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I really don't like the way the media report on troop movements. Reports like this are disingenuous for a few reasons.

If you're worried about #WWIII, this ain't it. [THREAD 1/12]

cnn.com/2020/01/03/pol…
1. It's not like the Army just now decided to add troops. The 3,000 additional soldiers are from the 82nd Airborne, which exists to respond quickly to incidents. They are specifically trained for times like this and expect to be deployed. [2/12]
home.army.mil/bragg/index.ph…
There are contingency plans in place at all times and threat levels that change and demand troop movements. The 82nd is always "on call" at Fort Bragg, so to speak, and they've been deployed dozens of times already in the War on Terror. [3/12]
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/82nd_Airb…
2. The media never provide any perspective on what troop numbers mean. 3,000 is a big number, but how does it compare to other troop numbers around the world? [4/12]
This is partially the DoD's fault for not regularly reporting troop numbers in Iraq and Afghanistan. In November, there were around 5,200 troops in Iraq, but more have been added since then, so let's estimate 6,000. [5/12]
nbcnews.com/news/us-news/h…
Adding 3,000 troops is a 50% increase in Iraq, which is big.

But, again, compared to what?

There were more than 5,200 troops on active duty in 6 foreign countries plus Guam as of Q4 2019, the most recent data available. [6/12]
Those 6 are, with approximate troop numbers rounded to the nearest thousand:

1. Japan (55,000)
2. Germany (35,000)
3. South Korea (27,000)
4. Afghanistan (13,000)
5. Italy (13,000)
6. United Kingdom (9,000)
7. Guam (6,000)
[7/12]
dmdc.osd.mil/appj/dwp/dwp_r…
Put another way, the active duty overseas total is about 174,000. 3,000 additional troops amounts to a 1.7% increase in our total overseas force.

The domestic active duty total is about 1.2 million. The troops leaving Fort Bragg account for 0.25% of our domestic force. [8/12]
Put yet another way, there are about 102,000 active duty military stationed just in the state of North Carolina, where Fort Bragg is located. 3,000 troops is only 2.9% of the troops stationed in one state. [9/12]

dmdc.osd.mil/appj/dwp/dwp_r…
There are more than 9,000 active duty troops stationed in each of 24 states and the District of Columbia.

There are approximately twice as many troops in Alaska as there will be in Iraq. [10/12]

dmdc.osd.mil/appj/dwp/dwp_r…
I am not meaning to minimize the importance of this move or downplay the fact that 3,000 Americans are being put in harm's way. We should keep them and their families in our prayers and wish for their safe return. [11/12]
At the same time, don't let media reports of "thousands of troops" create fear.

#WWIII would mean way more troops than are being deployed. [12/12]
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