Iraq costs $12 billion a month

The Iraq war now costs about three times as much as it did during the early days -- around $12 billion a month -- according to Nobel economist Joseph Stiglitz, who has tried to keep track, and now argues that the cost of the war, which will at least $3 trillion before long, has contributed to the U.S. economic downturn. Even if we started withdrawing troops today, many of the costs would continue. Remember when poor old Larry Lindsey got fired for estimating that it might cost several hundred billion overall? The amazing thing is that those who were so wrong about Iraq are still listened to at all -- Bill Kristol got the plum New York Times columnist slot once occupied by William Safire.