Juan Cole: more than 2 dead a day this month

[Michael Pollak <mpollak@xxxxxxxxx>]

http://www.juancole.com/2003_11_01_juancole_archive.html#107017774728475015

   November 30, 2003

   72 US troops killed in Hostilities in November

   72 US soldiers were killed by hostile fire in Iraq during November,
   the highest of any month since the major fighting started last March.
   And for the Coalition troops as a whole, the number is 107! I was
   taken aback by the size of the number. I can remember when the death
   toll seemed to be one of our guys every other day, which was terrible,
   but that was 15 a month. This is more than two a day. The Coalition
   deaths per year at this rate would be 1284! This is not to mention the
   literally thousands of wounded. Although Gen. Sanchez says that daily
   attacks are down to 22 a day from a high of 50 a day, the attacks that
   do occur must be more deadly, to explain these numbers. The 22 a day
   number appears to be attacks only on Americans, so that the massacre
   of the Spanish secret agents would not even count. From the point of
   view of US officers commanding 130,000 troops in Iraq, even 700
   Americans down a year would not appear to pose a big military
   challenge. But I just don't think the folks back home are going to be
   willing to put up with a number like 72 a month.