how about $200BILLION to kill Saddam Hussein? that would probably be the most expensive hit job in history.
A war with Iraq could cost the U.S. as much as $200 billion, Bush's top economic adviser, Lawrence Lindsey, estimates. The estimate is significantly higher than a preliminary, private Pentagon figure of about $50 billion to wage war against Iraq.
online.wsj.com
In an interview in his White House office, Mr. Lindsey dismissed the economic consequences of such spending, saying it wouldn't have an appreciable effect on interest rates or add much to the federal debt, which is already about $3.6 trillion. "One year" of additional spending? he said. "That's nothing."
well, 1-2% may not be a big deal compared to our whole economy, but when one considers the US requires 75% of the world's capital to balance its current account, the geopolotical fallout may make it harder for us to rely on the kindness of strangers.
i predict an unpopular war abroad and a boycott of US paper by foreign investors. if that happens, US bonds and the US real estate market are toast! that will really screw our economy big time, imo. having pared back my equity positions, i am now considering paring back my heavy bond allocation. |
