87 Billion dollars.

The BBQ Pit
1

So the cost to “rebuild” Iraq is going to cost the taxpayers 87 billion dollars. That’s 87,000,000,000 dollars. Let’s see what else we can do with that much cash.

We can give every person in Iraq over 3500 USD. This is enough money to put every man, woman, child and baby in a Upper west side manhattan aprtment for one month. The whole damned country.

We can give each and every American $310 dollars. Enough money to buy a nice color TV. Every man, woman, child and baby. Who would not turn down 310 dollars? (87,000,000,000 dollars/ 280,000,000 US citizens)

Or, we can be really generous and give EVERY PERSON ON EARTH ABOUT 13 DOLLARS USD. (87 Billion/ 6.2 Billion people) Give every man, woman, child and baby on the face of this planet 13 dollars. Enough money to go see a movie, eat a steak dinner, buy a fifth of Jack Daniels. The majority of the people in the third world can make 13 dollars stretch out for a month.

Incredible. Why George W. are you screwing the American people like this? Why did you decide to invade Iraq, blow it up, and now expect the American people to rebuild the place? Clinton never saw the need to do this in eight years of office. The UN was doing its job.

The minute that the US leaves Iraq, the militants will seize control. What then? Is the US going to reinvade? Saddam Hussain was a bad guy. No arguments here, but why doesnt the USA invade Cuba, or Myanmar (Burma), or North Korea? If the US decides to blow up North Korea, are the American people going to pay for that too? HOW LONG is the US staying in Iraq. Hell, the US still has troops in Japan and Germany 58 years later. I sure hate to think that the US is going to stay in Iraq until the year 2061. Damn, at leats the troops in Germany and Japan get to drink and have a good time and are pretty places.

The sponsors of terrorism are in Saudi Arabia dumbass, not Iraq. The Saudis are behind this crap. Remember that there were only two nations that recognized the Taliban regime in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. The hijackers were saudi (old news).

Saddam’s regime was a secular one, Saddam was against the crazy religious idiots like the Iranians and Osama Bin Laden. These people were his enemies, not his friends. When those planes hit those towers, Hussain was as surpirsed as you and I.

Bush, our schools are going to hell. There is lawlessness in our streets. Many of our cities in our major cities are not safe to walk in, even in the daytime. Our cops, fireman, teachers, social workers and others on the front line are not paid what they deserve. Yet, you have sent 87,000,000,000 billion dollars to rebuild and clean up the mess your dirty and illegal war has cost the American people.

I do support you on finding Osama Bin Laden however. I would raise the prize on his head up to one billion dollars personally from 25 million. But as a comedian (who?) how damn hard is it to find a sickly, 7 foot tall, ZZ Top beard wearing millionaire fool who lives in caves? Cant be too tough. But who financed him? Who finances his crusades. Saudi Arabia does! So, really the US killed Saddam to protect our “allies” Saudi and Israel. Sweet.

What really blows ass is that I want to vote you out next year, but Howard Dean is a bigger dumbass than you.

FLAME ON PEOPLE

2

I think it’s driving most of us nuts. But there are people, intelligent, hardworking, well-paid NICE people, who believe in this.

Sigh. Like everyone in my family but me. I’m the black sheep.

My family thinks he’s the bees knees. Why? Because he’s a good christian with family values. (uh huh…so is THAT why he was into Princess Snow back when???).

Anyway, so what?? Oh and believe me, I tried, I begged, “HOW can you all be smart, hardworking goodhearted people and think what he’s doing is a GOOD thing”???

Sigh. Get this, after explaining somewhat what you did in your OP to my family, my sister said “you don’t really understand politics do you”???

I just smiled and said “the fact that someone disagrees with your opinion doesnt’ mean that they have no knowledge of the subject”.

People just believe what the media tells them. No one “does the math” and looks around (as you describe so well here).

For a christian, he’s sure ignoring the “fix your own house first” rule.

3

You mean one, or the other right? I don’t know where you live, but 13 bucks wouldn’t a fifth, would only get one person into the movies (and you MIGHT have enough left over for a very small popcorn), and it’d get a pretty cheap steak dinner, not all three. :smiley:

4

If you give everyone in the world $13, then everybody who had nothing will still be equal to everyone else who had nothing. Result: They will still have nothing. Economics is an exercise in relativity. It doesn’t work like that.

5

I’ve always wondered why there was no “trickle up” economic theory.

