Pentagon Says 40,000 Deserters Since 2000

[kpete]

Pentagon Says 40,000 Deserters Since 2000

AirForceTimes.com, Thousands of troops say they won’t fight,

Since 2000, about 40,000 troops from all branches of the military have deserted, the Pentagon says. More than half served in the Army. But the Army says numbers have decreased each year since the United States began its war on terror in Afghanistan.

Desertion these days is not usually about the war,
The vast majority of soldiers who desert do so for personal, family or financial problems, not for political or conscientious objector purposes,” said Lt. Col. Bryan Hilferty, a spokesman for the Army.

http://www.airforcetimes.com/story.php?f=1-292925-1930387.php
via:http://www.seeingtheforest.com/archives/2006/08/pentagon_says_4.htm#more

[LA lady]

1. WTF

The number is decreasing????

[Donnachaidh]

3. spin

As the report is written by the Pentagon, I'd take any *reason* for a decrease with a big ole block of salt.

[sarge43]

7. Is that "decrease" a raw number or percentage of the AD force?

And interesting that this report should be released right after the SecDef said everything was beautiful.

[movonne]

4. Also the number of people joining is decreasing..

[TalkingDog]

2. Ummmm....yeah, I guess not wanting to die for a lie or to line

the pockets of the monied elite is not really a political reason.



My favorite Future Famous Dead Artist: KarenParker

[Hubert Flottz]

5. 40,001 counting the one in the White House!

[leftofthedial]

6. almost double WWII

when the armed forces were about 50 times as big

[GreatCaesarsGhost]

8. and they are all volunteers!