting like a child looks forward to Christmas; it was the day of the 2000th American combat death in Operation Iraqi Freedom. Since then we have seen shameless efforts by Democrat members of Congress to distance themselves from their votes in favor of war. Like John Kerry they wanted to be for the war before they were against it. They want us to forget all their pre-war statements that were in lock step with those of the White House. We have heard calls for US troops to be withdrawn. We have been told that "Bush Lied…Kids Died". Hysterical pundits have opined on the horrors of "Bush’s War". Through it all we have heard hyperbolic discussions of those killed and wounded and nearly non-stop comparisons to the Vietnam War. The point of this piece is to make the case that the statements made regarding Iraq combat casualties are historically ignorant.

Let me preface my comments by saying that even one combat casualty is an inconceivable tragedy for the family and loved ones of those killed and wounded in combat. Nothing I am about to write is meant to diminish the impact of a life lost or shattered by grievous injury.

That being said, in terms of combat casualties, when compared with the other major wars fought by the United States since World War I Operation Iraqi Freedom is an unqualified success.

Consider.

The United States entered World War I on April 16, 1917. On November 11, 1918 the war came to an end. In the 574 days the US was involved in WW I we suffered 116,516 killed in action (KIA) and 204,002 wounded in action (WIA). This converts to 203 Americans killed and 355 wounded each day.

The United States entered World War II on December 7, 1941. On August 15, 1945 the war came to an end when Japan surrendered. In the 1,345 days the US was involved in WW II we suffered 405,339 KIA’s and 670,846 WIA’s. This converts to 301 Americans killed and 499 wounded each day.

The United States entered the Korean War on June 25, 1950. On July 27, 1953 the war came to an end. In the 1,128 days the US was involved in the Korean War we suffered 36,574 KIA’s and 103,284 WIA’s. This converts to 32 Americans killed and 92 wounded each day.

The United States entered the Vietnam War on August 7, 1964 with the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution. On April 30,1975 the war came to an end when Saigon fell after the US abandoned our embassy to the Communists. In the 3,915 days the US was involved in the Vietnam War we suffered 58,226 KIA’s and 153,303 WIA’s. This converts to 15 Americans killed and 39 wounded each day.

It has been 945 days since the start of Operation Iraqi Freedom on March 20, 2003. As of November 11, 2005, 2,026 Americans have lost their lives and 15,468 have been wounded, as of November 18. That converts to 2 Americans killed and 16 wounded each day.

At the current rate we would need to be in Iraq nearly 80 years to reach the number killed in action in Vietnam and 26 years to reach the number wounded. Clearly the Iraq War is NOT Vietnam. To further put the Iraq War numbers in perspective consider that in April of 1944 the Allies lost 749 lives in training exercise in preparation for the D-Day invasion of Normandy. When you compare the casualty figures for the Iraq War with those for other major wars it is clear that those making hysterical pronouncements are ignorant at best and lying at worst.

A little postscript to all you race hustlers out there; politicians like Charles Rangel (D-NY) and others who like to claim that combat takes an unfair toll on minorities. As of October 15, 2005, Caucasian’s have suffered 72% of combat deaths in Iraq, Hispanics 11% and Blacks 10%. For the Vietnam War 86.3% of KIA’s were Caucasians. Every combat death is an unspeakable tragedy regardless of race. Those like Rangel would try and exploit race for political gain and their lies need to be countered by the truth.

When you look at the Iraq War in context it is obvious that this is not Vietnam. The military is not being "destroyed" as some on the left would claim. In terms of casualties this war has been an unqualified success. Are there problems? Yes. No war is free of them. Do not listen to the lies and the hysterical pronouncements of the left. Most of them are driven not by altruism but naked ambition.

Footnote: the sources for these articles are various web sites, including but not limited to http://www.wikipedia.com/ and http://www.cnn.com/. Many figures have been rounded for simplicity.