The Bush Butcher’s Bill: Officially, 40 US Military Deaths in Iraq from 1 through 11 May, 2005 – Official Total of 1,791 US Dead to date (and rising)

U.S. Military Personnel who died in German hospitals or en route to German hospitals have not previously been counted. They total about 6,210 as of 1 January, 2005. The ongoing, underreporting of the dead in Iraq, is not accurate. The DoD is deliberately reducing the figures. A review of many foreign news sites show that actual deaths are far higher than the newly reduced ones.  Iraqi civilian casualties are never reported but International Red Cross, Red Crescent and UN figures indicate that as of 1 January 2005, the numbers are just under 100,000.

by Brian Harring, Domestic Intelligence Reporter

Note: There is excellent reason to believe that the Department of Defense is deliberately not reporting a significant number of the dead in Iraq. We have received copies of  manifests from the MATS that show far more bodies shipped into Dover AFP than are reported officially. The educated rumor is that the actual death toll is in excess of 7,000. Given the officially acknowledged number of over 15,000 seriously wounded, this elevated death toll is far more realistic than the current 1,400+ now being officially published. When our research is complete, and watertight, we will publish the results along with the sources In addition to the evident falsification of the death rolls, at least 5,500 American military personnel have deserted, most in Ireland but more have escaped to Canada and other European countries, none of whom are inclined to cooperate with vengeful American authorities. (See TBR News of 18 February for full coverage on the mass desertions) This means that of the 158,000 U.S. military shipped to Iraq, 26,000  either deserted, were killed or seriously wounded. The DoD lists currently being very quietly circulated indicate almost 9,000 dead, over 16,000 seriously wounded* (See note below. This figure is now over 24,000 Ed) and a large number of suicides, forced hospitalization for ongoing drug usage and sales, murder of Iraqi civilians and fellow soldiers , rapes, courts martial and so on –

Because I cannot publish the DoD pdf file in this country (no one has said anything about it being published outside the country) I am working up a specific overview for posting and my lawyer has made the following suggestion for me. I think it’s good and it certainly is legal.

I have a copy of the official DoD casualty list. I am alphabetizing it with the reported date of death following. TBR will post this list in sections and when this is circulated widely by veteran groups and other concerned sites, if people who do not see their loved one’s names, are requested to inform their Congressman, their local paper, us and other concerned people as soon as possible.

The government gets away with these huge lies because they claim, falsely, that only soldiers actually killed on the ground in Iraq are reported. The dying and critically wounded are listed as en route to military hospitals outside of the country and not reported on the daily postings. Anyone who dies just as the transport takes off from the Baghdad airport is not listed and neither are those who die in the US  military hospitals. Their families are certainly notified that their son, husband, brother or lover was dead and the bodies, or what is left of them (refrigeration is very bad in Iraq what with constant power outages) are shipped home, to Dover AFB. You ought to realize that President Bush personally ordered that no pictures be taken of the coffined and flag-draped dead under any circumstances. He claims that this is to comfort the bereaved relatives but is designed to keep the huge number of arriving bodies secret. Any civilian, or military personnel, taking pictures will be jailed at once and prosecuted. Bush has never attended any kind of a memorial service for his dead soldiers and never will. He is terrified some parent might curse him in front of the press or, worse, attack him. As Bush is a coward and in denial, this is not a surprise.

This listing program is about finished and we will start publishing in the very near future so act accordingly. If there is an actual variance of, say, 10 names, that is acceptable. 50 would indicate sloppiness and anything over 100 a positive sign of lying.

*The latest on the wounded: “Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany, is a 150-bed hospital that's already seen over 24,000 wounded military patients from Iraq and Afghanistan since the commencement of hostilities “. Knight Ridder Newspapers  June 6, 2005 (Note: The Pentagon refuses to publish accurate lists of any wounded. Ed)

Brian Harring

Haven’t we had enough of this?

