This is not good:

The trouble began Labor Day weekend, when 13 members of the 1st Battalion of the 178th Field Artillery Regiment went AWOL, mainly to see their families again before shipping out. Then there was an ugly confrontation between members of the battalion's Alpha and Charlie batteries — the term artillery units use instead of "companies" — that threatened to turn into a brawl involving three dozen soldiers, and required the base police to intervene.

These are the people who deserve the truth. And they're not getting it.

Steve has more.

...Can you blame these guys when this is happening?

Soldiers from a Fort Carson combat unit say they have been issued an ultimatum - re-enlist for three more years or be transferred to other units expected to deploy to Iraq.

Hundreds of soldiers from the 3rd Brigade Combat Team were presented with that message and a re-enlistment form in a series of assemblies last Thursday, said two soldiers who spoke on condition of anonymity.

I love this country!

[Via Alterman]