What We Could Have Done with the Money: 50 Ways to Spend the Trillion Dollars We’ve Spent on Iraq, by Rob Simpson looks like it’s worth reading.

For only $9.95 you could buy a book that examines how short sighted your government has been by going to war with Iraq.

I myself have just been thinking – we could have developed all the energy technology we need right now over the last 6 years of the war, if we were only willing to spend the money here instead of fighting Iraqis for their oil (and don’t pretend our international “security” policy isn’t about oil – wake up and smell the petroleum people).

This guy literally worked out the math for 50 alternatives: pave the streets with gold, literally; paying off the entire country’s credit card debt; give everyone on earth an iPod; take all the Iraqi’s to a baseball game; pay for every high school kid’s college education making us more globally competitive; rebuilding the entire city of New Orleans; rectifying Social Security and Medicare.

I’m in the mood for long term strategy and smart thinking and better financial priorities.

To make myself feel powerful I spend my $1 Trillion on the cool online shopping spree and I was able to literally change the world. For the better.

I rebuilt levies in New Orleans, fed a lot of starving children until they were 18, conserved natural habitats and forests, fed the hungry all over America, bought goats for families, empowered 1,000 business women all over the world, provided health care for many.

I voted for Barack Obama last week!

Cause John McCain seems to think doing all those kind and generous things for people makes “the big scary government too big – but big fat expensive violent wars in Iraq do not.” I just don’t happen to agree.

Think. People. Think.

Post from: Blisstree

What Would YOU Do with $1 Trillion?

First we got Al, then we got George, then we got Al, then we got George – then we didn’t know who we got due to a bunch of hanging chads in another Bush’s state – then it went to the supreme court and we ended up with George W.

Both men went on to change the world in their own unique ways.

Gore went on to write an Inconvenient Truth and galvanized to make the world a greener place, less reliant on oil.

Bush went to war and proceeded to make $50,000 feel an awful lot like $30,000. Both with oil and the price of it. Conveniently (or Inconveniently depending who you are), also the source of his family’s fortune. Now, that’s a thing that makes me say Humm.

Now, we’re here again, as is our way in America. This time I’m a little happier.

First there’s more diversity this election: We’ve seen the first woman (Hillary Clinton), the first black man (Barack Obama), the first hispanic (Bill Richardson), and the first Mormon (Mitt Romney) candidates. Have there been other Baptist preachers (Huckabee)? I dunno. Other Ob/Gyns (Ron Paul)? I doubt it.

Happily, none of the candidates appear to have a personal financial stake in oil.

Please, no hanging chads this year.

Post from: Blisstree

Election Flashback

Thank goodness I don’t have any fallen soldiers to remember.

I have lots of veterans though.

My dad recently retired after 30 years in the Air Force and Utah Air National Guard. (Yeah, I’m a total military brat.)

My sister-in-law served 5 years in the Army and is still, knock-on-wood, subject to recall. (End the war quickly, she just had a baby!)

My grandfather served in World War II.

Thanks so all of our soldiers. Hope your weekend has been fabulous.

Post from: Blisstree

Happy Memorial Day