1

The Department of Defense announced today the deaths of four airmen who were supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.  The airmen died May 30 in the crash of an Iraqi air force aircraft during a training mission in eastern Diyala province. They are: Maj. William Downs, 40, of Winchester, Va., assigned to the 6th Special Operations Squadron, Hurlburt Field, Fla. Capt. Jeremy Fresques, 26, of Clarkdale, Ariz., assigned to the 23rd Special Tactics Squadron, Hurlburt Field, Fla. Capt. Derek Argel, 28, of Lompoc, Calif., assigned to the 23rd Special Tactics Squadron, Hurlburt Field, Fla. Staff Sgt. Casey Crate, 26, of Spanaway, Wash., assigned to the 23rd Special Tactics Squadron, Hurlburt Field, Fla.

The Department of Defense announced today the death of three soldiers who were supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.  They died May 24 in Baghdad, Iraq, when an improvised explosive device detonated near their HMMWV.  They were assigned to the 1st Battalion, 76th Field Artillery, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Stewart, Ga. The Soldiers are: Sgt. Charles A. Drier, 28, of Tuscola, Mich. Spec. Dustin C. Fisher, 22, of Fort Smith, Ark. Pfc. Jeffrey R. Wallace, 20, of Hoopeston, Ill.

2

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Staff Sgt. Virgil R. Case, 37, of Mountain Home, Idaho, died June 1 in Kirkuk, Iraq, from non-combat related injuries.  Case was assigned to the Army National Guard's 145th Support Battalion, 116th Brigade Combat Team, Mountain Home, Idaho.

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Sgt. 1st Class Steven M. Langmack, 33, of Seattle, Wash., died May 31 in Al Qaim, Iraq, from injuries sustained from small arms fire during combat operations. Langmack was assigned to Headquarters, U.S. Army Special Operations Command, Fort Bragg, N.C.

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Sgt. Miguel A. Ramos, 39, of Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, died May 31 in Baghdad, Iraq, when an enemy rocket impacted near his position.  Ramos was assigned to the Army Reserve's 807th Signal Company, 35th Signal Battalion, Juana Diaz, Puerto Rico.

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Spc. Phillip C. Edmundson, 22, of Wilson, N.C., died June 1 in Ar Ramadi, Iraq, when an improvised explosive device detonated near his Bradley Fighting Vehicle during combat operations.  Edmundson was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division, Fort Carson, Colo.

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Pfc. Louis E. Niedermeier, 20, of Largo, Fla., died June 1 in Ar Ramadi, Iraq, when his unit was conducting combat operations and he came under enemy small arms fire.  Niedermeier was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 17th Field Artillery Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, Fort Carson, Colo.

5

The Department of Defense announced today the death of two soldiers who were supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. They were killed on June 3 at Forward Operating Base Orgun-E in Afghanistan when their convoy vehicle was struck by an improvised expolsive device.  They were assigned to the 1st Battalion, 7th Special Forces Group, Fort Bragg, N.C. The soldiers are: Staff Sgt. Leroy E. Alexander, 27, of Dale City, Va. Cpt. Charles D. Robinson, 29, of Haddon Heights, N. J.

6

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a Marine who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Cpl. Antonio Mendoza, 21, of Santa Ana, Calif., died June 3 at Brooke Army Medical Center, San Antonio, from wounds received as a result of an explosion while conducting combat operations against enemy forces in Ar Ramadi, Iraq, on Feb. 22. At the time of his injury, Mendoza was assigned to 5th Battalion, 11th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Pendleton, Calif.

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Spc. Carrie L. French, 19, of Caldwell, Idaho, died June 5 in Kirkuk, Iraq, when an improvised explosive device hit the front of her convoy vehicle and detonated. French was assigned to the Army National Guard's 145th Support Battalion, Boise, Idaho.

7

The Department of Defense announced today the death of three soldiers who were supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. They died on June 5 in Baghdad, Iraq, when an improvised explosive device detonated near their military vehicle. They were assigned to the 3rd Squadron, 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment, Fort Carson, Colo. Killed were: Staff Sgt. Justin L. Vasquez, 26, of Manzanola, Colo. Spc. Eric J. Poelman, 21, of Racine, Wis. Pfc. Brian S. Ulbrich, 23, of Chapmanville, W. Va.

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Col. Theodore S. Westhusing, 44, of Dallas, Texas, died June 5 in Baghdad, Iraq, from non-combat related injuries.  Westhusing was serving with the Multi-national Security Transition Command-Iraq and was assigned to the United States Military Academy, West Point, N.Y.

