Army Expanding 'stop Loss' Order to Keep Soldiers From Leaving the Service

[papau]

http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGASAGNX2PD.html
Army Expanding 'stop Loss' Order to Keep Soldiers From Leaving the Service By Robert Burns The Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Army is preparing to inform soldiers due to return from Iraq and Afghanistan over the next several months that they will not be allowed to retire or otherwise leave the service for 90 days after they return to their home base, defense officials said Monday.

The order, known as "stop loss," is a personnel management tool whose use reflects the difficulty the Army is having in keeping enough soldiers available to meet the Army's worldwide commitments.
Prior to the war in Iraq, "stop loss" authority had rarely been used; it is seen by many as being in conflict with the principle of an all-volunteer military in which enlisted personnel sign contracts for a specific period of service. It was first used in the 1991 Gulf War.

The Army has not officially announced the order, although Lt. Gen. Dennis Cavin, commander of Army Accessions Command, told CNN last Friday that a new "stop loss" order was under consideration. Defense officials discussed some details of the new order Monday on condition of anonymity.

It is an expansion of a "stop loss" order imposed last November on the tens of thousands of soldiers who are scheduled to deploy to Iraq and Afghanistan this year. They were told they may not leave the service during their one-year deployment abroad or for 90 days after they return. <snip>

[bemildred]

1. More AWOL and desertions, coming right up. nt

[BOSSHOG]

2. The time is now for us to ensure

that our Congressional reprs see to it that the men and women in Iraq get absentee ballots in a timely manner. Contact your reps (NOW). Our efforts will surely be offset by Katherine Harris' throughout the country who will ensure that those who believe in democratic ideals are disenfranchised. Would it not be great if bush lost the veteran vote and lost the electoral votes in states heavily populated by military personnel and yet won the popular vote. The tanks would roll then.

[alapolitical]

3. I smell blood in the wind

I think that there might be preparation going for a spring offensive of some sort.

[DemoTex]

4. I feel a draft blowing in ...

Probably about 11/3/2004.

[GainesT1958]

15. Hey, DEMOTEX...

I REALLY like your "North Carolina Democrat" sticker!:D :thumbsup:

B-)

[nadinbrzezinski]

5. Ok this is first hand info

will leave person or command out

Lets jsut say that people on watch are about fed up and ready
to shoot Junior Officers who really mess up

The words of the person who passed me this jewell, morale is in the
crapper, all JOs are looking for the closest exist and careerist
cannot stand it anymore.

Oh and the best part of the jewel, they are running the military
as a business, and the army's back is broken, the Navy is close to, followed by the Corp and the AF is still seating pretty.

Yes time to write reps and to take the national security issue away from pukes... they don't own it anymore, they are the ones who have done this to the armed forces.

Word also says that rebuilding the armed forces will take longer and will be harder than after Nam.

[ozymandius]

10. This is horrible!

What constitutes "messing up"?

The Army's back is broken? You mean by morale issues?

I really wish some element of a union would invade the armed forces. It hurts to read news like this. Our servicepeople need justice just as much as the Iraqi citizens do.

[bemildred]

13. messing up == threatening to get people killed for stupid reasons

"back is broken" means combat readiness for a real war, as opposed
to harassing civilians, is no longer present.

I've been wondering when/if the fragging would start.

[ozymandius]

16. Thank you for the definitions.

Dear Gods! I wonder what will become of these combat veterans when they come home?

[GoldenOldie]

19. What is happening to the combat veterans returning now???

Last night my daughter who is a highschool teacher, received a phone call from one of her previous students ...who is now a teacher working in Guatamala. She wanted my daughter to know that her best friend who was also a student of my daughter had just returned from Iraq 3-weeks ago where she was serving as a Army Reservist and a Driver in a convoy transportation operation. My daughter related to me that this 24year old woman had been one of her students and she was a gentile, caring, intelligent young girl who always seemed to quiet down the more rambunctious group of students. Now this young woman/combat veteran had returned home in a severe state of trauma caused by her experiences and receiving absolutely no form of care by our government. Her friends relate her stories with disbelief...as a driver in a convoy their orders were " to stop for no one or anything," they were to use their vehicles as assault weapons. Hungry woman and children's attempts to garner food and water from the American convoy's entering their villages were met with death as the wheels of the heavy military vehicles drove over them. This young woman is now reliving what she has done and how she must live with it ....her friends worry for her and discuss what can they do.
How many times is this being replayed throughout our Nation by other combat veterans and their family and friends. I had a hard time sleeping last night, as I am sure I met this young woman as a teenager and a student of my daughter.

