"In the world which is upside down, the true is a moment of the false."
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| rock and roll means fuck "In the world which is upside down, the true is a moment of the false." |
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Tuesday, April 20, 2004 piper, paying of remember that 87 billion dollar supplemental for iraq last fall? here we go again... War May Require More Money Soon By Jonathan Weisman Washington Post Staff Writer Wednesday, April 21, 2004; Page A01 Intense combat in Iraq is chewing up military hardware and consuming money at an unexpectedly rapid rate -- depleting military coffers, straining defense contractors and putting pressure on Bush administration officials to seek a major boost in war funding long before they had hoped. Since Congress approved an $87 billion defense request last year, the administration has steadfastly maintained that military forces in Iraq will be sufficiently funded until early next year. President Bush's budget request for the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1 included no money for Iraqi operations, and his budget director, Joshua B. Bolten, said no request would come until January at the earliest. But military officials, defense contractors and members of Congress say that worsening U.S. military fortunes in Iraq have dramatically changed the equation and that more money will be needed soon. This comes as lawmakers, returning from their spring break, voice unease about the mounting violence in Iraq and what they say is the lack of a clearly enunciated strategy for victory. The military already has identified unmet funding needs, including initiatives aimed at providing equipment and weapons for troops in Iraq. The Army has publicly identified nearly $6 billion in funding requests that did not make Bush's $402 billion defense budget for 2005, including $132 million for bolt-on vehicle armor; $879 million for combat helmets, silk-weight underwear, boots and other clothing; $21.5 million for M249 squad automatic weapons; and $27 million for ammunition magazines, night sights and ammo packs. Also unfunded: $956 million for repairing desert-damaged equipment and $102 million to replace equipment lost in combat. .... Rep. Curt Weldon (R-Pa.), vice chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, charged that the president is playing political games by postponing further funding requests until after the election, to try to avoid reopening debate on the war's cost and future. Weldon described the administration's current defense budget request as "outrageous" and "immoral" and said that at least $10 billion is needed for Iraqi operations over the next five months. "There needs to be a supplemental, whether it's a presidential election year or not," he said. "The support of our troops has to be the number one priority of this country. . . . Somebody's got to get serious about this." .... "If one American soldier in Iraq loses his life because Congress and the administration were afraid of the political consequences of another supplemental appropriations bill, shame on everyone who should be a part of that process," Edwards said. go read the whole thing. it's pretty awful. remember last summer? bush's numbers and support for the war were cruising along quite nicely through the beginning of the resistance which seemed to kick off in earnest in july. it seemed that americans could stomach losing a GI or two a day. they weren't happy with it, but if that's the price we'd have to pay, so be it. then the bill came for the war that was supposed to be, according to paul wolfowitz, largely self-financing. 87 billion? this isn't the war we were sold. bush's numbers as regards the war took a major hit and, with a couple of brief rallies here and there, haven't recovered since. it's worth noting, as is above, that mr. bush included no funding for operations in iraq in his FY2005 budget either. oops. so now, after an absolutely horrific month in which we have lost 103 GIs, and in an election year no less, the bushes find themselves in a bit of a pickle, so to speak. do they ask for the money now as the situation in iraq looks more and more dire and people seem to be paying more attention to our little imperial clusterfuck than they have in months? or, do they wait and try to do so closer to the election in the hopes that things will 'stabilize' and risk turning even more folks off weeks before they cast their ballots? or, do they try to do so this summer and hope no one notices? much like the way they have managed the war itself, they now have maneuvered themselves in to such a corner where there are no good options. they're fucked. they're fucked, and if history is any guide, their reluctance to act in the face of potential political fallout will ultimately result in more dead and wounded GIs. bank on it. billie holliday: "pennies from heaven" "don't you know that each cloud contains pennies from heaven?" posted by downtown | 11:08 PM |
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Cost of the War in Iraq
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