Bush asks Congress for $1.5 BILLION to build embassy in Iraq

[Bluebear]

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20050125/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq_spending_3

Gee, I wonder who will build this embassy....Halliburton? He's already spent 9 million to establish "ZIP" codes in Iraq. All this money earmarked without even knowing if the elections will spread the "peeance, freeance" he promised. Still, Social Security is heading for an "iceberg", there's no money for social programs here...does ANYONE care outside of this forum?

[BlueEyedSon]

1. $1.5 Billion of WHOSE MONEY????

[Bluebear]

2. Yours, mine, America's grandchildren....

Serious, our dollar will be as valuable as rubles before this is all over with.

[BlueEyedSon]

3. You said it!

[The Backlash Cometh]

16. He's planning to take it out of Social Security.

[Bluebear]

20. Yes, it's in "crisis"

[cthrumatrix]

26. Just like Iraq was a "crisis".... good thing nobody needs soc security.

[wolfgirl]

4. But what if the democratically

elected leadership doesn't want us to remain or have an embassy in Iraq? All that money would be wasted, wouldn't it? (what asses they are)

[Bluebear]

5. I'm sure Halliburton will find "other uses" for it. nt

[LynnTheDem]

10. The WHAT?

Oh you mean the elected GROUP who will SELECT a GROUP who will SELECT a President and executive staff for Iraq?

What if they don't want us to remain in Iraq? Too bad for Iraq. bush isn't leaving Iraq period.

[kedrys]

6. My head just exploded...AGAIN!

I should know better than to read these f@#*ing news stories.

[rwheeler31]

8. The plans for blowing that up are being written as we type.

nt

[Bluebear]

11. It's OK, they will just borrow more money from our futures

As long as the Bechtels and Halliburtons are busy, no problem.

[kedrys]

12. LOL!!! My head...or the embassy?

I didn't realize I was the victim of a concerted effort to blow up my head... ROFL

[Bluebear]

13. Talk about having a price on your head! lol

[Poiuyt]

7. I sure wish Bush cared as much about America as he does about Iraq

Does it seem that way to anyone else? He pushes through spending for Iraq while fighting it here.

[Botany]

9. And if that boondoggel get done then .......

....... some Islamic radical will ask for Allah's blessing as he drives a truck
packed w/ explosives towards the embassy. As he is doing that the Iraqi
security guard who has been forewarned will be high tailing it out of there.

And we will ask what the hell was bush thinking when he got us into that
quagmire?

[AlCzervik]

14. How many times will it be blown up and rebuilt?

Where the fuck is all that money he's already stolen from us? Are they kidding?

[mountainvue]

15. All of my friends who own their small

businesses are hurting and this guy is on some insane, psychotic mission to bankrupt us as quickly as he possibly can.

[Demeter]

17. How Much For The Whole Country?

Just buy the damn thing, evict the remaining populace, and have done already!

[mountainvue]

33. Maybe they could use eminent domain. n/t

[woodsprite]

18. At that price tag,

I bet he's planning for a new "family" palace, er uh, home after he no longer has a job in the U.S.

[Cha]

19. Haliburton builds an Embassy and

then it gets blown to bits by the insurgents!

[OneBlueSky]

21. $9 million to establish zip codes? . . .

let's see . . . you take a map, grab a magic marker, and start carving the map up into managable chunks . . . might take, what, a day or two? . . . and for this they paid someone nine big ones? . . . the mind boggles . . .

[Bluebear]

23. Details here

http://www.capitolhillblue.com/cgi-bin/artman/exec/view.cgi?archive=22&num=3189&printer=1

My favorite news tidbit this week is the administration's plan to spend $9 million to give Iraq ZIP codes. The provision is in the $20.3 billion package for rebuilding Iraq that's part of President Bush's $87 billion spending request for Iraq and Afghanistan. Most of the $87 billion _ $66 billion _ is to finance military operations.

In such a context, $9 million is a pittance. The administration reportedly wants to spend $600 million hunting for those elusive weapons of mass destruction. But spending $9 million to establish ZIP codes shows the scope of the American reconstruction plan. It gives new definition to the word generosity. For $9 million, the Iraqis will probably receive their regular ZIP codes and four digits more right from the start. We in the United States got our five-digit ZIP codes in 1963, but we had to wait 20 years for the four add-on digits.

Americans knew Iraq faced terrible problems with roads, electricity and water, but who knew the people were so worried about slow mail? Or that it could cost so much to map postal zones? A skeptic suggested that we were establishing ZIP codes in Iraq so the Halliburton employees could get their mail from home. Maybe somebody thought Iraqis shouldn't have to wait so long for their junk mail. That may be humorous, but there's no joking about aid to Iraq. Virtually everyone agrees that the United States has a responsibility to help rebuild the country. What's in dispute is how far Americans should go to fulfill that responsibility and whether Iraq, whose oil reserves rival those in Saudi Arabia, ought to pay some costs of reconstruction.

So far, most other countries have been watching from the sidelines, their hands firmly on their wallets.....

[OneTwentyoNine]

31. Bullets flying,bombs dropping but BY GOD you've got a damn zip code!!

Do we really have ANY Democratic leadership in Washington?

[Bluebear]

34. I am giving them one last chance

LOL like they're concerned about me. Let's see who votes against Rice, that's my short list for who to start supporting.

[NNguyenMD]

22. does it costs 1.5 billion dollars to build one building?

[dutchdoctor]

24. it does if you have to rebuild it several times.. n/t

[Gasping4Truth]

25. Embassies can't be big enough

Experience shows.

[Bridget Burke]

27. The new one will include a bigger landing pad for helicopters.

Especially useful in massive evacuations....

[Deja Q]

28. For one embassy? This is an outrage. 'Party of fiscal responsibility' my

big fat honky motherfucking ass. x(

[cthrumatrix]

29. $1.5 B for Bechtel and other engineering firms on the Iraq boondoggle

payroll.... as the MSM asks for zero accountability.

[OneTwentyoNine]

30. Remember : "We won't be in Iraq one day longer than needed"

Bullshit,WHERE THE FUCK is our DEMOCRATIC LEADERSHIP in Washington?? I am sooooo sick of this shit.....

[in_cog_ni_to]

32. That building would remain standing for about

a day. What a waste of $$$! Does he really believe they wouldn't blow that up? Good grief. What an idiot.

[Bluebear]

35. Sen Durbin: Anything we build will be blown up anyhow.