6

This doesn’t take into account where the money is coming from, sure, they’re equal relative to eachother, but the source is down $87 billion

7

Bah. If their is anything Bush has done that I agree with, this is probably it. Iraq is a shithole. Pulling out and abandoning the place isnt an option. We made a mess, and I think spending the truly insane amounts of money required to fix that mess is about the most responsible thing to do, at this point. Well, aside from letting the U.N. into it…

Now, I realize that if we didnt invade Iraq to begin with, the 87 billion never would have been an issue. And I’m certainly going to remember that, come election time. But, whats done is done, and from where we are at, I’d rather see our troops get paid well and reconstruction efforts made at the greatest of speed.

8

Call me Mr Cynical but I like to ponder that one the other way around : Would war have been pursued quite so zealously and single-mindedly if there hadn’t been the likelihood of many billions of $$$ coming down the pike to be gobbled up by supremely-well connected corporations such as Halliburton et al for ‘reconstruction’ efforts?

9

And this is the point in the thread in which we reline our tinfoil hats…

10

What is the $87 very large going to be spent on, anyway? My father mentioned something about how most of that is actually going to the military, not rebuilding, but he’s scarcely a reliable source. Anyone have a semi-detailed breakdown on what the spend is for?

11

Only $20 Billion is earmarked for reconstruction. The rest is targeted at military and civilian US workers over there overseeing the work and security issues.

12

About $600 million to fund Mr. Kay’s relentless search for those “massive stockpiles” of WMD’s. No word as to any budgeting to assist OJ Simpson in his search for the “real killer”.

13

Hmmmm, let me give you a quick exercise in relativity. Apparently, in 1979 the average GDP per capita in Iraq was $17,000 per annum in today’s dollars adjusted for inflation. As at April 2003, the average Iraqi now earns less than $1,500 per annum. Most are probably lucky to earn even $1,000 per annum.

Further, illiteracy is hovering at 40% in rural areas apparently and has done for quite some time.

So, before you go off on some huge whine-fest about how 87 Billion dollars is going to ruin your world, just spend a few minutes trying to imagine how shitty the life of a typical Iraqi has become in the last decade as the country has been run into the ground.

Consider how the April invasion must have been the final devastating last straw for the Iraqi people - and ask yourself - after all that the USA has instigated, who, other than the USA (and to a lesser extend Britain and Australia) SHOULD pay for it?

Most importantly, Crazy Grady, prove to me that you weren’t one of the seemingly endless list of Americans blindly saluting the President and justifying his every speech in the leadup PRIOR to the Iraq invasion.

I watched it all unfold. I watched that small brave minority of Americans who dared tp speak out against all the public opinion and predicted how expensive it was going to be - both in Iraqi and American lives - and in monetary terms. I watched how they were pilloried and lambasted for not being patriotic. But they were a very small minority. By far, by a long, long way - all I kept seeing was bloodlust - and a sense of revenge for 9/11 and yeah, let’s get Saddam! He’s been givin’ us the finger for 10 years now… yeah, let’s get him…

I remain unconvinced Crazy Grady that you yourself weren’t in that camp 6 months ago. And now that the bill is coming in, your tune has changed. So I ponder all this, and I gotta tell ya - the number of Americans who sounded like your opening rant 6 months ago was miniscule.

14

back in time Let’s say it was “a war for oil.”

What do we do to secure the supply of Iraqi oil to places like, say, Europe if we leave? Spend the money now, or turn your SUV into bicycles later. The Chinese have the bicycle advantage, and we have the fat asses.

15

I dunno…let it happen and encourage less reliance on foreign oil?

Hey! THERE’S and idea.

16

I’m with you, let’s reduce our dependence on foreign oil.

I live in a neighborhood where I can walk to the store. I push my mower, and I keep my mileage down.

Working so far?

17

And that’s why I love you, Beagle! :slight_smile:

Did I get wooshed up there?

18

Election time is about a year away. Chances are your Senator or House Representative voted for it:

You Bush haters do realize that the oval office just doesn’t come with a big blank check book, right?

19

Yeah, Beagle but the dream of most Americans is to leave in a neighborhood designed to make it impossible to walk to the store.

20

Speaking for the Senate side…I doubt it. Last I heard there were only 5 or 6 Senators on the floor when the voice vote was asked.

So it’s 90%+ possible that any particular Senator didn’t vote at all. The Voice vote gave them an out…both that they didn’t actually have to vote and that there will never be a written record of the members vote in any event.

Funny that foxnews didn’t mention that part. :dubious: