Not Your Father's Gulf War

Forget Shock and Awe, the military tactic the Pentagon planned to use on Iraq in which up to 800 warheads would be dropped two days (the same amount the US dropped over 40 days in the first Gulf War). Now the Pentagon is upping that figure to 3,000 precision-guided bombs and missiles within the first 48 hours alone. That's TEN TIMES the number used in the first two days of the 1991 attacks. This would pave the way for ground strikes called "vertical envelopment" in which troops would parachute into 12 or more sites simultaneously.

Consider the numbers: 6,700 satellite-guided bombs and 3,000 laser-guided bombs are already stockpiled by the Air Force, as many as 50,000 US marines are expected to fight and 25,000 British troops are en route to the Gulf. And there are currently 100,000 US troops on standby in the Middle East, a figure that should swell to 175,000 by the end of the month. As one Pentagon official said, "This is not going to be your father's Persian Gulf war."

Well, Jesus, we're not talking about Oldsmobiles here. Let's consider a few more numbers: According to the CIA, 41.1% of the Iraqi population is under the age of 14. According to Physicians for Human Rights, more than 50% of Iraqis are under age 17. Right now there are 18 million people living Iraq. Not your father's war, eh? Well, it's not the fathers I'm worried about.