The Cost of War

What a Tragedy.

The financial cost of the War in Iraq is nearing $250 billion (that's $250,000,000,000). There are about 26 million souls in Iraq.

Dear reader, with $10,000 to spend for each man, woman, and child in Iraq, could you have found a more effective scheme to solve the problem of an impotent little tinpot dictator named Saddam?

Stated another way, this incredibly stupid, useless, counterproductive war, has cost close to $1000 per each man, woman. and child in America. That cost is not being paid by us, however. It is being passed along for our children to pay. The vast majority of us have continued our daily lives pretty much unaffected by the tremendous (sometimes ultimate) sacrifice of our brave soldiers and their families. While a war rages our President calls for tax cuts. There is something obscene about such a "painless" war.

Think of the possible real security measures $250 billion could have bought, like hunting down the Al Qaeda, securing our ports and our borders, and solidifying our war gains in Afghanistan. Instead we have squandered $250 billion and weakened our security and lost many allies and sullied our honor with torture and compromised our Bill of Rights.

And the cost continues to grow in dollars and national spirit and international prestige and lost years for young American families and mangled bodies and lost lives.

What a tragedy.

What a shame.