Cost of Iraq War

[jackfengshui]

Our nine-year incursion in Iraq is finally and thankfully coming to an end, leaving behind an unstable Iraq vulnerable to Iranian influence. The costs to our troops and their families and to our economy are huge. The "official" financial cost is about $800 billion. The actual cost is probably $1-2 trillion.

It is interesting to remember that, at the beginning of the war, the economist William Nordhaus estimated that the war would cost $1.6 trillion. He was roundly criticized by the Bush administration, which insisted that the war would only cost $50-60 billion! In fact, Bush’s first economic adviser, Lawrence Lindsey, was fired partly because he predicted the war might cost $100-200 billion.

[jokacz]

I thought it was going to be free. Didn't idiot boy Paul Wolfowitz say that the oil revenues would pay for it?

[offshoredrilling]

pipe line where too easy a target. And keep hitting the sweet oil line.

[jackfengshui]

Originally Posted by jokacz

I thought it was going to be free. Didn't idiot boy Paul Wolfowitz say that the oil revenues would pay for it?

I almost forgot about him. He was rewarded by Bush for being the architect of the Iraq war with the plump job of the President of the World Bank, only to be forced out in disgrace two years later when he was caught arranging a high-paying job for his girlfriend. What a guy!

[george79v]

I think the real cost of Iraq war is transfer of all the power in the region to Iran. With Saddam, atleast there was balance of power in that region. Without him, Iran has no one to keep them in check.

[JONBALLS]

Originally Posted by jokacz

I thought it was going to be free. Didn't idiot boy Paul Wolfowitz say that the oil revenues would pay for it?

The left kept whining something about "no oil for war" along with a bunch of other nonsensical slogans, they probably caved as Bush was a big government progressive lib anyways.We coulda rolled over that country in two days, destroyed everything but the oil infrastructure and set up shop on day three. That woulda been my plan anyways.And if the iraniansdidnt like it we could just go there on day four.Day six we kick the Saudis out into the sea...on and on..soon we got twenty five cent per gal gas, and we could still subsidize all of Hussein Obamas green energy frauds and scams..its a win/win, everyones happy, I love compromiseand bi=partisanship

[NormalBob]

JB...

There are times I think you are a mystical prophet.

[JONBALLS]

somethins gotta surface DOOVE

[cnym]

evood F

[JONBALLS]

The new Iraqi government gave the oil contracts to China anyways

[NormalBob]

Originally Posted by JONBALLS

The new Iraqi government gave the oil contracts to China anyways

Maybe... I think several went to European outfits.

The fact they are mining the hell out of uranium mines in Afghanistan bothers me a little bit more.

[jackfengshui]

Getting back to the original topic of the Bush administration grossly miscalculating how much the Iraq war would cost, then Army Chief of Staff General Eric Shinseki was also fired because he disagreed (correctly) with Bush-Rumsfeld-Wolfowitz on the troop level required to pacify postwar Iraq.

[NormalBob]

jack...Rumsfeld explicitly commanded his senior officers to not plan for the "Stabilization Phase" of the Iraq intervention prior to kick-off.

That single stupid fucking mistake and the subsequent decisions to shut down the Iraqi Army and Basque party should stand in isolation.

It was a major fuck up.

Sure Bush should have caught it but he didn't.

The Afghanistan surge of Obama was probably more stupid because it was directed from the Office of the President.

[jackfengshui]

Originally Posted by NormalBob

The Afghanistan surge of Obama was probably more stupid because it was directed from the Office of the President.

It's tempting to change the subject, but the postmortem of the Afghan war will have to wait for another day.

[NormalBob]

It doesn't have to jack to those of us who served there.

It was stupid strategically.

It was stupid tactically.