Adding Iraq troops leads to division

Re “Army is stretched too thin,” Dec. 15

Frederick Kagan of the right-wing American Enterprise Institute believes that we have to “call on the young people of this nation to come out and support this effort,” referring to the additional volunteers needed to swell the number of American soldiers in Iraq.

It is interesting that he did not concomitantly call upon the wealthy, who have been given massive tax breaks during this time of war and a half-billion-dollar deficit, to also sacrifice for the country. It seems as though the right wing is perfectly comfortable in urging the young and the poor to make sacrifices while granting tax breaks to the rich.

BOB LENTZ

Sylmar

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I don’t think they understand yet in Washington that this war is a personal vendetta against Saddam Hussein. Most of the people in the U.S. and the rest of the world are against it. The day after Pearl Harbor was attacked in 1941, tens of thousands of people went to enlist. If it were a worthy war, we would all volunteer.

M.C. THOMAS

Garden Grove

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Responsible leaders are calling for an increase of 20,000 to 40,000 troops to the 140,000 or so that we currently have in Iraq. But our generals tell us that we don’t have them, that we would have to extend the tours of troops already there, call up more reserves, etc. If our present Army strength is approximately 500,000 personnel, what are the 360,000 or so troops who are not in Iraq currently doing? Are 50,000 or so still based in Germany to discourage the Russians who are poised to overrun Europe? Do we have 50,000 based in Okinawa? If so, why? That still leaves a balance of approximately 260,000 U.S. Army personnel. What are they doing?

Why don’t we hear how many of them can be detached from their present responsibilities and sent to Iraq? The numbers don’t add up.

WILBERT B. BUCHMAN

Redondo Beach