Fujita gives player's side of potential NFL lockout
 

We're approaching the end of the current league year in the NFL, and if a new Collective Bargaining Agreement isn't reached by midnight March 4, the players could be locked out. Translation: We can't even show up for work. The players have suggested having a "lock-in," where we would basically hunker down in a hotel somewhere for as long as needed and hammer out a new CBA before the clock strikes midnight. We have received no response from the league about this.


What all this means is that our families will lose their health coverage, injured players will no longer get treated by our doctors and trainers, and games could be cancelled. Do I expect anyone to feel sorry for us? Absolutely not. The real issue is what's at stake for everyone involved in the business of football and the undeniable impact that a lack of football will reap. Each NFL city is expected to lose about $150,000,000. Trust me, the city of Cleveland can't afford that. And as for the city of New Orleans, whose economy is so dependent on the service industry and visitors staying in their hotels and eating in their restaurants, it's just not fair to them. Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones recently claimed a lockout wouldn't be all that devastating. For someone with his level of influence, that's one of the most irresponsible things I've heard yet. This is much bigger than some gripe the owners have with the players.


So what's the gripe? In a nutshell, the owners are demanding that the players play two more games each year AND take an 18% pay-cut. And when we ask why, they tell us it's none of our business. The players are willing to be reasonable about this, and if we knew the NFL had fallen on hard times and that sacrifices were a must, then that's a different story. But as we all know, the league is doing just fine. Revenues are as high as they've ever been and the fan-base is growing every year. This season, TV ratings for regular season NFL games blew the World Series out of the water. The NFL has negotiated TV deals that will pay them $4.5 billion in 2011...even if NO games are played. So when we ask them to explain how the "current economic model is broken," I think that's a pretty justifiable question.

Fujita gives player's side of potential NFL lockout | wwltv.com | WWL Sports

I sure hope that something is figured out and figured out fast. I think the people that will be most affected by a lockout would be the fanbase of every NFL team which in turn will have a huge affect on the franchise they support. Any sport that has went through a players strike or lockout has suffered to regain fan support in the few following years after. Jerry Jones is a complete moron if he thinks the NFL won't take hit. It will most definitely. Many fans who live and breathe football season, go to the games, and buy the licensed merchandise will not be as willing to shell out the bucks after they have been deprived of it because of the bickering between players and owners. Don't get me wrong, though. People will still attend games once they commence, but it will be a lot tougher for the NFL to win over the entire increasing amount of fans they've received every year.Like Fujita said, cities like Cleveland, New Orleans, and others will take a massive hit in tourism, service industry, many other city aspects when games are played. I don't care what has to happen, just get this thing done. No football player wants to sit. No owner wants to lose money. And last, but definitely not least, no fan wants to be without their football. I know I sure as hell don't.

I agree with you D. No one wins and especially not us fans. Funny thing is the owners are asking of the players exactly what my job has done to me over the past 3 yrs. Only my employer didn't ask, I was told. Paycut and more hours with less help...

There needs to be issues addressed on both sides. Rookie pay being high on my list for them to settle.

Greed versus Greed.

I'm disappointed the players are taking it to the fans.

STOP USING US AS A WEDGE!!!

Even babies raised by wolves know exactly when they've been used-Tragically Hip

Agreed. Both sides make tons of money. Players need to do what they are paid to do and stop whining and the Owners need to stop crying about salaries cause they are the ones that allowed it to get outta control. A rookie holds out for 25 million...let him watch the games from home.

The NFL and owners have taken it too far - not only against the players but against the common joe. Unfortunately it may take a lockout to correct the system.

This is all the owners fault. If you look at other leauges the NFL player get paid less and have shorter careers. I don't blame them. I blame the 32 rich, tight wallet owners that don't want to pay the players who made them the money. They also want them to pay stadium cost too. I'm tired of fans whining to about how much they get paid. It is what it is. Look at CEO's. Come on. If fans had the talent to get paid to play they would. Get over it.

I think its the player fault. The owners runs a business and every business is expecting a fair return on investment. With so many teams building new stadiums or renovating old ones the money has to come from somewhere. Why do you think the state of Louisiana has to pay Benson? The players are very well compensated, all of them, there are a lot of high risk jobs that pays a lot less.

I don't mean to sound all economisty and such, but Football, in of itself, is not a great source of GDP. We vastly overvalue passive entertainment and undervalue our own participation in physical activities. If it takes a lockout to realign salaries to reflect the real world and not some imaginary land where holding a ball and hitting each other with pads entitles one to outrageous compensation, I'm all for it. If the effect of the activity is transient, it should have marginal value. If the effect is long lived, then there should be greater value. The NFL is the 21st century Tulip.

hammer, nail

damn skippy. I commute on a motorcycle, out of necessity for the most part, which is a hell of a lot riskier than playing in the NFL, and I do it EVERY damn day.

I know it's a weak comparison, but y'all get the point. The players are making, what, 60% of 9 billion annually? How much more do they want exactly? It is better for the league as a whole and for each individual player if they cap rookie salaries. Yes, CEO's make a LOT of money in some cases, but usually after they've been in business for a while and not often do they land financial windfalls right out of college.

I find it hard to believe there will be a lockout that costs a season, but I fully expect there to be some drama after the super bowl while these extremely fortunate people haggle over how to split a kings ransom.

Join the club Fujita. I'm still waiting for medical treatment from the VA for my wounds from Afghanistan. And their system only aims to hit the target not hit the bullseye like the treatment NFL players get. My arm could be fixed but their answer is good enough. The treatment and pay you guys get is beyond exceptional for playing a game.

