Iraq is not Vietnam

I was a kid during the Vietnam War. I wasn't paying attention then to combat casualties. I couldn't have told you that just over 1800 Americans soldiers lost their lives in the first 4 years (1961-1965) of US combat there. Or that just over 1600 were killed in the last 2 years (1971-1972).¹

Now that I know that, I'm finally understanding what politicians mean when they say "Iraq is not Vietnam." With 2000 American soldiers killed in Iraq in the last 2 years, our rate of death has surpassed that of Vietnam's ... by a chilling factor of 2.

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¹ Soldiers Lost in Iraq Top Those Lost in First Four Years in Vietnam; Expert on the '60s Reflects on Similarities, Differences