It's midnight, all right

Remember when the right-wingers raged at Bill Clinton because he wanted to spend a few million dollars expanding "midnight basketball" programs for inner city youths? The existing programs had relieved crime somewhat, and had been cited by Bush the elder as one of his "thousand points of light." Yet Rush and the FOXlings screamed like harpies at this "waste of the taxpayer's money."

Y'know what set me to thinking about that ginned-up "controversy" from a dozen years ago? Because I just read that the Iraq and Afghanistan misadventures are costing the taxpayers $12 billion a month.

If you want the number to sting less, think of it this way: In a country of 300,000,000, the butcher's bill comes to forty bucks a month per person. You're getting not one but two wars for the ultra-low cost of $500 bucks a year. Such a deal!

Of course, if one of your fellow citizens is too poor to pay taxes -- as is the case for many -- then you have to cough up more to make up the difference.

Hmm. But let's think about the total cost of the war.

So far, our calculations have not taken into account all the hidden expenses, such as long-term care for wounded and disabled veterans. A couple of articles from last year (here and here) lead me to believe that the final, final butcher's bill might reach as high as $3 trillion.

That's a number one should recite while doing an impersonation of Dr. Evil: "Three TRILL-yun dollars!"

The calculation is a simple one. Ten thou apiece.

Of course, if one of your fellow citizens is too poor to pay taxes -- as is the case for many -- then you have to cough up more to make up the difference.