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Interesting website, The cost of War

dante

dante

Unabomber
Feb 13, 2004
8,807
9
looking for classic NE singletrack
SkaredShtles said:
Wow! I saw it on the Internet, so it must be true............. :rolleyes:

-S.S.-
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well the 126,000,000 # is about right. We spent 86,000,000 last year alone and that doesn't count any weapons that were manufactured *before* 2003 or the actual war itself (MISSION ACCOMPLISHED). Now bush has just gotten another 26,000,000 to last us through the end of the year (or till the election, after which he can tell us how much it's REALLY going to cost).

welcome to compassionate conservatism.
:stosh:
 
SkaredShtles

SkaredShtles

Michael Bolton
Sep 21, 2003
68,349
14,533
In a van.... down by the river
dante said:
well the 126,000,000 # is about right. We spent 86,000,000 last year alone and that doesn't count any weapons that were manufactured *before* 2003 or the actual war itself (MISSION ACCOMPLISHED). Now bush has just gotten another 26,000,000 to last us through the end of the year (or till the election, after which he can tell us how much it's REALLY going to cost).

welcome to compassionate conservatism.
:stosh:
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I'm sure their numbers are based on other numbers that have been published as "costs of war" - the thing I object to mainly is the dumbing down of complex political issues into a "Reality TV" web page that people will look at and say "Wow - that's crazy..... look at what else we could be doing with all that money" and then go back to watching Jenny Jones...... :rolleyes:

-S.S.-
 
quadricolour

quadricolour

Monkey
Jun 14, 2003
448
0
Cambria, CA
SkaredShtles said:
You should go back to watching Dr. Phil now........ :rolleyes:

-S.S.-
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War robs us of precious resources. In an unjustified war like the current one, that is criminal. What this has to do with Dr. Phil, I have no idea. I guess you were trying to insult me? :rolleyes:
 
Fathead

Fathead

Monkey
May 6, 2003
433
0
SE TX
SkaredShtles said:
I'm sure their numbers are based on other numbers that have been published as "costs of war" - the thing I object to mainly is the dumbing down of complex political issues into a "Reality TV" web page that people will look at and say "Wow - that's crazy..... look at what else we could be doing with all that money" and then go back to watching Jenny Jones...... :rolleyes:

-S.S.-
Click to expand...
An inventory of opportunity costs is a great way to make a point, but won't lead to a solution. In this case, I doubt sympathetic viewers will change their opinions. Meanwhile, viewers who support the expenditure will choose to rationalize the expense or downplay the impact of such oversimplification.

My own rash, bleedingheart viewpoint is that our leaders who decide on issues like "how many hundred billion dollars is this war worth?" are aware of the opportunity costs and choose, consciously and deliberately, to prioritize the war effort over any of those other objectives. The site won't have any impact on them, for they are firm in their conviction.

Now, if you want to get the attention of the masses, express opportunity costs in terms of more familiar, more personally valuable commodities, such as these goodies that we're missing out on for our $126 billion (using Census.gov's running population estimate of 294 million Americans):

- CASH: We have each spent an average of $428 on the war.
- PORN: Buy the nation 25 BILLION Porn titles on DVD (I imagine this pretty much buys you the industry, huh?), or if you prefer, 100 titles for each American. Go ahead and give me my wife and kids' share. Nice library pervert!
- BEER: Bud light (used for mass appeal and w/consideration for obesity avoidance) on sale for about $.67/can. . . every American is missing out on over 1,260 beers for this effort.

But seriously, I don't miss the $428. . . of course I did build my hardtail for less than that. It's much more important to me that my brother-in-law in Baghdad has good Kevlar, decent food, and a whole bunch of badass buddies watching his back. If my sister has to raise my niece alone, we won't have spent enough.

Edited for grammer. Sorry, can't fix it all.
 
SkaredShtles

SkaredShtles

Michael Bolton
Sep 21, 2003
68,349
14,533
In a van.... down by the river
Fathead said:
An inventory of opportunity costs is a great way to make a point<snip>
But seriously, I don't miss the $428. . . of course I did build my hardtail for less than that. It's much more important to me that my brother-in-law in Baghdad has good Kevlar, decent food, and a whole bunch of badass buddies watching his back. If my sister has to raise my niece alone, we won't have spent enough.

Edited for grammer. Sorry, can't fix it all.
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That's why I object to that "instant gratification" page that was referenced. It doesn't really encourage people to THINK - it's a dumbed-down expression of a complex topic. Ah, well. It'll probably play really well to the masses........

-S.S.-
 
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