Anniversary

Anniversary: ORIGIN: Middle English: from Latin anniversarius, 'returning yearly', from 'annus' (year) + versus 'turning'

Most anniversaries in individual lives are joyous ones. They are celebrated in greater grandeur as the years tick by. The numbers, 25 years, 50 years, are associated with milestones, happy memories, and the occasional gift giving or standard upper middle class yuppie cruise holiday tour.
The war is five years decrepit today, and as the years have ticked by, the grandeur has expanded only in death and unrest. The milestones set for the Iraq "government" are nowhere near met. The memories of injured soldiers will probably develop into PTSD and the government won't pay for their treatment. The gift to all has been a downturn in US status worldwide: philosophically, morally, and now economically. The only gifts that will be distributed are Red Cross supplies to war-stricken, displaced Iraqis; the only cruises that of soldiers on their way to the Middle East, stoplost.

Let's make a special effort to remember that there are still wars going on, and not be so self-centered to only focus on domestic economics--especially with the elections coming up. If we didn't know that republicans love their money so much, it's almost conceivable to think that right-wingers helped cause the 'recession' in order to help their chances in the election (because republicans pride themselves on financial acuity, warranted or no)

A quick anniversary numbers round-up:
US Military Dead (since 2003): over 3,990
Taxpayer money spent: $500 billion
Current # of US Troops in Iraq: 158,000 (should drop to "pittance" of 140,000 by summer)
Total US soldiers wounded in Iraq: 29,395
Iraqis killed: over 60,000 (and those are low estimates)


* Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph E. Stiglitz and Harvard University public finance expert Linda Bilmes have estimated the eventual cost at $3 trillion when all the expenses, including long-term care for veterans, are calculated.