"Bring it On." When is the gutless coward that went AWOL with no repurcussions going to stand up for the combat veterans that he was supposed to lead?

[JailForBush]

6. It would be humorous if these drastic actions led to a drastic decrease in

new enlistments, causing the situation to spiral out of control.

Imagine if George W. Bush was forced to reinstate the draft a few months before the election!

[nadinbrzezinski]

7. They are planning to AFTER the election

the worst kept secret is that enlistments are DOWN as well
as people reuping

What they are using is fuzzy math

This is how it works

Command A needs to get 100 sailors, by the end of the month they only get 90, well guess what, they only needed 90 to begin with.. as the numbers are dropped...

Sooner or later this fuzzy math is going to come up in the wash

The same for people re uping

The Army was so happy, they met goal, going from memory, so the numbers will not be exact, they got lets say 52400 people to say yes, the goal was 51000... well the original goal was 55000... but they met goal...

These games are going on in all services... oh and by the way, the story where this piece of data came from is in the Stars and Stripes, the other piece it revealed is that they never even got close to the numbers of mid Career NCOs they wanted to re-up, which are the people running for the exits.

Look they intended to bankrupt teh country by 06 or 07, so they could cancell SS and otehr services, they have been so effective that the crisis is NOW. They also intentionally or not, broke the back of the armed services and they know it, hence why they are superfunding the SSS... but the crisis in personnel will hit them, really hit them, by mid Summer, and if we should have a bona fide international crisis, even closer than that.. four of the divisions coming back are NOT ready for duty and will not be for at least six months..

[catmandu57]

8. These people are living in a dream world

The war was going to be short and sweet, then Iraq was to be a jumping off point to fulfill the pnac's twisted version of world domination.
Things have a way of falling apart, fast. The geniuses running things haven't exactly shown great military ability, more on a par with Saddam hisself.
So, with a drop in morale, an increase in public awareness as the body count grows, a draft coming before they planned, if we're not under full marshall law by October, we'll cream these bastards come November.

[htuttle]

11. It's kind of like the war was put together...

...by a bunch of tech venture capitalists....lots of big talk, few concrete plans, lots of expert advice totally ignored. Classic big-corporate FUBAR.

BTW, that's 'martial law', not 'marshall law' -- minor pet peeve of mine.

However, I still think that 'Marshall Law' would be the coolest name for a Blues band!

[depakid]

9. Maybe they need to change their marketing approach

This is especially true for the Guard. I still see ads with some frequency that tout all the benefits you can get for "one weekend a month." Somehow, I doubt that's very persuasive anymore.

[bushisanidiot]

12. And Gay Soldiers Are Fired For Being Gay

what idiots..

i'm tellin' ya. if any of those guys want out they should just say "f*ck you, Bush, I'm gay!" and they'll never have to see another day of combat.

it would be the quickest way to get rid of the ban on gays in the military. that kind of law sure as hell doesn't belong in the "land of the free".

[David__77]

18. at least they're honorable discharges...

perhaps conscientious objectors may have to think about changing their sexual orientation if they wish to evade prosecution. Let's look on the bright side. (Bit of sarcasm here.)

[GainesT1958]

14. Next best thing to a draft...

Which, of course, they're prepared to implement early next year IF Dub were (God forbid!:scared: ) to get back in.

B-)

[izzie]

17. Well who to believe. Man from Army times? on c-span said

80% were staying in by re-signing up.They were having no trouble at all.

[leftchick]

20. Just like Vietnam....

I was only 10 years old in 1968 and I still remember all of the lies! Nothing has changed, our Government still lies and the media is even worse now. It is so depressing..... :(

[Mari333]

22. I saw that show

Army Times is levelled towards officers, not the lowly privates in the ranks..of course they said they would resign up...they cant say no ..they are terrified of saying no..the army doesnt LET you speak your mind when you are at the bottom of the ranks..]
My son wont sign up again and neither will my stepson, he said, right before he left for Iraq.

[Mari333]

21. assholes!

We had to go thru hell and highwater to get my sons LEGAL discharge thru...thanks to You all and Will Pitt..!
and Senator Levin!
but now my stepson is on his way there.
Oh well, we will make it thru this .
In the meantime the bastards seem to think they can fuck with the armed services to get their way//
whats next, the goddamed boy scouts???
When oh When will the US public say ENOUGH!!!!!!!

[Solly Mack]

23. Lucky me

We expected this...though we really really hoped they wouldn't do this. So many want out and this will bring morale down below rock bottom.

Doesn't affect my family , though stop-movement does..and that's bad enough.