Where Have All the War Jobs Gone?

The Iraq war has cost us all a great deal.  In terms of the taxes, we’ve paid heavily towards invading Iraq needlessly, and we continue to pay towards the ongoing war effort. In terms of the economy, we’ve paid the price thanks to NAFTA and service contract outsourcing. In terms of human lives, we’ve paid the price with our young adults. But from the wreckage of Iraq and the disaster of an invasion that took place initially, the advantages of war have been cast to foreign shores, diverting jobs from the struggling US employment market to the detriment of the economy.

The jobs arising from Iraq and the rebuilding effort could have gone to American families.  However, the North American Free Trade Agreement has meant that jobs have been diverted largely to Mexico and Canada, resulting in further damage to the US economy as a result of the campaign in Iraq. And at a time when all Americans and the economy could benefit from extra job opportunities. So who’s to blame for this economic catastrophe?

Well, controversial war author and outspoken critic of the Bush regime, Bob Miller knows exactly why this disastrous campaign has gone from bad to worse.

“Had they [impeached Bush], a million or more people, 4,000 of them young Americans, would still be alive. The Secret Service can lock me up and keep me locked up if it pleases them, but not in a thousand years could Al-Qaeda devalue our flag and dollar like Bush and his accomplices have.”

“The offices of the President and Vice President are powerless to change the character of the people voters send to occupy these offices. When you send Goering and Himmler mentality to the President and Vice President's offices, there is no reason to expect other than a Goering and Himmler administration.”

Whether or not you agree with Bob Miller’s perspective, the issue remains that the US economy has been significantly hindered by the Iraq war. Apart from the terrible loss of life and hardship that’s been caused, the American economy is charging head first into a recession while the war jobs are going elsewhere.  NAFTA or not, this is no doubt a further catastrophe in a long line of catastrophes instigated by the current George W. Bush administration.

And so the lies cast in the run-up to the Iraq war, and the unforgivable policy blunders along the way, continue with the denial of war jobs to US citizens. At a time when our economy needs all the help it can get, the needless diversion of jobs by treaty and outsourcing to foreign shores have left us feeling the moral and economic heat from our expeditions into the Middle East. With the Bush/Cheney administration on the way out, Bob Miller and fellow critics of the current administration hope to finally see beyond the worst US President in history into a new era where common sense and integrity prevail.