According to this
AP article, U.S. command refuses to relocate soldiers to help citizens affected by Katrina.
There will be no large-scale shifting of U.S. troops from Iraq and Afghanistan to help with disaster relief in Louisiana and Mississippi, a U.S. Central Command spokesman said Thursday.
Lt. Col. Trey Cate said top military officials are exploring ways to bring individual troops home to take care of families in need without altering the balance of forces in the war zones.
Well, at least they are clear about their priorities. Thousands potentially dead, more dying by the hour, New Orleans descending into chaos, but we 'can't alter the balance of forces' in a war zone we gratuitously created. Nice.
I understand that individual troops may have some trouble actually being of service--in fact, won't they be more of a burden? What I assume would help would be large transports to evacuate people from the Superdome, drop aid packages, etc. But...
Navy Cmdr. Jeff Breslau, a U.S. 5th Fleet spokesman in Bahrain, said no U.S. warships in the Gulf would be redirected to disaster relief in the Gulf of Mexico, but individual sailors with family emergencies could be granted home leave.
National Guard units called up for rescue work in Louisiana and Mississippi had to make do without members currently deployed in Iraq or Afghanistan.
National Guard troops from Alabama and Wisconsin, along with other law enforcers, were ordered to deal with the shortfall.
'Deal with the shortfall'. Nice.
I can't possibly imagine what a large contingent of National Guard troops right now would mean to those trying to maintain order in New Orleans as it looks like local National Guard and police have their hands full.
Are our priorities this utterly skewed that we'll service a gratuitous war rather than take care of our own citizenry? When did we become a third world nation? I think we need to make a call to move troops from the Gulf to the hurrican effected regions NOW.