At What Cost?

Question

In the opening stages of the war in Afganhistan the United Kingdom symbolically fired the first shots. 50 Cruise missiles were fired from British ships at a cost to the U.K of £1,200,000 for each missile. Then add the cost of the ships, planes,manpower for the duration of that war. Now add the cost to the U.K for the war in Iraq. Now add the cost to America and the other Allied countries which was many times what U.K paid. Now add the cost to the Allies of keeping soldiers in Afghanistan and Iraq. Now think what this money could have been used for. All the poor countries of the world could have had their national debt wiped clean, starvation made a thing of the past, deseases cured and it could have even improved the relations between christian and muslim world and ultimatly end terrorism. In U.k alone they talking about not having enough money for pensions, not enough money for the national health. Is it not time that the world worked together to stop all wars.

Answer 1

you are 100% correct

Answer 2

Mankind may wish one day to get along but that's in a Star Trek-Utopian society where greed and power do not exist.

The truth is money has always been poured into the Miltary Machine of the USA. They've bought all these missiles now, dammit, they're going to see if they actually work! Saying let's use the money for the good of mankind is noble, but a bit far fetched. How about using the money at home?
Perhaps if that money, over all that time was spent improving the economy, education, health, technologies, then life would be better for everyone, but hey, they don't want life to be better for everyone. They want Americans to be glad for their flagging economy, failing schools, rising unemployment and growing poverty. As long as they can keep the rest of the world in check with their miilitary might, they can remain THE global superpower no matter what state their own economy is in. The cost has been to the taxpaying American and I'm quite surprised so many of you lot are still in favour of it.

P.S It's funny how the word 'invasion' used to be avoided when talking about the American occupation of Iraq, but these days it's just thrown around as if it's perfectly normal.

Answer 3

You think that 'all the poor countries of the world would have had their debt wiped clean?' You believe that starvation would be made a thing of the past? You honestly think that disease would be eliminated? And you really, really believe that Christians, Muslims, (and you didn't say Jews, but...), would all get along?

1. Sunnis, Shi'a, and Kurds do not get along. They have been fighting between themselves for generations. Islamo-fascism is related to the Jihadi philosophy, and that means the only good infidel, is a dead infidel. (By the way...Unless you are Jihadi, you too, would be considered an infidel and worthy of death.)

2. Saddam Hussein fired missiles into Israel in the Persian Gulf War. He invaded Kuwait. He took money from oil and built palaces while his people starved. He tortured, raped, plundered, and gassed his own people. (I don't know about you, but this doesn't sound like assisting the poor, eliminating disease, or ridding the world of starvation.)

3. Usama bin Laden laughed into the cameras the day after 9/11. He threatened more terrorist acts throughout the world. UBL doesn't care what country al-Qa'ida hits...just so long as his point is made that all infidels should die. (This doesn't sound much like a 'get-along-with-everyone' kind of guy.)

4. The Middle East is vulnerable to totalitarian regimes by the very culture of Islam. However, democracy is being created within the countries of Iraq and Afghanistan. It is a slow, deliberate process, but it is worth it to the starving, poor, uneducated, and destitute of that region. (In this way, the war on terrorism is creating an oasis in the desert of extremism.)

Here's the bottom line:

In order to establish peace and provide for domestic tranquility, you have to spill blood and treasure. Your own personal freedom and that of your countrymen, came at a great cost. The same holds true for Iraqis holding up ink-stained fingers in their first legitimate election. (From one who has been there and spilled blood to see this happen, I could not think of a greater emotional moment. It made all the struggle worth it to me.)

Here's a couple questions for you: What is your liberty worth to you? Would you die to remain free? Would you give your money to be assurred that your family and friends could remain free of fear and terrorism?

A free world is a secure world. But it is not achieved by a utopian mindset. It comes with hard work and dedicated service.

If you consider this effort in Iraq and Afghanistan to be such a waste, then perhaps you might wish to spend one day in Iran. You'll quickly find out how valuable this effort has been.

Answer 4

If the world worked together we wouldn't have people hijacking airplanes and flying them into buildings filled with innocent people. If the world worked together we would have people setting up roadside bombs to kill people. If the world worked together, we would have bombing of night clubs. If the world worked together, when people do evil things EVERY person/nation would denounce them and seek to bring them to justice, not celebrate the killers as heroes.

How did all the aid the West sent to the tsunami victims help Western/Muslim relations? How did help in Bosnia and Somalia help relations? How did keeping out of the Sudan help relations?
How is that there isn't greater outrage over the tribal court ordered rape of a woman for crime her brother was acused of (Pakistan 2002)? If the world worked together Syria would not have raped Lebanon for almost 20 years while the rest of the world sat don, picked its collective nose and did nothing. If the world worked together women and children in Dozens of countries in Africa wouldn't be raped and butchered as a method forcing their husbands and brothers to fight.

Assuming you believe we shouldn't be there, then the truth is we should not have invaded because we shouldn't have invaded, not because of some hope that we can buy better relations with people that damn us for what we do and for what we fail to do.

Let's also look at the fact that many Muslims come to our countries and then demand better treatment (which they should have). Many of the same people, however, then complain when non Muslims go to their countries. How does that work?

It is naive to think that we can buy better relations. It is naive to think that responding to acts of terror will make terrorists go away.

Answer 5

Don't you think OIL is overpriced? Don't you think that a lot of third world poverty would be alleviated if their oil was cheaper. Then there is servicing the debts they have run up with the World Bank and the IMF, then there is paying for all the weapons that ; the French, Americans, British, Chinese, Russians, Indians and others are selling them, then there is the question of starving their own populations to try to squeeze aid from the west. Defence budgets are not as large as you think.

Answer 6

Your points are all very well made, but you have omitted to mention the fact that the fact that it has nothing to do with cost, because war is good for certain parts of the economy, and war benefits governments.
In fact, the American economy is so heavily geared towards war that it now "needs" one war every five years to sustain it.
I am reluctant to mention the "Military Industrial complex", because it is now a bit past it's sell by date, but it does exist, and it is doing very well out of all that mayhem and murder.
The real beneficiaries of war though are the Governments. they NEED fear in order to control populations, and then they need to be seen to do something about it.
In the days following 9/11, the Bush junta pretended that they thought Bin Laden had done it, so they set off to war with Afghanistan. Everyone (except Afghans) felt "good" because "we were doing something".

Answer 7

If you honestly believe that all of the world's ills could be solved with 60 million quid, you are sadly deluded.

Whilst the US position in Iraq is foolhardy at best, the attacks against Al Queda and the Taliban in Afganistan were completely justified.

Answer 8

War is not what's draining the country, it's social costs and services. Look at the national budget. Let's stop paying out so much for medical and social costs. We spend billions on dogs and cats, for example - we must put it all into perspective. Plus, if the Islamists win, we'll have nothing to defend.

Answer 9

Is it me or have you answered your own question...
As for Cruise missiles those things had been hanging around gavering dust for ages.

Cost of War, Yes please..I would rather give my tax to the MOD over scrounging asylum seekers any day.

Answer 10

You can't solve the worlds problems by throwing money at it, the warlords in Africa steal the majority of foreign aid to fight civil wars, ect.

Answer 11

Sadly, not realistic. Self serving greed crosses all cultural and ethnic boundaries. I don't think it can be radically different, It is not in human nature. Some cultures are actually opposed to the concept.