I wish every single athlete that plays in any sport would read this very post and take it to heart the next time they think about how they are getting shafted by not getting what they are worth. When are armed forces, police officers, firefighters, teachers, and many other jobs across the nation are getting very little recognition and very little pay for what they do, athletes still have the audacity to piss and moan about not making five or ten million a season. People all across the United States are struggling to make ends meet with higher risk jobs than athletes, and yet so many athletes complain about their salaries. Many of us would gladly take and cherish in a lifetime what these guys make in one season. When greed becomes the focus of these owners and players mentalities, it makes it even more difficult for any of us average Americans to sympathize with them. Instead of *****ing about more money, they should be thankful for what they do have when there are so many others are barely getting by or not getting by at all.

butt slap and high five.

in our world if we wanted to see our owners bank book we would be considered compitition and given the axe.

This is the case with many other forms of "entertainment" as well. Are Clooney, Penn, Deniro, and other actors worth what they get paid for movies? Are those twits "judging" American Idol worth the cash and praise they receive? Are Kanye West and Eminem worth the millions they get for the BS they "create"? What about Jersey Shore and all the other low life "reality" shows? I know my answer is "hell no". Our society has become obsessed with money, glitz, and glamor. And when people/masses don't have it themselves, they use TMZ, ESPN, and ET to blindly follow the lives of those who do as if it is important. It's sad that, in a time when our country is facing the social and economic issues it is, more people could pick Lady Ga Ga from a lineup than could pick their locally elected mayor, governor, or representative. In this country, Entertainment has replaced religion as the opiate of the masses.

i totally agree S.M.

Sorry guys. I know that there are professions in this world that deserve to be paid far more than what they are, and some far less. However, if you worked for a company that made huge profits but decided to ask you to do more work but take a cut in pay, please don't tell me you would be happy with it. As Fujita has said, if the NFL was making a loss and told the players that cuts have to be made then they would understand but to pay less for more work? It isn't fair whatever way you look at it.

I wasn't going to take sides, and usually don't, on sports labor disputes. That changed when it became evident the owners were pushing for an 18-game season. Convincingly, they're the ones making the CBA difficult.

And yes, I don't think the vast majority of NFL players are "charity cases" and are quite doing well. You can't even begin to compare them to people who work in the real world and are grinding through. The real issue here is that the owners are trying to screw over the players and put the NFL in jeopardy with what they're asking.

We are, unfortunately, duplicating the pathology of 1st to 4th century Rome. Our biggest exports are gladiator sports, war and intolerance. After a golden period of innovation, equity and unity, our complacency with our position has yielded a generation of lazy, greedy, fear-mongers. The wealthiest Americans are so risk averse, they have to distract the lower economic classes with fake battles and meaningless conflict while they rob us of our lives and treasure. They promote ignorance and distrust of authority in order to fragment and repress opposition to their goals and policies. They rely on the lowest common denominator to set the bar which gives them cover when they behave abominably. These actions obliterate what economists call class mobility or what is commonly called The American Dream.

But not to go on a rant...

Hammer, you missed nail

Sounds about right to me.

We don't export intolerance. WTF does that mean?
We don't export war.

What period would this be?

Wrong. lazy perhaps, but greedy fear mongers sounds like liberal BS to me.

Nonsense. Liberal defeatist babble. No one is robbing you of your life or treasure. Your attitude towards this nation may be, but no one else is.


No they don't promote it at all.


More liberal "I hate America" drivel.

I'm so glad there are numerous entrepreneurs in this nation that do not have your "woe is me" self pity attitude toward life and this nation.

Let me guess, you're all on board the "soak the evil rich" bandwagon aren't you?

Players make too much money as it is. The players should have no more right to ownership of the teams or profits then we do in our daily job. They are certainly no more important in the grand scheme of life. You are only as good as the contract you negotiate and that should not be a commission of 50% of the entire take of the company.

You beat me to it. I seriously don't understand how or why these perceptions exist...but alas it is a free country. An old Italian lady I used to work for used to say, "it takes all kinds to make a world." Bingo. :???:

all a bunch of bull malarky.

I don't know that we'll re-do the fall of Rome, but there are some parallels than Xan cited. You think we've as a society learned from history? When Larry the Cable Guy gets his own reality show on the History Channel, hmmm I doubt it.

Different times. There was no internet or t.v. or Movie theatres back then. They created entertainment from what they had. You had lots of storytellers and plays and performers as well as gladiators. War was a way of life back then. The most honorable position you could hold was that of a soldier or warrior.

I think to compare us to that time is a fallacy. You are either conquered or you are the conqured. Back then that was how you were defined as a leader and a nation. Today we are simply trying to defend ourselves and our way of life or at least the remaining people that believe in what the U.S.A. stands for.

Everyone needs entertainment or a diversion for everyday life. an escape. The key is not to let life imitate "art" or "entertainment". Everyday life is not football, although someone would love to draw a bunch of analogies, truth is it is not. It is a 3 hour escape from life to cheer for your team and to assemble with friends and other fans to watch a competition. Now competition is the american way. That is eroding as the years go by but that is another discussion. After watching the game you go about your business and back to everyday life.

If all you have to look forward to is the game or "war" then maybe you need to re-evaluate your life and make some better judgements.

Because I like football doesn't mean I don't know what's going on with Healthcare or my Taxes nor does it mean that I settle all of my diffferences by tackling someone and spiking a stapler off their head.

People easily forget (or just don't take the time to learn) that we, as a nation, are promoters of democracy. The idea of the founding fathers was not to build this utopia and leave the rest of the world to be foundering. The idea was to seek out places to implement and defend freedom.