8

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Spc. Brian M. Romines, 20, of Simpson, Ill., died June 6 in Baghdad, Iraq, where an improvised explosive device detonated near his HMMWV.  Romines was assigned to the Army National Guard's 2nd Battalion, 123rd Field Artillery, Milan, Ill.

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a Marine who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Lance Cpl. Jonathan L. Smith, 22, of Eva, Ala., died June 6 from wounds received as a result of an explosion while conducting combat operations against enemy forces in Fallujah, Iraq. He was assigned to 2nd Assault Amphibian Battalion, Regimental Combat Team-8, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C.

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a Marine who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Lance Cpl. Robert T. Mininger, 21, of Sellersville, Pa., died June 6 from wounds received as a result of an explosion while conducting combat operations against enemy forces in Fallujah, Iraq. He was assigned to 3rd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, Regimental Combat Team-8, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C.

10

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a Marine who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Lance Cpl. Marc L. Tucker, 24, of Pontotoc, Miss., died June 8 as a result of a non-hostile vehicle accident in Asr Uranium, Iraq.  He was assigned to 9th Engineer Support Battalion, 3rd Force Service Support Group, III Marine Expeditionary Force, Okinawa, Japan. During Operation Iraqi Freedom, his unit was attached to 2nd FSSG, II Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward).

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a Department of an Army civilian who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Ms. Linda J. Villar, 41, of Franklinton, La., died June 3 in Baghdad, Iraq, from injuries sustained when a mortar struck her forward operating base. Villar worked for the U.S. Army Field Support Command, Fort Stewart, Ga.

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. Sgt. Michael J. Kelley, 26, of Scituate, Mass., died June 8 in Shkin, Afghanistan, when his helicopter landing zone came under enemy fire.  Kelley was assigned to the Army National Guard's 101st Field Artillery Battalion, Rehoboth, Mass.

The Department of Defense announced today the death of two soldiers who were supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.  They died on June 8 in Tikrit, Iraq, of injuries sustained on June 7 in Tikrit, Iraq, when an explosion of unknown origin occurred near their location.  Both soldiers were assigned to the Army National Guard's Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 42nd Infantry Division, Troy, N.Y. Killed were: Capt. Phillip T. Esposito, 30, of Suffern, N.Y. 1st Lt. Louis E. Allen, 34, of Milford, Pa.

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Sgt. Roberto Arizola, Jr., 31, of Laredo, Texas, died June 8 in Baghdad, Iraq, when an improvised explosive device detonated near his HMMWV.  Arizola was assigned to the Army's 297th Military Intelligence Battalion, 513th Military Intelligence Brigade, Fort Gordon, Ga.

The Department of Defense announced today the death of five Marines who were supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Lance Cpl. Dustin V. Birch, 22, of Saint Anthony, Idaho. Lance Cpl. Daniel Chavez, 20, of Seattle, Wash. Lance Cpl. Thomas O. Keeling, 23, of Strongsville, Ohio. Lance Cpl. Devon P. Seymour, 21, of St. Louisville, Ohio. Cpl. Brad D. Squires, 26, of Middleburg Heights, Ohio. All five Marines died June 9 as a result of an explosion while conducting combat operations with 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward), in Haqlaniyah, Iraq. Keeling, Seymour, and Squires were assigned to Marine Forces Reserve's 3rd Battalion, 25th Marine Regiment, 4th Marine Division, Akron, Ohio. Birch was assigned to Marine Forces Reserve's 4th Tank Battalion, 4th Marine Division, Boise, Idaho. Chavez was assigned to 1st Tank Battalion, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Pendleton, Calif.

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Lt. Col. Terrence K. Crowe, 44, of New York, N.Y., died June 7 in Tal Afar, Iraq, when his unit was attacked by enemy forces using rocket-propelled grenades and small arms fire.  Crowe was assigned to the Army Reserve's 10th Battalion, 98th Regiment, 4th Brigade, 98th Division, Lodi, N.J.

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a Soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Staff Sgt. Mark O. Edwards, 40, of Unicoi, Tenn., died June 9 at his forward operating base near Tuz, Iraq, from a non-combat related cause.   Edwards was assigned to the Army National Guard's 2nd Squadron, 278th Armored Cavalry Regiment, Erwin, Tenn.

