Rocks in a Sinkhole

This was president Bush last week, on his handling of the U.S. economy:

"You need to talk to economists [about a possible recession]. I think I got a B in Econ 101. I got an A, however, in keeping taxes low, and being fiscally responsible with the people's money."

Never mind that it was a "C-", and not a "B." Regardless of the lies abouts grades Bush's claim of fiscal responsibility is a total farce as demonstrated by this:

CHICAGO, Sept. 21 -- The money spent on one day of the Iraq war could buy homes for almost 6,500 families or health care for 423,529 children, or could outfit 1.27 million homes with renewable electricity, according to the American Friends Service Committee, which displayed those statistics on large banners in cities nationwide Thursday and Friday.

The war is costing $720 million a day or $500,000 a minute, according to the group's analysis of the work of Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph E. Stiglitz and Harvard public finance lecturer Linda J. Bilmes.

The estimates made by the group, which opposes the conflict, include not only the immediate costs of war but also ongoing factors such as long-term health care for veterans, interest on debt and replacement of military hardware.

"The wounded are coming home, and many of them have severe brain and spinal injuries, which will require round-the-clock care for the rest of their lives," said Michael McConnell, Great Lakes regional director of the AFSC, a peace group affiliated with the Quaker church.

The $720 million figure breaks down into $280 million a day from Iraq war supplementary funding bills passed by Congress, plus $440 million daily in incurred, but unpaid, long-term costs.

It has dawned on many of us in the last week or so the Iraq War is effectively a permanent war. We have looked for a way to end it and hoped against hope that it would. We have failed at every turn to make an impact and there are now more American troops there than ever.

There is no exit plan, there is no clear mission, and there is no attainable objective other than getting control of the Iraqi oil. Many of us are now facing the reality that this disastrous war is going to continue to drain billions and billions of dollars from the U.S. economy for years. It is also going to continue to kill and maim tens of thousands men, women and children both American and Iraqi.

I have been resisting this acknowledgment for quite some time but as each week goes by with no progress in ending this fiasco I lose a little more hope. Maybe something will happen next week to change the trend...heres to hope.