Of course now we have other reasons for fighting in other lands. There will always be those who don't get it. I have a friend from Zimbabwe who doesn't think we should have pushed Iraq back out of Kuwait or that we should have toppled Sadam (even though we're the ones that facilitated his being in power to begin with), however he love NOTHING MORE than to see us intervene in Zimbabwe and take down Mugabe. Certainly we have a vested interests in the middle east.

In the end, the anti-war crowd cannot be satisfied...best to leave them to their utopian dreams or risk a level of frustration that only medication can sooth.

Back to topic - I have no issues with players making as much as they can. There are valid points to both sides of the issue in the NFL as there are always valid points on both sides of any disagreement. I hold both parties accountable in this case. I am offended by the "oh they'll take away our insurance if they lock us out" crap since those guys - even the lowest paid among them - can weather such a horrible predicament in a way that most of us never could. I am equally baffled by the 18 game schedule and the desire to take away two preseason games because it is clearly difficult enough for these guys to make it through a season as it is. The all mighty dollar corrupts on all levels.

As I prefer the fact based approach to debate, the following lists the overt US military actions since 1950. It does not include either overt or covert CIA or other Government Agency actions. Please note that there is not one single year in which American lives were out of harms way. The list does not include permanent deployment of military personnel outside of the US. As all but a couple of these notable actions were outside the geographic United States, by definition, the actions are exports of manpower, material, technology and capital:

1950–1959

1950–53 – Korean War. The United States responded to North Korean invasion of South Korea by going to its assistance, pursuant to United Nations Security Council resolutions. US forces deployed in Korea exceeded 300,000 during the last year of the conflict. Over 36,600 US military were killed in action.[RL30172]

1950–55 – Formosa (Taiwan). In June 1950 at the beginning of the Korean War, President Truman ordered the US Seventh Fleet to prevent Chinese Communist attacks upon Formosa and Chinese Nationalist operations against mainland China.[RL30172]

1954–55 – China. Naval units evacuated US civilians and military personnel from the Tachen Islands.[RL30172]

1955–64 – Vietnam. First military advisors sent to Vietnam on 12 Feb 1955. By 1964, US troop levels had grown to 21,000. On 7 August 1964, US Congress approved Gulf of Tonkin resolution affirming "All necessary measures to repel any armed attack against the forces of the United States. . .to prevent further aggression. . . (and) assist any member or protocol state of the Southeast Asian Collective Defense Treaty (SEATO) requesting assistance. . ."[Vietnam timeline]

1956 – Egypt. A marine battalion evacuated US nationals and other persons from Alexandria during the Suez crisis.[RL30172]

1958 – Lebanon. Lebanon crisis of 1958 Marines were landed in Lebanon at the invitation of President Camille Chamoun to help protect against threatened insurrection supported from the outside. The President's action was supported by a Congressional resolution passed in 1957 that authorized such actions in that area of the world.[RL30172]

1959–60 – The Caribbean. Second Marine Ground Task Force was deployed to protect US nationals following the Cuban revolution.[RL30172]

1959–75 – Vietnam War. US military advisers had been in South Vietnam for a decade, and their numbers had been increased as the military position of the Saigon government became weaker. After citing what he termed were attacks on US destroyers in the Tonkin Gulf, President Johnson asked in August 1964 for a resolution expressing US determination to support freedom and protect peace in Southeast Asia. Congress responded with the Tonkin Gulf Resolution, expressing support for "all necessary measures" the President might take to repel armed attacks against US forces and prevent further aggression. Following this resolution, and following a Communist attack on a US installation in central Vietnam, the United States escalated its participation in the war to a peak of 543,000 military personnel by April 1969.[RL30172]
[edit] 1960–1969

1962 – Thailand. The Third Marine Expeditionary Unit landed on May 17, 1962 to support that country during the threat of Communist pressure from outside; by July 30, the 5,000 marines had been withdrawn.[RL30172]

1962 – Cuba. Cuban Missile Crisis On October 22, President Kennedy instituted a "quarantine" on the shipment of offensive missiles to Cuba from the Soviet Union. He also warned Soviet Union that the launching of any missile from Cuba against nations in the Western Hemisphere would bring about US nuclear retaliation on the Soviet Union. A negotiated settlement was achieved in a few days.[RL30172]

1962–75 – Laos. From October 1962 until 1975, the United States played an important role in military support of anti-Communist forces in Laos.[RL30172]

1964 – Congo (Zaire). The United States sent four transport planes to provide airlift for Congolese troops during a rebellion and to transport Belgian paratroopers to rescue foreigners.[RL30172]

1965 – Dominican Republic. Invasion of Dominican Republic The United States intervened to protect lives and property during a Dominican revolt and sent 20,000 US troops as fears grew that the revolutionary forces were coming increasingly under Communist control.[RL30172]

1967 – Israel. The USS Liberty incident, whereupon a United States Navy Technical Research Ship was attacked June 8, 1967 by Israeli armed forces, killing 34 and wounding more than 170 U.S. crew members.

1967 – Congo (Zaire). The United States sent three military transport aircraft with crews to provide the Congo central government with logistical support during a revolt.[RL30172]

1968 – Laos & Cambodia. U.S. starts secret bombing campaign against targets along the Ho Chi Minh trail in the sovereign nations of Cambodia and Laos. The bombings last at least two years. (See Operation Commando Hunt)
[edit] 1970–1979

1970 – Cambodian Campaign. US troops were ordered into Cambodia to clean out Communist sanctuaries from which Viet Cong and North Vietnamese attacked US and South Vietnamese forces in Vietnam. The object of this attack, which lasted from April 30 to June 30, was to ensure the continuing safe withdrawal of American forces from South Vietnam and to assist the program of Vietnamization.[RL30172]

1973 – Operation Nickel Grass, a strategic airlift operation conducted by the United States to deliver weapons and supplies to Israel during the Yom Kippur War.

