US RUNNING OUT OF TROOPS FOR INVASIONS

STEVE GILLIARD, DAILYKOS - Viceroy Jerry has asked for 50,000 troops to 
maintain his rule. There's one small problem with that. There aren't 50K 
to give. The US military is nearly at the end of it's deployable 
strength and needs to withdraw the 3ID as soon as possible. Let's look 
at the numbers:

So far deployed to Iraq are the elements of seven of the US's 10 active 
duty combat divisions, making up half the combat power of the US Army. 
Only the First Cavalry Division is fully deployable from the US. Bosnia 
is now being covered by National Guard combat battalions and Kosovo was 
supposed to be covered by units now in Iraq. 
Then there are our commitments in Korea, Afghanistan and other sundry 
places.

Michael O'Hanlon argues that we desperately need help from our allies to 
relieve the burden in Iraq. OK, now didn't we disregard our allies sane, 
rational, and logical suggestions about how to deal with Iraq? Now, we 
expect Japanese and Korean troops, forget French and German to help us 
out?

It's time for a reality check: No country is going to send their troops 
to be bullet sponges. Kill 25 Dutch troopers and their parliament will 
flip out. Everyone wants to be peacekeepers. There is no peace to keep 
in Iraq. There is war, one which the foot patrol and not the Bradley 
should dominate. Foreign governments are selling peacekeeping as a way 
to get close to the US while limiting the outrage which will follow if 
their troops come under attack. . . 

Time and again, the Bush Administration was told: you need allies, you 
need help. They refused it, again and again. Now, Bremer, in his best 
Westmoreland circa 1966 mode, is begging for more men. He can't have 
them. Politically, it would be devastating, and tactically, it would 
only provide more targets without providing the security he needs to 
provide. 

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