Perspective: Army orders the injured back into Iraq

A member of the 3rd Brigade in Iraq. This will be the 3rd Brigade's third tour in Iraq. The deployment was 'bumped up' by several months to support the 'surge'. The deployment is 'open-ended', meaning that the liklihood is that the tour will last 18 months.

BENNING, Ga. -- "This is not right," said Master Sgt. Ronald Jenkins, who has been ordered to Iraq even though he has a spine problem that doctors say would be damaged further by heavy Army protective gear. "This whole thing is about taking care of soldiers," he said angrily. "If you are fit to fight you are fit to fight. If you are not fit to fight, then you are not fit to fight."

As the military scrambles to pour more soldiers into Iraq, a unit of the Army's 3rd Infantry Division at Fort Benning, Ga., is deploying troops with serious injuries and other medical problems, including GIs who doctors have said are medically unfit for battle. Some are too injured to wear their body armor, according to medical records.

Read the rest at Salon