1974 – Evacuation from Cyprus. United States naval forces evacuated US civilians during the Turkish invasion of Cyprus.[RL30172]

1975 – Evacuation from Vietnam. On April 3, 1975, President Ford reported US naval vessels, helicopters, and Marines had been sent to assist in evacuation of refugees and US nationals from Vietnam.[RL30172]

1975 – Evacuation from Cambodia. On April 12, 1975, President Ford reported that he had ordered US military forces to proceed with the planned evacuation of US citizens from Cambodia.[RL30172]

1975 – South Vietnam. On April 30, 1975, President Ford reported that a force of 70 evacuation helicopters and 865 Marines had evacuated about 1,400 US citizens and 5,500 third country nationals and South Vietnamese from landing zones in and around the US Embassy, Saigon and Tan Son Nhut Airport.[RL30172]

1975 – Cambodia. Mayagüez Incident. On May 15, 1975, President Ford reported he had ordered military forces to retake the SS Mayagüez, a merchant vessel which was seized from Cambodian naval patrol boats in international waters and forced to proceed to a nearby island.[RL30172]

1976 – Lebanon. On July 22 and 23, 1976, helicopters from five US naval vessels evacuated approximately 250 Americans and Europeans from Lebanon during fighting between Lebanese factions after an overland convoy evacuation had been blocked by hostilities.[RL30172]

1976 – Korea. Additional forces were sent to Korea after two American soldiers were killed by North Korean soldiers in the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea while cutting down a tree.[RL30172]

1978 – Zaire (Congo). From May 19 through June 1978, the United States utilized military transport aircraft to provide logistical support to Belgian and French rescue operations in Zaire.[RL30172]
[edit] 1980–1989

1980 – Operation Eagle Claw, Iran. On April 26, 1980, President Carter reported the use of six U.S. transport planes and eight helicopters in an unsuccessful attempt to rescue the American hostages in Iran.

1981 – El Salvador. After a guerrilla offensive against the government of El Salvador, additional US military advisers were sent to El Salvador, bringing the total to approximately 55, to assist in training government forces in counterinsurgency.[RL30172]

1981 – Libya. First Gulf of Sidra Incident On August 19, 1981, US planes based on the carrier USS Nimitz shot down two Libyan jets over the Gulf of Sidra after one of the Libyan jets had fired a heat-seeking missile. The United States periodically held freedom of navigation exercises in the Gulf of Sidra, claimed by Libya as territorial waters but considered international waters by the United States.[RL30172]

1982 – Sinai. On March 19, 1982, President Reagan reported the deployment of military personnel and equipment to participate in the Multinational Force and Observers in the Sinai. Participation had been authorized by the Multinational Force and Observers Resolution, Public Law 97-132.[RL30172]

1982 – Lebanon. Multinational Force in Lebanon. On August 21, 1982, President Reagan reported the dispatch of 80 Marines to serve in the multinational force to assist in the withdrawal of members of the Palestine Liberation force from Beirut. The Marines left September 20, 1982.[RL30172]

1982–83 – Lebanon. On September 29, 1982, President Reagan reported the deployment of 1200 marines to serve in a temporary multinational force to facilitate the restoration of Lebanese government sovereignty. On September 29, 1983, Congress passed the Multinational Force in Lebanon Resolution (P.L. 98-119) authorizing the continued participation for eighteen months.[RL30172]

1983 – Egypt. After a Libyan plane bombed a city in Sudan on March 18, 1983, and Sudan and Egypt appealed for assistance, the United States dispatched an AWACS electronic surveillance plane to Egypt.[RL30172]

1983 – Grenada. Citing the increased threat of Soviet and Cuban influence and noting the development of an international airport following a bloodless Grenada coup d'état and alignment with the Soviets and Cuba, the U.S. launches Operation Urgent Fury to invade the sovereign island nation of Grenada.[RL30172]

1983–89 – Honduras. In July 1983 the United States undertook a series of exercises in Honduras that some believed might lead to conflict with Nicaragua. On March 25, 1986, unarmed US military helicopters and crewmen ferried Honduran troops to the Nicaraguan border to repel Nicaraguan troops.[RL30172]

1983 – Chad. On August 8, 1983, President Reagan reported the deployment of two AWACS electronic surveillance planes and eight F-15 fighter planes and ground logistical support forces to assist Chad against Libyan and rebel forces.[RL30172]

1984 – Persian Gulf. On June 5, 1984, Saudi Arabian jet fighter planes, aided by intelligence from a US AWACS electronic surveillance aircraft and fueled by a U.S. KC-10 tanker, shot down two Iranian fighter planes over an area of the Persian Gulf proclaimed as a protected zone for shipping.[RL30172]

1985 – Italy. On October 10, 1985, US Navy pilots intercepted an Egyptian airliner and forced it to land in Sicily. The airliner was carrying the hijackers of the Italian cruise ship Achille Lauro who had killed an American citizen during the hijacking.[RL30172]

1986 – Libya. Action in the Gulf of Sidra (1986) On March 26, 1986, President Reagan reported on March 24 and 25, US forces, while engaged in freedom of navigation exercises around the Gulf of Sidra, had been attacked by Libyan missiles and the United States had responded with missiles.[RL30172]

1986 – Libya. Operation El Dorado Canyon On April 16, 1986, President Reagan reported that U.S. air and naval forces had conducted bombing strikes on terrorist facilities and military installations in the Libyan capitol of Tripoli, claiming that Libyan leader Col. Muammar al-Gaddafi was responsible for a bomb attack at a German disco that killed two U.S. soldiers.[RL30172]

1986 – Bolivia. U.S. Army personnel and aircraft assisted Bolivia in anti-drug operations.[RL30172]

1987 – Persian Gulf. USS Stark was struck on May 17 by two Exocet antiship missiles fired from an Iraqi F-1 Mirage during the Iran-Iraq War killing 37 US Navy sailors.

