Iraqi leadership, again: "Please leave."

[Dos Equis]

They should just pay it all.   

Would be okay with me. 

[Deedee]

I'm talking about Iraq subsidizing the war costs. 

Aren't they? To be fair, this is the largest privatized war ever, and the people who were meant to benefit have  already made huge profits.  These are largely American corpies, so you can't have any complaints there. To date, foreign states have wiped out a lot of Iraq's debt, and the 6 Bill budgetary surplus amassed from newly functioning oil production HAS been alloted for subsidizing war costs... namely rebuilding the infrastructure.

Building hospitals, addressing 30-50% unemployment and 13% infant mortality rates, fixing the power, sewage, garbage collection, drinkable water issues... and you know, building stuff so society can function.

Granted 100's of US millions were earmarked for that in '05 and have been mismanaged, but at least these funds went into American pockets.   

There's 300 billion in contracts up for grabs with rebuild iraq '08 projects, so that's all good too as many US contractors will benefit there.

Besides, GW said in February that the economical decline wasn't due to the war, that the war in fact created jobs, and the prob is simply that you built too many houses and the market is adjusting.

You sounded like you wanted a rebate check for your contribution or something.  My mistake.

[Dos Equis]

Aren't they? To be fair, this is the largest privatized war ever, and the people who were meant to benefit have  already made huge profits.  These are largely American corpies, so you can't have any complaints there. To date, foreign states have wiped out a lot of Iraq's debt, and the 6 Bill budgetary surplus amassed from newly functioning oil production HAS been alloted for subsidizing war costs... namely rebuilding the infrastructure.

Building hospitals, addressing 30-50% unemployment and 13% infant mortality rates, fixing the power, sewage, garbage collection, drinkable water issues... and you know, building stuff so society can function.

Granted 100's of US millions were earmarked for that in '05 and have been mismanaged, but at least these funds went into American pockets.   

There's 300 billion in contracts up for grabs with rebuild iraq '08 projects, so that's all good too as many US contractors will benefit there.

Besides, GW said in February that the economical decline wasn't due to the war, that the war in fact created jobs, and the prob is simply that you built too many houses and the market is adjusting.

You sounded like you wanted a rebate check for your contribution or something.  My mistake.

No no, not talking about rebate check.    

Whatever they're subsidizing it ain't enough.  When I've talked to people who have been there about why the country isn't flourishing financially with all of the oil revenue, the answer I've gotten is they don't have the infrastructure in place to manage the money.  I don't completely understand that, but whatever needs to happen for them to start writing checks to help pay for the costs of the war needs to happen.   

[CQ]

I disagree that people should be told they have to pay for a fight they didn't ask for... Yes.

Had they asked for the US to overthrow Saddam and then we did it, then I would agree with charging them for the service.

If you go beat up the playground bully because you see him do something to a little kid... do you charge that little kid his lunch money for your "good will"?

Agree....

[tu_holmes]

I wonder if France charged us after 1781 for their help.

[Deedee]

No no, not talking about rebate check.    

Whatever they're subsidizing it ain't enough.  When I've talked to people who have been there about why the country isn't flourishing financially with all of the oil revenue, the answer I've gotten is they don't have the infrastructure in place to manage the money.  I don't completely understand that, but whatever needs to happen for them to start writing checks to help pay for the costs of the war needs to happen.   

If you want to vomit, here's a cost counter where you can actually see the dollars being spent in your tiny paradise hamlet of the US. If you watch for a couple of minutes it's kind of mesmerizing.

http://www.nationalpriorities.org/costofwar_home

From what I've read and heard from people who've been there, the country is JUST starting to produce oil in the dollar amounts and quantities that were predicted years ago.  Add to that, the country is only beginning its wobbly start, and has a demolished infrastructure to rebuild amidst sporatic violence. Iraq is also attempting to re-integrate itself into its ME community, which means dancing with other heads of state who have their own agendas.

Also the US WANTS to keep certain projects/aspects of the war under its wing for control/"efficiency"  reasons.

And I was being completely sarcastic about all the Bush admin's mismanaging of funds and approved privatized looting that has cost the taxpayers billions being a good thing.  Still, they had a great 8-year run, people made fortunes, but the admin is now on the way out and so it'll be time to pack it in in Iraq too. Have patience.

[Deedee]

US tax dollars at work in Iraq! 

[...] A few months later, in March 2004, your company magically wins a contract from the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq to design and build the Baghdad Police College, a facility that's supposed to house and train at least 4,000 police recruits. But two years and $72 million later, you deliver not a functioning police academy but one of the great engineering clusterfucks of all time, a practically useless pile of rubble so badly constructed that its walls and ceilings are literally caked in shit and piss, a result of subpar plumbing in the upper floors.

You've done such a terrible job, in fact, that when auditors from the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction visit the college in the summer of 2006, their report sounds like something out of one of the Saw movies: "We witnessed a light fixture so full of diluted urine and feces that it would not operate," they write, adding that "the urine was so pervasive that it had permanently stained the ceiling tiles" and that "during our visit, a substance dripped from the ceiling onto an assessment team member's shirt." The final report helpfully includes a photo of a sloppy brown splotch on the outstretched arm of the unlucky auditor..

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/story/16076312/the_great_iraq_swindle

[Dos Equis]

If you want to vomit, here's a cost counter where you can actually see the dollars being spent in your tiny paradise hamlet of the US. If you watch for a couple of minutes it's kind of mesmerizing.

http://www.nationalpriorities.org/costofwar_home

From what I've read and heard from people who've been there, the country is JUST starting to produce oil in the dollar amounts and quantities that were predicted years ago.  Add to that, the country is only beginning its wobbly start, and has a demolished infrastructure to rebuild amidst sporatic violence. Iraq is also attempting to re-integrate itself into its ME community, which means dancing with other heads of state who have their own agendas.

Also the US WANTS to keep certain projects/aspects of the war under its wing for control/"efficiency"  reasons.

And I was being completely sarcastic about all the Bush admin's mismanaging of funds and approved privatized looting that has cost the taxpayers billions being a good thing.  Still, they had a great 8-year run, people made fortunes, but the admin is now on the way out and so it'll be time to pack it in in Iraq too. Have patience.

Cool link.     It has only cost Honolulu $480,778,332 (333, 334, 335, 336) . . . .