So many achievements we can all be proud of, so many milestones surpassed as we surge forward to a brighter tomorrow: 4,000 American dead in Iraq, 1,000,000 Iraqis killed, $100 for a barrel of crude oil, $4.00 for a gallon of gas, $5.00 for a loaf of bread, $500 billion for the "War on Terror."
Let's take a closer look.
Deaths in IraqAmerican Military Deaths:
Since war began (3/19/03): 4,000
Since “Mission Accomplished” (5/1/03): 3,861
Since Democrats took over Congress (1/4/07): 988
Our "coalition" allies: 308
"Independent" contractors (up to 6/30/07): 1,001
Americans Wounded, Maimed and/or Driven Insane:
Since war began: 29,451
Since Democrats took over Congress: 6,383
(source: Antiwar.com)
Iraqis Killed:
Since the war began: 82,349-89,867
Since Democrats took over Congress: 30,449+
(source: Iraq Body Count)
or
1,191,216
(source: Antiwar.com
Refugees Fleeing Iraq:2.2 million
Internally Displaced Persons:
2,299,425
(source: United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees)
The Price Tag of War
Military and imperial spending since war began: $514 billion and climbing (source: zFacts.com
Crude oil: $100.02/barrel today (source: Bloomberg.com),
. . . up from about $30.00/barrel when the war began (source: Ctr for Contemporary Conflict)
Gasoline (self-serve regular nationwide): $3.26/gallon
. . . (San Francisco): $3.68/gallon
. . . Diesel: $4.06/gallon (source: Reuters)
"Food Prices Soaring Worldwide" (source: The Associated Press)
Life seems to get cheaper as the cost of everything else skyrockets, but never mind. Just repeat after me:
The surge is working, and we are better off now than we were back then. . .
The surge is working, and we are better off now than we were back then. . .
The surge is working, and we are better off now than we were back then. . .
The surge is working, and we are better off now than we were back then. . .
The surge is working, and we are better off now than we were back then. . .
The surge is working, and we are better off now than we were back then. . .