1987 – October 19, Operation Nimble Archer – attack on two Iranian oil platforms in the Persian Gulf by United States Navy forces. The attack was a response to Iran's October 16, 1987 attack on the MV Sea Isle City, a reflagged Kuwaiti oil tanker at anchor off Kuwait, with a Silkworm missile.

1987–88 – Persian Gulf. After the Iran-Iraq War resulted in several military incidents in the Persian Gulf, the United States increased US joint military forces operations in the Persian Gulf and adopted a policy of reflagging and escorting Kuwaiti oil tankers through the Persian Gulf, called Operation Earnest Will. President Reagan reported that US ships had been fired upon or struck mines or taken other military action on September 21 (Iran Ajr), October 8, and October 19, 1987 and April 18 (Operation Praying Mantis), July 3, and July 14, 1988. The United States gradually reduced its forces after a cease-fire between Iran and Iraq on August 20, 1988.[RL30172] It was the largest naval convoy operation since World War II.[5]

1987–88 – Operation Earnest Will was the U.S. military protection of Kuwaiti oil tankers from Iraqi and Iranian attacks in 1987 and 1988 during the Tanker War phase of the Iran-Iraq War. It was the largest naval convoy operation since World War II.

1987–88 – Operation Prime Chance was a United States Special Operations Command operation intended to protect U.S. -flagged oil tankers from Iranian attack during the Iran-Iraq War. The operation took place roughly at the same time as Operation Earnest Will.

1988 – Operation Praying Mantis was the April 18, 1988 action waged by U.S. naval forces in retaliation for the Iranian mining of the Persian Gulf and the subsequent damage to an American warship.

1988 – Operation Golden Pheasant was an emergency deployment of U.S. troops to Honduras in 1988, as a result of threatening actions by the forces of the (then socialist) Nicaraguans.

1988 – USS Vincennes shoot down of Iran Air Flight 655

1988 – Panama. In mid-March and April 1988, during a period of instability in Panama and as the United States increased pressure on Panamanian head of state General Manuel Noriega to resign, the United States sent 1,000 troops to Panama, to "further safeguard the canal, US lives, property and interests in the area." The forces supplemented 10,000 US military personnel already in the Panama Canal Zone.[RL30172]

1989 – Libya. Second Gulf of Sidra Incident On January 4, 1989, two US Navy F-14 aircraft based on the USS John F. Kennedy shot down two Libyan jet fighters over the Mediterranean Sea about 70 miles north of Libya. The US pilots said the Libyan planes had demonstrated hostile intentions.[RL30172]

1989 – Panama. On May 11, 1989, in response to General Noriega's disregard of the results of the Panamanian election, President Bush ordered a brigade-sized force of approximately 1,900 troops to augment the estimated 11,000 U.S. forces already in the area.[RL30172]

1989 – Colombia, Bolivia, and Peru. Andean Initiative in War on Drugs. On September 15, 1989, President Bush announced that military and law enforcement assistance would be sent to help the Andean nations of Colombia, Bolivia, and Peru combat illicit drug producers and traffickers. By mid-September there were 50–100 US military advisers in Colombia in connection with transport and training in the use of military equipment, plus seven Special Forces teams of 2–12 persons to train troops in the three countries.[RL30172]

1989 – Operation Classic Resolve, Philippines – On December 2, 1989, President Bush reported that on December 1, Air Force fighters from Clark Air Base in Luzon had assisted the Aquino government to repel a coup attempt. In addition, 100 marines were sent from U.S. Naval Base Subic Bay to protect the United States Embassy in Manila.[RL30172]

1989–90 – Operation Just Cause, Panama – On December 21, 1989, President Bush reported that he had ordered US military forces to Panama to protect the lives of American citizens and bring General Noriega to justice. By February 13, 1990, all the invasion forces had been withdrawn.[RL30172] Around 200 Panamanian civilians were reported killed. The Panamanian head of state, General Manuel Noriega, was captured and brought to the U.S.
[edit] 1990–1999

1990 – Liberia. On August 6, 1990, President Bush reported that a reinforced rifle company had been sent to provide additional security to the US Embassy in Monrovia, and that helicopter teams had evacuated U.S. citizens from Liberia.[RL30172]

1990 – Saudi Arabia. On August 9, 1990, President Bush reported that he had ordered the forward deployment of substantial elements of the US armed forces into the Persian Gulf region to help defend Saudi Arabia after the August 2 invasion of Kuwait by Iraq. On November 16, 1990, he reported the continued buildup of the forces to ensure an adequate offensive military option.[RL30172] American hostages being held in Iran.[RL30172]

1991 – Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm (Persian Gulf War). On January 16, 1991, U.S. forces attacked Iraqi forces and military targets in Iraq and Kuwait in conjunction with a coalition of allies and under United Nations Security Council resolutions. Combat operations ended on February 28, 1991.[RL30172]

1991 – Iraq. On May 17, 1991, President Bush stated that the Iraqi repression of the Kurdish people had necessitated a limited introduction of U.S. forces into northern Iraq for emergency relief purposes.[RL30172]

1991 – Zaire. On September 25–27, 1991, after widespread looting and rioting broke out in Kinshasa, Air Force C-141s transported 100 Belgian troops and equipment into Kinshasa. American planes also carried 300 French troops into the Central African Republic and hauled evacuated American citizens.[RL30172]

1991–96 – Operation Provide Comfort. Delivery of humanitarian relief and military protection for Kurds fleeing their homes in northern Iraq, by a small Allied ground force based in Turkey.

