Lifting Blogs

I am pretty busy today so I thought you all should see this rather succinct paragraph from the American Progress Report. My sister Carlota, who returned from a month in France sent it along this morning. This comes from a great web site and newsletter that we get every day.

FOUR YEARS LATER: In the four years since Bush declared "Mission Accomplished," the war in Iraq has cost America and its allies dearly in both lives lost and resources spent. When Bush made his speech, 139 members of the military had lost their lives. As of April 26, there have been 3,337 military fatalities in Iraq. Five hundred twenty-four Americans had been wounded in Iraq by this date in 2003, while today, 26,188 Americans have been injured in the war zone, many of whom have in turn received sub-par treatment in over-taxed military hospitals. In 2003, there was an average of eight insurgent attacks a day. Today, American soldiers face a daily toll of 148.9 attacks. At the time of the speech, America had spent $53 billion on the war. Currently, $448 billion has been spent, with another $124 billion set to be spent in the war funding supplemental passed by Congress. The public's attitude toward Iraq has shifted dramatically over the past four years as well. In 2003, 75 percent of the public approved of Bush's handling of the war while today only 24 percent of Americans support his leadership on the issue. In 2003, 70 percent of Americans believed the Iraq war was "worth fighting." Now a minority of Americans -- only 34 percent -- believe that war has been worthwhile.

Also, for a good laugh on the goings on at the state land office, read this.