Bittersweet Birthday

Last Wednesday was by birthday. I had a wonderful day full of friends and fun but, for the last 5 years, my birthday has been bittersweet as it marks the anniversary of the Iraq war.

The total US military causality count is now at 3996. But, if you are counting "military" losses, don't forget to count the causalities of contractors (Private Military Company) The use of contractors today is ten times what it was during the gulf war and for every 4 soldiers that die, a contractor dies. As of May 2007, the total death of contractor life was 917.

But, which life is more valuable: the life of an American? or the the life of an Iraqi or Afghanistani? (Hopefully you will answer that they are equally valuable) Yet, often I think we forget how many non-American's have lost there life as a consequence of the war.

From the different websites I looked at, I found quite a range 80,000 (civilians only) to 400,000 Iraqi causalities as a result of the Iraq war!

Also, I think it is very important to note that medical advances have severely reduced the number of causalities. (Medical Advances Cut Combat Deaths In Iraq And Afghanistan) This article says that "the survival rate is 90% or higher--a significant improvement even since the Gulf War in the early 1990s".

A few sites to check out:
The Toll of War
Iraq Body Count
Contractor Deaths in Iraq Soar to Record

But, I'll end with a little humor...


(Wait till the end (or skip to it...either way, the end is funny)