1992 – Operation Silver Anvil, Sierra Leone. Following the April 29 coup that overthrew President Joseph Saidu Momoh, a United States European Command (USEUCOM) Joint Special Operations Task Force evacuated 438 people (including 42 third-country nationals) on May 3 .Two Air Mobility Command (AMC) C-141s flew 136 people from Freetown, Sierra Leone, to the Rhein-Main Air Base in Germany and nine C-130 sorties carried another 302 people to Dakar, Senegal.[RL30172]

1992–96 – Operation Provide Promise was a humanitarian relief operation in Bosnia and Herzegovina during the Yugoslav Wars, from July 2, 1992, to January 9, 1996, which made it the longest running humanitarian airlift in history.[6]

1992 – Kuwait. On August 3, 1992, the United States began a series of military exercises in Kuwait, following Iraqi refusal to recognize a new border drawn up by the United Nations and refusal to cooperate with UN inspection teams.[RL30172]

1992–2003 – Iraq. Iraqi No-Fly Zones The U.S. together with the United Kingdom declares and enforces "no fly zones" over the majority of sovereign Iraqi airspace, prohibiting Iraqi flights in zones in southern Iraq and northern Iraq, and conducting aerial reconnaissance and bombings. (See also Operation Southern Watch) [RL30172]

1992–95 – Somalia. "Operation Restore Hope" Somali Civil War On December 10, 1992, President Bush reported that he had deployed US armed forces to Somalia in response to a humanitarian crisis and a UN Security Council Resolution. The operation came to an end on May 4, 1993. US forces continued to participate in the successor United Nations Operation in Somalia (UNOSOM II). (See also Battle of Mogadishu)[RL30172]

1993–present – Bosnia-Herzegovina.

1993 – Macedonia. On July 9, 1993, President Clinton reported the deployment of 350 US soldiers to the Republic of Macedonia to participate in the UN Protection Force to help maintain stability in the area of former Yugoslavia.[RL30172]

1994–95 – Operation Uphold Democracy, Haiti. U.S. ships had begun embargo against Haiti. Up to 20,000 US military troops were later deployed to Haiti.[RL30172]

1994 – Macedonia. On April 19, 1994, President Clinton reported that the US contingent in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia had been increased by a reinforced company of 200 personnel.[RL30172]

1995 – Operation Deliberate Force, Bosnia. NATO bombing of Bosnian Serbs.[RL30172]

1996 – Operation Assured Response, Liberia. On April 11, 1996, President Clinton reported that on April 9, 1996 due to the "deterioration of the security situation and the resulting threat to American citizens" in Liberia he had ordered U.S. military forces to evacuate from that country "private U.S. citizens and certain third-country nationals who had taken refuge in the U.S. Embassy compound...."[RL30172]

1996 – Operation Quick Response, Central African Republic. On May 23, 1996, President Clinton reported the deployment of US military personnel to Bangui, Central African Republic, to conduct the evacuation from that country of "private U.S. citizens and certain U.S. government employees," and to provide "enhanced security for the American Embassy in Bangui."[RL30172] United States Marine Corps elements of Joint Task Force Assured Response , responding in nearby Liberia, provided security to the embassy and evacuated 448 people, including between 190 and 208 Americans. The last Marines left Bangui on June 22.

1997 – Operation Silver Wake, Albania On March 13, 1997, U.S. military forces were used to evacuate certain U.S. government employees and private U.S. citizens from Tirana, Albania.[RL30172]

1997 – Congo and Gabon. On March 27, 1997, President Clinton reported on March 25, 1997, a standby evacuation force of U.S. military personnel had been deployed to Congo and Gabon to provide enhanced security and to be available for any necessary evacuation operation.[RL30172]

1997 – Sierra Leone. On May 29 and May 30, 1997, U.S. military personnel were deployed to Freetown, Sierra Leone, to prepare for and undertake the evacuation of certain U.S. government employees and private U.S. citizens.[RL30172]

1997 – Cambodia. On July 11, 1997, In an effort to ensure the security of American citizens in Cambodia during a period of domestic conflict there, a Task Force of about 550 U.S. military personnel were deployed at Utapao Air Base in Thailand for possible evacuations. [RL30172]

1998 – Operation Desert Fox, Iraq – U.S. and British forces conduct a major four-day bombing campaign from December 16–19, 1998 on Iraqi targets.[RL30172]

1998 – Operation Shepherd Venture, Guinea-Bissau. On June 10, 1998, in response to an army mutiny in Guinea-Bissau endangering the US Embassy, President Clinton deployed a standby evacuation force of US military personnel to Dakar, Senegal, to evacuate from the city of Bissau.[RL30172]

1998–99 – Kenya and Tanzania. US military personnel were deployed to Nairobi, Kenya, to coordinate the medical and disaster assistance related to the bombings of the U.S. Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. [RL30172]

1998 – Operation Infinite Reach, Afghanistan and Sudan. On August 20, air strikes were used against two suspected terrorist training camps in Afghanistan and a suspected chemical factory in Sudan.[RL30172]

1998 – Liberia. On September 27, 1998 America deployed a stand-by response and evacuation force of 30 US military personnel to increase the security force at the U.S. Embassy in Monrovia. [1] [RL30172]

1999–2001 East Timor. Limited number of U.S. military forces deployed with the United Nations-mandated International Force for East Timor restore peace to East Timor.[RL30172]

1999 – Operation Allied Force – NATO's bombing of Serbia in the Kosovo Conflict.[RL30172]
[edit] 2000–2009

* 2000 – Sierra Leone. On May 12, 2000 a US Navy patrol craft deployed to Sierra Leone to support evacuation operations from that country if needed.[RL30172]

* 2000 – Yemen. On October 12, 2000, after the USS Cole attack in the port of Aden, Yemen, military personnel were deployed to Aden.[RL30172]

* 2000 – East Timor. On February 25, 2000, a small number of U.S. military personnel were deployed to support of the United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET). [RL30172]

* 2001 – On April 1, 2001, a mid-air collision between a United States Navy EP-3E ARIES II signals surveillance aircraft and a People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) J-8II interceptor fighter jet resulted in an international dispute between the United States and the People's Republic of China called the Hainan Island incident.

