Required Reading

I read the cliffnotes of Joseph Stiglitz's new book on the Iraq War in this month's Vanity Fair and I highly recommend either that or the real deal to anyone who reads this. Its simple, wonderfully coherent and well-researched, and devoid of all the high-minded theorizing that conservatives usually love to deride liberals for. The book looks beyond the 'emergency supplemental' budget requests and other official expenses and strives to estimate the full range of Iraq-related costs — including future costs like long-term care for veterans, oil acquisition and workforce losses— that the nation will face for years to come.

Having broken down the War to its dollars and sense, Stiglitz's readers will come to the conclusion that going to war was, inarguably, a mismanaged mistake. To say this isn't to discount the sacrifices made by good men and women. It's meant to both shame and undercut the bravado of the feeble-minded warhawks who have crafted a literal Wag the Dog scenario to fatten their larders and their egos. Please take a look at it!