Holy ****, the Iraq war costs the voters 2.7 trillion dollar

Sounds like a great campaign ad for Obama to me.

Seeing as how McCain fully backed the war from the outset and is okay with it going on for a 100 years.

And Obama had the foresight to oppose the war from day one.

So what would you have done with your family's 40000 dollars.

Buy 4 Corrollas for each member of the house?

Buy a 40 50 inch lcd hdtvs

Buy a 100 MGS4 bundled PS3s after that $100 discount from walmart.

Buy a winnebago so you'll have a place to live when the mortage collapses on your house?

Invested it!

Cycloptichorn

I opposed the war from day one.... does that mean I should be president?

It means you were more correct then those who supported it.

They shoulda listened to us dirty fuckin hippies

Cycloptichorn

But, but, but... It'll pay for itself in cheap gas! Yeah, that's it....

...And Bill Clinton! He was the "head" of state that got us here. Get it? "Head" of state?

Penis.

I thought China is buying so many of our Treasury Notes that they are paying for the war? I don't see how the taxpayers can be paying for the war, if our individual taxes have not gone up over the past five years? Something doesn't add up?

It's our children nd their children and their children that will pay for the war.

I believe that is the popular notion; however, it is specious in my opinion.

Basically, I don't see this war as a terrible economic albatross, since this country has been in many wars, and is still prosperous. I have faith in each generation being able to be more prosperous than the next.

A one-year investigation and analysis of 235 countries by Jane's Information Services has put the UK joint seventh in the premier league of nations with the US at 22nd and Switzerland, normally associated with wealth and untouchable stability, is rated 17th.

Here is the full list:

1 Vatican

2 Sweden

3 Luxembourg

4 Monaco

5 Gibraltar

6 San Marino

7 Liechtenstein

8 UK

9 Netherlands

10 Ireland

11 New Zealand

12 Denmark

13 Austria

14 Andorra

15 Germany

16 Iceland

17 Switzerland

18 Portugal

19 Australia

20 Norway

21 Malta

22 France

23 Canada

24 USA

25 Belgium

26 Spain

27 Italy

28 Japan

29 Finland

30 Czech Rep

31 Samoa

32 Falkland Islands

33 Singapore

34 Guam

35 Slovakia

36 Anguilla

37 Cyprus

38 Qatar

39 Montserrat

40 Costa Rica

41 Greece

42 St Pierre and Miq

43 UAE

44 Cayman Islands

45 American Samoa

46 Virgin Islands (UK)

47 Poland

48 St Lucia

49 Oman

50 Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands

(from Jane's Information Services )

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/article3617160.ece

~~~

As we saw in the run-up to the Iraq War, the fearmongers who seek an expanded military are not above using their enormous lobbying power to influence the debate. The public will not support the military unless it feels its activities are connected with a real threat, so the military and its suppliers and other allies have to exaggerate that threat. Such is the risk of “the total influence--economic, political, even spiritual” of the military-industrial complex, which Eisenhower warned is “felt in every city, every Statehouse, every office of the federal government.” It is a built-in and well-financed constituency that stresses the military option over the diplomatic one, that exaggerates the strength of the enemy rather than realistically appraises it and that desperately finds new wars to be fought.

What is going on in our name is irrational, costly and dangerous, but there are powerful vested interests that want to keep it that way.
Those interests remain so strong that
neither Barack Obama nor John McCain
has called for cutting a military budget that is the largest since World War II. But without such cuts all the campaign promises about funding domestic programs, from education to healthcare,
are an obvious fraud.

http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/20080614_empire_or_republic/

foofie wrote :



you don't really believe that china is paying for the war , do you ?

i'm sure you know what IOU's are .
treasury notes are IOU's issued by the U.S. treasury . everytime the chinese - or other investors - buy U.S. treasury bills , they own another piece of america .
have you ever checked how much of american business is already owned by foreigners ?

just like your personal debt does not "disappear" if you don't start paying it back , neither does the U.S. debt disappear when it's not being paid - it keeps accumulating with interest - a nice GIFT to future generations .

this table by the U.S. TREASURY gives a summary of holdings by foreigners - look at "A 1 a" and it's various components :

U.S. TREASURY

Debt to other nations is a good security blanket. Who would want to hurt a debtor so they can't pay back a debt? The Cold War mentality of how to keep safe is archaic to some extent.

foofie wrote :



of course , if you believe there is nothing wrong with other nations owning more of america - one piece at the time - , all is well .

by your theory , living in a country that owes more and more to other nations and foreign corporations must be close to heaven on earth .

btw i don't think it has anything to do with "cold war mentality" but everything with economics (that is , owning your production facilities) .

Economic interdependence can decrease the threat of foreign military advances? Maybe if it's production-based economic interdependence; but then again maybe not.

Depends on the rationale of the invading nation!

Many military campaigns have been a net negative to both sides, even if there was a "clear winner" as assessed from an historical perspective.

If production-based economic interdependence increases cultural commonality which in turn decreases border restrictions then it might be more arguable; but then again maybe not.

Witness civil wars!