* 2001 – Afghanistan. War in Afghanistan. The War on Terrorism begins with Operation Enduring Freedom. On October 7, 2001, US Armed Forces invade Afghanistan in response to the 9/11 attacks and "begin combat action in Afghanistan against Al Qaeda terrorists and their Taliban supporters."[RL30172]

* 2002 – Yemen. On November 3, 2002, an American MQ-1 Predator fired a Hellfire missile at a car in Yemen killing Qaed Senyan al-Harthi, an al-Qaeda leader thought to be responsible for the USS Cole bombing.[RL30172]

* 2002 – Philippines. OEF-Philippines. January 2002 U.S. "combat-equipped and combat support forces" have been deployed to the Philippines to train with, assist and advise the Philippines' Armed Forces in enhancing their "counterterrorist capabilities."[RL30172]

* 2002 – Côte d'Ivoire. On September 25, 2002, in response to a rebellion in Côte d'Ivoire, US military personnel went into Côte d'Ivoire to assist in the evacuation of American citizens from Bouake.[7]

[RL30172]

* 2003 – 2003 invasion of Iraq leading to the War in Iraq. March 20, 2003. The United States leads a coalition that includes Britain, Australia and Spain to invade Iraq with the stated goal being "to disarm Iraq in pursuit of peace, stability, and security both in the Gulf region and in the United States."[RL30172]

* 2003 – Liberia. Second Liberian Civil War On June 9, 2003, President Bush reported that on June 8 he had sent about 35 US Marines into Monrovia, Liberia, to help secure the US Embassy in Nouakchott, Mauritania, and to aid in any necessary evacuation from either Liberia or Mauritania.[RL30172]

* 2003 – Georgia and Djibouti "US combat equipped and support forces" had been deployed to Georgia and Djibouti to help in enhancing their "counterterrorist capabilities."[8]

* 2004 – 2004 Haïti rebellion occurs. The US sent first sent 55 combat equipped military personnel to augment the US Embassy security forces there and to protect American citizens and property in light. Later 200 additional US combat-equipped, military personnel were sent to prepare the way for a UN Multinational Interim Force, MINUSTAH.[RL30172]

* 2004 – War on Terrorism: US anti-terror related activities were underway in Georgia, Djibouti, Kenya, Ethiopia, Yemen, and Eritrea.[9]

* 2004–present: Drone attacks in Pakistan

* 2005–06 – Pakistan: President Bush deploys troops from US Army Air Cav Brigades to provide Humanitarian relief to far remote villages in the Kashmir mountain ranges of Pakistan stricken by a massive earthquake.

* 2006 – Lebanon. US Marine Detachment, the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit[citation needed], begins evacuation of US citizens willing to leave the country in the face of a likely ground invasion by Israel and continued fighting between Hezbollah and the Israeli military.[10][11]

* 2007 – Somalia. Battle of Ras Kamboni. On January 8, 2007, while the conflict between the Islamic Courts Union and the Transitional Federal Government continues, an AC-130 gunship conducts an aerial strike on a suspected Al-Qaeda operative, along with other Islamist fighters, on Badmadow Island near Ras Kamboni in southern Somalia.[citation needed]

* 2008 – South Ossetia, Georgia. Helped Georgia humanitarian aid[12], helped to transport Georgian forces from Iraq during the conflict. In the past, the US has provided training and weapons to Georgia.

I'll get to intolerance and gladiator sports shortly. As well as the destruction of the middle class, the coming dominance of BRIC and the "liberal" notion that justice not be reserved for those who can pay for it.

I just hope that Mr. Fujita recognizes that at an average price of ~$100 per person (seat, drink, dog, parking) the bottom 70% of New Orleans households could not realistically justify going to a game without incuring financial hardship. Something is wrong when so much is devoted to so few for so little.

One point that is overlooked in all this is endorsement deals. On top of their salaries almost all of them have an opportunity to earn another paycheck. Then add to that the pension that some of them get. I think OJ gets 20K a month last time I checked and add to that his movie royalties, he can receive 15-60K a month.

There is no way I feel sorry for either the players or the owners. Let them work it out on their own terms but leave the common fan out of it.

I forget the exact timeline but there has only been a brief stint in the World History where there has NOT been a conflict somewhere regardless if the U.S was involved or not. Needless to say that has nothing to do with the price of a NFL Ticket.

It's all supply and demand and what the market is willing to pay. You have a waiting list that is years long.Apparently more people seem to be able to afford it than not. Not everyone can afford a Cadillac or Lexus so they go to a Basketball or Baseball game where Ticket Prices are cheaper.Also there is no mandate that requires you to buy a hot dog, park at the dome or buy a drink, unlike the current presidents new Health Care Mandate. Wonder how the bottom 70% are going to afford that or go to jail?

