Iraq war costing twice as much as we were told

The US wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are costing nearly double the amount previously thought, according to a report, War At Any Price?, by the Joint Economic Committee of the US Congress.  (Press release here – pdf)  It says “hidden costs” have pushed the total to about $1.5 trillion – nearly twice the requested $804 billion – when higher oil prices, treating wounded veterans, and the cost to the economy of pulling reservists away from their jobs have been taken into account.While this additional consumption may have buoyed the economy recently, it has been totally unproductive and will exacerbate the pain of economic correction that the US economy is now facing.

The news of this deception is also likely to hurt the current administration in the polls and reduce Republican chances in next year’s elections.  It can only be hoped that it will motivate the US administration to seek pragmatic and workable solutions in Iraq, rather than primitive military ones.