Mother Davis opens up her piggy bank and notes,

Last week, Representative Lynn Woolsey noted the passage of a dark milestone in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan: One trillion dollars has now been spent on the fighting. Woolsey commented:

“A week ago Sunday, at approximately 10:06 a.m., after the House had adjourned for recess and Americans were enjoying their holiday weekend, the Nation reached a truly disturbing milestone. At about that moment, according to the National Priorities Project, the combined amount of taxpayer money spent on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan reached a staggering $1 trillion. That’s trillion with a “T,” Mr. Speaker.

That’s a breathtaking amount of money to spend, even on something that works. But that kind of spending on two bloody wars that have taken thousands of American lives, destabilized other parts of the world, and done nothing to achieve national security goals, well, it’s positively shameful.

That trillion dollars doesn’t even include some bills that haven’t yet come due, like future medical costs for returning Iraq and Afghanistan veterans, a commitment we absolutely must keep. Nor does it include interest our grandchildren will pay on the debt we have racked up to finance these wars.

What I can’t help thinking, Mr. Speaker, is the lost opportunity costs that we should be taking into account. What could we be spending that kind of money on if we weren’t wasting it on immoral wars?”

Setbacks continue in Iraq, where violence remains pervasive. In Afghanistan, the freedom that would justify the invasion and decade-long occupation of that country has yet to materialize, as the government holds peace negotiations with the Taliban at which women are not allowed to speak.

But still, some in the US government see the potential to turn a little profit. A US government study has found that Afghanistan has a trillion dollars in mineral wealth. Is that why it’s proving so difficult for our military to pull out?

Closing her piggy bank without dropping anything in,
Mother Davis