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From the "This Can't Possibly Be True but It Is" Department, Steve Benen passes along news that the Department of Defense is demanding that Iraq war veterans pay back signing bonuses they received on the ground that they didn't stay in the service for as long their signing contracts required. Fair enough, you say? Of course -- except that some of these veterans can't serve out their contracts because of injuries they suffered in Iraq.
Pennsylvania Rep. Jason Altmire, a Democrat, is pushing legislation to rectify the problem, which was apparently uncovered by the Dole-Shalala Commission on Care for America's Returning Wounded Warriors. That's all well and good, but just one question: Did it really take a presidential commission -- rather than, say, a single conscientious employee at the Pentagon -- to say that this is a stupid practice that needs to be stopped?
The Gamble: General David Petraeus and the American Military Adventure in Iraq, 2006-2008
The author of "Fiasco" uses hundreds of hours of exclusive interviews with top officers in Iraq and extraordinary on-the-ground reportage to document the inside story of the Iraq War since late 2005.
By Thomas E. Ricks
Small Wars Journal
A journal dedicated to the study of such subjects as counterinsurgency, foreign internal defense, support and stability operations, peacemaking, and peacekeeping. Founded by ex-Marines.
Afghanistan is worse than you think
We all knew that the situation in Afghanistan has been rapidly becoming worse. But few people know just how steep the downward spiral has been.
By Alex Koppelman, Salon
The Eternal Urgency of War Hawks
US Troops in Iraq Bored, taking Salsa and Yoga Classes
Iraq War THE CAUSE of High State & Local Taxes