Today, we mark the 10-year anniversary of the War in Afghanistan. After 10 years, it is clear money is being wasted on military spending and wars that aren't making us safer, and are doing nothing for ordinary people in Afghanistan and Pakistan and beyond. It's working people in Michigan, and throughout the rest of the country, who understand that -- but unfortunately not enough of my colleagues in Congress.
Sometimes it's only outside of Washington DC that the fundamental common sense of Americans shows up. This year the National Conference of Mayors passed a powerful resolution calling on the U.S. government to end the war in Afghanistan and to "bring the war money home." It was the first time since the height of the Vietnam War, in 1971, that the Mayors took a clear anti-war position. The mayors understand that the money is there, but it's being diverted -- away from jobs, away from the crucial investments in people that keep our workers employed, our children healthy, and our elders safe.
Americans get it -- 64 percent of Americans already say that the war in Afghanistan is just not worth fighting. But it sure seems like no one is listening. Because just this year, taxpayers in my congressional district are paying about $172 million just for our share of the war in Afghanistan. That war isn't doing anything to make us safer -- the CIA and all the rest of the intelligence agencies admit there are only 50 or 100 al-Qaeda members even left in Afghanistan. But the numbers of civilian casualties are higher than they've been since this war began ten years ago.
And that 172 million in tax dollars? If we weren't wasting it on a failing war in Afghanistan, we could use that money for something that really might help keep us safe -- like hiring 3,275 firefighters for a year. We could retrofit 53,807 houses in my district to provide renewable electricity. Those war dollars could cover health care for 22,447 of our brave veterans, so many of whom are coming home from the wars with devastating physical and emotional injuries. Any of those things would keep us safer than wars that create more terrorists with every civilian casualty.
We can't afford to keep fighting counterproductive wars. The wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and Pakistan are not keeping us safe. It's time to end them; it's time to spend the money we need to bring our troops safely and quickly home. We have too much to rebuild in our cities and across our country, to waste our hard-earned tax dollars. Americans get it. After 10 years, it's time to bring our troops, and our war dollars home.
Representative Conyers is the chair of the Congressional Out of Afghanistan Caucus
Michel Gabaudan: An Empty Anniversary for Afghanistan's Displaced
Rep. Pete Stark: A Decade in Afghanistan: Thousands Dead, Billions of Dollars Wasted
confront Speaker Boehner the next time he shows up for a session and tell him
to start the 'defunding of the war process.' It shouldn't be hard. Just get on with it.
When you think of the money. lives, oil, diesel, and gasoline, bullets, missiles, etc.,
just wasted, it overloads the mind. Also tell Mr. Speaker that since he has the
power to end the war, but has done nothing about it, it's his war.
The very first sentence sd have state the complete body count from both wars including those perm injured and then would have been able to stomach the financial empases/concern. Everyone is aware of the financial cost but military families understand better than civilians the impact of these wars. Considering the pile of bodies generated by these wars, it is unexcusable for these deaths to not be put out front.
This coming from a Congressman is disapointing. Military children who have lost their mothers and fathers in combat really don't know about or care about the money. They would just like to have their parents back. Come on Congressman, lets get it together. Focus on the human capitol, the human impact, and ther rest will take care of itself.
http://wisdomvoices.com/a-budget-war-on-war-budgets/
It's win/win for the establishment.
Oshkosh Corp., Oshkosh, Wis., was awarded a $904,184,088 firm-fixed-price contract. The award will provide for the modification of an existing contract to procure 6,963 Family of Medium Tactical Vehicles. Work will be performed in Oshkosh, Wis., with an estimated completion date of June 30, 2013. The bid was solicited through the Internet, with three bids received. The U.S. Army Contracting Command, Warren, Mich., is the contracting activity (W56HZV-09-D-0159).
Here is $1.2 Billion....ready for this.....arab interpreters. Big screwing to the American Taxpayer. What the firetruck is going on here?
U.S. SPECIAL OPERATIONS COMMAND
McNeil Technologies, Inc., Springfield, Va., has been awarded a $500,000,000 maximum value, five-year indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity linguist support services contract by U.S. Special Operations Command. The contractor will provide all personnel, equipment, tools, materials, supervision/management, and other items and services necessary to provide foreign language interpretation, transcription, reporting, and translation services.
Mission Essential Personnel, Columbus, Ohio, was awarded on May 7 a $679,000,000 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity with cost-plus-award fee contract. This contract action seeks the continuation of linguist/translation services which provide our forces with the ability to communicate effectively with the local populace, gather information for force protection, and interact with foreign military units in Afghanistan. Work is to be performed in Afghanistan (86.202 percent);
There is absolutely no control over the Department of Defense. There should be routine investgati¬ve reporting completed on most of these contracts. Here is what we do best in America. It is called WAR Profiteeri¬ng. Every taxpayer should be appalled. Our government reps are ball-less to stop the madness.
We tried to capture Bin Laden and he was able to slip through our fingers. That is when we should have left Afghanistan. Letting are intelligence appparatus and special ops pursue the rest of Al-Queda.
"You would think that the president and the people in Washington would recognize the importance of the United States military and the need not to shrink our military budget but strengthen it,..." ”
According to Romney, any alternative is "isolationist".
http://www.masslive.com/politics/index.ssf/2011/10/gop_presidential_hopeful_mitt.html
Not to be left out, candidate Barrack Obama says "Last week, we reached an agreement that will make historic cuts to defense and domestic spending. But there’s not much further we can cut in either of those categories."
http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2011/08/08/remarks-president
So, if these people wind up being our choice, then there is no reigning in on defense spending. The thing is, defense spending isn't compared to what other nations are spending. When the US is spending more than the rest of the world combined, then it calls into question whether incompetence, corruption or both is causing the excessive spending. That's why our spending isn't compared in the corporate media.
I think it's both incompetence and corruption that results in the excessive spending.