The Wages Of War?

We are taking a week off from, not to be mistaken for Tuesday's With Morrie, Tuesdays With Trump...

Over at a financial forum...

BDC - "a Christian War in Iraq. That's some 4,000 US soldiers lives and $2T."

US Military Deaths: 4424 in Iraq, 2386 in Afghanistan

US WIA: 31,952 in Iraq; 20,049 in Afghanistan

Total violent deaths including civilians and combatants: Iraq 251K; Afghanistan/Pakistan 173K see here.

Total wounded including civilians: Iraq 240K;  Afghanistan/Pakistan 183K

According to researchers at Harvard: The Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts, taken together, will be the most expensive wars in US history – actually totaling somewhere between $4 to $6 trillion. 

And lets not even talk about the death and displacement caused by Clinton in the Balkans, and Obama in Syria. None of these conflicts have been fought to protect our homes, country, constitutional rights or freedom. As for the rationale behind Korea and Vietnam, it depends on whose writing the history.

In his farewell address, Eisenhower thoughtfully warned about the 

"acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex.  Only an alert and knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals, so that security and liberty may prosper together."

Under the surface, these armed conflicts have been military industrial complex wars, which have everything to do with hegemony, arms sales, oil, greed and profit. To make them more palatable for public consumption, initiated and characterized under the guise of battling evil doers, and having little to do with liberation, democracy, truth, or justice, these wars would seem to be the new American Way?  Food for thought. More to come in The Costs of Economic War?