The one thing this circus doesn't lack is clowns.

The US Army treats some folks differently then it does other folks. Or so says Jesse Jackson, on behalf of the parents of Spc. Shoshana Johnson, who was captured March 23 near Nasiriya along with Pfc. Jessica Lynch and three other members of the Army's 507th Maintenance Company.

Jackson told CNN Friday that the family was upset because Johnson, who is about to be discharged from the Army, will get a 30 percent disability benefit, while the Post reports that Lynch has received an 80 percent disability benefit.

An Army spokesman said disability payments are based on soldiers' medical reviews and that no other factors are considered.

The Army will not confirm benefit figures given to either woman. Payments are generally expressed as a percentage of pay.

Johnson was shot through both ankles in the ambush that led to the capture of several in her company and was held for 22 days.

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Lynch suffered three breaks in her left leg, multiple breaks in her right foot, a fractured disk in her back, a broken right upper arm and lacerations on her head, family spokesman Randy Coleman told CNN in July. She was discharged as a private first class in August.

Lynch's disability payment is under a temporary status based on her medical condition, according to an Army spokesman. She will be medically re-evaluated during the coming months, and if she improves, that payment may be reduced, the spokesman said.

Johnson's disability payment is permanent, Jackson said. If she gets worse, she can appeal to the Army for a review that could lead to her payments being increased, he added.

Jackson said he believed the Army treated Lynch differently because of the media coverage surrounding her rescue.

"First of all, Jessica Lynch deserves all the treatment that she is getting," Jackson said. "She was a victim of Iraq, and the Army built around her this caricature of American bravado. They said she was shot and stabbed and shot to the last bullet, and she did not say that, and that did not happen. But they sought to use her as a propaganda tool for American bravado."

Oh, I see. Media spotlight...

No comment as yet from any of the hundreds of other wounded soldiers from Iraq.

Next up:

Cable network BET refuses to respond to allegations that it did not offer Spc Johnson's parents any money at all to make a life story about her into a movie .

Likewise we have no confirmation to the rumor that Jayson Blair has retained the services of Johnnie Cochran and is preparing to sue several major publishers for not offering him one million dollars to write a book on Johnson's life story.

And finally, since it's not stated in the story I must assume that the good Reverend has apparently declined thus far to announce the exact dollar value that will satisfy him and Spc Johnson's parents. Likewise no comparisons have been made as yet to the 87 billion to be spent rebuilding Iraq. The Mudville Gazette will of course, notify it's readers as soon as the Rev determines exactly how many dollars it will take to dry the many tears... stay tuned.

My thoughts? The same as a posted regarding Ms Lynch at the time of her return to civilian life: Congratulations; my personal wish for this young lady is that her life be all she desires it to be.