War has always stimulated declining economies. It is for this reason that I, an economics major, support Bush’s war efforts.
In our time of economic decline, we must look to ourselves first. Let not our faade of brotherly love toward oppressed peoples fool you. It’s all for our own good. After all, that’s why we got involved with Iraq in the first place.
Does that surprise you? If you dig deep, you’ll remember back in 1991, that humiliating defeat of the Iraqis after their invasion of Kuwait. We were there to be true friends ? to help them out in their time of need. We helped them because we care about other nations’ sovereignty.
Yeah, right. That, and the fact that after invading, Iraq controlled 20 percent of the world’s oil and was on the verge of adding another 20 percent from Saudi Arabia. The U.S. certainly couldn’t stand back and watch as Saddam Hussein, businessman extraordinaire, consolidated a major portion of the world’s oil.
It just didn’t make economic sense and so we went to war. Eleven years later, after the Gulf War made Saddam Hussein the whipping boy of the Middle East, America again rears its proud capitalist head and sees an opportunity for profits.
So what makes Iraq a great target? Well, we need someone easy to fight and from the previous engagement, we learned it’s a good choice. After all, how difficult is a country without an air force and a navy?
We learned from World War I the need for air superiority. Air force vs. no air force, check. We learned from World War II if you can’t beat them, nuke ’em. Nuclear bomb, check. We learned from Vietnam ? because we got our asses kicked ? the need to have a well defined plan. Congress gave Bush authorization to use US Armed Forces to defend the national security of the United States against the continuing threat posed by Iraq and enforce all relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions regarding Iraq. Well defined plan, check ? I think.
We have the three essentials for ensuring a winning war. But why with Iraq you ask? It’s all about the money.
In the Gulf War, the government, adjusting for inflation, spent a total of $79 billion for the war effort (Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessment). Assuming the war will be as easy as last time and assuming the U.S. military spends just as much, that is $79 billion being pumped into our staggering economy. The U.S. Census Bureau estimates the US population at 288,291,220. Dividing that number into the cost of the war, this war has the potential to give everyone in the U.S. a $274.04 kickback. Of course, that assumes that the profits will be divided equally. But wait ? there’s more.
Three hundred people died in the Gulf War and 63 military aircraft were destroyed. Assuming each military aircraft costs, at a very low estimate, $300,000 each, total costs would rise to $79,018,900,000 and total benefactors would decrease to 288,290,920. This comes out to a $274.09 for each person. That’s five cents better. Imagine what you could buy with that. I’ve already started bidding on a Play Station.
So come on, jump on the bandwagon. It makes economic sense to me. It should to you too. After all, monetary gain is all that matters in life right?
He is a freshman and can be reached at he@campustimes.org.
