Tomgram: Engelhardt, Numbers to Die For | TomDispatch
Tomgram: Engelhardt, Numbers to Die For | TomDispatch:
"* Believe it or not, the Defense Logistics Agency shipped 1.1 million hamburger patties to Afghanistan in the month of March 2010 (nearly doubling the March 2009 figure). Almost any number you might care to consider related to the Afghan War is similarly on the rise. By the fall, the number of American troops there will have nearly tripled since President Obama took office; American deaths in Afghanistan have doubled in the first months of 2010, while the number of wounded has tripled; insurgent roadside bomb (IED) attacks more than doubled in 2009 and are still rising; U.S. drone strikes almost doubled in 2009 and are on track to triple this year; and fuel deliveries to Afghanistan have nearly doubled, rising from 15 million gallons a month in March 2009 to 27 million this March. (Keep in mind that, by the time a gallon of gas has made it to U.S. troops in the field, its cost is estimated at up to $100.)"
To be read in conjunction with my posting below.
End/ (Not Continued)
posted by Juan Cole @ 4/07/2010 12:01:00 PM
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4 Comments:
Wisdom cries out in the street and no man regards it.
Except that is for the guy in the apache helicopter circling in the distance...
Very nice to see you highlight Mr. Engelhardt's latest work, Juan. fwiw, My favorite passage from his essay is: “Though it’s seldom thought strange (and rarely commented upon in the U.S.), the Pentagon practices war as a form of mass consumption and so, not surprisingly, bears a striking resemblance to the society it comes from.”
it is a sad day indeed
when 'our warriors'
hide behind a screen
click on a target
and kill a human being
i've got another word for it
and i think it starts with c
oh yeah it also starts with m
when will we finally see one day
it'll be us instead of them ?
Putting aside the issue of whether the U.S. should be increasing or decreasing troop levels in Afghanistan - why is the U.S. shipping hamburgers there?
Buying local food would help the Afghan economy and save money for U.S. taxpayers. It would also be better for the environment and give U.S. troops a bit more cultural knowledge about the country they are occupying.
A bit off topic, I know.
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