The value of an Iraqi life: $15,000. What a bargain!

Exit strategy: kill all 25 million of 'em, pay $375 billion to…damned if I know, but we could pay it, so WTF does it matter?

And of course, that $15K pales next to the value of a single year of the life of a live Blackwater merc: $445,000.

Just think - if 1,000 Blackwaters spend 4 years in Iraq, that’s worth as much to the U.S. government as the lives of roughly 120,000 Iraqis.

Gives you a sense of perspective, doesn’t it? :mad:

Sounds rather expensive to me. I’ll wait for a garage sale.

Or E-Bay…
Yeah, definitely E-Bay, with no reserve…

Yeesh. Perhaps some sort of Dutch auction system might be best, whereby the price starts off high, and we get Iraqis to kill themselves while lowering the price periodically until it gets low enough for them to refuse. I tell you, it’s awfully tough administering a botched occupation.

Speaking of money and Iraq:

They should have offered them a toaster.*
*Offer not available outside of Baghdad. Electricity service not included. Void where prohibited.

Let’s not be sentimental here. Lives do have monetary value. If you disagree, ask yourself this: How much extra would you pay for a safety device for your car that studies have shown to save the life of 0.1% of drivers? Multiply that by 1000, and that’s how much you value your own life.

Of course, if you quote an infinite amount, this theory would need some tweaking, and so would the car companies’ sales strategy.

Let’s be sentimental here. Lives do not have monetary value. If you disagree, ask yourself this:
How much could I pay you to kill you and your loved ones? Thought so.

Let’s be rational here. There have been roughly 400 suicide bombings in Iraq since 2003. I don’t think it takes much of a stretch to imagine an element in that culture that would gladly get themselves killed for the money their family would be paid.

Let’s be psychotic here. Let’s kill Iraqis randomly and leave silver dollars on their eyes.

Let’s be pragmatic here. Let’s auction off chances for Iraqis to be killed by US contractors, and let the market decide.

Have you donated a nickel to UNICEF to save a child’s life? If not, you value the life of children at less than 5 cents.

Let’s be rational here. But not over there.

Let’s be surreal here. Weave yourself a suit of armor from the dried foreskins of ten thousand pianists, and mambo through Basra flicking sardine heads at the locals.

Let’s be emphatic here. I really, really, really mean that.

Let it be.
Hear! Hear!

Let’s be clear here: so you think that the deceased Iraqi’s family should receive nothing? Thought not.

Let’s be specific here: what are you suggesting they would do? Hang around drunk Americans hoping that one will shoot them accidentally so they can get a payout? Seems a stretch.

Or does my point’s validity depend upon whether or not I’ve read a history book?

Blackwater. Jesus fuck a shit souffle. Every time we lift the lid on that can of worms, another stench so ghastly, cockroaches puke their guts out.

Me, I’m surprised no-one’s jumped on the OP’s casual calling of Blackwater staff “mercs”. Where are the usual Defenders of Definitional Nitpicking? Have we finally worn them down?

And $15 000? I’m surprised they didn’t charge his family for the bullet.