A DISCOURAGING NOTE ABOUT THE DECISION TO LAUNCH A WAR IN IRAQ

Earlier, I explained the concept of marginal analysis. Although marginal analysis is an economic concept, it can be applied to many situations-war included.

The question I want to answer is this: are we getting our money’s and lives’ worth in the ongoing war in Iraq? In other words, after $350 billion (although estimates vary widely) and the lives of 4,500 troops, what has America really accomplished? Has America received the benefits it expected? What, in fact, are those benefits?

On March 9, 2008, MSNBC.com reported that a Nobel Prize-winning economist (J. Stiglitz) reported that the US government is burning through $12 billion a month to fight that war.

I recently concluded that this was a totally unnecessary war. And before I proceed, note that this entry discusses contemporary US politics. And politics, as my second favorite uncle said, is one of those topics where the discussion never ends. (The other is religion.)

VOICES OF DISSENT

Shortly after the US invaded Iraq, various politicians—most of whom come from the Democratic party—described the Iraq War as a “war of choice” or phrases to that effect. (President Bush belongs to the opposing party-the Republican party.) Various political commentators echoed the same observation.

USA Today reported on August 26, 2004 that:

“Iraq was a war of choice, and the United States is bearing virtually all of the cost,” according to John Podesta. Mr. Podesta was the chief of staff of former President Clinton. He now heads the Center for American Progress, a liberal think tank. He is, unquestionably, a liberal Democrat.

Boston Globe reported on September 9, 2004 that:

CINCINNATI —— Senator John F. Kerry, campaigning at the same site where President Bush laid out his case against Saddam Hussein two years ago, yesterday called the Iraq war a “catastrophic choice” that has cost $200 billion while inspiring terrorist groups and yielding “the most incalculable loss of all”—more than 1,000 US military deaths.

“George W. Bush’s wrong choices have led America in the wrong direction in Iraq, and they have left America without the resources we need so desperately here at home,” Kerry said, in a bluntly worded attempt to contrast his views on Iraq with the incumbent’s war policy. “I call this course a catastrophic choice that has cost us $200 billion because we went it alone, and we’ve paid an even more unbearable price in young American lives and the risks our soldiers are taking. We need a new direction.”

TIME WILL TELL

For my part, I withheld judgment about the wisdom of waging war in Iraq until I read Scott McClellan’s book. Scott’s book explains his belief that the Bush administration fabricated evidence to justify the assault on Iraq.

Who is McClellan? He’s the former Press Secretary of President Bush. Mr. McClellan was a loyal worker for the president since 2000. He became the Press Secretary-the official mouthpiece of the White House-on July 2003 until he resigned on April 2006. In June 2008, his book, "What Happened: Inside the Bush White House and Washington's Culture of Deception," was published.

I found the book credible. I don’t think Mr. McClellan had an axe to grind. Instead, I think his conscience was weighed down by his knowledge and he wrote it to both clear his conscience and to inform the American people of his belief that the president deceived the American people. It was this book that clinched the case and convinced me that America did not have to invade Iraq.

According to the Washington Post (October 10, 2004), the rationale behind the invasion was...

In announcing 19 months ago that the United States was poised to invade Iraq, President Bush told the nation:

• Intelligence gathered by this and other governments leaves no doubt that the Iraq regime continues to possess and conceal some of the most lethal weapons ever devised...
• The people of the United States and our friends and allies will not live at the mercy of an outlaw regime that threatens the peace with weapons of mass murder.

But the argument that the United States faced a moment of maximum peril in early 2003 from Iraq has been greatly weakened by the release last week of the comprehensive report of chief U.S. weapons inspector Charles A. Duelfer. Click on any of these links: Link-1, Link-2, or Link-3.

The report found that the 1991 Persian Gulf War and subsequent U.N. inspections destroyed Iraq's illicit weapons capability, leaving it without any chemical, biological or nuclear weapons.

Saddam Hussein hoped to someday resume his weapons efforts, the report said, but for the most part there had been no serious effort to rebuild the programs.

I looked for corroborating evidence and found it in the official press release by the White House on October 7, 2002:

1. Tonight I want to take a few minutes to discuss a grave threat to peace, and America’s determination to lead the world in confronting that threat.
2. The threat comes from Iraq. It arises directly from the Iraqi regime’s own actions-its history of aggression, and its drive toward an arsenal of terror.
3. Eleven years ago, as a condition for ending the Persian Gulf War, the Iraqi regime was required to destroy its weapons of mass destruction, to cease all development of such weapons, and to stop all support for terrorist groups.
4. The Iraqi regime has violated all of those obligations. It possesses and produces chemical and biological weapons. It is seeking nuclear weapons. It has given shelter and support to terrorism, and practices terror against its own people. The entire world has witnessed Iraq’s eleven-year history of defiance, deception and bad faith.
5. We also must never forget the most vivid events of recent history. On September the 11th, 2001, America felt its vulnerability—even to threats that gather on the other side of the earth. We resolved then, and we are resolved today, to confront every threat, from any source, that could bring sudden terror and suffering to America.
6. Members of the Congress of both political parties, and members of the United Nations Security Council, agree that Saddam Hussein is a threat to peace and must disarm. We agree that the Iraqi dictator must not be permitted to threaten America and the world with horrible poisons and diseases and gases and atomic weapons. Since we all agree on this goal, the issues is: how can we best achieve it?

We know now that the answer was war.

