Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Social Programs

I was thinking about what the ultimate reasons for our presence in Iraq are. It's to make our lives better, right? To make us safer, to make us wealthier and more secure. So, it's basically a social program. Just like the SCHIP program. Right?

Except, SCHIP, which costs a tiny fraction of what the occupation of Iraq does and would provide benefits to significantly more people than have benefited from our Iraq endeavor is treated with contempt by conservatives. And I really don't get that.

We're spending hundreds of times more, sacrificing thousands of lives, negatively impacting tens of thousands more for mercurial benefits that even if achieved will benefit far fewer than providing health care to needy children. Why?

Why do conservatives only seem to be willing to spend money on threats that come from overseas and can be bombed? Why do accidents and illness not matter to them?

I have to say that only reason I can think of is that there are loads of wealthy Americans that stand to make billions off of Iraq, and as a result they are completely willing to spend hundreds of billions of tax payer dollars in order to provide for them.

It's basically a social program, just for rich people. Take money (and livelihood and lives) from poor people and give it to rich people.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Yes, you've pretty much hit the nail on the head. I don't think anyone can really argue with the $$. The defense industry, particularly manufacturers and, of course, oil, makey the money. A great part of our economy is propped up by war spending. That motivation I understand. Military Industrial Complex. We all get that.

What flabbergasts me is the idiots who toddle along, repeating whatever Big Money says and voting this way or that, when dude, they are POOR. The corporations, their lobbyists, the investors and the candidates they invest in who make $$ (or get reelected) off of war don't give a flying butt monkey about your puny job or your adorable belief that we are "spreading freedom and democracy."

But they sure do appreciate you blissful, ignorant vote.