In today's posting I thought I'd take a good look at an issue we hardly ever hear about when we hear about the two wars America is currently in as we fight terrorism; the cost of the battle.
According to an NPR news article dated July 10, 2007, Congressional analysts say the boost in troop levels in Iraq has increased the cost of war there and in Afghanistan to $12 billion a month.
The article goes on to say that "all told, Congress has appropriated $610 billion in war-related money since Sept. 11, 2001. That's roughly the same amount that was spent on the war in Vietnam, taking inflation into account."
Iraq alone has cost $450 billion.
The figures come from the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service, which provides research and analysis to lawmakers.
For the 2007 budget year, CRS says, the $166 billion appropriated to the Pentagon represents a 40 percent increase over 2006.
If Congress approves President Bush's pending request for another $147 billion for the budget year starting October first, the total bill for the war on terror would reach more than three-quarters of a trillion dollars.
Hello? Is anybody listening? Am I the only American who wonders where we will get the money to pay the bill when our debtors say it's "pay-back-time". We are a nation living on a credit card as it is and have been for seven years now. I like to compare it to the share-cropper system, notorious right after the end of the Civil War right up to the early 50's. Just like the share cropper, this nation will always be in debt because we can never get caught-up. In this case China is "the land owner" because of the extremely uneven trading balance we have with that nation. They send us food that harms our pets, toys that are dangerous to our children and we continue to buy it because it's cheap and in many cases there simply is no alternatives.
Think of what this nation could do with $12 billion a week. We could start by improving our outdated national power grid, by building it underground like it is in Europe. We could upgrade our airports so that people don't have to spend have their vacation waiting for a plane to take them there. We could fix these "third world" roads we call interstate highways and in the process hopefully prevent some foreign country from buying it (yes, foreign countries own some of our major highways). We could offer better "free" education to our children so this nation can "honestly" have a chance completing in the world of tomorrow. We could have a basic universal health care for everyone, young and old. Is anyone listening?
Research info provided by: http://www.npr.org/
Today's poem:
String Along Lighting #3
Has a manhood. Maybe calls it pistol.
Has a girlfriend or herself has none. With
wet bangs in her eyes. In paperdoll overalls.
Though on no leash She can really wax the dog.
And see spot run. Assuming late spring donkey. As
in sweat. It's his day off. With a distaste for shoehorns
and just naturally suspicious. but not just any big ears. With
holes in the screen door. Like in recluse behind the spider
webs. Peeling off plaster. A plasma TV. Lily coming
down the staircase. Glad to be a sunflower or
ladder. Or even the Maybelline factory on
paradise-lost road. Is this enough she
says to the blue rug and a fondness
for jack cheese. Will eventually
go blad. So a wig fot the
magistrate. Entering
the house through
the back door.
The table
gets
down on its knees. Under an afternoon sky pinking up.
Poem first published at: www.homesteadcom/nzpoetsonline
Visit my ezine: http://www.concelebratory.blogspot.com/
and music blog: http://www.medleymakers.blogspot.com/
According to an NPR news article dated July 10, 2007, Congressional analysts say the boost in troop levels in Iraq has increased the cost of war there and in Afghanistan to $12 billion a month.
The article goes on to say that "all told, Congress has appropriated $610 billion in war-related money since Sept. 11, 2001. That's roughly the same amount that was spent on the war in Vietnam, taking inflation into account."
. |
Iraq alone has cost $450 billion.
The figures come from the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service, which provides research and analysis to lawmakers.
For the 2007 budget year, CRS says, the $166 billion appropriated to the Pentagon represents a 40 percent increase over 2006.
If Congress approves President Bush's pending request for another $147 billion for the budget year starting October first, the total bill for the war on terror would reach more than three-quarters of a trillion dollars.
Hello? Is anybody listening? Am I the only American who wonders where we will get the money to pay the bill when our debtors say it's "pay-back-time". We are a nation living on a credit card as it is and have been for seven years now. I like to compare it to the share-cropper system, notorious right after the end of the Civil War right up to the early 50's. Just like the share cropper, this nation will always be in debt because we can never get caught-up. In this case China is "the land owner" because of the extremely uneven trading balance we have with that nation. They send us food that harms our pets, toys that are dangerous to our children and we continue to buy it because it's cheap and in many cases there simply is no alternatives.
Think of what this nation could do with $12 billion a week. We could start by improving our outdated national power grid, by building it underground like it is in Europe. We could upgrade our airports so that people don't have to spend have their vacation waiting for a plane to take them there. We could fix these "third world" roads we call interstate highways and in the process hopefully prevent some foreign country from buying it (yes, foreign countries own some of our major highways). We could offer better "free" education to our children so this nation can "honestly" have a chance completing in the world of tomorrow. We could have a basic universal health care for everyone, young and old. Is anyone listening?
Research info provided by: http://www.npr.org/
Today's poem:
String Along Lighting #3
Has a manhood. Maybe calls it pistol.
Has a girlfriend or herself has none. With
wet bangs in her eyes. In paperdoll overalls.
Though on no leash She can really wax the dog.
And see spot run. Assuming late spring donkey. As
in sweat. It's his day off. With a distaste for shoehorns
and just naturally suspicious. but not just any big ears. With
holes in the screen door. Like in recluse behind the spider
webs. Peeling off plaster. A plasma TV. Lily coming
down the staircase. Glad to be a sunflower or
ladder. Or even the Maybelline factory on
paradise-lost road. Is this enough she
says to the blue rug and a fondness
for jack cheese. Will eventually
go blad. So a wig fot the
magistrate. Entering
the house through
the back door.
The table
gets
down on its knees. Under an afternoon sky pinking up.
Poem first published at: www.homesteadcom/nzpoetsonline
Visit my ezine: http://www.concelebratory.blogspot.com/
and music blog: http://www.medleymakers.blogspot.com/
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