Anyway I'd be stupid to pass up my boss offering a million for me to work and i'd be stupid to complain that it isn't enough cause I have to feed my family. But everyone should be paid on the value of their talent. I'm not going to be paid as much as a sugeon but more than a wal-mart greeter.

NFL is a product like any other and it is a popular product. It is there to make people money and to provide entertainment. If it wasn't as popular you'd end up with the NHL.

Justice doesn't mean everyone gets paid the same, live in the same type of home and drive the same type of car and go to a saints game. Justice means that everyone has the same opportunity to acheive what they want to do. Some have to work harder at it but the opportunity i still there. If they don't make it, you sure as hell don't fault someonethat did make it and burn them. You ever hear of saving money to take that trip to Disney? Or to buy your woman that Diamond Ring? Or to attend a saints game? I'm not jealous of those that are better off than I am. It makes acheiving my goals that much sweeter.

also XAN freedom is not free. How many of those conflicts were WE attacked? You've included Drug wars and American evacuation missions too.
I fail to see your point. If you are going to just throw Americans in Harms way stats you need to look no further than our southern border and the Border Patrol.

So the argument is flipped now? Protecting liberty is a liberal concept. And, what freedoms are we protecting? We spend 7 times the level of our next biggest "threat." We spend more than the next 26 highest spending countries combined. We haven't been "invaded" since 1816 and our neighbors are barely capable of marching in a straight line much less mount an offensive. We are situated 2500 miles from the next remotely viable "threats," who happen to be our biggest allies.

The "argument" is that the only reason to carry such high levels of military spending is to engage in war to feed a war machine. Without conflict, there is no justification for spend. So we've invented (rather "liberally") justifications in scores of circumstances a reason to export a savage and pointless policy.

No, Mary, they don't hate us for our freedoms, they hate us because we bully and disrespect them, then kill their children in defense of some irrelevant principle known to the merchants of weapons as profits, then transfer wealth away from hard working Americans under the guise of patriotism. We trot out the toothless and undereducated to bolster the fiction that this is the American way of life.

The sad fact is that this system is unsustainable. Which was the point. No culture in human history has been successful long term with this strategy. It is inevitable, and, some may say, already come to pass. In 4 years China will surpass the US in GDP. In 10 years, India will pass us. Our only leverage (pun intended) will be the debt we owe them for sustaining this mess of policy. We could have had universal health care gold plated for 15 years for the cost of the Iraq "war." The costs of treating the wounded from that conflict will dwarf many states' entire healthcare budget, public and private. Instead of investing in our people and our country, we've squandered our earnings and pilfered our children's piggy banks. It's like watching a pathetic gambling addicted drunk pitching pennies in an alley.

So instead, we have fake gladiators moaning that they risk their "lives" for measily fortune that 99% of Americans dream of earning, while real gladiators volunteer that last measure of true devotion for barely poverty wages.

And very little of either's efforts bring real change and progress.

• Obama's stimulus, passed in his first month in office, will cost more than the entire Iraq War -- more than $100 billion (15%) more.
• Just the first two years of Obama's stimulus cost more than the entire cost of the Iraq War under President Bush, or six years of that war.
• Iraq War spending accounted for just 3.2% of all federal spending while it lasted.
• Iraq War spending was not even one quarter of what we spent on Medicare in the same time frame.
• Iraq War spending was not even 15% of the total deficit spending in that time frame. The cumulative deficit, 2003-2010, would have been four-point-something trillion dollars with or without the Iraq War.
• The Iraq War accounts for less than 8% of the federal debt held by the public at the end of 2010 ($9.031 trillion).
• During Bush's Iraq years, 2003-2008, the federal government spent more on education that it did on the Iraq War. (State and local governments spent about ten times more.)

American Thinker: Iraq: The War That Broke Us -- Not

XAN-you are just plain wrong and I'll leave it at that. Enjoy your "free" Healthcare.

Careful Danno. Those FACTS don't fit into his agenda. He'd rather live in China where his Internet access and Facts he has access to are monitored and censored.

Ok, let's say that you're right, that the only cost of war is the actual war itself, it doesn't include the cost of medical care for veterans after the war, it doesn't include the lost productivity of any of the people who were displaced from their families and jobs, it doesn't include the interest for the debt we carry for deficit funding that war, it doesn't include the "crowding out" effect of diverting savings away from productive use for use in prosecuting an unjust and unwinnable "war." I'll even go as far to concede that losing 5000 lives and disabling 40,000 Americans won't cause much long term damage to American prosperity, even though our society is aging and we don't have enough young people working to cover the cost of our elderly or the education of our young; those future earnings will simply be shifted to immigrants or outsourced to India or China anyway. I'll even concede the stimulus - investment in new growth and opportunity was bad idea, not achieving the growth goals. It takes 3-5 years for investment like that to show results, and bailouts of bad process usually don't give the optimistic results, but it is rarely a true waste of money.

I'd like to see you justify all that war money on no productivity, no gain in freedom or no new jobs here in America. The reason that Stiglitz calculates that the cost of the war was $3Trillion is because we don't pick the most convenient subtotal for our specious argument. We include all costs related to the activity. The CBO rightly identified the auditable costs associated with the activity in Iraq. It did not include the peripheral or subsequent costs because they are line-itemed separately or not part of the budgeting process.

This is why we're in trouble. We only use data that makes our argument, not form an argument based on all the data.

Worse yet, deliberately avoiding reality of imminent foreclosure on the American dream with the delusion that investment in an utterly unproductive activity ensures our "future prosperity" is exactly the point you are so brilliantly (however unwittingly) making for me.

I do not need to argue further, having conceded your points, yet still the reality exists. Bad policy yields bad results.

I think you ought to talk to some of those Veterans about their opinion regarding government-run health care.