Sharing in the Sacrifice?

[concerned citizen23]

I'm discouraged to hear talk among some leading Democrats of yet another compromise on funding extensions for the war in Iraq.

Congress has the Constitutional right and a moral responsibility to end this illegal war.

It’s costing the US approximately $330 million per day, completely borrowed of course, to continue funding this war in support of our troops - a tragic and necessary consequence from an unnecessary and illegal war launched under false pretenses. These funds largely flow into the coffers of American and foreign corporations supplying the tools and systems for war. Long after the battle ends monies will continue flowing to corporations for the rebuilding from the destruction we’ve wrought.

As a consequence of running government through contractors and other private corporation’s, the government now pays for some services outsourced to the private sector, like Halliburton, which previously were handled by the military. To meet these demands new industries have been born like Blackwater USA (a security company) which now gain profit from war.

Naturally these costs are a financial burden shouldered by US tax payers for many generations to come for profits these corporations are acquiring today. This represents a huge transfer of wealth. Our brave soldiers pay the highest price while the US taxpayers are left holding huge debts, while our society fails to provide our citizens with basic healthcare, education, and other necessary social services while a small number of individuals and their corporations amass profits and greater wealth - wealth amassed through outright theft, death and destruction.

A partial listing of companies raking in the dough with 2005 contracts are; Lockheed Martin $19.4 Billion, Boeing $18.3 Billion, General Dynamics $10.6 billion, Halliburton $5.8 billion, Perini Corp $2.5 billon (Senator Feinstein’s husband Richard Blum co-owns 75% of Perini voting shares - she serves on the Appropriations Committee), GE $2.2 billion -GE’s $43 billion media portfolio consist of NBC), and Aegis Defense Services - oversees private military contractors in Iraq - with over $430 million. Foreign companies gobble up too; about 20 Australian companies won contracts worth $1.9 billion to help rebuild Iraq.

If Congress must continue funding this war and given that we define corporations as individuals and recognizing they’re profiting from it perhaps they ought to share equally in the sacrifice?

I have a suggestion, since we also value supporting our brave troops during times of war, why not implement a national policy requiring those industries profiting from them to donate their goods and services in sacrifice for the spread of this new age democracy?

If corporations were expected to donate rather than charge the US taxpayer a fee for profit, I suspect wars would be very short indeed.

Democrats Try to Woo GOP on Iraq Policy
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/06/washington/06cong.html?_r=2&hp&oref=slogin&oref=slogin
Cost of War:
http://www.nationalpriorities.org/Cost-of-War/Cost-of-War-3.html
Top Military Contractors:
http://www.warprofiteers.com/article.php?id=11257
http://www.publicintegrity.org/wow/bio.aspx?act=pro&fil=IQ
Australian Military Contracts
http://www.corpwatch.org/article.php?id=12879