More costly than 'the war to end all wars'

[Roland99]

http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0829/p15s01-cogn.html

Despite the relatively small number of American armed forces in Iraq and Afghanistan (140,000), the war effort is rapidly shaping up to be the third-most expensive war in United States history.

This conflict has already cost each American at least $850 in military and reconstruction costs since October 2001.

If the war lasts another five years, it will cost nearly $1.4 trillion, calculates Linda Bilmes, who teaches budgeting at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. That's nearly $4,745 per capita. Her estimate is thorough. She includes not only the military cost but also such things as veterans' benefits and additional interest on the federal debt.

But even in stripped-down terms, looking only at military costs and using current dollars, the war's cost for the US already exceeds that of World War I.

[BlueEyedSon]

How much if that money went straight into pockets rather than paying

for the war effort?

[Minstrel Boy]

1. Another way of saying

this is an extremely profitable venture for some parties.

[Roland99]

2. And some of those parties are the people killing our men and women

:evilfrown:

[lutefisk]

3. Using the federal government to transfer the wealth

Between the vicious scam in Iraq and the Bush tax plan, one could say this administration is trying to bleed the federal government dry and transfer the wealth. Call me cynical.