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To the Editor:
MSN.com recently ran a story titled “Who’s profiting from the Iraq war?” Why is this important to us all?
1. Because the American taxpayers are putting up the money, and 2. Because it should help us see why staying in Iraq is so important to good old W. After all, this is this president’s war. He and his cronies concocted it, and made all of these “no bid” contracts possible.
No. 1 on the list is a division of Vice President Dick Cheney’s ex-company, good old Halliburton. KBR Inc. has managed to take in $17.2 billion since 2003. Halliburton did so well in Iraq, it moved to Saudi Arabia lock, stock and barrel. Halliburton was audited early on and had to pay back some money for ripping off our soldiers when it came to rations and clothes.
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No. 2 is a “private-equity” shop called Veritas Capital Fund, which controls a portfolio of companies that, all together, pulled down about $1.5 billion. Others in the top 10, such as Washington Group International, Fluor, Perini, and Parsons, landed contracts to restore, repair, and maintain oil fields, power plants, schools, public water systems and military bases to the tune of about $3 billion combined despite the fact that oil fields, power plants, schools and public water constantly have to be rebuilt because they are constantly being blown up by one terrorist group after another.
Other companies in the top 10 include Environmental Chemical, International American Products and L3 Communications that have managed to pull down a meager $1.6 billion.
One contract in the top 10 that should make us really wonder is the contract that was given to First Kuwaiti General Trading & Contracting for pulling in half a billion to build the U.S. Embassy in good old downtown Baghdad. I guess that was payback for Kuwait allowing Bush Sr. and Bush Jr. to stage their respective invasions in their little country.
What is sad about this whole thing is that a big gob of all the billions spent on Bush’s war cannot or will not be accounted for because the war has been funded outside the regular defense budget process. Instead, it gets funded through “emergency” spending bills called supplementals which all but eliminates accountability. Even though some fraud and corruption have been uncovered, investigations thus far indicate that what has been uncovered is just the tip of the iceberg.
However, the saddest thing about this whole affair is how many more of our brave soldiers will be wounded or die so these companies can rake in more profit. In case you missed it, just last week it was revealed that Bush is hoping he can get enough of his cronies to rally around the flag pole to perpetuate his war into infinity.
Michael C. Crane
Sierra Vista
silver wrote on Oct 5, 2007 6:58 AM: