Escalation may force Miss. Guard to Iraq.

“Still recovering from Hurricane Katrina and a previous stint in Iraq, the Mississippi Guard is among a flock of ill-equipped units. But ready or not, some of the state’s guardsmen have been told to align personal affairs and begin girding for possibly another trip to Iraq. … ‘Every state, none of us has the equipment that we need, but we’re not crippled and some other states are,’ said Lt. Col. Tim Powell, a spokesman for the Mississippi Guard.”