ONE OF THE UNIQUE THINGS ABOUT AMERICAN DEMOCRACY

America is unique in the sense that its leaders must convince its people that its military action is justified. America’s military power is such that it can win practically any war. Its military’s weakness-if that’s what it should be called-is the American people’s attitude towards any military action. The American people must support it since public attitude will ultimately support or undermine the might of the military.

I thought the president did a fine job during his first term but he really screwed up his second. Most of that screw-up revolves around the war in Iraq.

I also think that he capitalized on the trust that he had built after he led the post-9/11 America. I believe that the evidence supports the deception. And I am discouraged to acknowledge that the president did what many others have done before him—betray the public trust.

Next, let’s see if marginal analysis can determine the benefit of waging the war in Iraq. It can. And the conclusion is terrible. I would like to submit a suggestion. It’s an illegal suggestion unless Congress can be convinced to change the law. It’s a pragmatic suggestion that makes a lot of economic sense. By that, I mean that the cost-to-benefit ratio will be low and that's a good thing. We want the most bang for the buck. It should cost considerably less than a hundred million dollars. Compared to the war effort, this is a simple operation. The beauty of it lies in the likelihood that it will deliver most or all of the benefits that were originally expected.

What are those benefits anyway? Answering that question will require answering two more. Who should own these expectations—the American people or the government? And what benefits does an aggressor typically derive from a victorious war?

To be continued in a few days...

GLARING GAPS IN THE CURRICULUM OF PUBLIC EDUCATION

The US public educational system has been criticized for many things. One is its ethnocentric view of languages. Ethnocentric refers to “the tendency to look at the world primarily from the perspective of one’s own culture.”

Sometime last year I came across a statistic that will put America at a disadvantage compared to its second largest trading partner, China. (Canada is America’s largest trading partner.) The statistic compared the number of Chinese students studying English (several million) with the number of American students studying Chinese (100,000). A second language is always an advantage. The next generation of Americans will be at a disadvantage unless America addresses this disparity soon.

Teaching Spanish is a good start but why stop at French? I am referring to the two languages that I think are being taught in most public schools: Spanish and French.

¿HABLA ESPANOL?

Spanish makes sense for three reasons. First is the growing Hispanic population in the US. Second is the fact that it is the third most widely-spoken language in the world. Its widespread use is the reason that Spanish is one of the six official languages of the United Nations. According to Spanish Language Programs:

Why is it important to learn Spanish? Spanish is spoken by about 400 million people worldwide, which is reason enough to learn the language. But it’s even more compelling when you realize that about half of the population in the Western Hemisphere speaks Spanish, making it the primary language for as many people as English in this region of the world. The entire continent of South America speaks primarily Spanish (aside from Brazil), as does just about all of Central America, Mexico and Latin America—over 15 countries in total. In addition, within the United States, Spanish is the second most widely spoken language after English—by a very wide margin. In the US, more and more, opportunities are increasing for those who are fluent in both Spanish and English due to the explosion in the Spanish-speaking population. This means that the ability to speak both Spanish and English will continue to become more and more valuable for people who live in the US with each passing year.

And the third reason has to do with trade. Mexico is the third top trading partner of the US. Venezuela is the tenth. The languages found among the top ten trading partners of the US are English, Chinese, Spanish, Japanese, German, Korean, French, and Portuguese.

ETHNOCENTRICTY

I think that the public educational system’s ethnocentric attitude has two roots.

First, not enough Americans know, much less care to visit, other countries. And I don’t count sanitized tours such as can be experienced on cruises as visits. Passengers are firmly tourists who remain isolated from the native population. There’s nothing wrong with that but I want to emphasize my view that sensitivity or even awareness of foreign cultures can only be attained through direct contact in that culture’s environment. I’m referring to active interactions with other people. This probably partly explains the average American’s woeful ignorance of geography. Sorry but it’s true, isn’t it?

ZIMBABWE IS NOT IN EUROPE

In the past three months, I was trading laughs with two gentlemen, both of whom spoke good accented English. One is a graduate student who, when I asked where he emigrated from, replied that he came from Zimbabwe. After some verbal sparring, it became obvious to him that I knew he wasn’t from Zimbabwe and that his name (that he gave me) was not “bin Laden.” We laughed about the regularity with which he is believed. Some, he says, think that Zimbabwe is in Europe because he looks European (even though there are a lot of Dutch descendants in South Africa). The second foreigner works and lives in West Virginia. He lives in “red neck” country, as he put it, and the locals have no idea where Ukraine is. They may not know that seven continents exist. Heck, they may even think that the Middle East is a country.

TO GIVE IS TO RECEIVE — TEN FOLD

And second, I think many Americans have become too self-absorbed. Our culture stresses the importance of the individual and the individual’s self-interest. As a consequence, for many people, most of everything that they do is all about them. Now, it’s a pity because self-absorption blurs everyone and everything else. The irony about focusing excessively on your welfare is that challenges will always occur regardless of how carefully you manage your life. And if you are unable to see these challenges to a desired outcome then you inevitably feel disappointed and frustrated. This brings up the consequences of self-absorption. You may agree that the best way to improve your spirits is to help others. If so, then you realize that it’s true that you receive more when you give. By helping others you experience a connection that creates a level of satisfaction that ranks up there with your best accomplishments.

FINANCIAL LITERACY

I am personally concerned about another deficiency in the public educational system. It is the abject lack of teaching financial literacy. I believe it’s a more serious gap. I would like to cover that in the next few months.