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a Soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. Pfc. Emmanuel Hernandez, 22, of Yauco, Puerto Rico, died June 8 in Shkin, Afghanistan, when his helicopter-landing zone came under enemy fire. Hernandez was assigned to the Army's 319th Airborne Field Artillery Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade, Vicenza, Italy.

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a Soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Pfc. Douglas E. Kashmer, 27, of Sharon, Pa., died June 8 in Nippur, Iraq, when the wrecker in which he was a passenger was involved in a non-combat related rollover.   Kashmer was assigned to the Army's 70th Transportation Company, Mannheim, Germany.

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. 1st Lt. Michael J. Fasnacht, 25, of Columbus, Ga., died June 8 in Tikrit, Iraq, when an improvised explosive device detonated near his Bradley Fighting Vehicle.  Fasnacht was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division, Fort Benning, Ga.

11

The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. Sgt. First Class Victor H. Cervantes, 27, of Stockton, Calif., died June 10 in Orgun-e, Afghanistan, when he came under small arms fire while on patrol. Cervantes was assigned to the Army's 1st Battalion, 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne), Fort Bragg, N.C.

The Full, Official Casualty list, Alphabetized

This is a fully alphabetized list of the official number of American dead in Iraq from the beginning of the Iraqi war through June 6, 2005.

There are many more deaths that have not appeared on the official lists because the DoD has taken the tricky tack of loading dying and probable fatalities onto aircraft and flying them out of Iraq to bases and hospitals outside of that country. So, if a GI is dying or has every expectation of dying, he or she is loaded on an aircraft and their subsequent deaths are not publicly reported as “Combat Deaths.” Of course the families or survivors are certainly notified of the death but the public is not.

The purpose of publishing this alphabetical name list (which I will update monthly) is to encourage the families and friends of survivors to contact up with the names of these unreported casualties.

We suggest supplying the name, rank and unit of the individual as well as contact information for verification.

We have encountered serious objections to our publishing the original DoD pdf file that lists the actual dead, injured, deserters and so on so we are getting around this by publishing the original cover page and then reformatting the information contained inside the cover.

Because there are over a hundred pages of the dead alone, this project will take some time because I am doing it myself, without any assistance and please do not volunteer to assist me.

And to those who keep writing to me in care of TBR News wanting to know my name and address “so they can help me” or “because if you don’t give me your name, SS number and address, I just can’t believe a word you say.” I can tell you that I have been around the academic world long enough to have learned not to give away my lengthy research to someone eager to get the credit, and the money,  for my work.

They say that for an academic (or any writer for that matter) to steal from one person is plagiarism while stealing from many (like the late Steven Ambrose) is really research.  And yes, I am working on a book and yes, I have a publisher so be good enough to bug off and do your own work.

As far as the demanders of my name and address are concerned, go spy on your neighbors and then run, panting, to the FBI to get your plastic pin and tin toy badge. Or better still, stick your head in a chipper and turn it on.

Brian Harring

Alphabetical List Click Here

New questions raised on US military casualty count: 

American war widow suspects more than one person’s ashes are listed as belonging to her husband.

Among the 31 American troops killed when the Iraqi Resistance shot down a helicopter near ar-Rutbah in western Iraq on 26 January 2005 was US Marine First Lieutenant Dustin Shumney of the town of Mesquite in Texas. (For coverage of the downing of the helicopter, see “Iraqi Resistance shoots down US helicopter, killing 31 Marines near ar-Rutbah” in the Iraqi Resistance Report for Wednesday, 26 January 2005.) In February Julie Shumney, the Lieutenant’s widow, received a shipment of her husband’s ashes, which she solemnly laid to rest as his last remains.

But then, as The Dallas Morning News reported on Saturday, 11 June 2005, Mrs. Shumney was stunned to receive a telephone call in May, informing her that a second, 80-pound portion of her husband’s body was being shipped to her. It turned out that the combined sets of ashes were too much to fit into a 400-cubic-inch double urn, a standard-sized vessel designed to hold the remains to two adult individuals. This has led Mrs. Shumney to believe that the remains now in her possession might in fact be those of more than one soldier. “They swear that only Dustin’s DNA is coming up in these remains, and there’s no way,” she told The Dallas Morning News. “There’s something that’s just not right about this picture,” the Dallas paper quoted her as saying.

