1.  More Combat Troops for Afghanistan

As many as 14,000 combat troops could replace support units in Afghanistan in an effort to increase the number of "trigger-pullers" while not actually increasing the total number of American troops in an unpopular war. Although no one thinks this will replace what is a virtually certain request for additional troops from the top American commander, it could end up making it smaller. Officials say that before more troops are requested, the military wants to make sure that every servicemember in Afghanistan is essential and can't be replaced by private contractors. It's hardly surprising that defense officials would want to increase the number of combat troops to fight an enemy that has improved its tactics by exploiting weaknesses in the Western forces, as the Washington Post notes. Still, it's a tricky proposition to increase the number of private workers at a time when the number of civilian contractors in Afghanistan makes up the highest ratio of contractors to military personnel of any war in the country's history. Yesterday, a government watchdog group said the private contractors who guard the U.S. Embassy in Kabul have engaged in "lewd and deviant" behavior. According to the Project on Government Oversight, the guards worked in a "Lord of the Flies environment" where supervisors held weekly parties that included lots of homoerotic hazing sessions—including urinating on each other and drinking vodka poured off exposed butts—and those who didn't participate feared they would lose their jobs. Gawker has some disturbing photographic evidence. In other Afghanistan news, the country's deputy chief of intelligence was killed in a suicide blast today and a U.N. report says opium cultivation has declined for the second year in a row. The amount of poppy cultivation decreased by 22 percent, and one-third of Afghanistan's territory is considered to be virtually opium-free.

Read original story in Los Angeles Times | Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2009