Pilfering Pocket Change in Iraq

Billions of dollars are like nickels and dimes to the United States government. Our leaders in Washington simply toss huge sums into the wind without a second thought, all the while receiving nothing of value in return, not even so much as an I.O.U.  

Pentagon officials recently admitted that $6.6 billion in cash sent to Iraq by the Bush administration shortly after the U.S. invasion, which toppled Saddam Hussein’s government, just vanished out of all accountability into the hands of thieves in probably the greatest heist of American taxpayer cash ever. The cash was distributed to interim Iraqi ministers (the most likely criminals) never to be seen again, however no formal accusations have been made.

The Bush administration knuckleheads hoped that a massive cash infusion of American dollars would help placate the Iraqi civilian population following the military upheaval, so more that $12 billion was flown into the country on pallets – pallets heavy with cold hard American cash.

That money was over and above another $53 billion gift which Congress appropriated just for Iraqi “reconstruction efforts.” Now the Pentagon admits that over $8.7 billion in Iraqi reconstruction funds has vanished, $2.6 billion of which was distributed with no documentation at all.

Adding insult to injury, Iraqi officials, i.e. the probable thieves, are threatening to sue the U.S. to reclaim the funds.

Meanwhile, a U.S. congressman’s suggestion that Iraq should eventually repay the Untied States for all the money we have spent was met with anger and ridicule by the Iraqi public and lawmakers, characterizing the idea as “stupid.” "We as a government reject such statements, and we have informed the American embassy that these congressmen are not welcome in Iraq," bellowed one irritated Iraqi spokesman.

Some Iraqi’s actually believe they should be compensated even more by the U.S. for invading their country and subjecting them to hardships. In short, they’re happy as clams that the U.S. rid them of their bloody tyrannical dictator, but put all the blame on the U.S. for the hardships that followed in the form of chaos and sectarian violence.

In Baghdad, the U.S. Embassy also rejected the rogue congressman’s comments. Ambassador James F. Jeffrey said that visiting congressmen do not speak for the U.S. administration and government. "They don't collectively represent the views of the U.S. Congress but their own constituents and their own personal views of the situation," he stated. "It's good for me to hear what these congressmen have to say, and it's good for the Iraqi people as well because we have a strategic partnership, but there is no requirement for the Iraqi people to agree with what they heard," he emphasized.

As far as our government is concerned then, the 4000 dead American soldiers and more that $1 trillion dollars of taxpayer money so far spent in Iraq is a gratuitous gift to the Iraqi people out of the goodness of our hearts. In other words, that money is gone forever; we’ll receive nothing in return; and since it was created from debt, the American taxpayers still have to pay it off at the equivalent of roughly $3,225 from every man, woman, and child in the United States of America -- 310 million souls -- and those sums represent only the outstanding principal, not the billions and billions more in interest.

With the United Sates of America teetering on the edge of bankruptcy and default on our huge pile of debt, we simply cannot afford this petty pilfering of pocket change in Iraq and the rest of the world.