The Dallas Morning News reported a spokeswoman for the American Armed Forces Institute of Pathology as saying that remains from all 31 personnel killed in the crash had been identified and sent to their respective families. A spokeswoman at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware said that only Lieutenant Shumney’s remains had been sent to his wife.

Still unconvinced, and concerned lest the remains of another soldier not be sent to his own family, Mrs. Shumney said she is hoping to have a medical examiner test bits of bone in the ashes in her possession to see if the DNA of other soldiers might show up.

The success of such testing is very much in doubt, however, given the difficulty involved in trying to extract DNA from bone even under normal conditions, and in particular since DNA denatures in the presence of heat and all the bone fragments amongst the ashes had been cremated at high temperature.

They Won't Go

June 13, 2005
By Bob Herbert
New York Times

George W. Bush is in no danger of being ranked among the nation's pre-eminent commanders in chief. Not only has he been unable thus far to win the war in Iraq, but on his watch significant sectors of the proud U.S. military have been rapidly deteriorating.

The Army reported on Friday that it had fallen short of its recruitment goals for a fourth consecutive month. The Marines managed to meet their recruitment target for May, but that was their first successful month this year.

Scrambling to fill its ranks, the Army is signing up more high school dropouts and lower-scoring applicants.

With the war in Iraq going badly and allegations of abuse by military personnel widespread, young men and women are increasingly deciding that there's no upside to a career choice in which the most important skills might be ducking bullets and dodging roadside bombs.

The primary reason the U.S. went to an all-volunteer military in 1973 was to ensure that those who did not want to fight wouldn't have to. That option is now being overwhelmingly exercised, discretion being the clear choice over valor. Young people and their parents alike are turning their backs on the military in droves.

The Army is so desperate for even lukewarm bodies that it is reluctant to release even problem soldiers, troops who are seriously out of shape, or pregnant, or abusing alcohol or drugs. And it is lowering standards for admission to the junior officer ranks. For example, minor criminal offenses that previously would have been prohibitive can now be overlooked.

At the same time Army recruiters have been chasing high school kids with such reckless abandon that a backlash is developing among parents who, in many cases, want the recruiters kept out of their children's schools.

"To the extent that we think students are threatened by recruiters, it's our job to intervene," said Amy Hagopian, a co-chair of the Parent-Teacher-Student Association at Garfield High School in Seattle. Ms. Hagopian, who has an 18-year-old son, complained that recruiters too often put the hard sell on impressionable high school youngsters without informing them of the potential dangers of a life in the military.

Recruiters with the gift of gab go into the schools with a glamorous pitch, bags full of goodies for the kids (T-shirts, donuts, key chains) and a litany of promises they often can't keep. The kids don't hear much about their chances of being maimed or killed, or the trauma that often results from killing someone else.

(A soldier's job is to kill. I can still hear the drill sergeants in basic training screaming at us decades ago: "What are you? What are you?" And we'd scream back: "Killers! Killers!" And the sergeants would say, "What is your purpose?" And we would shout: "To kill! To kill!")

The Army, frantically searching for solutions, is offering enlistments as short as 15 months and considering bonuses worth up to $40,000. But it may be facing a problem too difficult for any amount of money to overcome. Americans are catching on to the hideousness and apparent futility of the war in Iraq. Five marines were killed in a single bomb attack in western Iraq on Thursday. On Friday, a front-page Washington Post headline described the effort to rebuild the Iraqi military as "Mission Improbable."

A Washington Post-ABC News poll last week found that nearly three-quarters of Americans believe the number of casualties in Iraq is unacceptable, and 60 percent believe the war was not worth fighting.

There's something frankly embarrassing about a government offering trinkets to children to persuade them to go off and fight - and perhaps die - in a war that their nation should never have started in the first place. It's highly questionable whether most high school kids are equipped to make an informed decision about joining the military, which is exactly why they're targeted. The additional knowledge and maturity gained in the first few years after high school make it easier for a young man or woman to make a wiser, more meaningful choice, pro or con.

The parents of the kids being sought by recruiters to fight this unpopular war are creating a highly vocal and potentially very effective antiwar movement. In effect, they're saying to their own children: hell no, you won't go.

E-mail: bobherb@nytimes.com