M Files: It Is Time To Pull Out! We Must Evacuate Immediately
My Friends, we are at a point where we must admit that it is indeed time to pull out...of Cincinnati, OH. In comparison with Baghdad, more Americans are dying here than there from combat. At least that's what these numbers tell me. I'm tempted to compare Ohio to Iraq, but am afraid we'd have to evacuate my home state as well, and I don't think I'm too comfortable with that.
Now, don't get me wrong. The lives that have been lost in Iraq are a tragedy. What I am trying to say is that this is no reason to pull out of Iraq. Just look at what I've found...
Baghdad, Iraq
Capital city for the nation of Iraq• 41 American combat related deaths in Baghdad from January 1 – September 30, 2003 (Military.com Casualty Listing)
• 8 American non-combat related deaths in Baghdad from January 1 – September 30, 2003 (Military.com Casualty Listing)
• 49 total American deaths in Baghdad from January 1 – September 30, 2003 (Military.com Casualty Listing)
Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
Large city in Ohio (third largest?)• 44 murders in Cincinnati, OH from January 1 – September 30, 2003 (Cincinnati Police Department statistics)
• At least 200 non-murder deaths in Cincinnati, OH in EACH MONTH from January – September 2003 (Cincinnati Enquirerobituaries)
• At least 1800 deaths in Cincinnati from January 1 – September 30, 2003 (Cincinnati Enquirer obituaries - the search engine was limited to the first 200 each month)
In Baghdad, our boys fought a war and begun a major stabilization and reconstruction effort. Additionally, they had foreign fighters (also known as terrorists) and Saddam loyalists to deal with while working hard on behalf of Iraqis.
In Cincinnati, our residents have had to deal with rhyming reverends and urban terrorists (one guy who falls under both categories now wants to be elected to city council!). Additionally, the citizens of Cincinnati have endured a meaningless boycott staged by people who aren’t interested in actually solving their problems or acknowledging the efforts of those who do.
Questions:
• How many Americans (total) deployed to Iraq? 148,000 (Center for Contemporary Conflict ) Less than 1% of American troops deployed died.
• How many citizens live in Cincinnati, OH? 314,000 (2000 Census). Less than 1% of citizens who live in Cincinnati have died.
Considerations:
• The Iraq war started in March 2003
• There has been no war in Cincinnati in 2003.
• There are over twice as many citizens of Cincinnati as there are American soldiers deployed to Iraq.
Decide for yourself what the numbers mean…
Fear not, my friends, I am not packing my bags just yet...
