Want To Be SICK? Boston.com Compares War $ Spent vs. What War $ COULD Have Bought

[matcom]

and you will NOT believe it

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/gallery/050207_TheCostofWar

[villager]

1. Death merchants. Every single one of them.

n/t

[Bluebear]

2. 11 MILLION college degrees.

Holy cannoli.

[Consequences]

4. Cannolis

12,003,158,725 cannoligrams from Cannoli Gram of New York.

[unblock]

14. ROFL!!!

welcome to du!!

:hi:

[newyawker99]

21. Hi Consequences!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[rug]

3. How many parking spaces?

[DawnIsis]

5. k & r

[paparush]

6. Convert EVERY car in America to Ethanol

With just one-sixth of the US money targeted for the Iraq war, you could convert all cars in America to run on ethanol.

TheBudgetGraph.com estimates that converting the 136,568,083 registered cars in the United States to ethanol (conversion kits at $500) would cost $68.2 billion.



I'm NOT saying Ethanol is a long term solution, but this figure highlights what we COULD be doing with these financial resources.

[Little Wing]

7. 1.8 Trillion hotdogs at the Richdale's up the road from my house

:D

[Gregorian]

8. I posted something like this several years ago.

All I got was "stop moaning, it's history".


But we could have been energy independent. I would have had a reason to celebrate July 4th. I guess I'll have to continue waiting.


Edit- I mean that those billions would have given us research to put us on the way to energy independence. There is absolutely no doubt, unless it was Haliburton doing the research. And that would have made our economy soar to first place on the globe.

To the Hague!

[IChing]

9. It is over $500 billion now

Makes one sick doesn't it matcom?

[Gregorian]

11. Reliable estimates say $2 trillion when all is done.

To the Hague!

[Hong Kong Cavalier]

10. This one makes me furious:

"According to World Bank estimates, $54 billion a year would eliminate starvation and malnutrition globally by 2015, while $30 billion would provide a year of primary education for every child on earth.

At the upper range of those estimates, the $456 billion invested in Iraq could have fed and educated the world's poor for five and a half years."

If I really believed in Hell, I'd say they're gonna burn for this invasion.

[Sapphire Blue]

12. From the NPP/Cost of War website - See the cost in your community:

National Priorities Project - Cost of War

See the cost in your community: http://costofwar.com/

Or compare to the cost of:

PRE-SCHOOL
KIDS' HEALTH
COLLEGE SCHOLARSHIPS
PUBLIC HOUSING
PUBLIC EDUCATION

http://costofwar.com/

[Skinner]

13. This one gave me chills

According to World Bank estimates, $54 billion a year would eliminate starvation and malnutrition globally by 2015, while $30 billion would provide a year of primary education for every child on earth.

At the upper range of those estimates, the $456 billion invested in Iraq could have fed and educated the world's poor for five and a half years.

What has been accomplished by this war? Nothing.

[Up2Late]

15. Those figures are a bit ridiculous as they assume all the money going to Massachusetts.

The "Cost of War" counter gives more relevant numbers that can be broken down by how much your State could have used with their share of the money.

Here's the link: <http://costofwar.com/>

The National Priorities Project took over the "Cost of War" counter that few individuals started back in 2003 and have lots of good info at their site. I've had the counter on my personal web page since 2003.

Here's an example:

All of the U.S.:

The War In Iraq Costs
$422,839,305,985

Instead, we could have hired
7,327,856
additional public school teachers for one year.

Massachusetts:

The War In Iraq Costs
$11,947,942,322

Instead, we could have hired
207,059
additional public school teachers for one year.

All of the U.S.:

The War In Iraq Costs
$422,839,704,592

Instead, we could have provided
20,498,337
students four-year scholarships at public universities.

Massachusetts:

The War In Iraq Costs
$11,947,954,972

Instead, we could have provided
579,210
students four-year scholarships at public universities.

[matcom]

18. not what they assume at all

this is a local web site. they are putting it into perspective for their target audience

[loudsue]

16. Those are OUR TAX DOLLARS, folks.

And it has all gone for NOTHING.

:kick:

[OneBlueSky]

17. 456 billion Hershey bars . . . that's a lotta chocolate! . . . n/t

.

[AwakeAtLast]

19. Outstanding post, matcom

And an amazing report, too.

It would pay 11,400,000 teachers w/ 10 years experience (like me :) ) for one year.

[IronLionZion]

20. It's sad that this country does not have the political will

to feed, educate, or provide healthcare to people, but we are always willing to kill people. We will always spend what money we have, and borrow money, to kill people.

How much does single payer healthcare cost?

I'd rather have socialized healthcare than corporatized defense .... but we'll probably hand out a few more no-bid contracts tomorrow. In a free market system, you can't have companies competing. That's socialism. :sarcasm:

[bamacrat]

22. Totally disgusting and madening, I am really beginning to wonder if I should ...

get the fuck out of Amerikkka while I am still young. I hear Canada wants smart young people.

[HamdenRice]

23. A $10,000 bribe to each Iraqi man, woman & child to like us

Or two round trips to Disneyland for the entire Iraqi population.

[matcom]

24. can we keep this kicked?

[G_j]

25. K & R!

[Morgana LaFey]

26. I can't look. Really. I'll bookmark it though.

But no way I can go there in my head. Not just now.

[Decruiter]

27. What we bought instead

[gulfcoastliberal]

28. War Pigs

Generals gathered in their masses,
Just like witches at black masses.
Evil minds that plot destruction,
Sorcerer of death's construction.
In the fields of bodies burning
As the war machine keeps turning.
Death and hatred to mankind,
Poisoning their brainwashed minds,

Oh, Lord, yeah!

[canetoad]

29. Here's what the war billions can NEVER buy

...one life that was lost.

[matcom]

30. one last

:kick: