The True Cost of the War..

The Three Trillion Dollar War: The True Cost of the Iraq Conflict
by Joseph Stiglitz
with Linda J. Bilmes, WW Norton, March 2008

Testimony to Congress

For a synopsis, read the testimony by Joseph Stiglitz, Nobel Prize winning economist, and Linda J. Bilmes, a full-time faculty member at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, who teaches budgeting, applied budgeting, and public finance.
Their in depth analysis should be required reading for all senators, congressmen and women, candidates, and voters. The costs go far beyond the financial, which are staggering in themselves. A sobering anaysis of how to move forward to prevent future folly is a valuable part of their work.
To quote:
"The focus of my remarks today, however, is on the large costs that go beyond these budgetary costs. We classify these into two categories, micro-economic costs (to individuals, especially to the troops that have served us so well and their families, and to firms) and macro-economic costs (to our overall economy, today and into the future)."